It might seem surreal, but the holiday season is almost here — which means it’s also the start of the shopping season. Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2023 will bring major sales from retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and more, with substantial discounts on products like laptops, TVs, headphones, and more — including software subscriptions.
If you’re hoping to find a discount on a decent VPN, ZDNET has you covered. Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are an excellent way to bolster your online security, and with Black Friday on the horizon, you won’t be lacking in opportunities to find a great deal on a short or long-term subscription.
ZDNET has found the best early Black Friday VPN deals you can buy right now. This list will be updated frequently, so check back often to find the latest deals ahead of the holiday. To browse the best deals across all categories including TVs, monitors, laptops, and more, check out our roundup of the best early deals. When the event begins, we will also provide you with a live blog that will monitor the best deals coming on the market.
Best early Black Friday 2023 VPN deals
PureVPN is offering one of the best deals on the market ahead of Black Friday. A VPN with 10 simultaneous connections, a solid server network made up of 6,500-plus servers in over 71 countries, and robust data protection features, PureVPN is a great choice ahead of the holidays if you want a long-term VPN solution.
There are two deals on offer: a one-year plan at $3.21/month, or our favorite: a five-year deal at only $1.83 per month.
Surfshark is constantly featured as one of ZDNET’s favorite affordable VPNs, and while we expect the price will drop further as we get closer to Black Friday, deals on its VPN subscription plans are already available.
Surfshark offers excellent value for money, and at the moment, you can sign up for a two-year subscription for the equivalent of $1.99/month. As a bonus, you will receive three months of free access added to your plan’s term.
Protected by Swiss privacy laws — which is always a bonus when you are looking for a new VPN provider — Privado VPN is also providing a deal ahead of the holiday season.
Set at 82% off (although, keep in mind that many VPN providers often offer year-round discounts) the firm’s two-year plan is still a bargain at $1.99 per month.
IPVanish is a solid VPN for desktop and mobile, with an excellent server range and rapid connections. It’s not too often that IPVanish offers noteworthy discounts, but ahead of Black Friday, the VPN provider’s one and two-year plans are on sale.
12-month subscriptions begin at $3.49/month, whereas two-year plans are set at the best price available: $2.99/month.
Private Internet Access (PIA) is one of ZDNET’s favorite mobile and travel VPNs, and ahead of Black Friday, you can sign up for a plan that is good value for money.
PIA is offering two-year subscriptions at $2.11/month, an 82% price drop. Three months of access will be added to the term of your plan for free.
More early Black Friday 2023 VPN deals
In the United States, the popular shopping day known as Black Friday takes place the day after Thanksgiving.
This year, in 2023, Black Friday falls on November 24. And don’t worry if you aren’t able to keep an eye on digital sales events or make it to a store in person: many retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart extend sales and deals events through the weekend and into the Monday or even Tuesday after Thanksgiving.
ZDNET only writes about deals we want to buy — devices and products we want, need, or would recommend. Our experts looked for deals that were at least 20% off (or are hardly ever on sale), using established price comparison tools and trackers to determine whether the deal is actually on sale and how frequently it drops.
We also looked over customer reviews to find out what matters to real people who already own and use the deals we’re recommending. Our recommendations may also be based on our own testing — in addition to extensive research and comparison shopping. The goal is to deliver the most accurate advice to help you shop smarter.
VPN is an acronym for virtual private network. These services allow users to browse the internet privately and securely connect to open or public Wi-Fi networks. VPNs allow users to change their virtual location by redirecting the connection through one of its servers located around the world. A VPN will also encrypt all of your traffic, so you’re hidden from hackers, your internet service provider, and governments.
However, if your online activities are being monitored at the ISP level — say, by a government — they may recognize the signature of a VPN in play, even if exactly what you are doing is hidden.
VPNs are useful in unblocking geo-restricted content and can be a vital tool for accessing information in countries with repressive governments. They are important services for anyone who wants to maintain a high level of safety and privacy online. However, because they are anonymous (or at least should be) they can also be used to hide illegal online activities such as pirating content.
If you’re traveling or using the internet in a public place like a coffee shop, that data encryption is critical, since most public Wi-Fi hotspots are open and unencrypted — which means anyone on the network can see what you send and may be able to eavesdrop on your activities and steal passwords.
If it’s your data and you want it to be secure, yes. The same choices are valid regardless of what kind of device you use to transmit and receive data over the Internet.
Yes, in most countries, including the US, the UK, and the majority of Europe. Some countries, however, have made VPN use illegal, or they are severely discouraged and limited to state-approved software.
At the moment, countries including North Korea, Iraq, and Belarus have reportedly banned the use of VPNs entirely. As noted in NordVPN’s country guide, others — like China, Russia, and Egypt — discourage VPN use and try to stop new adoption by demonizing VPNs as software widely used for criminal activity.
Workarounds do exist, but they may come with risks.