Article Summary
- Strong Security Features: Bank-grade AES-256 encryption with no IP leaks detected
- Major Speed Issues: 75-90% speed reduction makes streaming and torrenting frustrating
- Limited Value Proposition: Similar pricing to premium competitors with inferior performance
- Not Recommended: Better alternatives available at same price point
Avira Phantom VPN locks-down your private files, keeping account login information, passwords, and other sensitive data private. Their VPN software uses industry-standard protocols including OpenVPN, IKEv2, and WireGuard (on Android), with your traffic secured through 256-bit AES encryption.
It hides your browsing data from advertisers, so they can’t track which sites you visit or even where you’re really located.
And it helps you get around geo-restrictions. That way, you can visit any website, anytime, anywhere, without your government dictating what’s ‘off limits.’
You can use any online service without running the risk of your ISP throttling your connection.
But is their VPN service worth it in 2025? Let’s find out in our in-depth review.
Avira PhantomVPN Overview
| OVERALL RANK: | #34 out of 78 VPNs |
| USABILITY: | 4/5 |
| LOG FILES: | Grey Area |
| LOCATIONS: | 37 countries, 1400+ servers |
| SUPPORT: | Email and Ticket |
| TORRENTING: | Torrenting Allowed |
| NETFLIX: | Limited 2/5 |
| ENCRYPTION/PROTOCOL: | AES-256, OpenVPN/IKEv2/WireGuard |
| COST: | $10/mo |
| OFFICIAL WEBSITE: | www.avira.com |
Avira Phantom Pros
1. Strong Encryption with Multiple Protocols
Avira offers AES 256-bit encryption, the gold standard for online security in 2025.
It’s so secure that banks use it. And security experts confirm that no brute-force attacks can hack into it.
The 256-bit encryption involves several layers of security, making it virtually impenetrable with modern technology. As Avira points out, it would take modern computers up to 13.8 billion years to crack the code.
Avira uses different protocols depending on your device: OpenVPN for Windows and Android (when downloaded from their website), IKEv2 for iOS, and IPSec for Mac. Android devices now also support the newer, faster WireGuard protocol.
2. No IP, DNS & WebRTC Leaks
Having state-of-the-art technology is great, but only if it actually works.
VPNs are supposed to hide your location, and they do most of the time. However, poor ones are still susceptible to the occasional DNS leak, which can reveal your true location.
That’s why we always run several tests to confirm whether the connection is secure.
After connecting to Avira Phantom in 2025, we ran multiple DNS tests and found no leaks of any kind.
- https://ipleak.net/ (none found)
- https://www.perfect-privacy.com/check-ip/ (none found)
- https://ipx.ac/run (none found)
- https://browserleaks.com/webrtc (none found)
- https://www.perfect-privacy.com/dns-leaktest/ (none found)
- http://dnsleak.com/ (none found)
Example of no IPv4 or IPv6 leaks using Avira Phantom:
None of the DNS/IP/WebRTC tools we used indicated leaks, which is impressive.
We also uploaded their installer files to VirusTotal.com to check for malware. Every file appeared clean, confirming Avira’s security credentials.
3. Mixed Results with Netflix
Netflix has become increasingly effective at blocking VPNs due to licensing issues.
The streaming service can now identify and block most VPN connections, making it challenging to access geo-restricted content.
In our 2025 testing, Avira Phantom VPN showed inconsistent results with Netflix. While it could access some Netflix libraries, performance varied significantly by region.
Based on our tests, Avira VPN can currently access:
- US Netflix (sometimes with buffering issues)
- UK Netflix
- Canadian Netflix
- Some European libraries
However, streaming quality was inconsistent. Many servers delivered slow loading times, with videos sometimes taking up to two minutes to start playing – far longer than the best streaming VPNs.
The service fails to unblock other popular streaming platforms like Disney+ and BBC iPlayer, limiting its usefulness for streaming enthusiasts.
4. User-Friendly Apps Across Devices
Downloading the VPN client gives you access to the entire Avira Dashboard, which is perfect for those who use their other services but may feel excessive if you only want a VPN.
The client sits in the system tray on desktop, and you can set it to launch upon startup for continuous protection.
You can also opt out of sending diagnostic data back to Avira, enhancing your privacy.
Switching server locations is seamless – you don’t need to disconnect from the current location first. Just click a different server, and the app automatically connects to the new one.
The mobile apps are equally intuitive, with the Android version now supporting the faster WireGuard protocol. Overall, Avira offers a smooth, user-friendly experience across all platforms.
