UltraVPN Review

UltraVPN has only been around for two years but has already gained popularity for unblocking Netflix more successfully than its competition.

Who owns UltraVPN? Cybersecurity company Aura acquired it in 2020, making it a sister brand of VPN360, Touch VPN, Hexatech VPN, and Betternet.

UltraVPN Features

This VPN won’t win any awards for mind-blowing features anytime soon. Many fellow UltraVPN review creators shared our disappointment about the service’s lack of necessities. The UltraVPN free trial includes:

Limited Server Access

The UltraVPN trial gives you a taste of the service, but you won’t be able to access all its features until you upgrade to a premium subscription. You can test UltraVPN servers in 10 locations:

• Canada East (Montreal and Toronto)
• Canada West (Vancouver)
• Switzerland (Zurich)
• Germany (Frankfurt)
• France (Paris)
• Hong Kong
• The Netherlands (Amsterdam)
• Norway (Oslo)
• Romania (Bucharest)
  

Given the limited locations on the free trial, users located in Africa, the Middle East, Central and South America, and the Pacific may not get optimal performance due to sheer distance.

Unlimited Bandwidth

UltraVPN doesn’t cap your usage, allowing you to use the service as long as you have internet access. It’s perfect for streaming and gaming, as you won’t have to worry about the amount of data you download.

Launch

When enabled, the Launch feature will automatically connect your device to a secure server when starting UltraVPN.

Kill Switch

If and when you lose connection to the VPN, the kill switch will instantly block your internet access to protect your privacy.

Language Options

The UltraVPN app lets you change your language preference so that you can navigate it more comfortably. The available options include:

• Danish
• Dutch
• French
• German
• Italian
• Nynorsk (Norwegian)
• Polish
• Portuguese
• Spanish
• Swedish
• Turkish
  

Multiple Payment Options

If you’re ready to upgrade to the premium plan, you can pay by debit/credit card or through PayPal. In terms of plastic, the company accepts cards issued by the big four: Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express. The service isn’t open to cryptocurrency yet.

UltraVPN Advanced Features

UltraVPN premium subscribers unlock the full functionality of the service, including the following features:

Multi-Platform Suitability

UltraVPN works on most desktops, laptops, smartphones, and tablets. It is also compatible with the single-board computer Raspberry Pi, media players like Amazon Fire TV or Kodi, and DD-WRT, Stock Asus, and Tomato routers.

The service works with various Linux-based operating systems:

• Ubuntu
• Linux Mint
• OpenSUSE
• Fedora

Furthermore, UltraVPN Chrome, Safari, and Firefox browser extensions are also available.

100+ Global VPN Servers

A paid subscription unlocks UltraVPN’s entire global network of servers, including premium streaming locations.

To help identify the four servers optimized for streaming, the company labeled them as “ULTRAFLIX,” followed by the abbreviation of their countries of location. Make the most out of your subscription by looking for these VPN servers:

• ULTRAFLIX US (New York)
• ULTRAFLIX CA (Toronto)
• ULTRAFLIX UK (London)
• ULTRAFLIX JP (Tokyo)

Six Devices

One UltraVPN license can be used on up to six devices. By adding it to your router, you can protect an even larger number, as long as they are connected to your network.

A major complaint in other UltraVPN reviews was the limit to three simultaneous connections. Now that the number has increased to six, we can see that the company doesn’t ignore customer feedback.

Protocol-Specific Profile Generator

UltraVPN’s web console allows you to create an OpenVPN or IKEv2 profile, setting the stage for you to directly install the service on a router or some other platform.

UltraVPN Servers and Locations

UltraVPN currently has 116 servers spread across 60 countries around the world.

Almost 75% of the company’s VPN servers are located in Europe and the Americas. In North America alone, UltraVPN’s fleet is 34-strong. There are 43 servers in Europe, and the company placed eight servers in South America.

With 28 VPN servers, UltraVPN has a strong presence in the Asia Pacific. Unlike many other VPN services, Africa is part of its network with three servers between Tunisia and South Africa.

Since the average coverage of VPNs is 30 countries, UltraVPN’s global presence is better than most.

UltraVPN also operates in Russia and the United Arab Emirates, two countries with heavy VPN restrictions. But the company is subject to government pressure, as it’s one of the last VPN service providers that haven’t shut down its hardware in the Russian Federation.

Unfortunately, UltraVPN doesn’t have any servers in most countries with a dim view of VPNs. There is also no UltraVPN China server. You can’t access restricted content on blocked sites in Belarus, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Oman, Turkey, and Turkmenistan.

UltraVPN Speed

From our experience with the service and reading other UltraVPN reviews, we can say that speed is rightfully one of the service’s claims to fame.

The average reduction in download speed caused by a VPN connection is 40%. UltraVPN slowed us down by only 15%. 

We tested servers in the US, the UK, and Australia to see how speeds would vary the farther we go from the States. On domestic servers, our base connection of 100Mbps dipped by only 4Mbps. Global speed tests showed that our connection managed to stay around 75Mbps.

Our tests show that UltraVPN can handle long-distance connections well. But the company’s relatively small fleet concerns us. Any server can only support a limited number of users, which means that subscribers in highly populated regions will likely experience issues.

