Best VPN for Singapore in 2021
Singapore is an eclectic mix of different international influences and cultures, and its internet access is similarly jumbled. While Singapore has the fastest internet in the world, it still doesn’t have freedom on the internet and authorities have been clamping down on illegal and restrcited sites for years. Other sites considered to be going against Singapore’s societal values include the notorious extra-marital dating site, Ashley Madison, and various gambling, torrenting, and streaming sites.
Given that you could be arrested for selling chewing gum or singing in public, like Singapore’s ‘Silver Man’ busker last year, Singapore’s probably exciting enough without risking your online privacy as well. That’s why we at Secure Thoughts recommend subscribing to one of the best VPNs for Singapore and eliminating any potentially unpleasant online surprises before you go.
Top VPNs for Singapore
#1 ExpressVPN – Best VPN for Singapore Speeds
Make the most of Singapore’s super-fast internet with the fastest VPN provider around. ExpressVPN has been light years ahead of the competition for years and, although some newcomers are catching up, still offers the most consistent high speeds around. As ExpressVPN will effectively mask your Singapore IP address, you’ll be able to visit whatever streaming or torrenting sites you like and soak up all the content at the world’s top speeds.
ExpressVPN encrypts every piece of traffic traveling to and from your device using the same encryption code used by international security experts and national governments. ExpressVPN also mingles traffic from your device with that of other users, making it virtually impossible for anyone to spy on you.
With one of the most extensive server networks around, ExpressVPN is perfectly positioned to give you the best speeds and most reliable connections in Singapore. Should your connection fail, however, ExpressVPN ensures your sensitive files and data remain protected with an automatic kill switch that will sever all internet activity should the VPN connection go down.
ExpressVPN has three servers in Singapore, two of which offer every security protocol available, from OpenVPN to PPTP, so advanced users can have a field day customizing their VPN to suit their specific needs. If you simply want a VPN that will automatically connect and protect, you couldn’t do better than ExpressVPN which, despite its sophistication and advanced technology, is extremely user-friendly and offers easy to follow advice both on its website and via its live chat support.
Although not the cheapest cybersecurity solution on the market, ExpressVPN is competitively priced, especially if you take advantage of their free trial before purchasing. Find out more about ExpressVPN and why it’s our number one chart-topper by reading our full review or just bite the bullet and sign up for ExpressVPN today.
Starting from as low as $6.67
#2 SurfsharkVPN – Best VPN for Multiple Connections in Singapore
Like Singapore itself, SurfShark VPN is full of surprises and at first, looks very much like a small fish in a big pond with its measly selection of just over 500 servers. A closer look, however, will soon reveal just how fast and powerful this VPN really is. Think Great White and then throw in a big slice of Incredible Hulk and that’s pretty much what SurfShark is offering.
Although SurfShark has only been around for a little over a year, it’s proven to be a powerful competitor, getting around Netflix’s geoblocks and skipping over China’s Great Firewall as though it were just an obstacle from a hamster’s agility course. Being so new to the scene, SurfShark has had little opportunity to prove the validity of its no-logging and privacy policies but, to date, it’s reputation is squeaky clean.
Like ExpressVPN, SurfShark chose a location for its headquarters that would reflect its commitment to user privacy so it joined ExpressVPN on the British Virgin Islands where there is no legislation requiring data retention and no required participation in the 14-eyes intelligence-sharing alliance. Which means, basically, your secrets are safe with SurfShark.
SurfShark exploded onto the VPN scene, offering unlimited simultaneous connections so, if you want to go all-out in Singapore, downloading, streaming, and torrenting on every device you can get your hands on, then SurfShark is for you.
As new as it is, SurfShark is proving itself to be a capable cybersecurity solution and, with so many servers in and around Singapore, promises to be one of the best VPNs for Singapore, giving you both peace of mind and freedom of access.
Get all the facts and none of the fiction about SurfShark VPN in our full review, or just grab the shark by its metaphorical horns and sign up for SurfShark VPN today.
Starting from as low as $1.99
#3 CyberGhost VPN – 8.5/10 – Best VPN For Newbies in Singapore
Founded eight years ago, CyberGhost VPN has gone through a series of overhauls and redesigns making the CyberGhost of yesteryear seem like little more than a substandard apparition. Today’s CyberGhost is user-friendly, fast and easy to customize according to your specific needs.
Despite its vehement denials, rumors continue to circulate about CyberGhost logging policy. According to CyberGhost, nothing is logged; not your IP address, login time, traffic, or assigned server. According to their opponents, however, CyberGhost VPN still uses session recording scripts and third-party apps to collect data. We find this hard to believe. CyberGhost VPN canceled its free app last year and overhauled its paid subscription service to reflect its “fierce dedication to a No Logs policy”, doing away with its controversial root certificate at the same time. This has revolutionized CyberGhost’s service and brought it up to industry standard in terms of both its no-logging and privacy policy.
CyberGhost VPN has a mainly graphic user-interface which makes navigation a breeze. With industry-standard encryption technology, an extensive international server network of over 5,900 servers, ad-blockers, DNS leak protection, and a built-in kill switch, CyberGhost VPN puts the power of cybersecurity into your hands.
