Proton is now offering its Proton VPN browser extension for free. Proton users on the free Proton plan can now access new free servers in the standalone extension, but some features are still locked behind the paywall.
Announced in March 2023, the VPN browser extension was originally bundled with paid Proton plans. Proton launched it because users in some countries can’t download Proton VPN apps where app stores are banned. Proton says that this extension “has been one of the most requested features by the Proton community, offering users more flexible means of protecting their privacy and bypassing censorship online.”
The feature has just been extended to include free Proton users. You can download the extension from Proton’s official website. You’ll need to sign into your Proton account to start using the extension though. It’s available for Chromium-based and Firefox-based browsers, including Google Chrome, Brave, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Vivaldi, and more. It only runs within the browser without affecting your other apps.
The free plan limits you to one server (that the extension auto selects for you) and one device. The free servers are in five locations, including the United States, the Netherlands, and Japan. The full list of servers, and extra features like Secure Core and Split Tunneling are exclusive to paid subscribers. With the paid plans, you get access to more than 6500 servers worldwide and support for 10 devices at a time. “Users on a paid plan can run the browser extension in as many different browsers as they like and can connect each browser to a different server with up to ten simultaneous VPN connections,” Proton explained.
Android users who don’t want to create a Proton account can download and run the free Proton VPN app without logging in. The dedicated app is also free on other platforms as long as you have an account.
Source: Proton
