Quick answer: Hotspot Shield is still available in October 2026. It is provided by AnchorFree, LLC or Pango GmbH, both part of the Pango Group, and it has a free plan with tight limits as well as paid Premium and Premium Family plans. Premium covers 10 devices and more than 115 locations in over 80 countries, and comes with a 45-day money-back guarantee. Before choosing it, privacy-minded buyers should know about a 2017 complaint to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) about its free app’s data sharing, and that its free plan is supported by advertising.
This review is based on Hotspot Shield’s website, plan page, privacy policy and App Store listing, plus public reporting. We have not tested the service ourselves. An earlier version of this article said Hotspot Shield ran “faster than any other competitor”, unblocked every major streaming service and was “no less than superb”, and cited a figure of 650 million users. We have removed those claims because they came from tests or marketing we could not trace to a named, dated independent source.
Who owns Hotspot Shield?
- Provider: Hotspot Shield’s privacy policy (last updated 31 October 2024) says the service is provided by Anchorfree, LLC or Pango GmbH, and is part of the Pango Group. Its App Store listing names AnchorFree, LLC as the seller.
- History: Hotspot Shield was launched by AnchorFree in 2008. AnchorFree later renamed itself Pango, which has offices in the US. The original article described it as a US-based company; that still broadly applies.
- Related brands: The Pango Group also runs other consumer security products. In 2024, for example, Kaspersky moved its US customers to UltraAV, a Pango product, after the US ban on Kaspersky (see our Kaspersky review).
Plans and pricing (as of October 2026)
As of October 2026, per Hotspot Shield’s plan page (US dollars; prices in India may differ):
| Plan | Price shown | Devices | Main limits or extras |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic (free) | $0 | 1 | 500 MB of data a day, speeds up to 2 Mbps, one US location only |
| Premium | $7.99 a month, billed annually | 10 | Unlimited data, more than 115 locations in 80+ countries |
| Premium Family | $11.99 a month | 25 (5 per member account) | Up to 5 member accounts |
Hotspot Shield offers a 45-day money-back guarantee on paid plans bought directly from it. Its App Store listing also mentions monthly and six-month options for subscriptions bought through Apple. The original article listed $71.88 a year, 25 locations and “more than 2,000 servers”; those figures are out of date. The App Store listing now says more than 1,800 servers.
Features Hotspot Shield documents today
- Hydra protocol: The original article called the “Catapult Hydra” protocol its best-known feature. Hotspot Shield still says its own Hydra protocol is designed for fast connections. Its claims to be the “world’s fastest VPN” and “up to 2.2x faster” are the company’s own marketing, not independent results.
- Apps: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, smart TVs and other devices.
- Interface: The original article described a very simple app built around one large connect button, which connects to the United States or your last location by default. Interfaces change between versions, so expect some differences today.
- Uses: Hotspot Shield says its servers are suitable for streaming, gaming, downloading and P2P.
- Support: its App Store listing says 24/7 support. The original article said support was only by ticket; check the current options on its help pages.
Privacy and the 2017 FTC complaint
Hotspot Shield’s privacy policy says its VPN products do not log information that links your account or identity to your VPN session activity, and do not keep records of the websites or apps you use through the VPN. It does use information such as how much bandwidth you use and how long you are connected to run your plan, and it may assign your device a random ID. The policy has a section on advertising in its free VPN products, so the free plan is funded partly by ads.
The original article referred to “the FTC investigation and CDT proceedings”. To be precise: in August 2017, the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), a US non-profit, filed a complaint with the FTC about what it called undisclosed data sharing and traffic redirection in Hotspot Shield’s free VPN app, based on research with Carnegie Mellon University. A complaint is an allegation, not a ruling. The original article also cited a study by Australia’s research agency CSIRO; we have not re-checked its findings here.
The original article also mentioned a DNS leak through Hotspot Shield’s Chrome extension. That was reported several years ago, and we have not found current evidence either way, so check recent independent testing if you plan to use the browser extension. We did not find a published independent no-logs audit on Hotspot Shield’s website.
Torrenting, streaming and India
A VPN hides your IP address from other peers, but it does not make sharing copyrighted files legal. Streaming services block VPN servers from time to time, so treat any streaming claim as temporary. In April 2022, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) told VPN providers to keep customer records for five years, and several providers removed their physical servers from India. VPN legality varies by country.
Who Hotspot Shield suits
- Good fit: people who want a simple app, a long 45-day refund window and a family plan that covers many devices.
- Think twice: if you want an independently audited no-logs policy, an ad-free free plan or a provider outside a large consumer software group.
For comparisons, see our reviews of ExpressVPN, NordVPN and Proton VPN, which also has a free plan, or our list of VPN software for Windows.
Frequently asked questions
Is Hotspot Shield free?
There is a free Basic plan, limited to one device, 500 MB of data a day, speeds up to 2 Mbps and one US location, according to Hotspot Shield’s plan page in October 2026. It is supported by ads.
Who owns Hotspot Shield?
The Pango Group. Its privacy policy names Anchorfree, LLC or Pango GmbH as the provider.
How many devices does Hotspot Shield Premium cover?
10 devices. Premium Family covers up to 25 devices across 5 member accounts.
What was the 2017 complaint about Hotspot Shield?
The Center for Democracy and Technology asked the FTC to look into undisclosed data sharing and traffic redirection in the free Hotspot Shield app. It was a complaint, not a finding against the company.
Checked in October 2026 against Hotspot Shield’s plan page, homepage and privacy policy, its App Store listing, and public records of the 2017 CDT complaint. We have not tested Hotspot Shield ourselves, so confirm current prices and features before you buy.
3 comments
Real beautiful Article, Thanks for sharing!
Best view i have seen for long time !
Works great, no dropped connection like I experienced with other services, This is fast connections, sometimes my speed has actually increased,great sever selection,use it with Desktop , iPad , iPhone definitely worth it
I highly recommend this service.Excellent customer service…just get it!