Hotspot Shield and Windscribe At a Glance
Hotspot Shield
Hotspot Shield provides top-notch online security and privacy while also providing access to geo-fenced content around the globe. The provider offers excellent app support while also covering a large portion of the globe with its server network.
Windscribe
Windscribe provides comprehensive online protection for numerous popular devices and protected connections from an above-average-sized server network that provides fast connections. The provider doesn’t provide access to geo-controlled content, instead concentrating on providing top-notch privacy and security.
How to Choose a VPN
When you’re in search of protection and enhancement for your online activities, you should research several features before deciding on a VPN.
In this article, I’ll compare the performance of Hotspot Shield and Windscribe in several feature categories, declaring a winner for each. I’ll then calculate the overall scores and name a champion.
By the time you reach the end of this article, you’ll be able to make an informed VPN subscription decision.
Features of Hotspot Shield and Windscribe
Connection Speeds
No matter what you do online, a fast internet connection makes it better. (Except for paying bills and filing taxes, nothing can make those better.)
I perform my VPN connection speed tests on a regular basis, following these steps:
- All tests are performed on a North American-based Windows server sporting a gigabit Ethernet connection.
- I use the VPN providers’ Windows apps, configuring them to use the OpenVPN UDP connection protocol when possible.
- I connect to VPN servers in New York City, London, and Hong Kong. I connect to all three cities at three different times of day, over the course of three days.
- I use the Speedtest.net app to test each location’s connection speed, restarting the app in between each test.
You’ll likely experience different connection speeds than I saw during my testing. This is because connection speeds can be affected by your ISP-provided connection speeds, your physical location, and the location of the VPN server.
Both VPNs provided enough bandwidth to handle most popular online activities, although one provided speeds a little more than twice as fast as its competitor.
Windscribe’s average connection speeds were 55 Mbps.
As for Hotspot Shield, its download speeds measured at 124.9 Mbps.
Average Connection Speed Winner: Hotspot Shield
| Provider | Avg. Connection Speed | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 124.9 Mbps | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 55 Mbps | Visit Site
Read Review |
Pricing
Have you been to the grocery store lately? We’re living in inflationary times, meaning most of us are looking for ways to save money. However, you should never subscribe to a VPN simply because it’s cheap.
Hotspot Shield’s monthly subscription fee averages out to about what you’d pay for a medium sandwich combo at your favorite burger joint when you opt for a one-year subscription. A 45-day money-back guarantee is available.
Hotspot Shield also offers a free VPN service, which limits users to connecting one device at a time and connecting to a single server location.
Windscribe’s monthly subscription rate comes in at close to two bucks less than Hotspot Shield when you sign up for the annual deal. Windscribe offers a super-short three-day money-back guarantee.
I never include exact pricing in my articles, as VPN providers change their pricing and offer special deals on a regular basis. You’ll find providers’ current pricing on their websites.
Pricing Winner: Windscribe
| Provider | Money-Back Guarantee Period | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 45 Days | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 3 Days | Visit Site
Read Review |
Privacy
There are plenty of less than scrupulous folks out there that would love to take a look at the logs your ISP saves recording your online activities. That’s why you should make sure the VPN you’re considering offers top-notch privacy protection.
When considering a VPN provider’s privacy protection, consider this:
- Is the provider based in a privacy-respecting country?
- Does the provider save logs on its servers?
- Does the provider accept Bitcoin or other types of cryptocurrency?
Hotspot Shield is owned by U.S.-based Pango. While the provider is allowed to collect and log its users’ online activity, it does not do that. However, it does not accept cryptocurrency as payment.
Windscribe also does not log its users’ online travels, their real IP address, or their browsing history. However, it does save their username, the time they connected, and the amount of data used while they were connected to Windscribe’s servers.
Privacy Winner: It’s a tie
| Provider | Privacy Ranking | Site |
| Hotspot Shield | 4.5 | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 4.5 | Visit Site
Read Review |
Online Security
Anytime that you’re online (and aren’t we always online?), someone could be following you around. Hackers, advertisers, the government, and other nosy parties are all interested in shadowing you online.
A VPN keeps your online activities hidden, thanks to its connection encryption and its ability to temporarily grab a fresh IP address for your connected device. This prevents anyone from seeing your online activities in real-time, while also preventing anyone or anything from connecting your activities to your real IP address.
Hotspot Shield users benefit from the provider’s military-grade encryption. A kill switch protection feature is available on Hotspot’s Windows app. The provider’s available connection protocols include OpenVPN, Wireguard, and IKEv2 (IPSec), depending on the device.
Windscribe’s banking-grade encryption, IP/DNS leak prevention, and ad blocking all combine to keep your online travels private and secure. Available connection protocols include OpenVPN, WireGuard, and IKEv2.
Security Winner: It’s a tie
| Provider | Overall Security Score | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 5.0 | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 5.0 | Visit Site
Read Review |
Simultaneous Connections
Owners of more than one internet-connected device will find a VPN’s simultaneous connections limit to be either a terrific asset or a horrible liability.
Hotspot Shield allows users to connect up to five devices at once to its servers. (The provider allows up to 25 devices, five for each family member, when you opt for a Premium Family subscription.)
Windscribe places no limits on the number of devices customers can connect to the provider’s servers at once.
