At a Glance
Sharing files over Bittorrent is an efficient and easy way to share files with groups of other users. While uTorrent has the lion’s share of users, is that just due to force of habit? What about its open-source alternative, qBittorrent? Is it a better alternative?
In this article, I’ll put qBittorrent and uTorrent into a head-to-head competition to determine which of the apps is your best bet for fast, reliable file sharing.
Which Torrenting Client Is Best: qBittorrent or uTorrent?
The bottom line answer (for those of you who would begin sharing files instead of reading an article) is qBittorrent. The app is ad-free and offers better performance than uTorrent.
qBittorrent also allows users to stream in-progress downloads in its free version, while uTorrent requires users to pay for a subscription to its Pro plan for its similar feature. However, if you decide to go ahead and read this full article, you’ll find that there are several other reasons that qBittorrent is my top pick.
The only platform I would recommend uTorrent over qBittorrent is the Android platform, as qBittorrent does not currently offer an Android app, while uTorrent does.
Now, let’s plunge in and take a close look at both torrenting clients.
Installation and Setup
qBittorrent is available to download from its website. uTorrent is also available to download from its own website. Downloading of either client only takes a few moments, depending on your download speeds.
The installation of both clients is straightforward and only takes a few moments to install. In both cases, a wizard walks you through the setup after you run the installation file you downloaded.
Installation is slightly more complicated in the case of uTorrent, as you’ll be asked mid-way through the installation process to install additional apps, including WebCompanion, AVG Antivirus Free, and Opera. I suggest declining the installation of the extra apps at this time.
Once installation is complete and you run either of the torrenting clients, you’ll be presented with the app’s interface. Both apps share a familiar interface. However, since uTorrent is ad-supported, about one-quarter of the uTorrent screen is devoted to displaying ads. While you can pay to remove the ads, some ad blockers have proven to remove the ads.
Both apps offer an easy-to-understand user interface and allow users to begin sharing files almost immediately. Users can create their own torrents or add them from a URL. Once started, the apps show you the progress of your downloads, how many have completed, which files are seeding, and which download shares are active and inactive.
I downloaded “Two Fisted Law” which stars John Wayne and is available in the public domain from Archive.org. Both clients were quick to begin downloading the 1.16GB of movie files and completed the download in under six minutes.
Installation and setup winner: It’s a draw!
qBittorrent vs uTorrent Download Speeds
While both torrenting clients were quick to download “Two Fisted Law,” one client performed better than its competitor. While qBittorrent completed the download in less than five minutes, uTorrent took almost a full six minutes to complete the same download.
One possible reason uTorrent is slower to download files than qBittorrent could be because it displays ads, which also have to be downloaded, eating up at least a small bit of the connection’s bandwidth.
Your download experience can vary from what I experienced, as several factors can affect the downloading process. Your ISP may be throttling your bandwidth because you’re sharing files (some ISPs do this, even if you’re legally sharing files), and the experience can also be affected if you run a VPN when file sharing. I used Surfshark while conducting these tests.
I strongly recommend that you always use a VPN to keep your file sharing activities incognito. A VPN also offers additional online security and privacy. I’ll share more about that later.
Download speeds winner: qBittorrent
Features
When it comes to features, qBittorrent and uTorrent again ran a neck-and-neck race. Many of the features offered by qBittorrent were also available in uTorrent.
| Feature | qBittorrent | uTorrent |
| Magnet links | Yes | Yes |
| IPv6 support | Yes | Yes |
| Streaming torrents | Yes | In Pro plans |
| RSS Feed support | Yes | Yes |
| UPnP support | Yes | Yes |
| PEX support | Yes | Yes |
| NAT traversal | Yes | Yes |
| File prioritization | Yes | Yes |
| Supported languages | 70 | 67 |
| Remote torrent management | Yes | Yes |
| Plugin support | Yes | Yes |
As you can see, both apps offer a wealth of similar features. In both cases, the apps’ “Settings” or “Options” screens allow users to fine-tune the app to their liking. Users can set a limit for upload and download speeds, set a maximum number of connections, seeding limits, and much more.
It should be noted that one very important difference between the two torrenting clients is that qBittorrent is open-source. In addition to the security features that an app with open-source code has over a closed app platform, it also means that qBittorrent allows open-source developers to create plugins for the app. These plugins expand the capabilities of qBittorrent and since it’s an open-source platform, you can view the code of the app and its plugins to ensure your security and privacy. This is not possible with uTorrent
qBittorrent also allows you to preview the files included within the torrent before they’ve all finished downloading. For example, if you’re downloading a movie, you can start watching it while it is still downloading. uTorrent, only offers this feature in the paid-for Pro version.
