Proxy Vs VPN | 6 Differences between Proxy and VPN

Recent surveys indicate that large part of internet users use VPN services. However VPNs are not only the solution for staying private online. Using Proxy you can achieve the same level of anonymity given by the VPN. 

Furthermore internet is not a place of security. Even though many security measurements are taken it is still vulnerable to attacks. In order for protecting against them it is must to have a VPN or a Proxy server. Both VPN and Proxy hides your IP address and allows you to access the internet anonymously. Therefore, they does the same work of connecting to a remote computer. But the way they do that is different. Understanding both of them can be tricky unless you know the differences between them. 

In this article, I will be guiding you on Proxy Vs VPN | 6 Differences between Proxy and VPN. Finally from this post you will know what is the differences between them. 

Let's get started,

1. Security

A VPN ensures that whatever the traffic traveling through it is encrypted. Therefore, users can make sure that all of their confidential datas are safe here. Especially when using the HTTPS protocol. However a VPN connection will not always guarantee an encrypted connection. The data can become unencrypted once it reaches the web server. 

While in proxies there is no any kind of encrypted protections at all. Usually proxies are not designed to protect you from the internet exploits. Moreover some proxies even pass your original IP address directly to its destination. Hence, you should always be careful whenever you handle any sensitive information here.

Winner : VPN

2. Speed

A VPN connects to a server using a local client. This local client depends upon the CPU and the memory chip. Therefore, whenever there is an issue in the memory or the CPU it will instantly slowdown the VPN connection. Furthermore if there is high level of proximity in the server that can too lead to performance issues. However this has been completely prevented in the premium VPN services which creates a private tunnel for your data. Premium VPN services are completely optimized for speed and stability. 

On the other hand, if you are using a free proxy server for hiding your IP address, you might see constant performance issues. Especially while streaming a web page or downloading a large file. The main reason for this is the high level of traffic on your VPN servers. However comparing to a speed of a VPN, a proxy is considerably faster since they don't encrypt the data.

Winner : Proxy

3. Configuration

If a proxy resides on a local  router then there is no configuration needed. However if a proxy sits on a remote server, there should be some configurations done to hide the IP address and encrypt the traffic. Furthermore all the applications those which are using the proxy needed to be configured separately. But a VPN connection does not require any configurations at all. It automatically provides anonymity once you connect them. 

Winner : VPN

4. Working Platform

Unlike a proxy where it works at an application level for a single app or a browser, a VPN works on an operating system level. This means that all of the traffic that comes through each and every application in the operating system will be captured by the VPN.

Winner : VPN

5. Cost

In general VPNs do have a subscription fee in order for them for generating an income. But there are some VPN services those are free of charge. For recovering their cost they might include ads in your traffic or sell your data to advertisers. However a Proxy server is free most at times. 

Winner : Proxy

6. Reliability

Speaking of reliability, a VPN connection tends to be more reliable. This is because of the connection strength which never lets it drop. While a proxy server constantly experience connection droppings. 

Winner : VPN