CyberGhost VPN vs
Hotspot Shield vs
2021

Item: CyberGhost VPN
Rating: 4.8
Author: Catherine Ablett

After comparing these VPNs, we have a winner!

1966 User Reviews

9.6

More Info

325 User Reviews

8.8

More Info

Which VPN is better?

Catherine Ablett
Cybersecurity Researcher

CyberGhost VPN and Hotspot Shield both offer users a range of great features and benefits, however, their approaches to privacy are very different. While CyberGhost has a strict no logging policy, Hotspot Shield has been the subject of an investigation into its data collection methods and is recognized as keeping partial logs. When it comes to how secure your connections are, CyberGhost offers military grade 256-bit AES encryption, IP and DNS leak protection, and a kill switch. Hotspot Shield does not offer a kill switch and its encryption is either 256-bit or 128-bit AES depending on the operating system you are using. It does however, run OpenVPN, which is more stable and secure than either PPTP or LT2P. While Hotspot Shield does have more server locations than CyberGhost at the current time, CyberGhost boast around five times more servers. CyberGhost also offers users two more simultaneous connections per license than Hotspot Shield, with seven to its five.


Features
9.4
Pricing
9.0
Ease of Use
9.6
Reliability & Support
9.2

Features
8.0
Pricing
9.0
Ease of Use
9.0
Reliability & Support
8.6

Rating
Features	9.4	8.0
Pricing	9.0	9.0
Ease of Use	9.6	9.0
Reliability & Support	9.2	8.6

Reviews

Review by our expert

Kate Veale Cybersecurity Researcher

9.6

When I read that CyberGhost had been bought out by Kape — a company that used to be infamous for bundling adware into its downloads — alarm bells started ringing. I’ve recommended CyberGhost in the past as a trustworthy and easy-to-use VPN that suits beginners. But is it even safe to use anymore? I did a deep dive into CyberGhost’s ownership, privacy policy, and security measures to de...

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Latest positive user review

Edward Turner

10.0

Excellent on line security Excellent security, plenty of secure sites to choose from, very rarely drops out but if it does there is a kill switch that operates to keep you safe. A very good secure browser is included along with a few other items to keep you on top and stay secure.

Latest negative user review

Norman

2.0

They tell me it is impossible for me to connect to UK Netflix! I've just been trying CyberGhost and had problems connecting to UK Netflix from where I am in South America. It just kept connecting to a different country, probably the US. When I asked their Support about it, I was told (and I have it in writing from a Chat) that to access UK Netflix from outside the UK, you MUST have a UK Netflix account! Can that possibly be true? I have never heard of that from any other VPN and I know NordVPN (so far) connects fine to UK Netflix with my local Netflix account.

Pricing

Starting price

$2.25/ month

Money Back Guarantee (Days)

Number of devices per license

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Starting price

$2.99/ month

Money Back Guarantee (Days)

Number of devices per license

See Plans


Starting price	$2.25/ month	$2.99/ month	121332/
Money Back Guarantee (Days)	45	45	0
Number of devices per license	7	5	Unlimited
See Plans & Pricing	See Plans	See Plans

