ProtonVPN APK Download v for Android
| Developer | Proton AG |
| Updated | September 2026 |
| Size | 61 MB |
| Version | 5.20.57.0 |
| Requirements | Android 8.0 and up |
| Downloads | 100M+ (Google Play) |
Description
If you are looking for a protonvpn apk download that you can genuinely trust with your privacy, you are in the right place. ProtonVPN is the free VPN service from Proton AG, the Swiss company behind Proton Mail — and it is the only major VPN that gives you a genuinely useful free tier with no data caps, no ads, and a strict no-logs policy backed by Swiss privacy law. No other free VPN comes close: most “free” VPNs either throttle you to a few hundred megabytes a month, sell your browsing data, or both. ProtonVPN’s free plan exists because the company’s paid users subsidize it, not because you are the product.
The current Android release, version 5.20.57.0, is a fully open-source app that has passed independent security audits. It blocks ads and trackers with NetShield, kills your connection if the VPN drops (kill switch), and even disguises your VPN traffic in countries that try to block it. With a 4.7-star rating across more than 1.39 million reviews and over 100 million downloads on Google Play, it is one of the most trusted privacy tools on Android.
In this guide you will learn what makes ProtonVPN different from the dozens of other VPN apps, explore its key features in depth — from Secure Core routing to NetShield and the Stealth protocol — compare it honestly against paid giants like NordVPN and ExpressVPN, and download the official ProtonVPN APK for Android with a simple three-step install guide. All version and download details below were verified against Proton’s official release channels at publish time.
ProtonVPN APK Download App Info
| App Name | ProtonVPN |
| Status | Active & Updated |
| Version | 5.20.57.0 |
| Size | 61 MB |
| Developer | Proton AG |
| Category | Security |
| License | Free (open source, GPL-3.0) |
| Rating Average | 4.7/5 |
| Number of Votes | 1.39M+ (Google Play) |
| Downloads | 100M+ (Google Play) |
| Requires | Android 8.0 and up |
| Updated | September 2026 |
What Makes ProtonVPN Different
The first difference is the free tier, and it is not a marketing trick. Most free VPNs survive by selling your data, injecting ads, or strangling your bandwidth until you pay. ProtonVPN’s free plan gives you unlimited data, no speed caps imposed as a paywall tactic, no ads, and access to servers in five countries — funded by the company’s paying subscribers, exactly how Proton Mail’s free tier works. For students, journalists, and anyone who just wants basic protection on public Wi-Fi, this alone makes the protonvpn apk download worth grabbing before you even consider paying.
The second difference is where it comes from. ProtonVPN is built by Proton AG in Geneva, Switzerland — the same team that built Proton Mail, the encrypted email service used by millions. Switzerland sits outside the EU and the US, which means it is not part of the intelligence-sharing alliances that privacy advocates worry about, and Swiss law offers some of the strongest data-protection guarantees in the world. A VPN is only as trustworthy as the company behind it, and Proton’s entire business is privacy: if it ever logged user data, it would destroy the company overnight.
Third, everything is verifiable. ProtonVPN’s Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS apps are fully open source — anyone with the skills can read the code and confirm there is no hidden tracking. On top of that, Proton regularly commissions independent security audits of its apps and infrastructure from firms like SEC Consult, and publishes the results. Very few VPN providers let outsiders kick the tires like this. It is the difference between “trust us, we don’t log” and “here, check for yourself.”
Finally, ProtonVPN is a complete privacy toolkit, not a one-button tunnel. NetShield blocks ads, trackers, and malware domains at the DNS level before they ever reach your phone. Secure Core routes your traffic through hardened servers in privacy-friendly countries like Switzerland and Iceland before it exits — so even if an exit server were compromised, your real IP stays hidden. The Stealth protocol disguises VPN traffic as ordinary HTTPS so it works on restrictive networks. These are features that most competitors either charge extra for or don’t offer at all.
ProtonVPN APK Download: Key Features Explained
1. A free tier that is actually usable
Let’s put this first because it is what most people come for. The free plan includes unlimited bandwidth — no 500 MB monthly caps, no daily limits — and one-tap connections to servers in five countries. Speeds are fair-use prioritized behind paying users during peak times, but for browsing, messaging, and email it is genuinely enough for daily use. There is no credit card required, no trial countdown, and no “free for 7 days” bait-and-switch. If you only need a VPN occasionally on café or university Wi-Fi, you may never need to pay a cent.