CyberGhost VPN used to be rather eurocentric but, over the years, it has expanded its network and now has 35 servers in Singapore and a scattering in neighboring Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia. With competitive prices and excellent customer service, CyberGhost VPN is a welcome addition to our list of best VPNs for Singapore. Not only does it offer a high level of protection against government surveillance and cybercrimes, but it also reinforces its commitment to user privacy by conducting regular transparency reports.
Become a “Ghostie” today, or get more expert insights by reading in our full CyberGhost VPN review.
Starting from as low as $2.75
#4 NordVPN – 8/10 – Best VPN For Security in Singapore
There was a time in the not so distant past that NordVPN was jostling with ExpressVPN for the number-one slot. Times have changed, but NordVPN’s security-focused service hasn’t it. It’s as good as it ever was but others have got better.
With one of the largest server networks in the world, NordVPN works pretty much anywhere, including Africa and Asia, which is a boast few VPNs can make, but it doesn’t hold your hand to quite the extent of CyberGhost VPN. It’s user-friendly, but not designed for children. This slightly more sophisticated approach does mean that navigating to a specialized server or changing your security protocol might be a little more challenging, but you certainly don’t have to be a brain surgeon in order to get your head around it.
When it comes to getting around government censorship, NordVPN is versatile and effective and has consistently proved itself capable of dodging geoblocks and evading the harsh internet restrictions in China. Certainly, the constraints on internet access in Singapore won’t pose a problem for NordVPN.
Although NordVPN offers to find the fastest server available automatically, it doesn’t always come up trumps and, unfortunately, unlike CyberGhost VPN, it doesn’t give users information about the traffic loads or speeds of its servers. This means it can be difficult to find the fastest server, meaning you waste time clicking between different locations as you hunt down that elusive speed.
Despite its sometimes inconsistent speeds, NordVPN is a solid VPN when it comes to security and its CyberSec feature boosts that level of protection by adding in an ad-blocker, anti-phishing and malware technology. Safe and functional, NordVPN may not be the best VPN for Singapore, but it’s not far behind.
Discover more about NordVPN’s security features by checking out our full review, or get “the internet with no borders” by subscribing to NordVPN today.
Starting from as low as $2.99
#5 Tunnelbear – Best VPN for privacy in Singapore
Want a simple-to-use VPN that has all the major platforms covered like Windows, Mac, Android and iOS as well as browser extensions like Chrome, Firefox, and Mozilla? TunnelBear is a non-expensive solution to a fantastic VPN, which might not offer as many features as some other VPNs out there, but it will more than do the job for those needing a secure connection.
Although a lot of VPN services claim to have the fastest speeds, the truth of the matter is that this is generally not the case. TunnelBear offers above average speeds and will allow you to stream from platforms like Netflix without waiting for your show to load every couple of minutes.
TunnelBear has a strict and very clear privacy policy. Basically, TunnelBear will not log any IPs, customer activity or requests you may have. What they will gather is user’s email addresses, their first name, the amount of data that users transfer monthly as well as the OS version of the device in use. When it comes to logging data, you can be sure that the IP addresses you access, IP addresses used for a service connection as well as DNS queries will never be logged.
For security purposes, TunnelBear uses various protection protocols including OpenVPN, IPSec, and IKEv2 which are the most powerful security tools available at the moment. The great thing is that whenever TunnelBear has been tested for DNS and IP leaks there have been none with this VPN provider.
You can choose from various plans including Little Bear, Giant, and Grizzly subscriptions. The first is a unique freemium option which will allow you 500MB of data per month which can be boosted by an extra 1GB when you post about TunnelBear on Twitter. The second is a monthly plan which will allow you flexibility and the third will offer you everything that the Giant plan does, but at half the price when you sign up for the one-year plan.
This is a perfect solution for someone that wants a foolproof VPN which will keep your online movements anonymous all whilst being very simple to use. For a VPN you’ll barely notice working in the background, read our full TunnelBear review and sign up with them today.
Starting from as low as $4.99
#6 ProtonVPN – 7/10 Best VPN for a Freemium Plan
Launching just a few years ago in 2017, ProtonVPN boasts as many as 620 servers in 44 countries, which may not be as impressive as some of the other players we mentioned, but you have to remember they’ve been in the game for a lot longer. Additionally, ProtonVPN has carefully placed servers that don’t share their spot with any other VPN company.
There are great security protocols in place with this VPN service provider which includes military-grade protection IKEV2/IPSec, OpenVPN protocols, kill switch, ‘always on’ feature as well as the Secure Core feature. The last of the bunch will allow you double the protection of a regular connection as it reroutes your traffic to two servers in completely different locations.
The freemium service is definitely something to write home about. Although there is only one device covered, you have the option of choosing from three different locations to connect to including Japan, the US, and the Netherlands.
Amazingly, you will have the luxury of no bandwidth and speed regulations. You will also be asked if you would like to test run the Plus plan for a week, just so you can see how things work.
