5 Best VPNs for Steam

Steam is one of the most popular platforms for buying games, selling in-game items, exchanging messages and joining communities where you will be helped with installing games, solving problems, and simply telling you about the latest news in the world of games.

However, due to the massive player base and built-in market, Steam users are often attacked by intruders. What should you do to be completely safe while on this platform? The answer is simple – use the services of a Virtual Private Network.

Our article will be devoted to choosing the right VPN service for your Steam client, which services to avoid, and how Steam works with VPN.

Stay tuned, read our carefully selected and tested top services on the market and stay safe online.

Why You Need a VPN for Steam

It’s a regular occurrence in the gaming world for new content to be unavailable in some regions. Also, users may have noticed a drop in performance or weak account protection. What to do in such a case? Install a VPN.

And there are several reasons for this.

Fast speed	Many players know that long downloads of games through Steam are one of the main problems of the service or Internet provider. To solve this problem, it will be enough for you to install a reliable VPN service, and the platform will quickly increase your Internet connection.
Acces to blocked content	You can also use the VPN platform to bypass content blocking or break through local Steam restrictions like at school or work. However, if everything is quite simple with local restrictions, in the case of access to limited games, you can get banned for violating the community rules.
Protecting your network	Many players know that the ability to trade in-game items on the Steam marketplace is one of the great store’s advantages. So, if you managed to win an expensive game item, you risk losing your account due to a cyber attack. To avoid this, it is enough to use a reliable tool that will provide your account with protection and data encryption.

Will Steam Ban Me for Using a VPN?

Unfortunately, the answer is yes. WhileSteam does not block any account for a VPN connection, Steam bans user accounts for specific VPN related actions:

1. If you use the service to bypass regional restrictions and get better deals. If, for example, you notice that a game in Australia for some reason costs less than in your region. According to Steam rules, you are prohibited from using a VPN to bypass this restriction. Otherwise, you will get banned.
2. If you use a VPN to get games that have been blocked in your region. If you break this rule, you must say goodbye to your account.
3. The site also blocks users from purchasing items that are not available in your country. Since the Steam’s marketplace is very popular among players, many want a quick profit and earn money or a reputation. However, in this case, it is best to achieve on your own and not try to use loopholes.
4. You can also be banned for connecting to servers that the site has officially banned.
5. Steam also bans players for suspicious activity that the site does not like.

Although some of the above rules may seem unfair, they are officially warned during registration on the site, and you agree to these rules.

In general, Steam’s policy can be understood, since the platform only bans those users, because of which the company did not make a profit. We all need to understand that the main task of any business, even a gaming one, is to make money. Given that Steam is a game store, its key purpose is to distribute licensed copies of games and make money.

Although the risks of getting banned for such actions are relatively small, they are never zero, and users risk their accounts every time they use Steam VPN.

How to Bypass Steam Ban?

There is an opinion that bypassing the ban for using VPN in Steam is possible. Although this method is not the most reliable and does not guarantee success, it still exists.

To bypass the ban, follow the following easy steps:

1. Download your VPN.
2. Test the servers and find the most reliable and stable one.
3. Connect to the server.
4. Open Steam, go to your account settings and change the region to the one you are connected to.
5. Now you can buy games in cheap regions and get restricted content for your country.
6. However, before each login to Steam, you need to connect to the same server, so Steam will continue to think that you are in that country. Therefore, before using, analyze the regions with the lowest prices for the platform and select one. Now you will always work with it.

Remember that if your VPN connection suddenly breaks, Steam will have time to detect your actual location, and you are guaranteed to get a ban. Therefore, you must download a VPN that comes with a kill switch and always remember to enable this feature.

Do not forget that this method does not guarantee 100% success and can fail you at any time, so everything you do, you do at your own risk.

Top VPNs for Steam

The VPN services market is overflowing with various solutions for protecting data and ensuring anonymity on the network. Each of the services does its job well. Some products may offer features that will be useful during gaming and streaming, while other services may provide a stable and reliable surfing experience. But with so many services, how do you choose the one that will satisfy the Steam players’ needs?

During VPN tests, we checked them for several parameters that will be key to identifying the best service for using the Steam platform. Here are the factors you need to pay attention to.

