Hola VPN Premium Review 2024: Read Before Buying

When I first explored Hola VPN, I was intrigued by its free version's promise of fast and secure access. However, I was concerned about its peer-to-peer network structure and potential privacy issues. To see if the Premium version addressed these concerns, my team and I decided to thoroughly test both the free and paid services.

After extensive testing, we found that Hola VPN Premium offers some improvements. While you get faster speeds and safe access to more streaming platforms, it still falls short in critical areas like security and privacy. The Premium version introduces encryption and removes bandwidth limits, but its logging practices and peer-to-peer framework remain issues. Plus, its price point is higher than many top-tier VPNs like ExpressVPN and CyberGhost, which offer more comprehensive features and better value.

If you're considering Hola VPN for its streaming capabilities, it's important to weigh these benefits against the potential drawbacks. Read on to find out why I think Hola VPN may not be the best choice if you’re looking for a safe and reliable VPN experience.

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Hola VPN Pros, Cons, and Needed Improvements

Credit where it's due — Hola VPN Premium surprised us with its streaming capabilities. Despite our initial skepticism, the service securely accessed nearly every major streaming platform we tested, loading content instantly without the need to try multiple servers. This level of performance puts it in league with some of our top-rated VPNs, at least when it comes to securely accessing mainstream platforms.

Popular Streaming Platforms We Tested

In our extensive testing, Hola VPN worked flawlessly across multiple Netflix regions, including the US, UK, Japan, Germany, and Australia. Each library loaded immediately when we connected.

We didn't experience any connection issues while streaming

We had a similar experience with Disney+, Hulu, BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video, and Max. The best part is that all these platforms loaded on the very first server we connected to. The only notable exception was ESPN+, which remained inaccessible throughout our testing period.

Each episode loaded within 3 seconds

You’ll appreciate its smart DNS feature if you like streaming on your big screen. You'll find detailed setup guides for various devices, and we were particularly impressed with how quickly we could configure it on our Samsung Smart TV and PS5. The service worked smoothly during our tests, though keep in mind that smart DNS doesn't offer the security benefits of a full VPN connection.

If you’re only interested in streaming, Hola VPN Premium performs surprisingly well — though we recommend weighing this against its privacy concerns before making a decision.

For your knowledge: Our VA tests all VPNs from the same US location, using the same connection, to ensure fair results. We test for download and upload speeds while connected to nearby and faraway servers using the VPN’s fastest protocol. We then compare these results to our baseline download and upload speeds (without a VPN connected).

Our speed tester from Austin, Texas, put Hola VPN Premium through rigorous assessments to see if it could deliver on its performance promises. The service uses IKEv2/IPSec as its default protocol, which is very fast but not as secure as WireGuard or OpenVPN. We used this protocol for our testing, and our baseline speed was around 240Mbps.

On nearby US servers, the speed drop rarely exceeded 10%

On nearby US servers, we recorded a minimal 5% speed drop from our base connection. European servers also performed well. These speeds easily support multiple HD streams, online gaming, and large file downloads simultaneously. The impact was more noticeable on distant Asian servers. The Australian servers showed the largest impact with a 60% reduction, though the resulting 96.12Mbps still comfortably handles most online tasks.

With a starting ping of 7ms from Austin, Texas, we tested Hola VPN Premium across various servers to evaluate its gaming capabilities. On nearby US servers, we recorded a reasonable ping increase to 38ms — perfectly acceptable for most online games. We could play several rounds of Valorant, Roblox, and Warzone 3.0 without experiencing any noticeable lag or delay in response times. This is good, though it does not quite match ExpressVPN's typical 10-15ms on similar connections.

The ping remained stable throughout our gaming session

The gaming experience declined significantly on international servers. UK connections spiked to 175ms, which made the game too laggy and almost unplayable. The situation worsened with Asian servers, where our tests showed a 292ms ping to Japan.

Traditional VPNs operate dedicated server networks, but Hola VPN runs on a peer-to-peer (P2P) network. This means your traffic routes through other people's connections rather than secure VPN servers — a major privacy concern.

The VPN claims coverage in 200+ countries, but I found significantly fewer locations available. You can't select specific cities, either. You can only pick countries, and your connection is randomly assigned from the P2P pool. It took me 10-15 seconds to establish a connection, which is much slower than the near-instant connections of standard VPNs.

Hola VPN organizes its server locations alphabetically

This network structure creates real limitations. For instance, if you need to choose a specific location for streaming or gaming, you can’t do that. The Premium subscription ensures others can't use your bandwidth, but you're still relying on a P2P network that lacks the security measures of dedicated VPN infrastructure.

If you want a VPN with a dedicated server network, you can consider ExpressVPN instead. It offers a secure server network and gives you more control over your connection.

Does Hola VPN Work in China? No

There are very few VPNs that still work in China, and Hola VPN isn’t one of them. The service lacks essential features like obfuscation technology needed to work with the Great Firewall, and its peer-to-peer network structure isn't suited for heavily restricted regions.

You also can’t access Hola VPN's website from within China's borders as it’s blocked in the country. This makes it very hard to download the service there. Even if you install it before arriving, the VPN won't establish a connection due to its basic protocol implementation and lack of stealth features.

