Ivacy VPN Review
A thorough and honest review of the Ivacy VPN service in August 2020.
Introduction
Overview
Ivacy VPN is a good VPN service considering the speeds offered, privacy, functionality, ease of use, reputation, support, and price.
Ivacy was comprehensively reviewed from 5 September 2020 to 2 November 2020, test results include 25 speed and 6 torrent tests.
This review is continuously updated with new data each month.
Is Ivacy a good VPN? Is it worth getting?
Privacy & Anonymity Summary
Most of Ivacy VPN’s servers are fast and suitable for downloading large files. Some servers are very slow but usually a server change solves the problem.
Speed & Performance Summary
They have a no browsing logs policy. However they do keep track of their server usage and performance-related data for quality purposes. This collected data does not contain any identifiable information or user data.
Functionality & Application Summary
Their app is fairly simple, but it is not as intuitive or as smooth as others. It takes a little time to get used to. Some people may find it difficult to navigate and change settings.
Reputation & Support Summary
Ivacy and their parent company have maintained a good reputation throughout the years. There are no data leaks or privacy violations on their record.
Coming to customer support, Ivacy VPN has one of the best support teams in the industry. Even those who have unsubscribed from their service have praised and agreed that their customer support is fast, reliable, and responsive.
Price & Value Summary
At a price of only $69.99 for five years, Ivacy VPN represents very good value. It’s one of the cheapest VPNs that provide relatively good speeds and great customer support.
Proof
Here’s a screenshot of my current Ivacy VPN plan (with my email address blurred out), to show you that unlike many other VPN review sites, I actually tested the preformance of Ivacy.
My Ivacy plan from my Mac client.
My Ivacy plan from my Android App.
How Was Ivacy Rated?
Review Criteria
I've rated Ivacy VPN on multiple elements across five categories, and analysed the results to give you a good understanding of the service.
Privacy & Anonymity
Does Ivacy VPN leak any data while in use? Do they collect or store logs? Do they allow you to anonymously purchase the service? Do they employ a variety of security protocols to keep you anonymous online?
Speed & Performance
Does Ivacy VPN offer fast speeds (on par with browsing without a VPN connection)? Are these speeds consistent? Or do they drop off or fluctuate too much?
Functionality & Application
Does Ivacy VPN work well? Is it easy to install and use? Does it unblock geo-restricted content? Can it unblock Netflix and BBC iPlayer?
Reputation & Support
Is Ivacy VPN a reputable seller with a strong track record of happy customers and good reviews? Does it provide outstanding customer and tech support? Does Ivacy VPN and their parent company have a track record of honesty, transparency, and its customers' best interests at heart?
Price & Value
Does the price of the service match (or exceed) the quality of experience? Does Ivacy VPN represent value for money?
Privacy & Anonymity
Does Ivacy hide your IP address? Does it pass the IP Leak Test?
Yes.
I was able to hide my real IP address using Ivacy while testing from ipleak.net.
Does Ivacy pass the WebRTC Test?
Yes.
Using browserleaks.com my real IP address was not leaked.
Does Ivacy pass the DNS Leak Test?
Yes.
Using dnsleaktest.com my Ivacy VPN’s IP address was shown, not my own.
Does Ivacy VPN have a logging policy?
Ivacy VPN claims that they keep no logs.
However, their privacy policy states that they do collect information such as the events occurred, performance data, failed connection attempts, application usage, and aggregated bandwidth usage, apart from your name and email address collected when subscribing for their service.
According to Ivacy:
"Ivacy collects minimal reports and statistics required for quality customer support and services rendered. The data collected does not contain any identifiable information or user data like DNS requests, traffic details, or IP addresses. The only thing known is the countries where users are originating from, which once again has no information of value".
Does Ivacy VPN have a kill switch?
Ivacy VPN’s Windows and Android clients have an internet kill switch.
The Mac and iOS clients don’t.
Android killswitch.
Windows killswitch.
What security protocols does Ivacy VPN use?
Ivacy offers all major protocols such as OpenVPN, PPTP, L2TP, SSTP, IKEV, and IPSec, but does not support WireGuard as yet.
Speed & Performance
Is Ivacy VPN fast?
Ivacy isn’t the fastest VPN I’ve reviewed, but most of the servers provide good speeds. Occasionally a few servers are very, very slow, so you may need to disconnect to find a faster server at times.
Does Ivacy VPN provide consistent speeds?
The speeds are consistent, but again, it depends on the server.
See how Ivacy compared against all the other VPNs in the speed tests.
Network Bandwidth Tests
Ivacy was 28.54% slower than my usual connection, which was an average result.
