Private Internet Access vs Zenmate VPN vs 2019

Name: The Bottom Line
Item: Private Internet Access
Rating: 4.5
Author: Ran Greenberg

After comparing these VPNs, we have a winner!

156 User Reviews

4.5

More Info

128 User Reviews

4.1

More Info

Which VPN is better?

Ran Greenberg
New-Media and online expert, Venture Capitalist and investor

Private Internet Access (PIA) and ZenMate are very popular VPNs known for their innovative services and easy-to-use, dedicated apps for all major platforms, including iOS and Android. Strong 256-bit encryption, malware blocking, tracking and wi-fi protection, unlimited bandwidth, and all the other essentials you would expect from top VPNs can be found with either of these providers. When it comes to advanced features, you’ll find ad blocking, a built-in SOCKS5 proxy, and DNS leak protection only in PIA’s service. If you plan to download torrents, both providers support P2P activities, but you should be aware that ZenMate had a questionable privacy policy in the past regarding torrenting. While ZenMate offers a 7-day free trial and a 14-day money-back guarantee, PIA offers only a 7-day money-back guarantee on new orders and no free trial. These providers also differ in network size, with PIA maintaining an impressive 3,160+ servers in 33 countries, compared to around 300 servers in 30+ countries for ZenMate. See our detailed, category-by-category comparison below to decide which VPN is better for you.


Features
4.7
Pricing
4.6
Ease of Use
4.7
Reliability & Support
4.7

Features
4.1
Pricing
3.8
Ease of Use
4.1
Reliability & Support
4.2

Rating
Features	4.7	4.1
Pricing	4.6	3.8
Ease of Use	4.7	4.1
Reliability & Support	4.7	4.2

Reviews

Review by our expert

Katie Kasunic

Technology Researcher

4.5

Private Internet Access (PIA) is one of the most popular VPNs on the market. True to its name, this provider is best known for its strict no-logs policy and commitment to user privacy. Is PIA truly as trustworthy as they claim when it comes to protecting user privacy and anonymity? How does it perform in other categories like streaming, torrenting, and safety? We tested PIA ourselves to find

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Latest positive user review

Seamous O'Reason

5.0

I Trust PIA PIA has been protecting me for years now and been very easy to use. Payment via gift card is straightforward and an excellent option -- though a more expensive option since you won't get as many days as you would via other sources for the same amount of money. However, PIA has proven itself to be trustworthy with its no logs policy. That in itself makes me a loyal and continuing subscriber.

Latest negative user review

John

1.0

PIA Sucks If you are shopping for a VPN I am here to tell you NOT to buy a product called PIA (Private Internet Access). The reasons are short and sweet: (1) it will degrade your internet speed just about to uselessness (mine went from 150 Mbps to ~30 Mbps) and (2) if you try to cancel they will not refund your subscription fee. After 4-5 attempts to resolve the speed issue they gave up.

Pricing

Starting price

$3.33/ month

Money Back Guarantee (Days)

Number of devices per license

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Starting price

$1.75/ month

Money Back Guarantee (Days)

Number of devices per license

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Starting price	$3.33/ month	$1.75/ month	121332/
Money Back Guarantee (Days)	7	30	0
Number of devices per license	10	5	Unlimited
See Plans & Pricing	See Plans	See Plans

