TunnelBear vs Windscribe
We give TunnelBear a 2.4 GPA and Windscribe a 2.6, out of 4.0. Windscribe grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
TunnelBear
McAfee-owned VPN with a 2GB free plan and pay-once multi-year plans
Windscribe
VPN with a 10GB free plan and pay-per-location pricing
How we grade them
| 2.4GPATunnelBearFair | 2.6GPAWindscribeGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CTwo years of Unlimited are $99.99 paid once, about $4.17 a month, between the cheaper quarter of VPNs and the middle. Three years for $120 is $3.33 a month. Neither renews by itself, which is nice, and a single year is $69.99. | CPro is $69 a year and stays at that price, so two years cost $138, about $5.75 a month, above the middle of the pack. Build A Plan starts at $3 a month for 3 locations, but each adds only 10GB of data. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free plan with 2GB of browsing, which TunnelBear itself pitches at testing and light use, and the page doesn't say how often it resets. Fine for café Wi-Fi now and then, gone fast if you stream. | C10GB a month free once you confirm an email, with servers in 10 countries including the US, UK and Germany. Plenty for café Wi-Fi, but streaming will burn through it, and most locations are Pro only. |
| Features | CThe basics, done properly: unlimited devices, a kill switch, split tunneling, GhostBear to get past VPN blocks, and yearly audits. But the network covers 46+ countries, far fewer than most rivals, and ad blocking is a separate Chrome extension. | BUnlimited devices, the R.O.B.E.R.T blocker for ads, trackers and malware, double hop, split tunneling, a firewall and config generators for routers, across 69+ countries on Pro. It covers the whole job. |
| Ease of use | B4.67 from about 85,000 App Store ratings, a hair under the 4.7 an A needs. Pick a country and you're connected. | BNo App Store rating on record, but you install the app, confirm an email and connect, with nothing else to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android and Chrome, but the download page lists no Linux app. There's no integration list or API on record either. | BMac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android and browser extensions, plus config files for routers. There's no integration list or API on record, so it stops at B. |
| Best for | a simple VPN you can pay for once | a free VPN with room to grow |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: TunnelBear and Windscribe. How we grade
Price against what you get
TunnelBear starts at $3.33 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Windscribe starts at $3 a month and scores 3.0.
Windscribe scores higher and starts $0.33 a month lower. Of the other VPNs on the chart, 2 score higher than TunnelBear for less, and none scores higher than Windscribe for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- TunnelBear starts at $3.33 per month on the 3-year Unlimited plan ($120 paid once). Windscribe starts at $3 per month for 3 locations (Build A Plan).
- Only Windscribe lists a Linux app.
- Windscribe is open source, according to its own site.
At a glance
| TunnelBear | Windscribe | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $3.33 per month on the 3-year Unlimited plan ($120 paid once) | $3 per month for 3 locations (Build A Plan) |
| Free plan | 2GB of secure browsing for testing and light use. The pricing page does not say how often the allowance resets. | 10GB of data a month once you confirm an email address, with servers in 10 countries including the US, Canada, the UK and Germany. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of TunnelBear for Teams | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | TunnelBear LLC | Windscribe Limited |
| Price read from | tunnelbear.com | windscribe.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
TunnelBear
- Occasional users who need a VPN for a few gigabytes
- People who want to pay once for several years with no auto-renewal
- Small teams that want one annual invoice for everyone
Windscribe
- Light users who can live within 10GB a month for free
- People who only need one or two countries and want to pay per location
- Households connecting many devices to one account
Worth knowing
TunnelBear
- The pricing page shows only "from $3.33/mo"; the term prices here come from the price list the site loads for its checkout.
- The free plan is limited to 2GB, and the download page lists no Linux app.
- TunnelBear says it can no longer be bought by users in India because of CERT-In regulations.
- Teams is billed annually per user, with additions and removals pro-rated.
Windscribe
- The free plan stops at 10GB a month and needs a confirmed email; most locations are Pro only.
- Build A Plan locations each add only 10GB a month rather than unlimited data.
- Static IPs and team accounts are sold separately, and their prices are not on the plans page.
- Account sharing is prohibited by the plan terms.
Key features
TunnelBear
- Unlimited devices
- There is no limit on how many devices can use one TunnelBear account.
- Network in 46+ countries
- Over 8,000 servers physically located in the countries you pick, with city-level choice on paid plans.
- GhostBear
- Makes encrypted VPN traffic harder for governments, businesses and ISPs to detect, to get past VPN blocking.
- VigilantBear and SplitBear
- VigilantBear blocks unsecured traffic if the connection drops, and SplitBear chooses which apps and sites go through the VPN.
- Annual security audits
- TunnelBear has independent security firms audit it every year and publishes the results.
- TunnelBear Blocker
- A separate free Chrome extension that blocks ads and online tracking.
Windscribe
- Free plan
- 10GB a month once your email is confirmed, with servers in 10 countries. Pro locations stay locked.
- Build A Plan
- Pay $1 a month per Pro location you want, from a $3 minimum and up to 7 locations, each adding 10GB of data.
- R.O.B.E.R.T
- A customizable server-side blocker for ads, trackers and malware, included with Pro.
- Unlimited connections
- Use one account on as many devices at once as you like, with apps and browser extensions for each platform.
- Config generators
- Generate OpenVPN, IKEv2 and WireGuard configurations for routers and devices without an app.
- Double hop, split tunneling and firewall
- Route through two servers, choose which apps skip the VPN, and block traffic outside the tunnel.
Plans
TunnelBear
Free$0
2GB of secure browsing, aimed at testing and limited use.
Unlimited, 1 month$10.99
per month
Unlimited data on unlimited devices, country and city selection, split tunneling and priority support. Renews monthly.
Unlimited, 1 year$69.99
per year
The same Unlimited plan, renewing every year at $69.99.
Unlimited, 2 years$99.99
for 2 years, paid once, with no renewal
Two years of Unlimited for a single payment; it does not renew by itself.
Unlimited, 3 years$120
for 3 years, paid once, with no renewal
Works out to $3.33 a month, the "from" price on the pricing page. A single payment that does not renew by itself.
Teams$5.75
per user / month, billed annually
Unlimited plan features for 2 or more users, with one annual team invoice, an admin console and pro-rated changes.
Windscribe
Free$0
10GB a month with a confirmed email, and servers in 10 countries: the US, Canada, UK, Hong Kong, France, Germany and four more.
Build A Plan$3
per month for 3 locations, then $1 per extra location
$1 per Pro location per month, from 3 up to 7 locations; each adds 10GB to your monthly data. For more, the page points to Pro.
Pro Yearly$69
per year
$5.75 a month. Unlimited data, every location in 69+ countries, R.O.B.E.R.T and config generators.
Pro Monthly$9
per month
The same Pro features as yearly, billed $9 every month.
Ways to pay less
TunnelBear
No public discounts listed.
Windscribe
- Annual discount
About 36% off with yearly billing
Pro Yearly costs $69 a year, against $108 for twelve months of Pro Monthly at $9.