5. Unlimited Simultaneous Connections
Avira’s free VPN tier allows up to five simultaneous connections, which is reasonable for basic users.
The paid plan goes further, offering unlimited simultaneous connections. This is excellent value compared to competitors who often limit connections to 5-10 devices.
While Avira still doesn’t support router installations (which would cover all household devices), the unlimited connections policy effectively addresses this limitation for most users.
The service includes a kill switch feature in the paid version for Windows, which automatically blocks all traffic if the VPN connection drops, preventing accidental data exposure.
Avira’s server network has expanded to approximately 1400 servers across 37 countries in 2025. While this is an improvement, it still falls short of leading VPN providers that offer thousands of servers in 90+ countries.
The limited coverage means:
- Some regions have sparse coverage, potentially affecting performance
- Smaller cities and regions may not have nearby servers
- Popular locations may face congestion during peak hours
Avira Phantom Cons
1. Some Logging Despite Claims
Many VPN companies claim they “don’t log” on their homepages only to hide exceptions in their privacy policies.
To Avira’s credit, they’re relatively transparent about what data they collect. Their privacy policy states they don’t track websites you visit, your IP address, or download activities.
However, they do keep some information, including:
- Diagnostic information (optional, can be toggled off)
- Whether you’re using the free or paid version
- Data consumption statistics
While this is less invasive than many VPNs, it’s still not a true zero-logs policy.
This information becomes particularly concerning given Avira’s jurisdiction.
2. Based in Germany (14 Eyes Alliance)
Avira Operations GmbH & Co is headquartered in Tettnang, Germany, which presents privacy concerns.
Germany is part of the Fourteen Eyes intelligence alliance, a group of countries that share surveillance data. Edward Snowden’s leaked NSA documents confirmed Germany’s participation in this alliance.
This means that if German authorities requested user data from Avira, this information could potentially be shared with intelligence agencies across multiple countries.
The good news is that with Avira’s limited logging policy, there’s not much sensitive information they could provide. However, the jurisdiction remains a concern for privacy-focused users.
3. Disappointing Speed Performance
VPNs typically reduce connection speeds due to encryption and routing, but quality providers minimize this impact.
Unfortunately, Avira Phantom continues to deliver below-average speeds in 2025. Our tests showed significant slowdowns across both nearby and distant servers.
Here’s our benchmark connection without a VPN:
When connected to European servers, speeds dropped by approximately 75-80%:
US servers performed even worse, with speeds decreasing by up to 90%:
US Server Results:
- Ping: 180+ ms
- Download: Reduced by ~90%
- Upload: Reduced by ~85%
These results make Avira Phantom one of the slowest VPNs we’ve tested in 2025, especially compared to top providers that maintain 70-80% of original speeds.
The poor performance affects everything from basic browsing to streaming and torrenting, making it frustrating for regular use.
4. Limited Platform Compatibility
Avira Phantom VPN is available for Windows, Android, Mac, and iOS devices, plus a Chrome extension for browser-level protection.
However, significant limitations remain:
- No router support (unable to protect all connected home devices)
- No Linux compatibility
- No apps for smart TVs or gaming consoles
- No FireTV or other streaming device support
Additionally, Avira Phantom can’t be used with The Onion Router (TOR) network for enhanced anonymity, a feature offered by several leading VPNs.
This compatibility gap is particularly problematic for users in countries with internet censorship, where layered security solutions are often necessary.
5. Inconsistent Torrenting Performance
While Avira officially permits torrenting on all servers, actual performance is disappointing.
Our 2025 tests found:
- P2P file-sharing is technically supported
- Slow download speeds (90% slower than without a VPN)
- Inconsistent performance across different servers
- Kill switch only available on Windows, creating security risks on other platforms
The free version’s data limit (500MB/month) makes it impractical for torrenting, while the paid version’s poor speeds limit its usefulness.
For reference, downloading a modest 750MB file took nearly 50 minutes in our tests – a task that would typically complete in under 10 minutes without a VPN.
6. Subpar Customer Support
Avira offers zero support for free users, directing them to a self-service knowledge base.
Even paid users face significant support limitations:
- No live chat support
- Email/ticket responses often take 24+ hours
- Support quality is inconsistent
In our 2025 tests, we submitted basic questions about protocols and features. Responses were often delayed and sometimes failed to address our actual questions.
One representative even seemed unfamiliar with basic VPN terminology, which is concerning for a security product.
This level of support falls far below industry standards in 2025, where most premium VPNs offer 24/7 live chat support with knowledgeable agents.