Features winner: qBittorrent
Device Support
qBittorrent is available for Windows 10 and 11 as well as Linux. The current version is also compatible with macOS Catalina, Big Sur, and Monterey. However, as is mentioned on the qBittorrent site, the macOS version of qBittorrent is “barely supported.” This, it says, is due to a lack of active macOS developers and contributors working on the code. So, you may run into minor bugs which may never be fixed (although, if you’re a macOS developer, you could take a shot at fixing the bugs).
qBittorrent doesn’t offer an Android app, so uTorrent is the only option if you wish to download torrents directly to your Android device.
The Pro versions of uTorrent are available for Windows, Android, and Linux. A free web-based client and a free basic client are available for both macOS and Windows. The basic macOS app is not compatible with macOS Catalina and above.
As you might expect, neither file sharing app is available for iOS or iPadOS devices, as Apple’s iOS App Store does not allow “illegal file sharing” apps. While you could jailbreak your iPhone or iPad and sideload a torrenting app, I strongly recommend against doing so.
Device support winner: uTorrent
qBittorrent vs uTorrent Pricing
qBittorrent is a free, open-source app, developed and maintained by volunteers. While you can choose to make a donation (and you really should if you use it on a regular basis), it isn’t a requirement.
Meanwhile, uTorrent started out as open-source, but BitTorrent, Inc. has purchased the code and closed it to outside inspection. While there is a free ad-supported version of the app, you’ll need to pay a fee to get rid of ads and unlock all of the app’s features.
If you don’t mind seeing ads, you can use the basic uTorrent Classic version for free.
You can also pay $4.95 for an ad-free version (or you can try ad-blocking software to block the ads).
The Pro version – which is available only for Windows and Android – is $19.95 per year for Windows and $2.99 per year for Android. The Pro version also includes malware protection as well as the ability to convert and play files. The Pro version offers a free 14-day trial period. A subscription to the CyberGhost VPN is optional, and you can get both subscriptions for $69.95 a year.
Pricing winner: qBittorrent
Security & Privacy Protections
qBittorrent and uTorrent both offer message stream encryption (MSE) or protocol header encrypt (PHE). While these features improve privacy by making torrent traffic more difficult for outsiders to identify, they won’t protect your torrents from being identified by other users sharing the file.
qBittorrent also allows users to force their connections through a designated network interface. This allows the app to only connect through a VPN, ensuring that your IP address is hidden and your file sharing traffic is encrypted. However, most VPNs have a built-in kill switch, which achieves the same result. I’ll discuss why it’s important to use a VPN while torrenting a bit later.
The subscription-only Pro version of uTorrent also offers antivirus protection. Antivirus is absent from the freemium client and qBittorrent. If you’re worried about protecting your machine against viruses and malware, I’d strongly recommend using separate antivirus and malware protection, such as what is offered by Malwarebytes, ESET, Norton, and others.
Security & privacy winner: qBittorrent
Final qBittorrent vs uTorrent Verdict
Overall winner: qBittorrent
While uTorrent is arguably the best-known app for torrenting, it’s no longer the best option. uTorrent’s free version shows ads, which slow down everything, including file transfers. While you can certainly pay to upgrade to Pro to get rid of the ads, it just seems like an unnecessary purchase when qBittorrent is completely free, doesn’t show ads, allows plugins, and offers better performance.
qBittorrent also allows you to preview the contents of torrent files during download. The software is also open-source, allowing developers to make plugins for the app, allowing more flexibility for users.
qBittorrent is not perfect. The macOS version needs some urgent development help from community developers and it lacks an Android app. However, Windows and Linux users will appreciate qBittorrent. The app’s ever-growing collection of available plugins allows users to expand and enhance the torrent client’s abilities.
Should I Use a VPN While Torrenting?
No matter which torrenting client you opt to use, I strongly recommend using a VPN while torrenting files. Without a VPN, your true IP address will be exposed to other torrenters, while your torrenting activities will be exposed to your ISP and other nosy types.
Many VPNs provide support for P2P file sharing, while hiding your IP address and encrypting all of your online traffic. Most VPNs boast a kill switch, which kills your internet connection if your device disconnects from the VPN server. This prevents your online activities from being exposed.
Some ISPs will throttle or outright block your internet connection if they observe that you are file sharing. Since a VPN encrypts your connection while also hiding your real IP address, a VPN ensures that no one can see your file sharing and other online activities.
Quality VPNs, like NordVPN and Surfshark, offer reliable online privacy and security while providing fast connections, allowing you to download files at a fast rate.
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