The iOS VPN app version 1.6.0 is no longer supported. To improve your experience, Malwarebytes now combines VPN features with our Security app, allowing you to manage both in one application.
To keep using your VPN subscription, please download our Mobile Security app. If you purchased a subscription through the Google Play or Apple App Store, you will need to cancel your existing subscription and purchase a new VPN subscription.
For instructions on how to purchase, install, and activate the new app, refer to our Mobile Security Quick Start Guide.
The Android VPN app version 1.8.0 is no longer supported. To improve your experience, Malwarebytes now combines VPN features with our Security app, allowing you to manage both in one application.
To keep using your VPN subscription, please download our Mobile Security app. If you purchased a subscription through the Google Play or Apple App Store, you will need to cancel your existing subscription and purchase a new VPN subscription.
For instructions on how to purchase, install, and activate the new app, refer to our Mobile Security Quick Start Guide.
The macOS VPN app version 2.5.0 is no longer supported. To improve your experience, Malwarebytes now combines VPN features with our Security app, allowing you to manage both in one application.
To keep using your VPN subscription, please download our Desktop Security app. For instructions on how to purchase, install, and activate the new app, refer to our Desktop Security Quick Start Guide.
The Windows VPN app version 3.17.0 is no longer supported. To improve your experience, Malwarebytes now combines VPN features with our Security app, allowing you to manage both in one application.
To keep using your VPN subscription, please download our Desktop Security app. For instructions on how to purchase, install, and activate the new app, refer to our Desktop Security Quick Start Guide.
VPN looks out for your privacy by serving as a digital middleman between you and the Internet. Congestion can sometimes happen when you reroute your internet connection through a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service. You may lose some speed when running VPN because it takes time to encrypt your data.
This article helps you identify and resolve the issues that may be impacting your internet speed.
Symptoms
- Internet speed (uploading, downloading and viewing content) is slower when Privacy VPN is toggled on.
Environments
- Operating systems: Windows, Mac, Android, iOS.
- Malwarebytes products: VPN
Solution
If the download and upload speeds are slower than your internet subscription's expected range with VPN toggled off, contact your ISP for assistance.
Server location
- Select a server location closer to your physical location. This can improve your connection speed. To switch your server location, see Change server location in the VPN.
Connection mode
- On Windows devices, if using multihop connection mode, switch to Single server mode. The multihop connection mode, where we tunnel your internet connection through two servers, provides additional protection to your online activity, but may slow internet speeds.
Refer back to user guide
Tunnel driver options
- On Windows devices, we use the Malwarebytes MBtun driver to connect to the VPN service. Some older CPUs do not support this option. Switch to the Windows tunnel driver, Wireguard Wintun driver, from the dropdown menu and see if that improves your connection speed.
Note: The Wintun driver does not support the VPN Bypass feature.
Third-party security apps or firewall conflicts
- Third party services may impact it's performance. To prevent this, add the path to the Privacy VPN product folder to your Third-party security apps and/or firewall Allow list. Refer to the third-party app or firewall configuration manual to add the path to the folder to the Allow list.
Note: On Windows devices, if installed in the default location, this is the path to the Privacy VPN folder: C:\Program Files\Malwarebytes\Privacy
Router settings
The VPN uses UDP and TCP protocols in order to establish a connection with the internet.
- Check your router settings to determine if your router allows connection to the internet using these protocols. If this is not the case, refer to your router manufacturers' configuration manual, and update your settings to allow connections using these protocols.
Return to the VPN for Windows guide.