There are many VPN providers out there in the market which can have different features, pros and cons. But perhaps the most important one for any Linux user: Does it have a Linux client?
This is a quick list of VPN providers – whether open source or not – that provide a Linux client so that their service can be easily used on any Linux distribution. You may start searching for your VPN service of choice from this list.
Table of Contents:
1. MullvadVPN
They offer a GUI Linux client that can be used to fully utilize the features of their platform. It seems that it is almost identical to the Windows VPN client they provide, so you won’t suffer from any missing features if you decide to use their service.
They charge a fixed rate of €5 per month, regardless of your subscription period.
2. ProtonVPN
They also provide a GUI Linux client for their service. However, the Windows version seems more intuitive and offers more features compared to the Linux one:
The Linux version (the first image) just offers basic features for connectivity and toggling some other addons that can be purchased with the premium subscription. Also, connection analyses are not available on the Linux version.
The basic VPN subscription for their service is offered for €5 for the two-year plan. Add €3 more per month and you get a cloud backup, password manager and all other Proton services included in the package.
3. NordVPN
Although it is one of the most popular VPN services out there, it still only provides a command-line Linux client. So if you plan to use it, then you can only do so using the command line.
Some 3rd-party GUI clients exist for NordVPN, but none of them are official and perhaps very few of them can always be trusted with your sensitive connections.
The “VPN Tunneling” feature, which allows to direct some applications through a normal connection (without VPN) and other applications through the VPN service, is sadly not available in the Linux client.
The two-year plan they offer for their VPN service starts at $3 per month.
4. ExpressVPN
Just like NordVPN, ExpressVPN does not have a GUI Linux client, but they offer a command-line-based client for their service.
VPN Tunneling or the “Split Tunneling” feature is also not supported by the Linux client, and remains a unique feature for the Windows client and other operating systems.
They offer a browser extension that can be installed in order to control how connections go just on your web browser. That could help a bit.
They offer a one-year plan for the price of around $8 per month. Quite expensive compared to other solutions on this list.
5. PureVPN
This one offers a GUI client for Linux, and it seems to be identical to that of Windows. They also provide an additional command-line-based VPN client if you are interested in trying it out.
It features a nice user interface that can be used to connect easily to the VPN service, and tweak any necessary or needed features.
Their two-year plan starts at €2.29 per month. Very cheap compared to what you get.
Conclusion
So these were the most common VPN providers that provide a Linux client and Linux support. Such support is important if you plan to use them on your favorite Linux distribution, because otherwise, you would be left with manual OpenVPN profile files and trying to fix any issues that may arise alone in your way.
This is why official Linux support is important if you plan to use any VPN provider, and luckily, more of them are starting to introduce it with their service.
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