Best VPNs by category

Best VPNs Overall		CyberGhost VPN has the greater number of servers, offers greater security with a kill switch, IP and DNS leak protection, and 256-bit AES encryption throughout. Both offer fast and reliable connections with unlimited bandwidth and can be used on all major operating systems. Both offer a 45-day money-back guarantee. CyberGhost and Hotspot Shield can both be used to access geo-restricted content, including Netflix, however, CyberGhost does run into problems with BBC iPlayer. Hotspot Shield’s users benefit from the vendors Catapult Hydra data compression technology; however, these need to be weighed against its logging policies and previous investigations into its use of data. You can get CyberGhost for a great price if you use one of these coupon codes.
Best VPNs Overall CyberGhost VPN has the greater number of servers, offers greater security with a kill switch, IP and DNS leak protection, and 256-bit AES encryption throughout. Both offer fast and reliable connections with unlimited bandwidth and can be used on all major operating systems. Both offer a 45-day money-back guarantee. CyberGhost and Hotspot Shield can both be used to access geo-restricted content, including Netflix, however, CyberGhost does run into problems with BBC iPlayer. Hotspot Shield’s users benefit from the vendors Catapult Hydra data compression technology; however, these need to be weighed against its logging policies and previous investigations into its use of data. You can get CyberGhost for a great price if you use one of these coupon codes.
Best VPNs for Torrents		CyberGhost allows torrenting across specific servers and is registered in Romania, which does not have very strict censorship or surveillance laws currently. Hotspot Shield does not allow torrenting / P2P on any of its servers.
Best VPNs for Torrents CyberGhost allows torrenting across specific servers and is registered in Romania, which does not have very strict censorship or surveillance laws currently. Hotspot Shield does not allow torrenting / P2P on any of its servers.
Best VPNs for Windows		Both CyberGhost and Hotspot Shield work well with the Windows operating system and offer easy to download and install apps. Both offer unlimited bandwidth and stable connections. CyberGhost’s technology allows users to connect to the best server for their needs by setting up a distinct profile based on their main reason for using a VPN. Hotspot Shield users benefit from faster speeds through the use of Catapult Hydra technology. However, Hotspot Shield users have no live chat customer services option and user guides provided on the website are unclear.
Best VPNs for Windows Both CyberGhost and Hotspot Shield work well with the Windows operating system and offer easy to download and install apps. Both offer unlimited bandwidth and stable connections. CyberGhost’s technology allows users to connect to the best server for their needs by setting up a distinct profile based on their main reason for using a VPN. Hotspot Shield users benefit from faster speeds through the use of Catapult Hydra technology. However, Hotspot Shield users have no live chat customer services option and user guides provided on the website are unclear.
Best VPNs for Android		Both services work on Android and the app from Hotspot Shield allows users to automatically connect to a proxy browser. CyberGhost’s users benefit from excellent speeds, military grade encryption, and a 7-day free trial on this operating system.
Best VPNs for Android Both services work on Android and the app from Hotspot Shield allows users to automatically connect to a proxy browser. CyberGhost’s users benefit from excellent speeds, military grade encryption, and a 7-day free trial on this operating system.
Best VPNs for Mac		CyberGhost and Hotspot shield both offer apps for the Mac operating system. Both offer fast connection speeds and Hotspot Shield users have the additional benefit of Catapult Hydra technology to improve the speeds they can achieve. CyberGhost users, however, benefit from better security, strict no logging policies, and better customer services.
Best VPNs for Mac CyberGhost and Hotspot shield both offer apps for the Mac operating system. Both offer fast connection speeds and Hotspot Shield users have the additional benefit of Catapult Hydra technology to improve the speeds they can achieve. CyberGhost users, however, benefit from better security, strict no logging policies, and better customer services.
Best VPNs for iOS		Both vendors provide native apps for iOS that are simple to set up and use. CyberGhost users have the additional benefit of a 7-day free trial for this operating system.
Best VPNs for iOS Both vendors provide native apps for iOS that are simple to set up and use. CyberGhost users have the additional benefit of a 7-day free trial for this operating system.
Best VPNs for USA		Both vendors have servers throughout the USA and both are able to bypass geo-restrictions to stream content, including US Netflix. However, CyberGhost users have the additional benefit of strict no logging policies and DNS leak protection.
Best VPNs for USA Both vendors have servers throughout the USA and both are able to bypass geo-restrictions to stream content, including US Netflix. However, CyberGhost users have the additional benefit of strict no logging policies and DNS leak protection.

The Bottom Line

Catherine Ablett

Cybersecurity Researcher

Winner

Visit website »

www.cyberghostvpn.com

See Plans & Pricing

Both vendors offer fast speeds, stable connections, and easy to use apps for all major operating systems. However, CyberGhost offers the better security with 256-bit AES encryption, an automatic kill switch, strict no logging policy, and IP and DNS leak protection. Combined with its superior customer services approach, including live chat options and easy to follow guides, it is the clear winner between the two vendors.

Interestingly, if you compare CyberGhost VPN with Norton Family, which is our top ranked vpn, you'll see that CyberGhost VPN can learn a lot from Norton Family. Compare CyberGhost VPN with Norton Family

Time to decide which one is best for you

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CyberGhost VPN vs Hotspot Shield vs 2021