Gjurgjica Panova
Updated on: December 14, 2023
Short on time? Here’s the best VPN for online poker in 2024:
- 🥇ExpressVPN: Reliably works with many poker sites, maintains blazing-fast speeds for playing poker without interruptions, and has advanced security features to keep your money safe. Each of its plans comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Whenever I’m traveling abroad, I’m not able to access my favorite poker sites, which is quite annoying. Some poker sites aren’t available in certain countries, either due to geo-blocks or because certain countries ban them.
Luckily, I found a solution to this problem — using a VPN. A VPN hides your IP address and location, and it gives you a new IP address from the server location that you choose. It also encrypts your network traffic, making your online poker playing safer from hackers.
However, not all VPNs are good for online poker sites. Most VPNs have a small server network and lack advanced security features that keep your funds and identity safe while playing online poker.
I tested many VPNs in the past few weeks to find the best ones for online poker. The ones I chose can consistently access multiple poker sites. I recommend ExpressVPN as it reliably accesses poker sites, comes with industry-leading speeds, and has user-friendly apps.
Quick summary of the best VPNs for online poker:
- 1. 🥇ExpressVPN — Best overall VPN for online poker in 2024 (with fast speeds + a vast server network).
- 2. 🥈Private Internet Access — Great VPN with advanced split-tunneling for faster connections for playing poker.
- 3. 🥉CyberGhost VPN — Good VPN for beginners (with user-friendly apps + convenient automation rules).
- 4. NordVPN — Strong security features for securing your connections for playing poker.
- 5. Surfshark — Affordable VPN with unlimited simultaneous connections + intuitive apps.
- Comparison of the Best VPNs for Online Poker in 2024.
🥇1. ExpressVPN — Best Overall VPN for Online Poker in 2024
Approved by our experts
ExpressVPN is my favorite VPN for playing online poker — it reliably accesses many poker sites, including PokerStars, 888Poker, and GGPoker. Its large network of servers in 105 countries lets you play online poker from almost anywhere in the world.
ExpressVPN has advanced security and privacy features, including:
- RAM-only servers. These servers run on volatile memory, so that with each server reboot, all data is erased.
- Perfect forward secrecy. A security feature that changes your encryption key for each session to prevent hackers from accessing your data from past and future sessions.
- Verified no-logs policy. Its no-logs policy is audited and verified, confirming that it doesn’t collect or store your browsing data.
- Full leak protection. ExpressVPN prevents WebRTC, DNS, and IPv6 leaks that could accidentally expose your data while playing online poker.
All of ExpressVPN’s servers come with obfuscation that lets you access poker sites in restrictive countries like China. Your VPN traffic is disguised as regular internet traffic, making it very difficult for internet censors to trace or intercept.
I’m a big fan of ExpressVPN’s Threat Manager, which blocks connections to malicious sites. It can keep you safe from shady poker sites or phishing sites that claim to be legitimate poker sites.
When it comes to speeds, it’s hard to beat ExpressVPN thanks to its proprietary Lightway protocol. In my tests, poker sites and HD and 4K videos loaded instantly. I really like the Smart Location feature, which connected me to the fastest server available.
I found ExpressVPN’s apps easy and intuitive to use. It took me just 2 minutes to download and install its apps. I really like the Shortcuts feature that allows you to create 1-click shortcuts to apps and sites, which makes it easy to connect to your favorite poker sites with just one click.
ExpressVPN has plans starting at $6.67 / month, and its longer-term plans often come with extra months for free. All of its plans include a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
ExpressVPN is consistently able to access major poker sites, and it has lightning-fast speeds for uninterrupted poker play. Advanced security features like Threat Manager prevent you from accessing shady poker sites that pose as legitimate poker sites. All ExpressVPN apps are user-friendly, and each plan has a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Read the full ExpressVPN review
🥈2. Private Internet Access — Great Split-Tunneling Feature for Faster Poker Play
Private Internet Access (PIA) has an advanced split-tunneling feature that lets you choose which apps and IP addresses use the VPN and which bypass the VPN. The feature is available on all major platforms, including macOS, which is quite rare as only few VPNs have split-tunneling on macOS. In my tests, I excluded my bank’s IP address from the VPN and routed my poker traffic through PIA, which gave me faster speeds in my poker games.