2. Strict no-logs policy under Swiss law
ProtonVPN does not record what you do online: no browsing history, no connection timestamps linked to your identity, no DNS queries, no bandwidth logs tied to you. This is not just a marketing page claim — it is a policy shaped by Swiss data-protection law and tested in practice, and the company’s infrastructure is designed so that even if a server were seized, there would be nothing useful on it. When you combine a no-logs promise with a jurisdiction that legally reinforces it and open-source code that anyone can inspect, you get one of the strongest trust stories in the VPN business.
3. NetShield: ad and tracker blocking built in
NetShield is ProtonVPN’s DNS-level filter that blocks ads, trackers, and malware domains before your phone even downloads them. Turn it on in settings and pages load faster, apps stop phoning home to analytics servers, and you get a layer of protection against malicious sites. It works system-wide — not just in your browser — so it cleans up traffic from every app on your phone. The basic NetShield level is available even on the free plan, which is remarkable: most VPNs treat ad blocking as a premium upsell.
4. Secure Core double-hop routing
Secure Core is ProtonVPN’s answer to the question “what if a VPN server itself is compromised?” Your traffic first passes through one of Proton’s hardened servers in a privacy-strong country — Switzerland, Iceland, or Sweden — where Proton owns and physically controls the hardware in its own data centers, then exits through a second server in your chosen country. An attacker watching the exit server would only see the Secure Core server’s IP, never yours. It adds a small speed cost, but for journalists, activists, or anyone with a real adversary, it is the closest thing to a bulletproof connection a consumer VPN offers.
5. Kill switch and always-on VPN
A VPN is useless if it silently disconnects and your phone keeps browsing on the open internet. ProtonVPN’s kill switch cuts all network traffic the instant the VPN connection drops, so your real IP and unencrypted traffic never leak. On Android you can also enable Always-on VPN plus the “block connections without VPN” option in system settings, which means your phone simply has no internet at all unless the tunnel is up. Set it once and forget it — this is the feature that separates a serious privacy tool from a decorative one.
6. Stealth protocol for restrictive networks
Some networks — university firewalls, office Wi-Fi, hotel hotspots, and entire countries — detect and block standard VPN traffic. The Stealth protocol wraps your VPN connection so it looks like ordinary HTTPS web browsing, slipping past deep packet inspection that would stop WireGuard or OpenVPN cold. It is available to everyone, including free users, and turning it on is one tap in the protocol settings. If you travel to places with heavy internet restrictions, this feature alone justifies keeping ProtonVPN installed even if you use another VPN at home.
7. Modern protocols and VPN Accelerator
Under the hood you get WireGuard (fast and modern), OpenVPN (battle-tested), and IKEv2, all with strong encryption. Proton’s VPN Accelerator technology reworks how the VPN stack handles connections to squeeze up to 400% more speed out of distant servers — it is most noticeable on long-distance connections, like connecting from Pakistan to a US or European server. Paid plans unlock the full server network of 13,000+ servers in 120+ countries, streaming-optimized servers, and P2P support for torrenting, but the core speed technology benefits every user.
8. Fully open source and independently audited
Every ProtonVPN app is open source under the GPL-3.0 license, published on GitHub for anyone to read, fork, or verify. Independent firms audit the apps and infrastructure on a regular basis, and Proton publishes summaries of the findings. This matters because the VPN market is full of providers that make big claims in marketing copy and refuse to show their work. With ProtonVPN, the claims are checkable — by security researchers, by journalists, and by you, if you know where to look.
ProtonVPN vs the Alternatives — An Honest Comparison
Against NordVPN and ExpressVPN — the two biggest paid names — ProtonVPN holds its own on privacy fundamentals and arguably wins on trust: Swiss jurisdiction, open-source apps, and a no-logs policy that has been tested in the real world. Where it loses is polish and raw server count: NordVPN has more servers and slightly slicker apps, ExpressVPN has legendary ease of use, and both are a touch faster on nearby servers in independent speed tests. ProtonVPN’s paid plans are also priced at the premium end, so if you only care about streaming geo-blocked content, a cheaper paid VPN may serve you better.