Avira Phantom VPN Cost, Plans & Payment Methods
Avira offers several subscription options in 2025:
- Free plan – Limited to 500MB/month (unregistered) or 1GB/month (registered users). Includes basic features but lacks the kill switch and restricts server selection.
- Monthly plan – $10/month for unlimited devices and data. Cancel anytime.
- Annual plan – $78/year ($6.50/month), saving 35% compared to the monthly option. Unlimited devices and data.
- Mobile-only plan – $5.99/month, available as an in-app purchase for Android & iOS devices. Unlimited mobile connections only.
All paid plans include a 60-day money-back guarantee, an improvement over their previous 30-day policy.
Payment methods remain limited to major credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and JCB) and PayPal. Unlike many competitors, Avira still doesn’t accept cryptocurrencies or other anonymous payment options.
Do We Recommend Avira Phantom VPN in 2025?
Unfortunately, no.
While Avira Phantom offers a decent free tier and transparent logging policy, its significant limitations outweigh these benefits:
- Extremely slow speeds make it impractical for streaming and torrenting
- Limited server network compared to competitors
- Poor customer support even for paid users
- Kill switch only available on Windows
- Lacks advanced features like split tunneling
- Based in a 14-Eyes jurisdiction
At $6.50-$10/month, Avira Phantom VPN is priced similarly to industry leaders like NordVPN or ExpressVPN, which offer far superior performance and features.
For those who need a free VPN for occasional light use, Avira’s free tier might suffice. But if you’re considering a paid VPN subscription, there are much better options available at similar price points.
P.S. I’m always interested in user-reviews so if you’ve used Avira VPN before, don’t hesitate to leave your review below. If your experience matched mine, cool. If it didn’t, that’s fine too!
Leave Your Own Avira Phantom Review
15 user reviews for Avira Phantom VPN
T.K.
Practical choice
PROS:
Best part is that I don't need to enter any payment info since it allows payment through iOS account subscription, just hit the subscription button and done. Then to cancel the subscription is equally simple.
Their mobile app is extremely easy to use, choose the server location and all.
Auto kill switch is a really cool, great security option especially when traveling.
Benny
Use it on a good working device and get to enjoy it
This is a very wonderful App, it works perfectly the way I wanted it to.
S.I.
Use with older computer? OHN!
I loaded a couple new VPNs to try and my computer slowed to a crawl. I uninstalled the TunnelBear and Norton, which left only the Avira as a new program. Result? Holy s—t! MORE THAN TWO HOURS JUST TO BOOT! I tried ruining various diagnostics but the computer was TOO BLOODY SLOW! Finally, after FOUR DAYS of not being able to use that computer I was able to open Windows Admin Tools, open the System Config, disable the Avira, and reboot. ZOOM! Back to normal speed, DO NOT LOAD THIS PROGRAM unless you hate your computer or love wasting time.
Bryce
When it works it’s great... but when it doesn’t...
Most times it was great to use but then when I was getting “error unknown” or “fatal error” messages I could find absolutely no help or support and felt stranded. Support seems non existent. Now it’s happened again I’ve simply uninstalled it and am going elsewhere. Shame really because I’ve used their other product which has been fine.
Max
Uptime reliability could be far better for a service that normally costs money
This review here and other reviews summed up pretty much everything, therefore I want to mention something no one seems to talk about: The uptime. I have been using the trial of Avira VPN Pro for nearly 12 months, and during this time I encountered at least three major service outages. Funny enough, another one of these downtimes occured just right now on a weekend (midnight during Saturday) and it's still not possible to connect to servers today (it's Sunday). This happens with OkayFreedom too, so it's kinda common for such German VPNs services that when something goes down, no one will bother at all until it's work time again. Should I ever want to pay money for a VPN, I would definitely go for one of the bigger players out there. Ones who at least care enough to keep their service running with notable reliability.
Ian
PhantomVPN on MAC? A definite "NO"!!
PhantomVPN worked fine on Windows, but when I moved to the Mac - disaster! Periodically, the program froze - and so did my internet connection: the only way to revive it was closing PhantomVPN.
Avira Support were less than helpful - after sending them the requested log, they advised me to uninstall OpenVPN - a bit difficult when it's part of their installation!!
Really sad about this: I've been a happy Avira user for years, and because of their useless and non-supportive support staff, I've moved to NordVPN. Their Antivirus will be dumped too on next renewal
'oregonnerd'
Avira Phantom
This is the original 2720 and is actually still fast--and running, having survived from the world of early 8.0. The point of that is just possibly the machine has a little to do with this, but only a little; that would take Hogwarts. The speed with Phantom isn't that much worse than without, frankly. I'm running computers side by side and non-sharing (with definite no-share on the network, since I'm living with computer illiterates, to compliment them) and there isn't except on some sites. Negative note, I somehow got 2 e-mail addresses involved and ran for a while on the free version and their software didn't catch it--but that had to start with an error of mine. When they can catch that one Brave New World has actually arrived.
