Urban VPN Review – Is It Safe in 2024

Almost every VPN publishes outstanding facts or vibrant information about their achievements on the website’s main page. It is not always easy to find information on the VPN’s official sources about drawbacks or nuances that may not be attractive to the user’s eye, and that is the reason why we come.

As a first priority, we are focused on the features intrinsic to the free version of the VPN, and in the second order, we pour some light on premium versions. Our thorough investigation pulls up all the details of the provider’s privacy policy, reveals speed capabilities and security options in order to comprehend a real situation.

We do all the tests on our own to provide only reliable information to consumers. Based on our reviews, you have the ability to save your time instead of wasting hours realizing all the essential data. We hope our work will help you make the right choice.

Pros

• Easy to install
• Easy to launch
• Start using VPN without any registration
• Variety of locations

Cons

• No information about support service
• MacOS app has only 5 available locations for free version
• Sharing data to third parties
• Low level of the security
• No settings page an apps and extensions
• No information about technologies security stack of VPN
• Collecting IPs and browsing data
• Only 100 mb available for the mobile app
• Can not connect to some locations
• Any information about accessibility for countries with high restrictions for the web usage

Urban VPN Features

Here we are going to be talking about free VPN with the ability of launching on various operating systems. As well, the provider offers extensions for some browsers. The official website assures that its covering consists of more than 80 locations with an unlimited bandwidth. DNS/IPv6 protection is set in the safeguard system. For users who adore Netflix products, Urban VPN provides a streaming option, by the way, not only for the Netflix platform. Except for various operating systems compatibility, it has different free products for the presentation:

• Free Unblock Proxy;
• Hide My IP;
• Free Twitter VPN;
• Free Gaming VPN;
• Free Tumblr VPN;
• Free Craigslist VPN;
• Free Youtube™ AdBlocker;
• Free Hotspot Shield;
• Free Travel VPN;
• Free Anti Malware Protection;
• Free Roblox VPN;
• Free Router IP Address VPN;
• Free Reddit VPN.

Our investigation will reveal all the specifics of the current VPN to test its functionality.

Privacy and logging

Privacy is the main reason why VPNs are in demand nowadays among the digital market’s products. Consumers who desire to consolidate their privacy while on the web prefer to be sure that their data is protected from any kind of leak.

 The first screen of Urban VPN site convinces that its product is 100 % anonymous.

After we have read their сompliance, we found that not all information is protected. They collected IPs and browsing data.

“We never share, sell, or process information directly associated with individuals,” is said in the highlighted text, but on the first section of the main page, we could see that it’s 100% anonymous. However, 100% assumes that it’s absolutely confidential with no gathering of any information at all, and there should not be reasons to assure users that something will be or will not be shared. If the product offers total anonymity, then nothing should be shared by default.

They collected “browsing data”. What exact browsing data? Every day, people browse through enormous amounts of information on the web and utilizштп private, sensitive data while registering or buying products. How can customers be sure that their credit card details will not be exposed or that their birthday details and email will not be used by third parties? “Browsing data” looks like a hazy picture. Cybercriminals know how to use the IP address and this so-called ‘browsing data’ to injure you.

As a final thought of the section, our team can express an opinion that only some kind information is being protected. It’s not liable to read on the first banner with a huge font that it’s completely anonymous and further inside the website within a canvas of text it turns out that some data is collected though.

Speed Tests – How Fast is Urban VPN

This section does not require a verbose description. We are showing you the real rates from our exploration. For testing the speed of Urban VPN products we are going to involve different platforms:
– MacOS;
– Windows;
– Browser Extensions;
– Android mobile app.

PC Tests

In this section, we are going to check how Urban VPN applications for Windows and macOS systems do their job. For each system, we will take two locations. The first speed test is without VPN turned on; the second and third tests will use two different locations from the list of available countries.

The first screenshot below shows the initial internet service provider’s speed without usage of Urban VPN on macOS.

Now we will take the Urban VPN app for Mac OS and measure the speed connected to the Australia location.

On macOS Urban VPN showed an extremely low speed, even we could not manage to launch the Speed Test app. We are sure that such a “furious” connection speed will not leave any user indifferent.

Now the test will run with the Spain location on macOS.  

At this time, at least, Speed Test managed to launch. The download speed is almost 3 mb.
More than decade ago, when mobile internet was gaining its popularity, such speed was a limit of available imagination, but nowadays it is the lowest degree. You even will not be able to share an image with your familiar.

The same actions we will do for the Windows’s app. The first test is a pure ISP speed, the second, and the third are at different locations; the USA and Sweden for this current test.

On the screenshot below there are results of the ISP (internet service provider) speed on the Windows system. 