But the comparison that actually matters is against other free VPNs — and here ProtonVPN wins by a landslide. Free tiers from the big brands are teasers: 500 MB to 10 GB per month, a handful of slow servers, and constant upgrade nagging. Shady free VPNs are worse — many log and sell your data, which defeats the entire purpose. ProtonVPN’s unlimited free tier with a genuine no-logs policy has no real competitor; it is the only free VPN that privacy experts consistently recommend without an asterisk. If your threat model is “I want my ISP and the café Wi-Fi to stop watching me,” the free plan is all you need.
One honest caveat: ProtonVPN’s free servers can slow down at peak hours because millions of people share them, and free users don’t get the streaming-optimized or P2P servers. If you try the free tier and love it but want the full network, the Plus plan is where Secure Core, streaming, torrenting, and 10 simultaneous connections live. Think of the free plan as the real product with a smaller map — not a demo.
Download ProtonVPN for Android
Always download ProtonVPN from official sources only: the download page at protonvpn.com or the project’s GitHub releases. The current version is 5.20.57.0, released in September 2026. Avoid third-party APK mirrors — unofficial copies can be outdated, tampered with, or bundled with unwanted extras, which is exactly the opposite of what a privacy tool should be.
How to Install the APK
- Download the APK. Tap the download button above (or visit protonvpn.com/download-android on your phone) and grab the latest Android APK — it is about 61 MB.
- Allow installs from unknown sources. When you open the downloaded file, Android will ask for permission to install apps from your browser or file manager. Tap “Allow” — this is a one-time permission for that app, and you can revoke it afterwards.
- Install, sign up, and connect. Tap Install, open the app, and create a free Proton account (just an email — no payment details). Tap the big connect button and you are protected. Head to Settings to enable NetShield and the kill switch.
Tips and Tricks
Enable the kill switch and Android’s “Block connections without VPN” option on day one — a VPN without a kill switch is a false sense of security. If a network blocks your connection, switch the protocol to Stealth before assuming the app is broken. And for a complete privacy setup, pair ProtonVPN with a password manager like Bitwarden so your logins are as protected as your connection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. The free plan includes unlimited data, servers in five countries, NetShield ad blocking, and the same no-logs policy as paid plans — with no credit card required. It is funded by paying subscribers, not by selling your data. Paid plans add more servers, streaming support, Secure Core, and faster speeds.
No. ProtonVPN has a strict no-logs policy: it does not record your browsing history, connection timestamps, DNS queries, or IP address. The policy is backed by Swiss privacy law, the apps are open source, and independent firms audit Proton’s infrastructure regularly.
For privacy fundamentals, ProtonVPN is at least their equal — Swiss jurisdiction, open-source apps, and audited no-logs infrastructure. Its free tier is far better than anything they offer. NordVPN and ExpressVPN edge ahead on server count, app polish, and sometimes speed on nearby servers. If you want the best free VPN, ProtonVPN wins easily; for paid streaming-focused use, compare trial experiences.
Streaming-optimized servers and P2P/torrenting support are Plus-plan features. The free plan covers secure browsing, messaging, and email. If you need Netflix libraries from other regions or fast torrenting, the paid plan is the way to go.
The Stealth protocol is designed exactly for this: it disguises VPN traffic as normal HTTPS browsing so it passes through firewalls and deep packet inspection that block standard VPN protocols. It is available on all plans, including free, and you enable it with one tap in the protocol settings.
Yes, as long as you use official sources: protonvpn.com or ProtonVPN’s GitHub releases page. The APK is signed by Proton, and the app is open source. Never download it from random APK mirror sites — unofficial copies can be tampered with.
Final Verdict
ProtonVPN is the easiest privacy recommendation on Android: a genuinely free, unlimited VPN with a no-logs policy, open-source apps, and Swiss jurisdiction, from the team behind Proton Mail. The protonvpn apk download gives you real protection on public Wi-Fi in about two minutes, and the paid tier adds one of the most complete feature sets in the industry. If you install one privacy app this year, make it this one.