Best VPNs by category

Best VPNs Overall		PIA offers a powerful service with a very large network of servers, no known restrictions on speed or usage, and many unique features. ZenMate also has a fairly reliable service that’s consistently improving, with very user-friendly apps across all major platforms.
Best VPNs Overall PIA offers a powerful service with a very large network of servers, no known restrictions on speed or usage, and many unique features. ZenMate also has a fairly reliable service that’s consistently improving, with very user-friendly apps across all major platforms.
Best VPNs for Torrents		If you’re interested in P2P file sharing, we recommend PIA, which offers dedicated, high-speed servers optimized for downloading torrents anonymously. ZenMate now supports torrenting, but has previously prohibited P2P activities on its network, and its privacy policy still leaves some unanswered questions about the level of anonymity you can expect.
Best VPNs for Torrents If you’re interested in P2P file sharing, we recommend PIA, which offers dedicated, high-speed servers optimized for downloading torrents anonymously. ZenMate now supports torrenting, but has previously prohibited P2P activities on its network, and its privacy policy still leaves some unanswered questions about the level of anonymity you can expect.
Best VPNs for Windows		PIA offers a Windows app with a straightforward interface and access to advanced DNS leak protection and ad blocking. Meanwhile, ZenMate’s Windows client is very easy to install and set up, features a smooth interface that’s easy to adapt to, and gives you access to strong encryption and VoIP capabilities.
Best VPNs for Windows PIA offers a Windows app with a straightforward interface and access to advanced DNS leak protection and ad blocking. Meanwhile, ZenMate’s Windows client is very easy to install and set up, features a smooth interface that’s easy to adapt to, and gives you access to strong encryption and VoIP capabilities.
Best VPNs for Android		By providing access to more than 3,000 servers worldwide, a dedicated app, and features like malware protection and ad blocking, PIA offers a commendable service for Android. ZenMate also has an attractive service for Android that includes its own user-friendly app, with OpenVPN as the default protocol.
Best VPNs for Android By providing access to more than 3,000 servers worldwide, a dedicated app, and features like malware protection and ad blocking, PIA offers a commendable service for Android. ZenMate also has an attractive service for Android that includes its own user-friendly app, with OpenVPN as the default protocol.
Best VPNs for Mac		PIA features a powerful service for MacOS that includes access to a SOCKS5 proxy, an ad blocker, and support for the PPTP, OpenVPN, and L2TP/IPSec VPN protocols. ZenMate also provides a MacOS app that includes malware protection and access to the provider’s entire network of about 300 servers.
Best VPNs for Mac PIA features a powerful service for MacOS that includes access to a SOCKS5 proxy, an ad blocker, and support for the PPTP, OpenVPN, and L2TP/IPSec VPN protocols. ZenMate also provides a MacOS app that includes malware protection and access to the provider’s entire network of about 300 servers.
Best VPNs for iOS		PIA offers a dedicated iOS app that uses IPsec as its default encryption protocol and includes built-in malware protection and ad blocking. If you need to use PIA with OpenVPN, you can manually configure the protocol using the universal OpenVPN connect app, which can be set up in minutes. ZenMate also offers an iOS app with a very user-friendly interface and malware and tracking protection.
Best VPNs for iOS PIA offers a dedicated iOS app that uses IPsec as its default encryption protocol and includes built-in malware protection and ad blocking. If you need to use PIA with OpenVPN, you can manually configure the protocol using the universal OpenVPN connect app, which can be set up in minutes. ZenMate also offers an iOS app with a very user-friendly interface and malware and tracking protection.
Best VPNs for USA		PIA unblocks hundreds of US websites from any location worldwide and even has dedicated streaming servers for accessing US shows and movies. However, it does not unblock US Netflix. Although its connections are slower, ZenMate offers more than 70 US servers that are capable of unblocking Netflix and many other websites based in the country.
Best VPNs for USA PIA unblocks hundreds of US websites from any location worldwide and even has dedicated streaming servers for accessing US shows and movies. However, it does not unblock US Netflix. Although its connections are slower, ZenMate offers more than 70 US servers that are capable of unblocking Netflix and many other websites based in the country.

The Bottom Line

Ran Greenberg

New-Media and online expert, Venture Capitalist and investor

Private Internet Access wins this comparison mainly by offering a much larger network of servers and more advanced features than ZenMate. It also has a more transparent privacy policy, including a verified promise to never store any activity logs. PIA’s more budget-friendly subscription prices and faster connection speeds than ZenMate also help to tip this contest in its favor. Interestingly, top VPN providers like CyberGhost and ExpressVPN match PIA’s privacy protections while offering even better speeds and reliably unblocking Netflix-US.

Interestingly, if you compare Private Internet Access with NordVPN, which is our top ranked vpn, you'll see that Private Internet Access can learn a lot from NordVPN. Compare Private Internet Access with NordVPN

Winner

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www.privateinternetaccess.com

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