No VPN Network Bandwidth Speed Tests
As a benchmark I did 25 tests through speedtest.net and openspeedtest.com with no VPN connected. Here are the average results.
IKEv2 Network Bandwidth Speed Tests
Here are the results of 25 tests with Ivacy's IKEv2 protocol.
Note: Ivacy only has one protocol (IKEv2) option on the Mac client. In the future I will also test it on Windows with additional protocol options.
Even though I'm located in Melbourne, Ivacy's closest servers for the tests were often in Sydney or Brisbane.
File Download Tests
Ivacy download speed was 43.11% slower downloading a 100mb file than my connection without a VPN, which was very good, above average.
The average time to download the file was 335.60% slower. Ivacy was able to download this file more quickly than some of the other bigger VPNs.
For the file download tests I downloaded a 100MB file from a private AWS S3 server I set up, again this test was run 25 times.
Torrent Download Test Results
Ivacy torrenting speeds were on average 13.67% slower than my connection without a VPN. These speeds were below average from all VPNs tested.
To test P2P torrenting speeds I chose to download 3 .torrent files using my torrent client qBittorent.
- A small torrent: downloading the art application 'GIMP' at 163.4MB.
- A medium torrent: downloading the 4K version of the animated film 'Big Buck Bunny' at 642MB.
- A large torrent: downloading the operating system 'Ubuntu 20' at 2.52GB.
Functionality & Application
Is Ivacy VPN easy to use?
The Windows installation had some checkboxes, like the license agreement, location to install, whether desktop, quick launch shortcuts should be created, etc, and a finish button after installation.
The Mac installation was a bit more difficult, technical people may find it difficult because you have to change your security settings in order for it to run.
Initially using the app was a little counter-intuitive, for example, you connect, then log in. And unlike other VPNs with geographical options, Ivacy splits its menu into the task you’re looking to perform. They have different servers optimised for different purposes, such as secure downloading for torrents, streaming, and geo-blocking. So you don’t have to search for the suitable servers, just have to select one from the tab according to our need.
Eventually, I got used to it and I now kind of like it, but sometimes I’d rather connect to a nearby server and hope that that server can do it all for me.
Overall, the app has many features but depending on your client, it is not as intuitive or smooth as it should be. The app is a little clunky, takes some time to load, and can be a little slow to respond. Power uses may also not like the lack of configuration options other VPNs have, however, some people may like this task-based simplicity.
This warning message may trouble some non-technical Mac users.
Instead of taking a geographical focus like most VPNs, Ivacy has different tasks or functions in the menu.
Does Ivacy VPN support split tunneling?
Ivacy VPN supports split tunneling on both Windows and Android. The Mac client doesn’t support it at this time.
Is Ivacy good for torrenting? Do they approve of using P2P technology?
Ivacy VPN supports P2P technology, and torrenting is possible with their servers. They do offer some European servers that also have malware and virus protection. I downloaded a few different files and I was quite impressed with the speeds I was getting.
Initially I had trouble connecting to torrent and magnet file transfers with my preferred Mac P2P client, Transmission, and Ivacy. However using another program, qBittorent, Ivacy worked seamlessly with magnet and torrent files.
Because Ivacy has no killswitch for Mac or iOS, if you’re an Apple user, I wouldn’t recommend downloading any coprighted materials. Legitimate torrent files only.
Is Ivacy good for Netflix?
Ivacy was able to successfully unblocked geo-restricted Netflix content in 6 out of 13 countries. I could watch Netflix content exclusive to Canada, France, Germany, Japan, United Kingdom and USA.
Watching the pilot episode of ‘Better Call Saul’ on Canadian Netflix using Ivacy VPN.
The loading speeds were a bit longer than other VPNs I’ve used, but once connected the shows and movies were definitely watchable.
Watching ‘The Storm of the Century’ from ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’ on Netflix UK using Ivacy VPN.
Is Ivacy good for BBC iPlayer?
No, while I could connect and access the content ok, the streaming speeds were just too poor.
Watching live BBC channels was just not possible at this speed.
Watching a pre-recorded show was possible, but the playback would need to buffer regularly.
The connection between Australia and the UK was just far too great. However, if you do live closer to the UK, you should be able to watch BBC iPlayer using Ivacy.
Unsuccessfully trying to watch BBC One using Ivacy VPN.
Watching the ‘Don’t Take Me Home’ (with a lot of buffering) on BBC iPlayer using Ivacy VPN.
Is Ivacy VPN good for streaming?
Yes, overall it’s a pretty good service for streaming content. I do like how they have preset options in their user interface for popular streaming services.