Bandwidth	The data transfer speed will determine how quickly you download games from a torrent, stream videos or download games from Steam. After all, your main task is finding a reliable and fast solution to meet your primary needs.
Ping	This parameter is crucial when choosing a gaming service. In simple words, ping is a special utility that sends the server the question “are you online?”. And the server answers it “Yes, I’m online”. Your gaming experience depends on how quickly the response happens. If your ping is high, your character in the game will constantly freeze, and your game will become simply unbearable. Therefore, achieving the optimal ping rate in conjunction with VPN is very important.
Safety	This is the most critical part of any VPN service because this is what these services exist for. You need to find as secure service as possible. This includes the no-logging policy, a kill switch, the ability to add a personal IP address, and many secure servers. A VPN containing all these features will be considered very safe and usable.
Compatibility	Finding a service compatible with your device and the platform you purchased it for is essential. Therefore, it is vital to read reviews and watch videos on the Internet about VPNs and their compatibility with other platforms, and only then buy a subscription.

We will review the best VPN for Steam in the next sections.

PrivateVPN

PrivateVPN is a reliable and affordable VPN service for Steam that offers excellent value. It strongly focuses on privacy and security, with robust encryption protocols and a no-logs policy. It’s also one of the few VPNs that can unblock Netflix US. However, it lacks 24/7 live chat support and doesn’t have a huge server network.

If you’re looking for a VPN that strikes a good balance between price and performance, PrivateVPN is worth considering. We will look in-depth at everything PrivateVPN offers, including its features, pricing, and more.

Benefits:

• Robust security features.
• No logs policy.
• Unblocks Netflix US.
• Affordable pricing.

Drawbacks:

• Limited server network.
• No 24/7 live chat support.

Pricing:

This VPN for Steam has a very straightforward pricing structure. There are three plans available, all of which come with a 7-day money-back guarantee:

• 1 month: $9.99 per month.
• 6 months: $7.50 per month ($45 total).
• 12 months: $4.17 per month ($50 total).

As you can see, the longer you use, the cheaper it gets. If you decide to go for the annual plan, you’ll save a whopping 67% compared to the monthly price.

PrivateVPN also offers a unique feature called port forwarding. This allows you to route specific traffic through a designated port on the VPN server, which can be helpful in gaming or torrenting. However, this feature is only available on the annual plan and costs an additional $5 per month.

Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access (PIA) is one of the most popular Steam VPN providers on the market. But what are the benefits of using PIA? And what are the potential drawbacks?

There are several key benefits of using PIA:

• One of the most affordable VPN providers.
• Fast speeds.
• Great optimization.
• AES-256 encryption.
• Strict no-logs policy.
• Easy to use.
• Crossplatforming.
• PIA allows up to 5 simultaneous connections.

There are a few potential drawbacks to using this Steam VPN:

• Issues connecting to servers.
• PIA does not offer a free trial.
• PIA is not available in all countries.

PIA is one of the most affordable VPN providers, with plans starting at just $2.91 per month (billed annually).

Private Internet Access is an excellent option if you’re looking for a fast, affordable, and secure VPN service. However, there are a few potential drawbacks to keep in mind. But overall, PIA is an excellent choice for those who want a reliable VPN service.

VyprVPN

If you’re looking for a VPN service for Steam, you’ve probably come across VyprVPN.

As for benefits:

• Excellent security.
• Privacy features with 256-bit encryption.
• No-logs policy.
• Good speeds
• Reliability. 
• Servers in over 70 countries.

Drawbacks:

• This Steam VPN is expensive. 
• VyprVPN isn’t compatible with all devices.

VyprVPN starts at $9.95 per month for the basic plan, which includes 3 simultaneous connections. The premium plan, which provides for 5 simultaneous connections, is $12.95 per month. Both plans come with a 7- day money-back guarantee.

While it’s not the most expensive VPN service on the market, it’s also not the cheapest. However, you do get what you pay for in terms of security and privacy features. Remember, that this VPN doesn’t work with routers, which means you won’t be able to use it on all your devices simultaneously.

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is a popular virtual private network provider, widely known for its fast speeds, strong security features, and wide range of server locations. In this article, we will examine the benefits and drawbacks of using ExpressVPN.

Benefits:

• One of the fastest VPN providers.
• Speeds ideal for streaming and gaming.
• 256-bit AES encryption.
• DNS leak protection.
• Kill Switch. 
• Servers in 94 countries.

Drawbacks:

• One of the most expensive VPN providers.
• No free trial.

ExpressVPN plans start at $12.95 per month. There is also a 12-month plan available for $8.32 per month and a 6-month plan available for $9.99 per month.

CyberGhost

CyberGhost is a Romania-based VPN service that has been in operation since 2011. In the past, it has been known for its strong focus on privacy and security. However, more recently, it has become a popular choice for streaming and torrenting due to its fast speeds and ability to unblock geo-restricted content.

Benefits of this Steam games unlocker:

• Fast speeds for streaming and torrenting.
• Strong focus on privacy and security.
• Unblocks geo-restricted content.
• Free trial available.