For the following test we turned on the USA location on the Urban VPN app for Windows.

Testing the USA geo, we even didn’t manage to connect to the server. Speed test was reflecting a display with a connection status, but it did not connect at all. It seems that the loading process just hung in the air. We waited a few minutes, and nothing happened. Urban VPN didn’t set up the connection.

At this time we will switch the location on Urban VPN to Sweden.

In contrast to the USA, Swedish server has achieved success. We see that Tthe download speed fell nearly 30%, and the ping response changed from 2 ms to 55 ms. The uploading speed undergoes changes.

Browsers’ Extensions Test

Urban VPN offers extensions for three very widely used browsers:

– Google Chrome browser;

– Firefox  Mozilla browser;

– Microsoft Edge browser.

We will conduct testing only on the Google Chrome extension. This will be enough to understand the extensions’ specificity.

The first screenshot shows the natural ISP speed.

On the next turn, we will launch the Urban VPN extension with the Germany location on the Google Chrome browser.

As you can see, the Chrome extension with the Germany location shows almost the same result as the test without a VPN. The connection speed was about the same for downloading and uploading, the ping time is good. 

The following test will run with the USA location.

The US’s location ping time was raised four times. The results of download and upload speeds are still very close to the initial test without a VPN.

In general we highlighted a few points about the extensions:

• The interface is identical with extensions for other browsers and is very similar to the mobile app. It is easy and quick to use it; 
• Installation and launching processes are very simple and require a little effort;
• Every extension has 60 locations;
• No ability to configure security settings.

Mobile Test

Mobile gadgets are a mandatory part of modern life. The lion’s share of customers mainly use mobile internet traffic most of the time. We prepared test cases on the Android device with two locations utilizing Urban VPN. 

The first screenshot depicts the initial internet service provider’s speed.

On the next screenshot, you will see the status of the Speed Test app when the Android device is connected to Urban VPN with the USA location.

The connection speed with the US location is extremely low. The Speed Test app could not even measure the speed.

The last location is Czechia, and let us see the results on the third screenshot.

Comparing the speed of the last geo with the initial ISP speed, the download index decreased more than two times, and the upload rate decreased nearly 25 percent. The ping time was raised from 2 ms to 161 ms.

About Safety – How Secure is Urban VPN

This information is not on the surface; it appears somewhere deeper in the structure of the website. Is it a satisfying user experience to roll through the whole website to find essential information that should be visible to the naked eye?

The first catchy information after the website has been loaded is that Urban VPN is 100% anonymous, and only after some time, it does turn out that personal data is sold to some third parties, and you need to execute some instructions to get rid of these unpleasant settings.

Also, while testing the instruction, we found that it does not work!

According to the second step, it should be the menu on the left side, but it does not exist. Going further, we clicked on the menu on the right side and selected “About”. As a result, we did not see any opt-out option, just redirected to the “About us” page.

Neither the desktop and mobile apps nor the website contain detailed information about security measures and technologies. On the front page, there is a mention of DNS/IPv6 leak protection. What about the protocols this provider uses? Does it use a killswitch to protect clients’ privacy in case the internet connection breaks down? No information about split tunneling and custom DNS. Urban VPN apps do not have a settings page at all.

There is no detailed information about the security technology stack. In addition, the instruction, written by them, is not working, and the website has dual information about privacy protection. We can not suggest this provider from a safety perspective.

Desktop Apps

Desktop apps differ for Windows and Mac OS. They have distinctive visual interfaces: Mac’s OS interface is a bit more informational with some speed stats, unlike Windows’s app, which has only a connection timer, a search field, and a gear icon to open settings. 

Urban VPN application on Mac OS has a very simple and easy-to-use design: a dropdown with a selection of locations, a timer with play/pause modes, downloading and uploading speeds, and an additional menu in the right upper corner marked as three vertical dots. In the additional menu, we can find three points: 

• Open payment view;
• About;
• Products.

The first and third points lead to their website. Also, in the footer of the application, there are three tabs: 

• Home tab;
• Locations;
• History.

The application for Windows is less informative. The main screen consists of a timer with play/pause modes, the selection of locations, and a gear icon in the left upper corner, which opens a sliding sidebar on the right side with QR codes that lead to the App Store and Android Market, where you can install the apps. Also, there is a small stack of settings for adjusting.

Both apps have smooth installation and simple interface for launching. Very nice feature is that the apps work without register processes. 

On macOS there are only five locations available from sixty locations for a free version.

Windows’s app includes 55 locations, and all of them are available in the free version. By the way, the official website says that there are more than 80 locations around the world, but real indexes are much fewer.

On either app, we did not find a settings link to look at what configuration possibilities we could try to use.