PIA has advanced security features — RAM-only servers, full leak protection, an audited and verified no-logs policy, and perfect forward secrecy. This will give you extra peace of mind when playing poker online. If you’re traveling in restrictive countries, you can obfuscate your traffic using PIA’s Shadowsocks proxy to circumvent censorship and continue to play online poker.
PIA has a wide network of servers in 91 countries, giving you many connection options for playing online poker. I like that you have the option to pinpoint the fastest server location for accessing top poker sites like partypoker or GGPoker. However, ExpressVPN covers 105 countries, which is a bit more than PIA.
PIA’s apps are highly customizable — you can easily change the settings, connection options, and encryption levels. For example, I changed the encryption level from the standard 256-bit AES to 128-bit AES to get faster speeds. I also set the option to connect automatically to PIA every time I joined public Wi-Fi to ensure that I could play online poker securely. And PIA’s support for unlimited simultaneous connections is very convenient as well.
PIA had fast speeds in my tests. Online poker sites loaded in 1–2 seconds, and HD and 4K videos took a couple of seconds to load and they played without any interruptions. That said, ExpressVPN is still faster.
Private Internet Access has plans that start at $6.67 / month. Each of its plans is backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
Private Internet Access’s split-tunneling is convenient for online poker since it lets you redirect apps and IP addresses for a faster experience. That, combined with its large server network, fast speeds, and customizable apps, make PIA an excellent choice for playing poker online. It also comes with a risk-free, 30-day money-back guarantee.
Read the full Private Internet Access review
🥉3. CyberGhost VPN — User-Friendly Apps With Convenient Automation
CyberGhost VPN’s apps are quite easy to navigate and customize for online poker. It took me only 1–2 minutes to download and install the VPN app and I found it easy to use. What’s more, the Smart Rules feature allows you to customize your VPN preferences. For example, you can set the VPN app to automatically connect to a specific server and open a specific browser or poker app when you launch CyberGhost VPN.
I really like CyberGhost VPN’s Identity Guard, which warns you if your email and password have been leaked. This security feature is useful if you want to secure your login credentials for poker sites.
CyberGhost VPN has a built-in extra layer of privacy that makes it a good choice for playing online poker. CyberGhost VPN is headquartered in Romania, which isn’t part of the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliances that share surveillance data among members. This means that CyberGhost VPN won’t surrender your data to government authorities. Plus, Romania doesn’t have mandatory data retention laws, so the VPN isn’t obligated to save your browsing history.
And CyberGhost VPN has great security features — full leak protection, perfect forward secrecy, RAM-only servers, and an audited no-logs policy.
CyberGhost VPN had great speeds during my tests. The poker sites I visited loaded instantly, and HD and 4K videos took only 2–3 seconds to load. However, ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access still provided me with faster speeds.
CyberGhost VPN has plans that start at $2.03 / month. The longer-term plans come with a 45-day money-back guarantee, while the shortest plan has a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
CyberGhost VPN comes with user-friendly apps that let you customize launch settings. It has advanced security features, and its Identity Guard will alert you if your login credentials are exposed. Moreover, CyberGhost VPN has a 45-day money-back guarantee on longer plans.
Read the full CyberGhost VPN review
4. NordVPN — High-End Security Features for Safe Online Poker Play
NordVPN has great security features that keep your data safe while playing online poker. Its Threat Protection feature protects you from shady sites that pose as legitimate poker sites and from malware-infected downloads. I also really like its Dark Web Monitor, which notifies you if your NordVPN login details are part of a data breach. This is especially helpful If you use the same login details on poker sites.
NordVPN also has advanced security features, such as full leak protection, RAM-only servers, and perfect forward secrecy. I also like that its no-logs policy has been independently audited and verified, confirming that it doesn’t log your browsing activities.
In terms of speeds, NordVPN is quite fast. I was able to access poker sites in 4–5 seconds. HD videos played with some buffering in the beginning, but once they loaded, they played with no interruptions. That said, NordVPN is not as fast as ExpressVPN.
I like how easy it is to navigate NordVPN’s apps. You can set up NordVPN to auto-connect to a server location that accesses poker sites every time you connect to an unsecured network, public Wi-Fi, or if you choose, permanently. What’s more, NordVPN has apps for all major devices and platforms, and the apps can be easily downloaded and installed.
