Alternatives

Best TunnelBear alternatives in 2026

Data compiled by Toolradar Updated October 28, 2026 How we rate

Cite this list: Toolradar, best TunnelBear alternatives 2026, toolradar.com/alternatives/tunnelbear

8 direct alternatives to TunnelBear, compared on pricing, features, and best-for use cases. Pick the right replacement without the marketing fluff.

Quick answer

NordVPN is the top alternative to TunnelBear on our list, followed by ExpressVPN and Surfshark.
1 of the 8 alternatives has a free plan, starting with Proton VPN.
Highest rated: ExpressVPN, 4.6 out of 5 from 291 ratings, Sep 2026.

Publications that cover the tools tracked here

8 alternatives
1 with a free plan

NordVPN
#1 Top pick
Online VPN service for privacy
Starting price
From $3.39 /mo
Cheapest paid plan, monthly, as of October 2026
4.0 /5 across G2, Capterra, SourceForge and more · 18,319 ratings, Sep 2026
Our take
Best overall
Read the review
ExpressVPN
#2
Secure your connection, access global content, and enjoy fast speeds
Starting price
From $3.49 /mo
Cheapest paid plan, monthly, as of October 2026
4.6 /5 across G2 and Capterra · 291 ratings, Sep 2026
Our take
Highest rated
Read the review
Surfshark
#3
Unlimited devices, all-in-one online security and privacy
Starting price
From $2.49 /mo
Cheapest paid plan, monthly, as of October 2026
4.3 /5 across Trustpilot, G2 and Capterra · 923 ratings, Sep 2026
Read the review

TunnelBear vs 8 alternatives

TunnelBear and its alternatives compared on starting price (cheapest paid plan, monthly, as of October 2026), free plan and average user rating.
Tool	Starting price (Oct 2026)	Free plan	Rating
TunnelBear Compared tool	Price: $3.33/mo	Free plan: Yes	4.0 out of 5, from 510 ratings across G2, Capterra and SourceForge (510)
NordVPN	Price: $3.39/mo	Free plan: No	4.0 out of 5, from 18,319 ratings across G2, Capterra, SourceForge and more (18,319)
ExpressVPN	Price: $3.49/mo	Free plan: No	4.6 out of 5, from 291 ratings across G2 and Capterra (291)
Surfshark	Price: $2.49/mo	Free plan: No	4.3 out of 5, from 923 ratings across Trustpilot, G2 and Capterra (923)
IPVanish	Price: $2.19/mo	Free plan: No	4.1 out of 5, from 750 ratings across SourceForge, Capterra and Trustpilot (750)
Mullvad VPN	Price: $5/mo	Free plan: No	3.7 out of 5, from 154 ratings across G2, SourceForge and Trustpilot (154)
Private Internet Access	Price: $1.88/mo	Free plan: No	4.6 out of 5, from 38 ratings on SourceForge (38)
Proton VPN	Price: $6.99/mo	Free plan: Yes	4.3 out of 5, from 5 ratings on G2 (5)
CyberGhost VPN	Price: $2.03/mo	Free plan: No	n/a

Why people consider alternatives to TunnelBear

TunnelBear is a secure VPN service designed to encrypt your internet connection, keeping your online activity private across any network.

Teams most often switch away when one of these starts to bite:

Pricing at scale as usage or premium tiers add up.
Missing integrations with the rest of your stack.
Performance or scale limits as your needs grow.
A specific feature gap you have hit in vpn.

The 8 alternatives below cover the same core job (VPN) with different trade-offs.

See full TunnelBear review Best vpn tools How we rank

TunnelBear by the numbers

Toolradar data: TunnelBear's entry paid plan ($3.33/mo, billed yearly) ranks #10 of 22 for price among the VPN tools with a verified entry price and no stated unit, where the median is $3.44/mo. As of Oct 2026.