Jenk
No support
Your experience trying to get a straight answer from their support is very similar to what I experienced with Avira. It is almost impossible to get support, and when you finally get some answer, it seems like they did not even read your query/e-mail trail. Their response never addresses what you are asking. Additionally, if you request a refund, you will be caught between Cleverbridge and Avira. Each pointing to the other. Their ping-pong game works wonderfully on wearing you down before you can get a straight response to your refund requests. My recommendation: Stay away from Avira Phantom VPN!
NtahX
Lack of support and features
1. Lack of support or almost non-existent. Take a long time to answer as described or didn't answer at all.
2. Lack of features. Doesn't have .ovpn config like other VPN providers. So no way to setup in your Routers, Linux box, TVs etc. Only their proprietary apps. This is a huge let down.
3. Hit and miss to bypass GFW (more like miss-a-lot). Was in China few times and this VPN doesn't work out right. Selecting nearby location 95% won't get you connected to VPN. You have to select certain servers and if you're lucky enough, then your good to go.
I have a few VPN providers (ExpressVPN and Opera) which work better than Avira in China. Express get you connected everytime and I wasn't paid by them to tell you this - just my experience.
Because I travel to China quite often, that's the main reason I need VPN. If you're outside of China I think Avira is quite OK. So 2/10 because of the issue above. Hope this will answer someone's questions regarding Avira Phantom Pro VPN.
Wolf
Don't like it
I used the free version for awhile then bought a yearly Pro version for $79.99. It hasn’t worked since I bought it. I still am limited to the amount of traffic I got w the free version. When I talk to someone from Help, I have to schedule a time that’s about a week in advance. Even scheduling requires back and forth. It’s incom0patible w my system somehow.
In order to analyze it, I’ve sent them two logs. Now they want me to download some software for analysis that there legal department says may damage my system and they are not responsible. I’m going to get a refund.
Jules
Avira is often slower than TOR
Avira is very slow, sometimes slower than TOR…
It also constantly crashes and I have to restart my PC. I’d recommend avoiding Avira like plague.
damien wert
Avira Phantom Pro
I agree with the above mentioned poor download speed and the almost non-existing customer service-I finally changed to another provider-there are worlds regarding service and performance between the new one and Avira.
Geo
Very interesting information
I’ve been an Avira fan since “almost” day one but only for their android products.
Recently Avira advertised a free limited time offer of their “Phantom VPN Pro” which I’ve been using for the last two weeks. This was more out of curiousity as I normally use Disconnect.me VPN.
I had Phantom on my laptop, iOS, and Android. After a few days, I uninstalled it from my laptop as it wasn’t auto-connecting. The same concern is happening on the iOS, but I’m giving it a bit longer to see if the problem will fix itself. The android is working perfectly.
I agree with the above comments especially with the extremely poor customer services support. I’ve sent two messages and have yet to receive any response.
I’ve just received employment in China and was wondering if anyone has any information on Phantom’s performance in China and/or can someone suggest a VPN for China?
I look forward to your comments.
Caleb
Avira Phantom VPN - The Good and Alright
Approximately 1 month ago, I decided it was high time I find a nice and usable VPN that would give me all of the freedom the internet has to offer. I downloaded the Nord 3-day trial, but something was.. Off for me, so I decided to download the Avira Phantom VPN and give their 500MB free tier a try. I’m certainly glad I did because now I can’t imagine my internet usage without it. The ease of use really shines through with this easy-to-use and setup VPN. It’s a simple one-click action to activate the VPN service as well as de-activate it.
The connection speed is also pleasantly fast, and I had no connection issues while using it. The “Alright” portion of this review comes into play regarding their anti-virus software. They were very keen that I may want to download this as well. With that said, however, I didn’t feel pressured to install the anti-virus after downloading the install package for the VPN; only when I was perusing their website. To summarize, Avira Phantom VPN is fairly priced (My subscription is priced in rubles and comes out to around $8-9 each month. Their yearly plan is cheaper, and they have a mobile-only plan at a reduced price), works incredibly well, has a clean interface, and is extremely easy-to-use. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a pleasant experience.
Jack esdale
Slow
I had for about a year kept buffering and I would suggest that it was very slow compared to other VPNs.
Definitely not as good as ExpressVPN or NordVPN which are priced similarly.