Virtual private networks (VPNs) are the most popular and best way to keep yourself safe. They hide your IP address and encrypt your data, making you much harder to hack or track. They also keep you safe from government surveillance. But choosing a VPN is no walk in the park. There are hundreds of options available and it’s hard without any expertise to know the difference. Reading reviews is crucial. However, you should go a step further and try out a free trial. Here are 3 reasons to try a VPN free trial.

1. Try it with your streaming content

Streaming content is one major reason people use VPNs, whether to circumvent geo-restrictions or get past censorship in authoritarian countries. Which is why streaming websites have cracked down on VPN users and banned many VPNs. This, unfortunately, affects even those who are using the VPN for security. Before paying for a VPN, it’s a good idea to see if the VPN works with the streaming sites you use. Reviews will give you an idea of this, but they can soon become outdated, and some VPNs will only have servers in certain countries that work with Netflix etc.

2. See if its speed affects you

One major reason people avoid using VPNs is that it will inevitably slow down speeds. This affects some people and not others. For example, if you’re using a very fast line, it shouldn’t make that much difference. But if you’re streaming content and your line already needs to be performing at its limit, a small difference can ruin your online experience. Some VPNs are quicker than others, and this depends on many circumstances, including whether it has servers close to you. Use the free trial to try different servers to find out which is the fastest on a consistent basis.

3. Save some money

You can be a particular spendthrift and milk free trials to the nth degree, but you may have more pertinent reasons to use free trials. If you don’t have the money to spend on a VPN right now, you absolutely should make use of free trials to tide you over until you have enough. This can be especially important for those looking to buy a year’s subscription which will save them up to half the price but cannot afford just yet for such a layout. You can use this time to both save money and try different options. This way, you’ll get to make the best decision in the end without wasting a cent on trial and error. Free trials are important when choosing a VPN because you cannot know for sure how well a VPN will work until you’ve tried it. Take advantage of the different VPN providers who have a free trial offer while you can.