PureVPN speed test: the numbers, and the line they came from
A baseline first, then PureVPN on the nearest European server and on a long-distance US server, with the full league table of 11 VPNs.
- baseline 293 Mbps
- Europe 68% kept
- US 71% kept
The baseline, measured first
With PureVPN off, the line gave 293 Mbps down, 295 Mbps up and 4 ms ping.
PureVPN connected: Frankfurt and Los Angeles
Same line, same machine, one run per route.
| Connection | Route | Download, Mbps | Upload, Mbps | Ping | Download kept |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No VPN (baseline) | – | 293.06 | 294.67 | 4 ms | 100% |
| Frankfurt | Nearest Europe | 199.71 | 170.35 | 39 ms | 68% |
| Los Angeles | Long-distance US | 209.37 | 180.78 | 177 ms | 71% |
How PureVPN compares with ten other VPNs
Ranked by nearest-European download. Bars are scaled to 300 Mbps, the line's ceiling.
| # | VPN | Europe, Mbps | Ping | US, Mbps | Ping | EU kept |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proton VPN | 262 | 42 ms | 126 | 174 ms | 89% |
| 2 | hide.me | 222 | 47 ms | 200 | 163 ms | 74% |
| 3 | Windscribe | 222 | 44 ms | 203 | 108 ms | 75% |
| 4 | NordVPN | 210 | 31 ms | 200 | 111 ms | 72% |
| 5 | Surfshark | 210 | 79 ms | 203 | 112 ms | 71% |
| 6 | LetsVPN | 207 | 42 ms | 202 | 181 ms | 70% |
| 7 | PrivadoVPN | 200 | 42 ms | 160 | 132 ms | 68% |
| 8 | PureVPN this site | 200 | 39 ms | 209 | 177 ms | 68% |
| 9 | CyberGhost | 194 | 42 ms | 210 | 126 ms | 66% |
| 10 | ExpressVPN | 181 | 35 ms | 160 | 112 ms | 62% |
| 11 | AdGuard VPN | 136 | 46 ms | 200 | 171 ms | 46% |
The 'European' route is each VPN's nearest European server to the tester, so the country differs between VPNs; the US route is New York for eight of eleven (Los Angeles for hide.me and PureVPN, San Jose for Proton VPN, city not recorded for LetsVPN).
What the numbers say
Four plain observations, each traceable to a capture above.
- On Frankfurt, PureVPN kept 68.1% of baseline download (200 of 293 Mbps), rank #8 of 11.
- On Los Angeles, it kept 71.4% (209 Mbps), rank #2, with ping 177 ms (rank #10 for lowest ping).
- Ping rose by 35 ms on the European route and by 173 ms on the long-distance US route.
- Upload on the European route was 170 Mbps (58% of its baseline); on the US route 181 Mbps (61%).
Two things not to read into these numbers
A speed snapshot is easy to over-read.
Before you quote these numbers
- Different routes: the European server is a different country for each VPN and the protocols differ. Compare gaps, not single values.
- One run: a few percentage points of difference is within normal variation on any day.
Questions people ask
Short answers, based on our own captures and the data on this site.
How fast is PureVPN?
On the Frankfurt route it delivered 200 Mbps down and 170 Mbps up at 39 ms, which is 68% of our 293 Mbps baseline. On the Los Angeles route it delivered 209 Mbps down (71%) at 177 ms.
Did you test PureVPN against the other VPNs on the same line?
Yes. All 11 VPNs were measured on the same connection, each with its own baseline taken first. PureVPN ranked #8 of 11 for download on the nearest-European route and #2 on the US route.
Is one speed test enough to rank VPNs?
No. It is a snapshot: one run per route on one day. Use the table to see the size of the gaps, not to crown a winner; a few percentage points is within normal day-to-day variation.
Why do the European servers differ between VPNs?
We used each VPN's nearest European server, so the country varies (for example Paris, London, Frankfurt or Marseille). Distance changes ping, so compare download kept and ping with that in mind.
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