Best VPNs for Gaming in 2025: Play Without Lags

Last Updated on April 9, 2025 by Editorial

Online gaming has grown in popularity, but it’s not all fun and games. Gamers often grapple with lag, high ping rates, and the frustrating throttling by their internet service providers (ISPs). To counter this you need to use the best VPNs for gaming, which based on the tests I conducted, is ExpressVPN.

Virtual private networks are game-changers for online gamers. The best VPNs for gaming encrypt and route your gaming traffic through a remote server. This helps you bypass ISP throttling, access geo-restricted games, and reduce lag.

Today, we will be exploring the 5 best VPNs for gaming designed to enhance your gaming experience. We will focus on their speeds, ability to bypass restrictions and compatibulity with gaming devices.

Top 5 VPNs for Gaming

Let’s dive into getting you the 5 best VPNs for gaming.

ExpressVPN – Best Overall VPN for Gaming

Pros

• Fast gaming speeds
• 166 server locations for bypassing restrictions
• Compatible with multiple gaming devices

Cons

• Expensive price plans

ExpressVPN is a popular VPN provider with valuable tools and features that help users secure their privacy and online browsing experience. The VPN is known for its solid security and lightning-fast speeds, which a seasoned gamer would love to experience when playing. 

This service is considered one of the best VPNs for gaming overall due to several features. It has one of the best speeds, which is critical for avoiding lag during gaming and maintaining a smooth experience. The VPN also uses protocols such as Lightway, which is known for its minimal impact on connection speeds and efficiency.    

The VPN has servers in 166 locations across 105 countries with lightning-fast speeds that keep your gameplay responsive and smooth. The vast server network gives you more options for finding a server that fits your needs. If you are playing a game on another country’s server and need to change it, ExpressVPN allows you to connect to an alternative server. 

If you consider ExpressVPN when using various gaming gadgets, you’re tapping into one of the best VPNs for gaming. With ExpressVPN, you can safely use your smartphone, tablet, PC, Mac, or console (Xbox and PlayStation). Its ease of use makes it easier to connect and disconnect this VPN quickly, regardless of the gadget used for gaming. 

ExpressVPN also offers more simultaneous connections of up to 8 devices. This means you can protect multiple gaming devices from IP leaks and benefit from the VPN’s privacy and security features. This eliminates the need for each device to subscribe separately. 

If your ISP throttles your bandwidth due to gaming traffic, ExpressVPN can help reclaim your initial internet speed. The VPN bypasses ISP throttling by encrypting data, preventing your ISP from identifying gaming activity and giving you unlimited access to gameplay. 

ExpressVPN currently restricts split tunnelling to its Android app. However, the VPN makes up for this with security and protection through features such as leak protection and 256-bit AES encryption. 

NordVPN – Fastest Gaming VPN

Pros

• 7,000+ servers in 118 countries
• Fast NordLynx protocol
• Secure encryption

Cons

• Double VPN servers could be slow

NordVPN ranks high among our best VPNs for gaming for multiple reasons. It boasts of one of the fastest connection speeds, which enables the user to experience minimal lag and a smooth gaming experience. 

Lower speeds can lead to a frustrating and sluggish gaming experience. NordVPN consistently beats competitors, especially with connection speeds, thanks to an in-house variant, NordLynx, an open-source WireGuard protocol.

NordVPN also has great online security tools, torrenting, and streaming capabilities. The VPN efficiently manages customer traffic across 118 countries with over 7,000 server fleets. With this large server network, you are assured of finding a server closer to you.

This geographical proximity helps keep latency low since a high latency will create a delay between your actions and what happens in your game. 

Considered one of the safest VPN providers, NordVPN has some of the market-leading encryption that safeguards the user’s online activity while gaming. NordVPN uses the AES-256-CBC cipher and ChaCha20 encryption to ensure their traffic is unreadable from external watchers. 

This includes protection from potential DDoS attacks. In 2013, NordVPN introduced a cyber protection benefits toolkit backed by insurance to support gamers dealing with cyber extortion and identity theft. 

Surfshark – Most Affordable

Pros

• Affordable longterm plans
• Unlimited simultaneous device connections
• Fast connection speeds for gaming

Cons

• Monthly plan is very expensive

Surfshark is one of the best VPNs for gaming due to its affordability, unlimited simultaneous connections, and low pings. Surfshark uses the most updated technologies to ensure gaming security and supports a private browsing experience for any user who values confidentiality and smooth gaming.   

Surfshark VPN is safe and packed with excellent security features such as AES-256 and ChaCha encryption, RAM-only servers, and a kill switch that prevents exposing your IP address or unencrypted traffic from leaking out during gaming 

Being a no-logs VPN, Surfshark ensures your private information is not logged and stored on its servers. The VPN also exempts you from IP leaks. It automatically eliminates any information related to the game you were playing. 

