Despite its “controversial” brand, HideMyAss is somewhat one of the world’s best-rated VPN services. The service was initially developed by a 16-year-old boy in 2005 and has since then seen its path up to become a Top VPN client. 10 years after, AVG bought the concept for around $40 million. Later on, Avast technologies acquired AVG, making HMA a subsidiary of the security giants.
What makes HMA VPN Good?
HMA offers military-grade internet traffic encryption that ensures safety and security for its client internet activities and personal data. It also prides itself on its robust global servers and proactive customer desk. With close to 1100 servers in over 210 countries, HMA provides its customers with a variety of virtual IP addresses to choose from. And while an extensive server network does not necessarily result in high internet connectivity, HMA VPN clients have invested in making sure that users enjoy high internet speed of up to 20Gb per second.
Besides high internet connectivity abilities, HideMyAss supports Peer-to-Peer connection but only for a selected few locations. The VPN provides top security and privacy courtesy of high-end security protocols (OpenVPN and IKEv2 support), an AES-256 -GCM data encryption, RSA-4096, and SHA-256 data authentication. To protect its users from any data leaks, HMA comes with a kill switch that automatically works to prevent DNS leaks if you lose your VPN connection.
The VPN has also proven effective in unblocking geo-restricted sites such as Hulu, Netflix, among others. It also supports a maximum of five devices simultaneously. And while its abilities are top-class, HMA also has quite a share of shortcomings. At the same time, we cannot assume that HMA is perfect for everyone; different people will go for different VPN clients according to their needs and preferences. So, the big question, why would you consider a VPN alternative rather than using HMA? Here are some shortcomings that will probably help you reevaluate your decision to use the HideMyAss VPN services.
Why You Would Consider HMA VPN Alternatives
Well, suppose total data privacy is your priority. In that case, it is probably time that you consider checking for a VPN alternative, considering that HMA recently acknowledged that they temporarily store user logs. You probably would not want to use a VPN that “temporary” keeps users’ logs, especially not after the famous “LulSec Fiasco” in 2011 when HMA surrender a former user’s records to the FBI.
Being a UK-based VPN client and having made a firm stand on its VPN services’ legal use, you certainly should be concerned about the privacy of your internet traffic. Remember, the UK is a Five-Eyes country meaning government agencies can demand access to the VPN’s data files.
Even though HMA claims that the stored logs are not substantial to link any activity to any user, why would you have to take that chance when there are excellent VPNs that offer clear no-log policy like NordVPN and Cyberghost VPN. Also, we cannot overlook the pricing issue. Sorry to say but, HMA is somewhat overpriced, a $6.55 to $11.95 per month compared to other popular VPNs such as Private Internet Access VPN.
Top 4 HMA VPN Alternatives
Ideally, HMA okay if you are looking to bypass a few geo-restricted sites. However, if privacy is your main concern, then here are some of the top VPN alternatives you should consider instead of using HMA.
- Surfshark VPN
The Surfshark VPN is relatively fast, affordable, and easy to configure VPN clients. If you are looking for a budget VPN that will provide you with top privacy without compromising your data safety, Surfshark VPN should be your top priority. The VPN provides for fast and reliable internet connectivity, fast enough to get the job done.
It supports a variety of devices including, Android, macOS, Windows, and Linux. Using Surfshark, users can connect an unlimited number of devices simultaneously with just one single subscription, which is economical for those traveling with their families. Security-wise, Surfshark VPN comes with a kill switch feature, split tunneling, and AES 256-bit encryption for your internet traffic. Besides, the VPN has a round the clock live chat and a 30-day money guarantee back policy.
- ExpressVPN
It is popular for its unmatched internet connectivity speeds, top privacy, and smooth online streaming abilities. It is among the fastest if not the fastest VPN service out there. The VPN client has over 3000 servers in 160 locations within 94 countries across the world. It has a 24/7 responsive customer service desk and is compatible with most used operating systems, including Mac, iOS, Windows. Linux, Blackberry, and Android.
ExpressVPN comes with a military-grade encryption ability, a kill switch, DNS protection, split tunneling, and a no-log policy that ensures that users remain anonymous and untraceable by hackers or any government surveillance agency. For those who fancy accessing geo-restricted websites such as Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Disney+, this is the best chance to access these sites. ExpressVPN works even in countries where the internet is heavily censored, e.g., China and Russia.