NordVPN has plans that start at $3.39 / month. Each plan comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
NordVPN keeps your online poker traffic safe with high-end security features, including Threat Protection, Dark Web Monitor, RAM-only servers, and more. And NordVPN can access major online poker sites 24/7 with fast connections. Its apps are easy to navigate and customize, too. All of its plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
5. Surfshark — User-Friendly VPN for Online Poker
Surfshark has very user-friendly apps, which makes it ideal for anyone new to VPNs. I like that you can set the Quick Connect button to connect you to a server that can access poker sites. The app also lists the server locations you’ve recently connected to for quick access. What’s more, Surfshark allows unlimited simultaneous device connections.
Surfshark has strong security features, like RAM-only servers, a verified no-logs policy, and perfect forward secrecy. Surfshark has DNS leak protection, but I would like to see Surfshark add WebRTC and IPv6 leak protection as well.
Surfshark’s IP Rotator feature changes your VPN IP address at regular intervals without dropping the VPN connection. This makes it harder for poker sites to detect and block your IP address.
During my tests, Surfshark had decent speeds. I could access multiple poker sites such as PokerStars, 888Poker, and PartyPoker in 2–3 seconds, and I could watch HD videos without any buffering. But Surfshark is noticeably slower than ExpressVPN.
Surfshark has plans that start as low as $1.99 / month. Each purchase comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
Surfshark is a great choice for poker players who are new to VPNs. It has user-friendly apps, strong privacy and security features, and fast speeds. It also allows unlimited device connections. All plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Read the full Surfshark review
Comparison of the Best VPNs for Online Poker in 2024
How to Choose the Best VPN for Online Poker in 2024
- Find a VPN that can consistently access poker sites. Some public networks restrict poker sites, but all of the VPNs on this list can access poker sites 100% of the time.
- Ensure the VPN has fast speeds. While VPNs generally result in some speed reduction, the VPNs on this list exhibit minimal noticeable slowdowns. You can expect instant loading of poker sites and seamless video streaming without buffering. On this list, ExpressVPN stands out as the fastest VPN.
- Use a VPN with strong security features. All the VPNs on my list have industry-standard security features like 256-bit AES encryption, a no-logs policy, and a kill switch that disconnects you from the internet if your VPN connection drops.
- Consider ease of use. All of the VPNs on my list have user-friendly apps for Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS. They all have intuitive interfaces that make it easy to find the optimal server for playing online poker, too.
- Opt for a VPN that provides good value. I only recommend VPNs that have affordable plans and extended money-back guarantees.
Top Brands That Didn’t Make the Cut:
- PrivadoVPN. PrivadoVPN has a small network of servers, and it can’t access many poker sites. What’s more, it’s missing advanced security features like RAM-only servers and perfect forward secrecy, and it takes 40+ seconds to connect to some of its servers.
- SlickVPN. SlickVPN can’t access most poker sites, and it doesn’t have mobile apps. It also doesn’t come with advanced security features like RAM-only servers or perfect forward secrecy.
- DroidVPN. DroidVPN lacks essential VPN security features like encryption and a kill switch and it logs your IP address. Also, it doesn’t work with most poker sites, and its mobile apps are hard to navigate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the best VPN for online poker?
ExpressVPN is my top pick for playing online poker — it can consistently access poker sites like PokerStars and 888Poker, maintains blazing-fast speeds, and has advanced security features. Moreover, it has user-friendly apps for all major platforms.
Can I use a free VPN to play online poker?
Maybe, but I don’t recommend it. Free VPNs usually lack strong security features that’ll keep your identity and winnings safe. It’s best to use a premium VPN like ExpressVPN because it has advanced security features, it can access major poker sites on restricted networks, and it has the fastest speeds in the industry.
How do I set up a VPN for online poker?
Setting up a VPN for playing online poker requires only 4 steps:
- Subscribe to a VPN that can reliably access poker sites. I recommend ExpressVPN because it can access poker sites 24/7, and it has advanced security features and fast speeds.
- Download and install the VPN. The process should take only a few minutes.
- Connect to a server location. Open the app, scroll down the list of server locations, and select one where your favorite poker site is available.
- Log into your favorite online poker site. Now you can sit back and enjoy playing online poker.
Is it safe to play online poker with a VPN?
Yes, it’s perfectly safe to use a VPN for playing online poker, provided you use a secure VPN. But you should also be aware that your online poker account can get blocked if the site detects you’re using a VPN and its terms of service prohibit the use of VPNs.