In addition, for an extra $1.99/month USD, you can get a designated IP address from Hong Kong, Canada, Australia, Germany, Singapore, United Kingdom, or the United States if you need to unblock geo-restricted content on a regular basis. A great option for expats who want to stay in touch with content from home.
Ivacy has preset connections for unblocking popular streaming services like Hulu, Netflix, ITV, ABC, BT Sport
As well as S4C, SBS Australia, Ten Play, KBS Korea, TBS, TV Azteca, etc.
Watching the first episode of ‘The Bridge’ on Danish Netflix using Ivacy VPN.
What are some good features that Ivacy has?
- No browsing logs policy.
- Supports P2P technology.
- It can be used in up to 5 devices simultaneously.
- 1000 servers in 100+ locations.
- Ivacy apparently pioneered Split-tunneling.
- Connects to the fastest server automatically.
Reputation & Support
Is Ivacy VPN trustworthy?
The Ivacy VPN and its parent company have a clean track record. Although they collect some non identifiable information such as the events occurred, performance data, failed connection attempts, application usage, and aggregated bandwidth usage, etc. even after having a no-log policy, their privacy policy is pretty straightforward and clearly states the kind of data they collect.
There has been no personal information or traffic log data leaks from Ivacy.
Does Ivacy have live chat support? Are they responsive?
Where are they based? What jurisdiction are they under?
Ivacy VPN and their parent company are Singapore based.
Who is the parent company?
The parent company is PMG Pte. Ltd and the office is located at 38 Beach Road #29-11 South Beach Tower Singapore 189767.
Have Ivacy or their parent company been involved in any controversies or scandals?
A Reddit user reported that Ivacy VPN tried to offer him a lifetime subscription in exchange for mentioning them on his posts and threads.
Marketing managers will often try to incentivise reviewers to give their service a positive score. 083.org is an unbiased review site that does not agree with this practice.
What do most customers say they like about the service?
The one thing that most customers, both satisfied or dissatisfied, agreed on is that Ivacy has exceptional, fast, and reliable customer support. I have no complaints about their 24/7 support.
I submitted a ticket in the app and got a reply within the hour.
Ivacy’s response to my Mac split tunneling question.
What do customers most dislike about the service?
Some customers reported that the connection is closed after a few minutes at times, making gaming almost impossible.
I personally found that on my Mac the connection would randomly drop at times, and with no Mac killswitch, this represents a danger for Mac users who use Ivacy to torrent copyrighted material.
Price & Value
How much does Ivacy VPN cost per month?
The monthly subscription costs $9.95/month, the yearly subscription $42 at $3.50/month, and a two-year subscription costs $54 at $2.25/month.
Update July 2020: A representative from Ivacy has informed me that they are currently offering the 5 year deal for $69.99 (or $1.16 per month)
Ivacy’s 2 year plan makes it very cost effective.
Ivacy’s 5 year plan offers excellent value.
Is Ivacy VPN worth the money?
At $9.95 a month there are better options, but at $2.25 per month on a two year plan, Ivacy VPN is very affordable and represents good value for money. The speeds are not excellent, but are good enough for the needs of most users. For people who appreciate good customer support, the support offered by them is some of the best in the industry.
What payment forms do they accept?
Almost all cards, payment gateways, and cryptocurrencies are accepted. The cards include Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, JCB, and Diners Club. Gateways include AliPay, PayPal, PerfectMoney, Paymentwall, etc, and cryptocurrencies include bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, Tron, etc. However, cryptocurrency payments are non-refundable.
Do they have a trial or a money back guarantee? What is their refund policy?
Ivacy VPN offers a 7-day risk-free trial for $0.99.
They also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee for long-term plans.
Some customers, however, have reported that it is hard to get a refund and had to go through an email and feedback loop to finally get it.
In the past, they had a 500mb usage limit to be eligible for a refund, but they have now simplified their refund policy and removed that clause.
If you stay on the site for 20 seconds or more, you should probably get a 7 day trial offer.
Conclusion
Who is Ivacy VPN good for?
Ivacy VPN is a good choice for those who want a simple VPN; people who want to use Netflix and other streaming services, people who want to use a good, non-US based VPN, and for those who want to download large files. Also people who use a Windows computer, as it has a killswitch and more options such as split tunneling.
Who is it not suitable for?
Ivacy VPN is not the best for gamers since it can disconnect from the server at times. With no killswitch on Apple devices, Mac and iOS users may need to consider another VPN. Journalists might want to use a VPN that doesn’t collect as much usage data. Also, some “power users” who want to tinker with the settings, may get frustrated by the way the app is set up.
Visit Ivacy