Surfshark also has a kill switch, which prevents data from leaking if you lose connection. The kill switch is a safety net, meaning that if the VPN connection unexpectedly drops, it instantly shuts off your device’s internet access to prevent information leakage. This will . 

The VPN is capable of unblocking geo-restricted gaming platforms. You can test this by connecting to a Surfshark server in a location with a streaming service or content library and confirming whether you can access the content. 

CyberGhost – Large Server Network

Pros

• Fast P2P servers
• Over 9,000 servers for unblocking games
• Reliable security and privacy

Cons

• Lacks obfuscation

CyberGhost combines a large server fleet and low pings providing the best experience for online gaming. CyberGhost has a WireGuard protocol with great special gaming-optimized servers. 

As one of the best VPNs for gaming, CyberGhost has a useful feature known as Smart Rules, which allows you to customize the app according to your needs. You also get NoSpy servers that allows your gaming sessions to be extra private by anonymizing your IP address, often reducing the risk of DDoS attacks. CyberGhost also has a kill switch and no-logs policy feature that keeps your data safe.  

When comparing different VPNs’ download and upload speeds, it’s important to check the ping. Low ping matters a lot for smooth gameplay, which is why the best VPNs for gaming prioritize speed and stability. CyberGhost easily ranks among the best VPNs for gaming, offering impressive upload and download speeds..

CyberGhost also takes privacy seriously. With its strict no-logs policy, it’s one of the best VPNs for gaming if you’re worried about confidentiality. Gamers who care about staying anonymous can rely on it—not just for speed, but also for protection.

In a time when privacy concerns are growing, the best VPNs for gaming go beyond performance by also shielding your online activity.

For those who often get updates and download games, CyberGhost has a P2P support system. That’s another reason it’s one of the best VPNs for gaming. The feature enables you to mask your P2P traffic like torrents to ensure you utilize different configurations or bandwidth allocations that ensure that a gamer makes fast and safe downloads.

And even if the gamer runs into an issue, they have 24/7 customer support to ensure they do not leak their IP and logs. 

IPVanish – Reliable Gaming Privacy

Pros

• User-friendly interface
• Reliable server network for bypassing blocks
• Solid security and privacy

Cons

• Small server network

Wrapping up our list of the best VPNs for gaming is IPVanish. It offers fast connection speeds, helpful security features, user-friendly apps, and an adequate server fleet.  IPVanish has a seamless feature for beginners and season tech enthusiasts, working equally well and uncomplicated. 

IPVanish has servers in up to 2,400 servers in 140 server locations. This includes P2P optimization which offer amazing speeds that can be used for gaming. Additionally, it offers crucial features for frequent downloaders who prioritize privacy and security for P2P traffic. 

If you are interested in the best VPNs for gaming and don’t know where to get started, IPVanish is a good starting point for gamers looking for general online privacy and impressive service. Its military-grade AES 256-bit encryption can consistently protect you from potential hackers and people trying to get into your browsing data. 

You can test the VPN using IPVanish’s Quick Connect feature, which connects you to the best servers in its network based on their existing performance. With a single click, the feature eliminates the guesswork of manually searching for the best server. Quick Connect also prioritizes servers based on real-time performance metrics. 

Selecting the Best VPNs for Gaming

Select a VPN that enhances your online experience and makes your streaming activities private. Here are the factors to keep in mind. 

• Speed and Performance: When choosing a VPN for gaming, consider low latency and high speeds to improve your gaming experience. Your preferred VPN should be fast enough to deliver the necessary speeds to keep you in the game, especially at a competitive stage.

• Security: When connected to a VPN for gaming, consider masking your IP address and substituting it with an IP address provided by the server you are connected to. If someone attempts to target you with a DDoS attack, the VPN should guarantee your safety when engrossed in playing an online game. 

• Device Compatibility: Your preferred gaming platform and devices must be compatible with the best VPNs for gaming. Whether you are gaming through your mobile phone, console, or gaming rig, ensure the VPN provides dedicated applications or has easy-to-follow setup instructions.

• Server Network: A VPN with fewer servers is overcrowded and has less optimal locations, reducing connection speed and causing high lag and ping. Consider the number of servers a VPN has in some of the most convenient locations.

• Cost: Avoid free VPNs. While getting a free VPN sounds excellent, all companies are in the business of making money and require finances to cover their costs. Some free VPNs contain ads or sell users’ data. They also have restrictions and may not offer essential features linked to the best VPNs for gaming. 

Conclusion 

The online gaming community is growing, and the landscape is evolving. Finding the best VPN for gaming is essential to give you a competitive edge. You must understand your priorities, whether prioritizing security, maximizing speed, or minimizing ping, to select a VPN completely complements your gaming style.

Consider factors that will improve your gaming experience. By thoroughly investigating these essential elements, you can make the best decision that aligns with your gaming needs.

FAQ