TunnelBear compared with 36 VPN tools on Toolradar, as of Oct 2026
Metric	TunnelBear	Peer median	Position (1 is best)
Entry paid plan	$3.33/mo, billed yearly	$3.44/mo	#10 of 22 tools with no stated price unit, verified price
Free plan	Yes	21 of 36 have one	n/a
Listed as an alternative to	1 tool	5	#27 of 36 (joint)
User rating	4.0/5 (across the web, 510 ratings)	4.3/5	#21 of 27 (joint) tools with 20+ reviews
Toolradar page visits, last 30 days	120 visits	424	#7 of 8 tools with 50+ visits
Compare-page visits, last 30 days	44 visits	44	#15 of 30 (joint) tools with 20+ compare-page visits

Each position is counted among the tools that have data for that row, as noted under it. A lower entry price ranks higher; prices are read on vendor pages and compared only with tools priced on the same basis. All VPN data · How we compute this. Advertising and placement fees are not inputs to any position. Visit counts include visits from every source.

Cite this: Toolradar, “TunnelBear by the numbers”, Oct 2026.

VPN leaderboards from Toolradar data

Toolradar ranks VPN tools on one measure at a time, only where at least 8 tools have data. As of Oct 2026.

CSV

Lowest entry price, plans with no stated unit

Cheapest standard paid plan per month (annual prices divided by 12), read on vendor pages and compared only with tools priced on the same basis.

Counted among 22 tools with no stated price unit, verified price.

Lowest entry price, plans with no stated unit, VPN tools on Toolradar, as of Oct 2026
#	Tool	Entry plan
1	Private Internet Access	$1.88/mo, billed monthly
2	CyberGhost VPN	$2.03/mo, billed monthly
3	IPVanish	$2.19/mo, billed monthly
4	Surfshark	$2.49/mo, billed monthly
4	ZoogVPN	$2.49/mo, billed monthly

Most visited, last 30 days

Distinct visitor sessions on the tool's Toolradar page over the last 30 days, with bots excluded by our analytics. A session counts once however many times it reloads the page.

Counted among 8 tools with 50+ visits.

Most visited, last 30 days, VPN tools on Toolradar, as of Oct 2026
#	Tool	Visits
1	Proton VPN	1,181 visits
2	Hide.me	676 visits
3	Windscribe VPN	540 visits
4	Opera	508 visits
5	ZoogVPN	340 visits

A position exists only when at least 8 tools have data for that metric. 22 of 36 VPN tools have a verified price; the others publish none we could read (often "contact sales"). Advertising and placement fees are not inputs to any position. Visit counts include visits from every source. How we compute this. Cite this: Toolradar, “VPN leaderboards”, Oct 2026. Data licensed CC BY 4.0. All VPN statistics.

8 alternatives to TunnelBear

Ranked by G2 and Capterra ratings, media mentions, and editor review, plus how directly they replace TunnelBear.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best alternative to TunnelBear?

Based on real-signal scoring (G2 and Capterra ratings, media mentions, and editorial review), the top alternatives to TunnelBear are NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark. Each solves the same core job with different trade-offs on pricing, features, and integrations.

Is there a free alternative to TunnelBear?

There is no fully free alternative in this list. Proton VPN is freemium: a permanent free tier plus paid plans (Swiss privacy protection with unlimited bandwidth).

Why do people look for TunnelBear alternatives?

Common reasons teams switch away from TunnelBear: pricing that scales aggressively, missing integrations with the rest of their stack, performance or scale limits, or a specific feature gap in vpn. The alternatives on this page solve the same core problem with different trade-offs.

Side-by-side comparisons

In-depth comparison pages for TunnelBear versus each alternative.

TunnelBear vs NordVPN TunnelBear vs ExpressVPN TunnelBear vs Surfshark TunnelBear vs IPVanish TunnelBear vs Mullvad VPN TunnelBear vs Private Internet Access TunnelBear vs Proton VPN TunnelBear vs CyberGhost VPN

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Still considering TunnelBear?

See the full review, pricing breakdown, and community feedback before you decide.

Full TunnelBear review Visit TunnelBear

Top 3 alternatives to TunnelBear

NordVPN

ExpressVPN

Surfshark