Total VPN Review 2023 — How Safe Is This VPN From TotalAV?

TotalAV offers a popular low-cost antivirus software, but can its VPN really keep you safe? There have been many complaints online about how Total VPN or Safe Browsing (VPN) doesn't work and even claims it logs data. So, I decided to test all its features to see if it's a VPN you can trust.

Overall, TotalAV's Safe Browsing VPN is worth trying, but better alternatives are available. Although it offers decent security features and has great unblocking capabilities, it has a limited server network with unimpressive speeds. Check out this list of top VPNs with large server networks and better speeds for streaming and gaming.

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TotalAV's Safe Browsing VPN unblocked most streaming services. The majority of the servers I tested had impressive results.

Plus, I barely had any issues with image quality, load times, or buffering. I carried out all my tests on a Windows laptop but also had no problems accessing the platforms on my iOS and Android phones. There was only one platform I couldn’t access, which was pretty impressive.

Unblocked: Netflix US, UK, Italy, and Norway

The first streaming platform I tried was Netflix, and I could unblock several libraries without issues. I tried 3 US servers (New York, Miami, and Dallas), and I could access the US library effortlessly on each attempt. Considering that even top VPNs sometimes have trouble accessing certain Netflix libraries, I was impressed that Total VPN could access these libraries without problems.

I watched a full episode of Que Viva Mexico with zero quality drops

In addition to Netflix US, I could access libraries from the UK, Italy, Israel, Mexico, and Norway, among others. I could mostly stream in HD, even on servers thousands of miles away. It took about 5 seconds for my videos to load, and I didn’t experience any buffering while streaming.

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Unblocked: Hulu, Disney +, HBO Max, Peacock, and ESPN

I also had no issues accessing Hulu on all the US servers I tested. This was really impressive because it has tough geo blocks. Plus, my load times were always under 15 seconds.

I also tested Total VPN with Disney+, HBO Max, and Peacock, and I could access them without any problems.

I only waited for approximately 10 seconds for my video to load

I tested its servers in Canada and had no issues unblocking Disney + on the first attempt. My only complaint is that my load time was approximately 15 seconds.

As a baseball die-hard, I was impressed that Total VPN could also unblock ESPN. I was thrilled I could stream NCAA Baseball’s Utah Valley vs. UT Arlington on the Washington server without issues. I struggled with buffering for the first few minutes, but the connection quickly stabilized, and I watched the game without more problems.

Blocked By: Amazon Prime Video

TotalAV's Safe Browsing VPN couldn’t unblock any Amazon Prime Video library.

Support confirmed that it works with Prime VIdeo sometimes, so you might get lucky

I contacted customer support to ask if the VPN can unblock it, and the agent confirmed that it sometimes has issues accessing this service because of the platform’s rigorous efforts to block VPNs.

TotalAV’s Safe Browsing VPN had decent results on local servers, but speeds dropped significantly on long-distance ones. Typically, long-distance servers tend to slow down connection speeds since your data needs to travel a longer distance. So, I wasn’t very surprised when my speed took a hit.

During my tests, I considered 3 key factors:

• Download speed. This measures, in megabits per second (Mbps), how quickly you can receive data, such as loading web pages and content.
• Upload speed. It's also measured in Mbps, signifying how quickly you can send data. This is important for uploading videos, sending emails, and sharing files, and is typically slower than download speed.
• Ping. Measured in milliseconds (ms), this is the time it takes for data to travel. This tells you the latency or responsiveness of a connection. A lower ping rate is ideal for tasks like gaming.

Our dedicated speed tester conducted several days of speed tests using Total VPN servers from a central location in the UK. The chart below presents the average speeds per location based on these test results.

My speeds lowered by 27% on average with nearby servers, and 45% with distant ones

To complete the review, I personally ran tests across a dozen servers and had similar results. My speed loss on servers close to my location never exceeded 15%. For context, it’s normal to experience an average of a 10-20% decrease in speed on short-distance servers.

My speed dropped by approximately 16% on servers nearby

However, my speeds on long-distance servers weren’t as impressive. I experienced a 74.19% speed loss on servers in Miami, which are 12,000 km away. This was disappointing because the top VPNs usually reduce your speeds by around 40-50% at that range.

Even with these slow speeds, I could still stream in HD since my base connection rate is fast. But you might experience significant lag and slowdowns if your base speeds are 20 Mbps or lower. Therefore, TotalAV’s Safe Browsing VPN speeds are okay, but there’s room for improvement. You can find a VPN that’s fast even on faraway servers in this list.

Total VPN has good ping when servers are close to you, but that can be hard to find. The long distance servers have high ping, but that’s pretty common. I haven’t found a VPN that works well for gaming on distant servers.

For my first test, I played Minecraft. The server closest to my location is in Switzerland, and it had a ping of 177 ms. The ideal ping rate is between 50-85 ms, which helps your character respond to your button presses instantly. I was surprised that with such a high ping rate I could still play the game without much delay. I expected it would take a short pause for my character to respond after clicking the mouse, but my character responded almost instantly.

I was able to start the game after 10 seconds of loading

I couldn’t enjoy the game when I tested a faraway server in Miami – my ping was 250 ms. The game took approximately 10 seconds to load, and even after it loaded it took at least half a second for my character to respond to my commands.

