Setting up a VPN for home network protects you from prying eyes, prevents data leaks, and improves online privacy. This post introduces some of the best VPNs for securing your home network.
Best VPN Services for Home Networks
When choosing the best VPN for a home network, it’s important to consider factors like security, reliability, ease of setup, and the number of devices supported.
Surfshark: Budget-Friendly with Advanced Features
Surfshark provides an app for individual devices like phones, tablets, and laptops. It is simple to set it up on supported routers.
Unlimited Device Connections: Surfshark supports an unlimited number of devices simultaneously. If you have a large household or family, it’s convenient.
Strong Privacy Protocol: Surfshark offers AES-256 encryption, a strict no-logs policy, and CleanWeb. These strong protocols block malware, ads, and trackers.
Router Compatibility: Surfshark provides a router app version, you only need to download it on your router, and all devices on your home network are protected without needing separate apps on each device.
Pros:
- Unlimited device connections for one account.
- Affordable pricing plans.
- Offers advanced features like Multi-Hop and CleanWeb.
LightningX VPN: High-speed, Stable and Safe
Follow LightningX VPN’s detailed router setup guides to protect all devices connected to your network. The app is available for installation on individual devices for further protection.
High Speed and Stability: LightningX VPN doesn’t limit bandwidth, you can experience unprecedented high speed, stable network connection, and log-free. It won’t offer your data to the ISP, with one click, you can enjoy all features.
Lots of Servers: LightningX VPN offers 2,000+ servers in 50+ countries, including the US, Germany, Australia, Singapore, Japan, and so on. If you set up it on your home network, you can access it anywhere and enjoy games and streaming anytime without blocking.
Compatibility: LightningX VPN is compatible with PC, Mac, Android, iOS, and Apple TV, allowing you to access social media platforms and streaming services. Plus, it allows using 3 devices simultaneously. You can share the entertainment with your friends or family.
Strong Security Protection: LightningX VPN adopts the best VPN protocols. Based on advanced VPN algorithms AES-256-GCM and ChaCha20-Poly135, your IP address and online data can be protected safely.
Pros:
- Unlimited bandwidth to use.
- Reliable money-back guarantee.
- Strong protocol plans.
NordVPN: Secure, Reliable, and Feature-Packed
NordVPN’s router setup is straightforward, with guides available for various router models. Install the NordVPN app on devices for an individual secure connection.
Router Support: NordVPN works seamlessly with routers. All your devices connected to it can be protected without downloading individual apps.
Strong Security: NordVPN adopts NordLynx as the encryption protocol, it’s an advanced protocol based on WireGuard. Using NordVPN, your Internet speed and security performance can be improved.
Related: How to Test Your Internet Speed – A Complete Guide
Simultaneous Devices: NordVPN allows 6 device connections at the same time, for a home network connection, it’s enough to use.
Ad-block Feature: Compared with other VPNs, NordVPN can block malware, ads, and trackers, adding an extra layer of protection for your devices.
Pros:
- Router support feature.
- Ad-block feature.
- Unique encryption protocol.
Why Use a VPN for Home Network?
Security Protection:
A VPN makes it difficult for anyone, especially hackers and ISPs, to intercept or view your data by encrypting your Internet traffic. Using a VPN is especially important if you are connecting to a public Wi-Fi network or browsing some websites without security certifications.
Privacy Protection:
Using a VPN can hide your IP address and online activities, making it hard to be tracked. When you browse websites, you can receive fewer harassment messages and unwanted advertisements to protect your privacy.
Accessing Blocked Content:
Some streaming services and game providers offer different content in different regions, and some regional governments take different governmental laws. There are several blocked or unavailable content you need to use a VPN to help access.
Protect Financial Security:
Sometimes, some merchandise is only sold in a specific region. When you do these international transactions, your banking information may be leaked. A VPN creates a tunnel to encrypt your Internet connection, minimizing the risk of identity theft and fraud.
How to Set Up a VPN for Your Home Network?
There are two ways to set up a VPN for your home network. You can select one you like.
VPN Router Setup
The most straightforward way to set up is by configuring a VPN on your Wi-Fi router. This ensures your every device can connect to your Wi-Fi network and be protected.
Related: 4 Best VPN Routers & How to Set Up (Ultra-Fast, Reliable)
Step 1: Choose a Compatible Router
This router must support VPN connections. If not, there’s nothing we can do next. Many modern routers support VPN configuration especially those running custom firmware like DD-WRT, OpenWRT, or AsusWRT.
Step 2: Sign Up for a VPN Service
Selecting a VPN service that supports router installations, for example, LightningX VPN. Then sign up for the VPN service, only an active subscription can set up a VPN on your router.
Step 3: Install the VPN on the Router
Next, you can follow the instructions to install the VPN directly on your router. In this step, you can access the router’s settings page, enter your VPN credentials, and configure the connection.
Step 4: Test the Connection
After setting up, test your VPN by checking your IP address or running a test to confirm that your home network is protected.
VPN Software on Individual Devices
If setting up a VPN on the router is not feasible, you can install VPN software on each device. This works for laptops, smartphones, smart TVs, gaming consoles, etc. Here’s how to do it:
Step 1: Install VPN Apps on Devices
Search for a VPN service on your different devices, the provider offers dedicated apps on most devices, such as Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, etc. You can download and install it on devices you want to protect.
Step 2: Configure the VPN:
After downloading the app, you need to log in with your VPN account and select the server location you want to use. But there is usually an automatic setting for the best performance.
Step 3: Connect to VPN:
Activate the VPN connection on each device. The VPN will encrypt traffic for that device while it’s connected.
How Much You May Cost to Set Up a VPN for a Home Network?
The cost of setting up a VPN for a home network depends on how you set up the VPN server. If you want to set up a homemade VPN server on a router, but your router doesn’t support OpenVPN, you need to buy new hardware.
At that time, you need to pay for the routers with built-in VPN server capabilities. The cost is varied, you need to check at a store. The cloud servers are a paid function too, you need to pay a monthly cost to rent them from a third-party provider.
However, if you want to set up a VPN server on a router or device you already own, such as a Windows computer, it’s completely FREE.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a safe and reliable VPN for your home network, this post can give you some useful information. All the listed recommendations are easy to set up and safe to install. Especially, the LightningX VPN makes a balance of affordability, ease, and strong performance, it’s a great selection for your home network.