Whilst you won’t have customer service on hand 24/7 through live chat like some other services, ProtonVPN has email as well as ticket support on hand. When you do submit a ticket someone will get back to you within a day. Additionally, you can always check out their FAQ and troubleshooting guides as well as their informative and easy-to-read blog.
This is one of the easiest and most appealing VPNs on the market, with the charcoal and green interface coming complete with a map so you can see exactly where you are and where your new connection is.
Privacy is important, and whilst as many as a third of VPN services contain something suspicious within their privacy policy, the complete opposite can be said about ProtonVPN who state,
“ProtonVPN respects its users’ privacy and enforces a No Logs policy. This means your VPN connections remain private and we do not store information about your connections or the websites you visit.
For the purpose of securing your account and making sure it’s you who is signing in, we store a single timestamp of your account’s most recent login. Again, we do not store any information about where you signed in from or how long you were logged in.”
Don’t worry about a thing, with ProtonVPN and 28 servers in Singapore, your online protection is guaranteed. Read our full ProtonVPN review and sign up today.
Starting from as low as $4.
Circumventing Singaporean Censorship with a VPN
Admittedly, a visit to Singapore without a VPN won’t leave you quite as isolated as if you were headed to China. You’ll still enjoy access to sites like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter and other social media sites that are banned in more restrictive regions.
A few years ago, Singaporean authorities shut down a news website called The Real Singapore after it was found to have doctored articles to make them more inflammatory. That seems fair, doesn’t it? Indeed, many supported the decision, which the Minister for Communications and Information, Dr. Yaacob Ibrahim explained as not being intended to censor the internet, but to preserve the country’s “racial and religious harmony”.
Unfortunately, any decision to shut down a website is censorship and is not really freedom, and that’s why Freedom House’s 2018 report on Singapore rated it as being only partly free. While Singapore’s constitution upholds the right to the freedom of expression, it also allows the government to limit that freedom. The passing of a new cybersecurity bill early last year set the cat amongst the virtual pigeons despite Dr. Ibrahim’s assurances that “the powers under the Bill are not intended to intrude into privacy”.
Further internet control is expected in light of Singaporean authorities considering the introduction of a new law to control the distribution of fake news. The law hasn’t been finalized as yet but many feel it would impair freedom of speech, giving authorities the right to “undermine any journalism they disagree with”.
Singapore may be partly free at present, but the future is uncertain and, as cybercrimes continue to rise and fake news causes increasing amounts of disruptions, residents and visitors to Singapore should prepare for further restrictions by investing in one of our recommended VPN providers for the region.
Celebrate Streaming in Singapore with a VPN
People living in Singapore are also living vibrant online lives, with nearly five million users online as of January last year. Around 75% of the population is active on social media but, strangely, only around 15% make use of streaming sites on a regular basis. This is particularly odd given the quality of the content available. In fact, some of Singapore’s top streaming sites are so good, you might want to use your VPN to connect to a Singapore server so you can carry on watching them from other locations.
Singapore’s top streaming sites include:
Like Singapore’s other top streaming channels, Singtel TV is compatible with a range of devices, making it ideal to watch on the go or on the plane. Like Toggle, Singtel TV gives viewers access to HBO Go but, as a bonus for soccer fans, you can also watch the English Premiership online with Singtel TV. Singtel TV also has a host of original Asian content, making it one of the most comprehensive online streaming services in Singapore.
Run by the media giant, MediaCorp, Toggle streams both Asian and American content, some of which you can watch for free. In addition to popular science-fiction series like the Singaporean spin-off of Channel 8’s Hello from the Other Side, Toggle also offers live sporting coverage and a selection of American shows from HBO Go.
This premium streaming site doesn’t even need you to log in, let alone pay to enjoy streaming their original Asian content. A variety of different genres draw viewers from all cultures and walk of life so it’s unsurprising that, once you’ve sampled it, you may keep connecting back to a Singapore server to get your Viu fix.
Bottom Line
Singapore may have the fastest internet connection in the world but to make the most of it you need one of the best VPNs for Singapore. Why? Well, like the rest of the world, Singapore is clamping down on fake news and monitoring online activities in an effort to forestall potential terrorist action. What this means for even the most casual internet user is that, without a VPN, you’re leaving yourself open to potential government surveillance as well as the usual cyberthreats we now take for granted.
Our criteria for selecting the best VPNs for Singapore include obvious ones like having plentiful servers in and around the region, being able to negotiate geographical restrictions on sites like Netflix, airtight privacy policy and a commitment to no logging. Above and beyond those basic features, the best VPN for Singapore needs to guarantee usable speeds, offer encryption of AES-256, and a range of security protocols.
Whether you opt for ExpressVPN or any of the others in our list, you’ll be assured of having a secure connection that allows you to make the most of Singapore’s high-speed internet, dodging geoblocks and giving you free access to whatever content you wish to view, listen to, stream, or torrent. Don’t leave home without one and, if you heading to Singapore, don’t feed the pigeons as this is another illegal activity it will cost you a lot more – around $500 more – than just bird seed.