Both apps are simple to install and use; with no difficulties, in a few minutes, anyone will launch them. MacOS lovers will be disappointed because of the low location quantity as opposed to Windows users, who have a decent variety of countries to connect to. 

The significant drawback is that neither app has a settings page where it’s possible to edit individual security measures. 

Mobile Apps

We found on the website that Urban VPN has applications for Android and iOS gadgets. After we have tried to install them, it reveals that an application for iOS is absent in the App Store.

On Play Market we found Urban VPN and installed it. On the screenshot below you can see how it looks.

Seamless installation of an app is the first benefit, as is its clear launch. On Android devices, there are more than 60 locations, and only one geo is not available for a free version for some reason. Therefore, the users will be satisfied with such a large selection of free geos.

A very big inconvenience is that only 100 MB per day are available on the mobile app. 

Browser extensions

Urban VPN extension is available for Google Chrome, Firefox Mozilla, and Microsoft Edge browsers. The visual interface is the same for each platform. All locations are available for all. The main extensions’ screen encompasses:

• Searchfield with a selection of locations;
• Timer with a play/pause button;
• Two additional options with on/off mode.

Taking into account our test with the Google Chrome extension, we can conclude that it works without hindrances; the locations are launched well, and the connection speed does not suffer losses.

Performance

The overall impression of the performance indexes is not exciting. Desktop apps for Windows and Mac OS showed very bad results. To remember a few locations did not run at all.

Only the test with the Spain location on Windows differed with some intelligible numbers. Google Chrome extension also showed a seamless workflow.

Work in Highly Restricted Countries 

Work in Highly Restricted Countries
VPN services are in high demand in countries where the government imposes restrictions on web usage. Such boundaries are applicable to:

• Saudi Arabia; 
• Turkey; 
• Iran; 
• China;
• Russia; 
• Tajikistan.
• etc.

The citizens of these regions are not able to visit social media networks, watch streaming platforms, or communicate with the outer digital world to a greater or lesser extent. In this situation, a VPN is a tool that helps overcome the limitations and open availability for this category of consumers.

We did not find any mentions on the Urban VPN website about this query. We do not know if the service works in countries with a rigorous position regarding online freedom. But in any case, it would have been beneficial if they had provided a piece of information about this request.

Server’s locations 

Their website claims that over 80 locations around the world are handled by Urban VPN. 

But it is dubious information, we will show how much we did count.

On macOS we counted 59 locations.

On Windows we counted 57 locations

On the Android app we counted 64 locations

As our examination has shown, the biggest number is 64 locations on Android mobile app. So we can not speak about 80+ real locations.

What Bonuses Does the Paid Version Offer, and How Much Does It Cost?

Urban VPN definitely has subscription offers, but it’s difficult to find them. For macOS users, there is no chance to obtain a paid version because, on the subscription stage, the application throws an error. Using a mobile app will not help you find the benefits of the paid version because it directly redirects you to “Play Market” without any intermediate descriptive step. Windows app, too, behaves weirdly—no mention of subscriptions at all.

It is a very confusing case of the total absence of such important information.

Only a pop-up with pricing is working, let’s look how much it costs.

Considering the services they offer, we strongly recommend you look for another provider for this money.

About Support

Herein, all that is going on with customer support service is dark water. We did not manage to contact anyone, as we did not find this information on extensions, desktop apps, or mobile. 

Support service is a crucial pillar of a product that claims to be known worldwide. Urban VPN has earned a big negative mark at this point. Even if the customer’s support exists, why is it hidden so meticulously?

Urban VPN Review: Final verdict

The most important point is that Urban VPN is not very secure. They collect IPs and browsing data. It’s not hidden information; they write it in their compliance overview.

Considering all the facts previously noticed, we recommend not using this provider if the main aim is security. There are no comprehensive particulars about the technical stuff used by the company; there is only one note about DNS/IPv6 protection. Nevertheless, such technology as VPN has so many options to set up for obtaining desirable flexibility. It may be useful if the purpose is only to visit sources that are hidden in specific regions.

The indices of speed rates are surprisingly low. The impact of this VPN on ISP connection speed is significant; in some cases, we could not even connect to the server.

An absence of customer support contacts is the biggest failure of this enterprise. We do not predict any scale in the future for them if they do not change their attitude to this point.

As well as the situation with customer support, there is no real settings page either on desktop apps, mobile apps, or extensions. It means that you have no ability to set up individual security configurations.

Urban VPN may be relevant if you use it with the purpose of bypassing some location-related prohibited content. If we are talking about real security and a robust product that can solve problems and propose solutions for a variety of cases, then it is definitely not the right VPN.