As an assurance of its quality services, ExpressVPN has a 30-day money-back guarantee that allows you to “test drive” its abilities.
- NordVPN
NordVPN is often compared competitively with ExpressVPN. These are supposedly the top best VPN services in the market today. NordVPN has, however, dominated the VPN realm and established itself as the world’s famous and most trusted VPN client. Nord has over 5400 servers in 59 countries and has maximum device support of 6.
This VPN giant brand is privacy-focused and provides for industrial-grade encryption (2048-bit encryption) along with other key security features such as a kill switch, which prevent data leak in the event that the user loses the VPN connection. Compared to HMA, NordVPN comes with a friendlier price package, $5.75 a month, compared with the fact that NordVPN has a no-log policy and hence provides a guarantee for data privacy makes it a better VPN alternative for HMA.
Like most premium VPN services, NordVPN is also designed to help users enjoy content from geo-restricted websites such as Netflix, Hulu, and BBC iPlayer. The VPN has a 24hr customer service desk ready to assist users with technical issues and provides a 30-day money-back policy that allows you to have a 30 days free trial.
- Cyberghost VPN
Compared to HMA VPN. The Cyberghost VPN is, by far, user-friendly, convenient, and customer-oriented. The VPN is dedicated to ensuring the customers get top internet privacy and protection for their data. And, did I mention that Cyberghost is a dear VPN for hackers? Looking at it from an open perspective, this shows how robust and robust the Cyberghost VPN servers are.
The Cyberghost VPN has over 6600 servers in 90 countries, making it one of the largest VPN by server coverage. The VPN service provides top-notch data encryption, a kill switch and leak protection and does not store any user logs. The client uses the OpenVPN protocol as a default security protocol. Compared to its diverse and trusted services Cyberghost VPN has a rather appealing and affordable price package. If you are a long-time subscriber, there will always be huge discounts for you, making it even more affordable.
The VPN allows for a maximum of 7 simultaneous device connections while HMA only supports 5. Besides, this premium VPN service is compatible with most conventional operating systems and offers a 45-day money-back guarantee to its customers.
Business VPN Alternatives to HMA
Ideally, Business VPN solutions are designed to help business internal communication and remote working for employees safely over the internet. Business VPNs are there to ensure secure tunneling of information and interaction to and from the company servers through the internet. Therefore, it is paramount that you go high data encrypting VPN solution. In that case, we have already established the HMA is somewhat lax when it comes to data security due to its location and temporary user logs storage policy.
Conversely, we have done the job for you! Here are the best business VPN alternatives to HMA.
- ExpressVPN Business Solution
If you are a sole trader or running a small business enterprise, then the ExpressVPN Business Solution is the best VPN to connect your devices. The VPN does not have a precise business plan but has comprehensive coverage (over 3000 servers in 160 locations). It has an intuitive app that is compatible with most operating systems.
Express business VPN has high data encryption ability, dedicated DNS servers, split tunneling, and operates under a no-log policy, ensuring that your business communication and internet interaction remain top secret. If you can compromise for flexible IP, the Express business VPN is one of the best choices you have to protect your small business entity.
- VyprVPN Business Solution
It is undoubtedly one of the fastest business VPN solutions we have out there. With over 700 servers in 70 locations, VyprVPN has relatively extensive coverage. It has an unmatched internet connectivity. The VPN has intuitive multi-platform software. It uses high-end security protocols such as OpenVPN, PPTP, and L2TP/IPsec protocols, additional security features such as NAT Firewall and its Chameleon technology.
The VPN client provides 24/7 live chat support that works to resolve any concerns. Service comes in two main packages i.e.
- VyprVPN for Business – $299 a year
- VyprVPN for Business Cloud – $349 a year
For more information, you can always call customer support for more information regarding the packages.
Have you tried any of these VPNs? Let us know in your comments which one is your favorite!
Links to VPNs mentioned in this post:
If you need a VPN for particular device visit pages with our suggestions: VPN for iOS, VPN for Android, VPN for Mac, VPN for Windows.