Cutting a window to the West: the best VPN services for China

China has its own special relationship with virtual space. A sophisticated security screen, the so-called "Golden Shield", blocks access to all undesirable resources. Allegedly, on the territory of China, you can not open a popular website or put a photo on Facebook. At the same time, the Great Chinese firewall is as leaky as a student's socks - from time to time, individual messages from social networks manage to get through the firewall. But seriously, censorship has long been a headache not only for tourists, but also for those Chinese who do business with Western partners. Good thing there's a way around the Golden Shield - VPN services. And let the Chinese government burst with anger, but no matter how not to update the system, people still manage to access foreign sites.

By the way, the content of the Internet is filtered in China since 2003. Not only Facebook, Instagram and other social networks are in disfavor, but also Google services along with major world media.

How do the Chinese themselves get around the Golden Shield
For so many years, many Chinese who need to communicate with the West have managed to install powerful VPNs in their offices and gain access to banned content. Others have adapted to life in isolation and don't even worry about it, but use Chinese analogs of popular messengers and networks. For example, WeChat, Qzone, Sina Weibo instead of Telegram, Facebook and Twitter. The Chinese also have their own Google - Baidu search engine.

What is a VPN service and how to use it
VPN is a technology that provides an encrypted connection on top of the Internet connection, i.e. an additional add-on to the Internet. VPN is used when it is necessary to organize one computer network for an enterprise with several departments remote from each other. But much more often it solves the problem with anonymous access to the Internet, which is necessary in China. VPN masks the IP address so that your gadget will turn out to be connected to another country, for example, the USA - thus opening a secret passage through the Great Firewall of China.

Among the many VPN services you should choose carefully, because not all will work well in China. You can not even count on free ones. By the way, do the installation of VPN even before traveling to China - it is much more difficult to do it there.

What VPNs are suitable for China
ExpressVPN gets the most favorable reviews. It is said to be one of the fastest and most reliable networks. Easy to use, ExpressVPN also boasts a friendly support team that responds immediately to user questions. ExpressVPN costs $12.95 per month, naturally, the monthly price is more favorable when you sign up for an annual subscription. At the same time, you get one week of free testing and a 30-day money-back guarantee if you are not satisfied with the service.

NordVPN is loved for its ability to connect 6 devices simultaneously. The service doesn't have the same speed as ExpressVPN, but it's just as easy to use. It costs $11.95 per month.

PureVPN consists of 750 servers that are located in 141 countries! Setting up this VPN may seem like an overwhelming task for an unsure user, but it guarantees a higher level of security.

VyprVPN is considered to be an incredibly fast network, and even with a clear interface. In principle, the service is as reliable as the previous four, and it is perfect for working in China. But it costs much cheaper - from $5.00 per month.