Simultaneous Connections Winner: Windscribe
| Provider | Simultaneous Connections Allowed | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 5 | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | Unlimited | Visit Site
Read Review |
Streaming Support
A recent report revealed that 85% of U.S. households subscribe to at least one video streaming subscription, with 7% subscribing to six or more streamers.
Even if you subscribed to every available streaming service, you still wouldn’t be getting everything you could be from those subscriptions. This is because most popular streaming services restrict viewer access to their content on a country-by-country basis. This means that you won’t have access to all of the service’s content if you’re traveling or working abroad.
A VPN can help you bust through these types of blockades, by temporarily grabbing a fresh IP address in another country for your device. This makes it appear as if you are connecting from that country, allowing you to regain access to your favorite streamer’s content.
Hotspot Shield proved to reliably restore access to Netflix US, Netflix UK, YouTube, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Twitch, Disney+, and other popular streaming services.
Windscribe’s website doesn’t mention providing access to geo-fenced content. Instead, it prefers to focus on privacy and security features. However, I did test Windscribe with several popular streaming services around the globe and the provider was hit-and-miss when it came to opening up access to streamer content.
Streaming Support Winner: Hotspot Shield
| Provider | # of U.S. Streaming Services VPN Unblocks | # of International Services VPN Unblocks | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 6+ | 5+ | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 0 | 0 | Visit Site
Read Review |
BitTorrent Support
BitTorrent is a popular way to share files with other internet users. File sharing is legal in most countries and many reputable companies use P2P technology to share files among their employees. However, some users use it to illegally share copyrighted materials, including music and movies. This has led movie studios and record companies to pressure ISPs to throttle or block ALL file sharing activity.
A VPN can help you break through these virtual blockades and slowdowns. A VPN encases your internet connection in a tunnel of encryption. It also temporarily assigns a fresh IP address to your connected device. This not only hides your online activities from your ISP (and everyone else), it also hides your genuine IP address. Since the ISP can’t detect your file sharing, it won’t block or throttle you.
Hotspot Shield allows BitTorrent activity on its entire global server network.
Windscribe allows P2P activity on its entire global server network.
BitTorrenting Winner: It’s a tie
| Provider | # of Countries Where VPN Allows BitTorrents | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | All of them | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | All of them | Visit Site
Read Review |
Global Server Coverage
If you’re looking to access streaming and other geo-controlled content around the globe, you’ll want to find a VPN provider with a large global server network. The larger a VPN’s server network, the more you’ll have access to content that you might normally be locked out of. Also, I look for providers that have more than one server location in each country. Multiple servers help prevent any single server from being overloaded by too many users at once.
Windscribe’s network includes over 480 server locations in 69+ countries.
Hotspot Shield’s server network includes 1,800+ servers stationed in more than 80 countries around the world.
Global Server Coverage Winner: Hotspot Shield
| Provider | Server Count | Countries | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 1,800+ | 80+ | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 480 locations | 63 | Visit Site
Read Review |
Multi-Platform Support
Users that own and use multiple connected devices will appreciate a VPN provider that offers app support for numerous popular devices.
Hotspot Shield offers native support for Android, Android TV, iOS, macOS, Amazon Fire, Linux, and Windows device platforms. The provider also supports select routers when you subscribe to Hotspot Premium. (Pre-configured routers are available through Flashrouters.com.) A Chrome browser extension is also available.
Windscribe app support includes app offerings for macOS, iOS, Windows, Android, Android TV, Huawei, and Amazon Fire TV devices. Linux devices can be manually set up to access the VPN. Chrome, Edge, and Firefox extensions protect your browsing. The provider is compatible with DD-WRT and Tomato routers, as well as its proprietary “Invizbox” VPN router.
Multi-Platform Support Winner: It’s a tie
| Provider | Platforms Supported | Browser Extensions? | Router Support? |
Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 7 | Yes (Chrome) | Yes – Manual setup, only on Hotspot Premium. Routers available through Flashrouters | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 7 | Yes (Chrome, Edge, and Firefox) | Yes – On DD-WRT and Tomato routers, as well as its proprietary VPN router. | Visit Site
Read Review |
Customer Support
Both Hotspot Shield and Windscribe offer reliable and intuitive VPN services. However, you’ll still likely have the occasional question.
Hotspot Shield offers 24/7 live chat, email support, a contact form, an FAQ section, and a searchable support library.
Windscribe offers 24/7 live chat, a trouble ticket tracking system, a searchable support section, and “Garry” the support bot.
Customer Support Winner: Tied
| Provider | Customer Support Rating | Link |
| Hotspot Shield | 5.0 | Visit Site |
| Windscribe | 5.0 | Visit Site
Read Review |
And The Winner Is…
Windscribe and Hotspot Shield both provide excellent VPN services. However, one of these providers slightly outperformed the other.
Hotspot Shield nosed out a win at the finish line, with wins in the Connection Speed, Streaming Support, and Global Server Coverage arenas.
Windscribe took wins in two categories, Pricing and Simultaneous Connections.
The VPNs tied in the Privacy, Online Security, BitTorrent Support, Multi-Platform Support, and Customer Support Columns.
For more information or to purchase a subscription, visit Hotspot Shield.