UltraVPN Privacy and Jurisdiction

UltraVPN is headquartered in the US, giving Americans the option to combat the broadband privacy repeal. However, the US has been notorious for internet surveillance. 

Even if you use UltraVPN Premium to protect your privacy, you may not be able to remain anonymous to the FBI and the NSA. UltraVPN could be forced to disclose some of your information to comply with a legal process.

Fortunately, UltraVPN has a zero-log policy. The company may save originating IP addresses and the traffic flowing through its VPN servers, but it doesn’t track online activity.

UltraVPN’s decision not to keep a record can safeguard your privacy because the US is a member of the Five Eyes Alliance. In this agreement, the country shares intel with the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The American government also cooperates with Fourteen Eyes Alliance members.

Due to the Putin administration’s VPN ban, UltraVPN users in Russia may not enjoy absolute privacy. And in the United Arab Emirates, crime-related VPN usage can be punished by imprisonment and millions of dollars in fines.

UltraVPN Security and Protocols

UltraVPN uses 256-bit AES encryption, the same technology financial institutions and military branches use to secure sensitive data.

The company has its own DNS servers, preventing third parties from keeping tabs on your online activity. With built-in malware and phishing protection, UltraVPN can keep cybersecurity threats at bay. UltraVPN premium also uses OpenVPN, the most secure protocol, but you can switch to IKEv2.

Sadly, UltraVPN’s security features end here. The service lacked advanced capabilities like auto-connection upon detection of a potentially unsecure network. Beyond the basic features like Kill Switch, the company has yet to ramp up its tech to avert data leakage more reliably.

UltraVPN Leak Test Results

Despite the service’s lack of all-round leak protection, we’re delighted to know that UltraVPN was able to keep our data out of sight during our tests. The results of our DNS, IP, and WebRTC leak tests were all negative.  However, some other UltraVPN reviews show there could be potential leaks, but we didn't find any. 

UltraVPN and Streaming Services

UltraVPN can unblock many of the world’s most popular streaming platforms. By logging into specialized servers, we could access US Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, and Now TV.

The biggest surprise was our successful access to BBC iPlayer because older UltraVPN reviews attested that the company couldn’t crack the British platform’s code. It’s great to see that the UltraVPN UK server has been improved since.

How Good Is UltraVPN for Torrenting?

UltraVPN allows torrenting with no restriction, and most UltraVPN servers support P2P sharing. Thanks to its military-grade encryption and zero-log policy, the service allowed us to download torrents without worrying about getting caught by our interest service provider.

Can UltraVPN Bypass Geoblocks?

Yes, it can. UltraVPN uses a stealth protocol, which wraps OpenVPN packets in an SSL encryption layer to appear like regular internet traffic. Although this VPN has trouble beating China’s geo-restrictions, most other geoblocks don’t oppose a challenge.

Ease of Use

UltraVPN lacks advanced features to compete with other VPN clients, but it tries to match similar apps’ usability. The app’s interface is clean and straightforward: the few features are neatly tucked away and accessible through one icon.

The Connect/Disconnect button is prominent for an on-demand VPN connection. The app also comes with an UltraVPN server list. But unfortunately, it doesn’t tell the fastest nearest server, nor does it highlight your frequently used ones.

The UltraVPN isn’t spectacular, but its biggest flaw isn’t its lack of features. Instead, it’s the functionality. We share our frustrations with other UltraVPN review authors who complained about the service’s error-prone Android app. We had to download the app multiple times before it worked for a long enough time to test it.

Customer Support

UltraVPN’s customer support options are more varied than many other services, including a live chat, phone and email support, and a vast knowledge base. The team does take a while to get back to you, though.

The live chat is available 24/7, as well as its dedicated phone number for billing concerns. For technical assistance, you can submit a ticket through the website to start a conversation via email.

The company’s knowledge base can help with any pressing concerns. This resource categorizes frequently asked questions, making it easy to navigate.

UltraVPN Price

Upon registration, you’ll automatically join the UltraVPN free trial. If you decide to upgrade, you’ll be able to buy the premium subscription at a discount. Following are the introductory and regular prices:

• One month
  • Introductory: $6.99 (22% off)
  • Regular: $8.99
• Six months
  • Introductory: $4.99/month (50% off)
  • Regular: $9.98/month
• One year
  • Introductory: $2.99/month (60% off)
  • Regular: $7.50/month

Oddly enough, the six-month plan is more expensive per month than the one-month subscription. This strange pricing structure could be a way to compel premium subscribers to opt for a one-year commitment. Any premium subscription is also subject to auto-renewal. 

The good thing is that you could take advantage of the other introductory prices as a premium subscriber. In theory, you could avoid the VPN’s full price for up to 17 months.

You’ll have to pay an additional $2.92 per month if you want unlimited connections. Because this is an introductory surcharge, it’ll go up to $5.83 after the initial one-year term.

The company offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

UltraVPN Review - Verdict

UltraVPN lacks features in comparison to its competitors. Unless the company ramps up its investment in infrastructure, the current super-fast speeds could suffer as its customer base grows.

Like other UltraVPN review authors, we agree that you can find more affordable VPNs with more excellent capabilities. But if you’re big on streaming, you’ll unlikely regret your decision to give UltraVPN a chance.