The Great Firewall makes it challenging for VPNs to securely access the internet

The VPN struggles similarly in other countries with strict internet controls like Iran, Russia, and the UAE. For reliable connectivity in these regions, you'll need a VPN specifically designed to handle heavy restrictions.

Looking closely at Hola VPN Premium's security features left me disappointed. For a paid service, it offers only basic protection while missing many essential security features I'd expect at this price point.

Most concerning is its outdated protocol selection and inconsistent security implementation across platforms. Worse yet, features like a kill switch aren't available on macOS and iOS, which can leave you exposed to data leaks if you’re an Apple user.

Encryption and Protocols

Let's talk encryption first — Hola VPN Premium offers standard AES encryption with three strength options: 128-, 192-, and 256-bit. But encryption is only part of the security equation, and that's where protocols come in.

It's also possible to change the integrity check method

The protocol selection left me concerned. During my tests, I primarily used IKEv2/IPSec. It's the default option and provides a decent balance of speed and security, though it falls well short of modern standards like WireGuard or OpenVPN. My other choices? Just PPTP and L2TP, both outdated protocols with known security vulnerabilities that hackers can exploit. Most premium VPNs have already phased these out in favor of more secure alternatives.

Even basic customization options are inconsistent. On Windows, I could at least switch between encryption levels, but this flexibility disappeared entirely on macOS. This kind of platform disparity is frustrating, especially when top competitors offer uniform features across all operating systems.

Split Tunneling

With Hola, split tunneling works differently than most VPNs — it's enabled by default through an app-selection system. Instead of choosing which apps to exclude from the VPN, you select which ones to protect. While this is unique, it might confuse users familiar with traditional split tunneling implementations.

Leak Protection and Testing

When I ran comprehensive leak tests using ipleak.net, the results were positive. I detected no DNS or IP leaks across multiple server locations, suggesting that despite its basic features, Hola VPN effectively prevents data exposure.

Missing Security Features

The list of missing features is long: no ad blocker, malware protection, multi-hop connections, or Tor over VPN support. There's also no option for dedicated IP addresses or specialized security servers. These features come standard with many top VPNs at similar price points.

Malware Scans

A VirusTotal.com scan of the Windows app came back clean, which confirms it's safe to install. However, I would still recommend you run similar tests if you decide to use it on your device, considering the overall safety of this VPN.

Given these limitations and missing features, it's hard to justify choosing Hola VPN Premium for security. You'll find more comprehensive protection, modern protocols, and consistent cross-platform features with top providers at comparable prices.

After thoroughly examining Hola VPN's privacy policy and business model, I found severe privacy concerns that you should know about. The VPN not only collects extensive user data but operates on a peer-to-peer (P2P) network model that poses significant privacy risks.

The free version's privacy implications are particularly alarming — your device becomes an exit node, meaning other users route their traffic through your IP address. This could make you liable for others' online activities conducted through your connection.

Past Security Incidents

My research uncovered concerning historical incidents with Hola VPN. In 2015, the service was exposed for turning its users' devices into a botnet, allowing paid business customers to route traffic through free users' connections without their knowledge. This effectively turned users' devices into exit nodes that could be exploited for malicious activities.

More recently, in 2021, hackers breached Hola VPN's Chrome extension, targeting cryptocurrency users by redirecting them to phishing sites. This incident highlighted the security risks of the service's peer-to-peer structure and raised questions about its ability to protect user data.

Does Hola VPN Keep Logs? Yes

My review of Hola VPN's privacy policy revealed extensive data collection, even in its premium version. The service logs:

• Your IP address
• Browsing activities
• Payment and billing information
• Email addresses and personal details
• Information about installed applications on your device
• Social media account data (if you sign up using these platforms)

The VPN can even collect the names of apps you use on your device

More concerning is its data retention policy. The company keeps logs for up to 12 months and reserves the right to retain data "as long as necessary." Unlike top VPNs that minimize data collection and implement strict no-logs policies, Hola VPN's practices seem designed to gather as much user information as possible.

Was Hola VPN Audited? No

I found no evidence of independent security audits or third-party verification of Hola VPN's privacy claims. This lack of transparency is concerning, especially given the sensitive nature of VPN services. Leading VPN providers (like ExpressVPN and NordVPN) regularly undergo independent audits to verify their privacy promises.

Based in Israel

Hola VPN operates from Israel, which is not a direct member of the 14 Eyes Alliance but actively collaborates with this intelligence-sharing network. This means any data Hola collects could potentially be shared with multiple governments. Its privacy policy explicitly states that it will share user data with authorities when required by law.

The service accepts standard payment methods but offers no cryptocurrency option, eliminating any possibility of private payment.

It’s clear that Hola VPN is a terrible VPN for privacy because it collects information about you and is based in an unsafe jurisdiction. If you intend to use a VPN to protect yourself online, there are plenty of other VPN options that take your privacy way more seriously.

Hola VPN doesn't support torrenting and blocks torrenting traffic on its network, including the BitTorrent protocol. This means you can’t use torrent clients like uTorrent or P2P software like Popcorn Time. I wouldn’t torrent with such an unsafe VPN anyway. There are many top-tier safe VPNs out there that support torrenting.