Tuxler is a relatively popular VPN that was created to “give people back their right to surf the Web without any borders.” They claim to be the first fully free VPN to ever be made.
This claim is difficult to verify or substantiate, but what we really care about is how Tuxler performs. Yes, it’s free. But does it work?
We’ve put this VPN service through some pretty comprehensive testing to deduce once and for all whether it is worth your time, let alone paying for (they have a premium plan!).
Carry on reading our review to find out more.
Ease of Use
To start using the free VPN service, download the application from the Tuxler website. Alternatively, get the browser extension for Firefox or Chrome. However, you will have to install the Tuxler application to use the extension on your browser.
Installing the Tuxler application to use the extension on Chrome is easy. The VPN takes about two minutes to connect to a server after installation. You can change the server location later if you choose. On the other hand, installing this VPN on your Windows or Mac device is simple as well.
When using the extension, you can connect or disconnect the VPN at any time. Also, you can pick the location you want to connect to from a drop-down menu.
If you want to use a residential location, check the box provided, and select a country. Interestingly, connections through residential locations are slower and less stable.
Speed – How Fast is Tuxler VPN?
It’s essential for a VPN to provide good speeds while keeping you secure online. Unfortunately, both the free and paid versions of Tuxler disappointed us with massive reductions in speed. Therefore, it scores 2 out of 10 in this aspect due to the following:
- The speed test results showed consistently low speeds across most IP addresses we connected to.
- We had problems using the internet with Tuxler because webpages failed to load and videos kept buffering.
Speed test results for Tuxler VPN
We used the trusted website speedtest.net to check Tuxler’s speed across several different locations. First, we tested the speed of our internet connection with no VPN. Then, we tried different TuxlerVPN servers multiple times and recorded the average download and upload speeds to get an overall idea of how fast it is.
We tested both the free and premium versions of Tuxler. The table below shows the results of Tuxler VPN premium, which performed slightly better than the free one.
As you can see in the table, we got the best results when connected to the Netherlands and Germany. But on the whole, speeds dropped pretty drastically even though the premium version promises “four times” the speed of its free VPN.
Fortunately, there are several other free VPN services that offer much better speeds. Moreover, if you want an even faster experience, you can opt for one of our top-rated premium VPNs like Surfshark or NordVPN, both of which offer high speeds at a much lower price than Tuxler.
Speed during daily use
Tuxler VPN was quite inconvenient to use as it caused frequent delays in loading webpages, buffering videos, and downloading/uploading files. At times, it seemed like the internet connection as a whole stopped working when connected to Tuxler. The only time we could use it effectively was when connected to the locations that worked best for us, namely the Netherlands and Germany. Even then, it still caused lags when streaming videos.
On the whole, even though Tuxler provides unlimited bandwidth to free users, its low speeds are a giant letdown. Our verdict is that Tuxler VPN is not suitable for general browsing, streaming, torrenting, or gaming. Instead, you should check out our list of the best VPN services that deliver great speed, security, and reliability.
TuxlerVPN Security
For most users, the protection of privacy and anonymity online is a priority when choosing a VPN product. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the encryption, security and privacy features, and logging processes offered by a VPN.
The best providers will operate on military-grade AES-256 bit encryption as standard to ensure your data cannot be read or deciphered by anyone. AES-256 bit encryption should also be used in combination with first-rate protocols like WireGuard, and OpenVPN, for an additional layer of security.
A powerful service should offer a range of advanced security and privacy features too, including a reliable integrated kill-switch to protect your data in the case that the connection fails for any reason. The kill-switch will cut your web connection so that no unencrypted information is shared until the connection is re-established.
There is little information regarding the encryption or protocols that Tuxler uses, which is slightly concerning. However, according to a customer support agent, the service uses industry-standard AES-256 bit encryption in combination with an RSA2048 key. There is support for torrenting, however, we would be inclined to recommend a more advanced provider if you require a VPN to protect your P2P sharing activities.
Unlike regular VPN providers, Tuxler offers a community network with access to constantly renewed proxy servers. This means it doesn’t have a secure server network, since other community members use a real member IP to access any website instead of data center IPs.
Another vital aspect of a VPN is its logging policy. The best VPNs come with strict no-logging policies which state that they will never store a user’s IP address, browsing history, or any other confidential information. By choosing a no-logs provider, you can rest assured that your online activities can never be linked back to you or your IP address.
Tuxler VPN’s privacy policy details all the personal information that it logs when you use its website, however, there is no information about the data that is stored when you use its apps and browser extensions. According to customer support, it seems that Tuxler logs accessed and source IP addresses.
The lack of transparency that surrounds the provider’s logging policy is a significant cause for concern. The fact that Tuxler’s no-cost service collects a host of information about its users, including internet activity and IP addresses is worrying. It means that the VPN company might be forwarding this information to third parties and legal authorities.
It is clear that Tuxler’s residential VPN does not come with a strict no-logs policy to match those of premium VPN providers like NordVPN and ExpressVPN. So, if you are a privacy-conscious user and you want to ensure your personal information remains private, we would suggest looking at one of these VPNs.
Overall, Tuxler’s community-powered free service cannot meet the privacy and security standards of VPNs like ExpressVPN and NordVPN. So, if you are concerned about your online anonymity, we would suggest looking elsewhere.