Drawbacks:

• Some servers can be unreliable.
• No live chat support.

CyberGhost offers three pricing plans: monthly, semi-annual, and annual:

• The monthly plan costs $12.99 per month.
• The semi-annual plan costs $5.99 monthly (billed every six months at $35.94). 
• The annual plan costs $3.69 per month (billed annually at $44.28). 

All plans come with a 45-day money-back guarantee.

How to Change the Steam Region?

Many users think it is enough to enable VPN for Steam and connect to the server for the changes to take effect. However, if you follow this rule, you might just end up having your account blocked.

In the Steam itself, there is also a region setting that may conflict with the VPN. And because of this, your account can be permanently or temporarily blocked. So, to prevent this and correctly change the region in Steam, you should:

1. Connect to your VPN.
2. Log in to your Steam account.
3. Then it would help if you went to the “Account Information” menu.
4. After that, you need to select “Update store country.”
5. Then you must enter the country to which you are connected to the VPN.
6. After the procedure, you can open Steam and enjoy the games.

You should also remember that doing this trick all the time is not recommended, as the site may notice suspicious activity and block your account. The best tactic is to pick one server with the best stability and only work with it. This way, you won’t make sudden jumps worldwide, and Steam won’t detect suspicious activity.

What Can I Use Instead of VPN?

Let’s say you don’t like using VPN for Steam and are looking for a worthy replacement for this service. Let’s look at what you can use instead of a VPN and why it is better not to do it:

1. Tor – this service does an excellent job of storing user data and ensuring its anonymity on the network. However, this service is unsuitable for Steam; since Tor uses UDP, you won’t be able to use Steam, usually in browser mode. In addition, Tor greatly slows down the Internet connection, so you won’t be able to play games with average ping.
2. As a good alternative, you can use a proxy server to connect to Steam. However, this tool does not fully encrypt data and will not be able to provide your online identity with maximum protection as VPN does.
3. Smart DNS. Although this technology provides some protection for your data, it still cannot adequately protect your location and info. So, your ISP or other people monitoring your connection can see the sites you visit.

As you can see, it is still better to use a VPN for Steam, as it can give you a regular ping rate, various servers to choose from, support, and many other useful features in one application. At the same time, all of the above methods offer only a part of VPN functions and do not have the whole package.

In general, when choosing a service to protect your data and your IP, you should always pay attention to what you need the service for. Maybe you don’t need high speeds and want to surf the Internet. In this case you need a tool that will protect your connection. If you are a gamer and want to play games or like to watch streaming shows, you need a solution that not only provides a high level of protection, but also does not slow down your Internet speed.

Are Free VPNs Best for Steam?

Although VPN is a popular tool for achieving complete anonymity on the network and protecting user data, some free VPN services can achieve the opposite effect.

In theory, users use VPN to encrypt personal data and change the device’s real address. However, free VPNs can harm your security and anonymity. Now we will tell you why.

So, free VPNs can collect and sell your data to third parties for personalized advertising. This directly violates the core function of the private network and is in direct conflict with the policy of using such services.

However, many free VPNs for unlocked Steam games can safely collect personal data from users, as they state this on the page with a usage policy. To determine whether your VPN provider is engaged in such activities or not, you just need to visit their official website and read the usage document or user agreement.

For this reason, it is more beneficial for your security to use paid VPNs, strictly related to their policy of collecting personal user data.

Legal Aspects

Although the use of VPN services is not prohibited by law in many European countries, you should still use these applications with caution. This is due to the fact that many platforms may have rules for using VPN with their services.

So, you can get a ban without even realizing that you have violated something. To avoid this, you need to find the VPN usage policy on the website of your service. If there is no such item, you can freely enable VPN and use it with the service you like. However, if such a point exists, you need to adhere to the rules of the platform and use the VPN within the limits described by the service, or not use it at all if it is prohibited by the platform.

Also, do not forget that in some countries VPN is officially prohibited and you cannot use private networks to access the Internet, otherwise you will be fined or jailed.

You should also remember that committing crimes, even with VPN turned on, does not make you invisible on the network and you will definitely be held accountable for committing a crime. Therefore, never engage in fraud, selling prohibited items, substances, prohibited content, or other forms of cybercrime.

Bottom Line

As we’ve shown in this article, finding a VPN for Steam is not that difficult. The main thing is always to know the criteria by which you will evaluate the service and analyze the tools correctly. Remember that the features of Steam do not allow you to use any VPN for work. Therefore you always need to be careful when choosing a service as you wouldn’t want your Steam account banned.

Stay with us, share your impressions and life hacks in the comments below, and read only informative and informative articles.

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