Why Is My VPN So Slow? 6 Things You Can Check

You’re not alone if you are experiencing longer loading times and buffering videos when the VPN is turned on. The slight loss in speed is normal, since your data has to be encrypted and routed through another server. But there’s no need to worry, as these aren’t permanent changes and in most cases the fixes are pretty simple. The following are simple things you can do to fix this issue.

Server & Distance Location

Analogy(Understanding the problem): Now, just think about how long it takes to mail a letter across a few cities compared to across the world. The same analogy can be applied when it comes to internet traffic. For example, if you‘re sitting in New York and want to connect to a server in India, your data has to travel across the globe in a similar way(except the transmission is much faster).

The fix: To fix this, I’d suggest switching to a server that is geographically close to your actual location. Switching to a completely different country would be the best choice. But if you can’t do that, at least try switching to different cities within the same country.

Please note: Although these are common fixes, they don’t guarantee a solution for this problem.

Server Overload and Congestion

Analogy: Imagine too many cars crammed onto the same road, leading to traffic. This same logic can be applied to VPN servers as well.

When thousands of users start logging in to the same server, it gets overloaded, and your internet speed slows down.

Maybe the simple fix in this situation for you is to simply disconnect and reconnect to the VPN server. Sometimes it could also be the VPN tool’s issue, which leaves you with only one choice, i.e upgrading to a reliable VPN provider like NordVPN. I know many avoid doing so, thinking it would be more expensive…which is a completely wrong notion. All major service providers like NordVPN offer really affordable plans, and on top of it, using discount aggregator sites like CouponzGuru helps you check discounts available on NordVPN and other VPN providers.

Protocol Bottlenecks

Note: A protocol is a set of rules

Situation that you might be experiencing: Not all VPN protocols are built the same way, and maybe the one that your app is currently using might be dragging your speed down. Major slowdowns are still possible when you’re using older protocols that require heavy processing.

The fix:

• Open your VPN preferences
• Search for protocol selection
• Switch to a modern option like WireGuard or another high-speed protocol.

Interference from Antivirus or other Software

As you already know, your computer security software is designed to protect your device, but it can sometimes cause your VPN to slow down. As these tools scan for security threats, and because VPN traffic is fully encrypted, the security tool scans the incoming data after it’s decrypted. This takes time and processing power, and therefore reduces your internet speed.

Fix: You can try turning off your security or antivirus tool and see if there is any improvement.

Check Background Apps

Processes and tasks like downloading large files, software updates, and backups take a lot of bandwidth. It uses even more if you are doing other tasks like watching movies or streaming content over Wi-Fi. This could leave very little bandwidth for your VPN and slow things down. Therefore, try to close any running tasks or background apps and check if there’s any improvement.

Hardware Limitations

Old hardware, including an old computer, laptop, router, or phone, may struggle to process all the data. On top of all this, if you’re using a VPN (which adds an extra layer of processing), then you may experience slowdowns. To fix this, you can try using an Ethernet cable or upgrading your hardware entirely. Because this can cost you money, it is better that you first try all the simple fixes we discussed above.