Total VPN also doesn’t have easy ways to connect a Playstation, Xbox, or Nintendo game console. So, it may work okay if you only play games on mobile, Mac, or PC, and there are nearby servers. You can get a VPN that has more worldwide servers for gaming in this list.

With only 100 servers in 36 countries, TotalAV’s Safe Browsing VPN’s network is pretty small. But I like that it gives you an okay mix of locations worldwide. I found the connections to be reliable too. I was connected to every server I tested in less than 5 seconds.

While the server network is intuitive, I hope Total VPN adds servers from Africa

I was disappointed that there wasn’t much information about servers on the TotalAV website. For example, I couldn’t find out whether or not it has any virtual servers. There’s also no easy way to find out if it owns its servers or whether or not they’re RAM-only. RAM-only servers are the best for privacy because they delete all the information on them each time they reboot.

In addition, TotalAV’s Safe Browsing VPN doesn’t offer many city-level servers. Except for in the US and the UK, you’ll only know what country the server is in.

The lack of dedicated IPs is also a downside. Dedicated IPs provide a consistent and unique internet identity, reducing your risk of being blocked. They can also enhance reliability for services requiring a stable IP (like running a website). Many VPNs offer these addresses for an additional fee. Here's a list of some of the VPNs that offer dedicated IP addresses. All these VPNs also provide a much larger server network too.

Total VPN lets you browse the internet safely. It passed 10+ leak tests on servers around the world. My only concern is that it doesn’t give you any customization options. Everything comes pre-configured except for the kill switch, which you can toggle on and off. However, this won’t be an issue if you’re just interested in using a simple, hassle-free VPN.

You miss out on additional special features many of its competitors offer. For example, many VPNs have split tunneling, which lets you exclude some traffic from the VPN tunnel. I like to use this when I’m streaming geo blocked content, but I still want to access my banking app. You also miss out on multi-hop, private DNS servers, and more. You can try a VPN with way more security features in this list.

Encryption

TotalAV's VPN employs the US military-grade AES 256-bit encryption. This is the same encryption level used by all the top VPNs, and it’s nearly impossible to break.

Security Protocols

It employs two secure protocols, OpenVPN and IKEv2, which are well-regarded protocols utilized by numerous premium VPNs. OpenVPN is open-source, so it’s considered the safest protocol. That’s because it’s constantly being updated by people from around the world. IKEv2 is an older protocol, but it’s lightweight and is compatible with many mobile devices.

However, I wish Total VPN could connect through WireGuard. This is the fastest protocol, and most modern VPNs let you use it. It could have helped TotalAVs VPN have faster speeds on distant servers.

Kill Switch

TotalAV’s Safe Browsing VPN offers a kill switch feature for Windows. This prevents internet access if the VPN connection breaks, providing an additional layer of security to safeguard your data. I found this useful, but you must remember to turn it on.

My IP address never leaked when I tested the kill switch

The kill switch always worked as promised and blocked my internet whenever my connection dropped. However, Total VPN does not offer a kill switch on its mobile or Mac apps.

I was pleased to learn that Total VPN has a strict no-logging policy, ensuring your data remains private. Similar to most VPNs, it only logs essential personal information during the sign-up process, such as email addresses and payment details, solely to create and manage user accounts and provide support. Unfortunately, Total VPN is located in the UK, part of the intelligence-sharing pact of the 5-Eyes Alliance.

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Does TotalAV's VPN Keep Logs? No

TotalAV follows a strict no-logs policy. It only keeps a record of all the information you use to create and update your account, along with some other information that identifies your device. It also uses cookies to collect basic information when you visit the site. Besides that, it doesn’t track or store any information while you’re using the VPN.

Was TotalAV's VPN Audited? No

Unfortunately, Total VPN apps and privacy policy have not undergone independent audits. No information on its website or anywhere online confirms that an independent party has verified its privacy policy. I contacted customer support, and they confirmed that these tests haven’t been done. So, you just have to take TotalAV’s word for it.

Based in the United Kingdom

It’s based in the UK, within the 5 Eyes Alliance. This network operates as a global surveillance system in which participating nations share data on their citizens. Additionally, the members possess the legal authority to compel third parties to disclose such data.

But this shouldn't be a big concern since Total VPN doesn’t keep any logs. Even if it were asked to share information, it wouldn’t have anything stored.

Does Total VPN Work in China? Yes

Total VPN does work in China. The Chinese government has banned many VPNs. In my experience, most smaller VPNs don’t stand a chance against this technology. So, I was surprised when TotalAV’s customer support agent confirmed that I could use it in China.

The agent assured me that Total VPN works in other heavily censored countries too

However, you need to download the app before you travel into the country. You should also know that the Chinese government hasn’t gone after any tourists for using VPNs. However, I recommend reading up on the laws before choosing to use one in the country, so you don’t break any of them.

TotalAV VPN supports P2P across all non-US servers and works flawlessly with most torrent clients such as qBittorrent. I tested its torrenting functionality and was impressed with the results. I connected to Manchester, Canada, and Brazil servers and could download copyright-free files, like The Amazing Mr. X, without problems.

I was also happy that my speeds remained consistent even when downloading fairly large files. A 1.14 GB file finished in about 20 min, which is about the same amount of time when not connected to a VPN. TotalAV's VPN also has solid security and privacy features, so it’s a good option for torrenting.

However, neither my team nor I endorse downloading copyrighted files. I recommend you only access torrents within the public domain.

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