Founded in Singapore, Ivacy has been giving us VPN service since 2007. Now the company operates in more than 100+ locations along with 1000+ servers. In this Ivacy VPN review, we will take a close look at all features and put this company in a harsh test to check if they comply with their promises.
Like many other VPN service providers, Ivacy VPN does also have assertive comments on their website stating that “they are the fastest VPN in the world”. Moreover, the usage purposes like torrenting, privacy, streaming, and zero log policy are some of the diverse needs to be met by the company itself. Let’s see if we will be happy with the results.
Country, server coverage, and performance
As of 2019 Ivacy VPN provides VPN service in 100 locations with 1000+ optimized servers. The coverage is relatively fine. However, there are plenty of areas not covered yet.
Just back to 2017, the company used to have around just 50 locations. The number has doubled and it is moving forward! That is a big improvement!
Still, when compared with the top player in the market, Ivacy VPN lacks a lot of the coverage and needs more server deployment to Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and South America!
Improving performance with the increasing number of servers takes lots of effort. Let’s see how well Ivacy VPN performs with our harsh speed test.
Ivacy VPN speed test results
Region | Download (Mbps) | Upload (Mbps) | Ping (Ms) |
---|---|---|---|
Mobile 4G | 2.14 | 3.2 | 79 |
Mobile Wifi | 5.59 | 5.2 | 64 |
North America | |||
New York | 3.02 | 4.83 | 298 |
Chicago | 5.81 | 3.16 | 334 |
Florida | 5.24 | 2.1 | 381 |
San Francisco | 2.13 | 2.64 | 425 |
Los Angeles | 2.59 | Failed | 400 |
Canada – Toronto | 6.48 | 3.19 | 299 |
Mexica | 4.6 | 2.71 | 388 |
South America | |||
Brazil | 2.6 | Failed | 537 |
Chile | 0.82 | 1.27 | 531 |
Panama | 1.2 | 0.8 | 297 |
Costa Rica | 1.49 | 0.82 | 419 |
Europe | |||
England | 12.43 | 4.94 | 143 |
Germany | 9.32 | 0.48 | 100 |
France | 1.6 | Failed | 143 |
Spain | 6.13 | Failed | 193 |
Netherland | 2.08 | 0.51 | 138 |
Italy | 4.73 | 4.77 | 128 |
Asia | |||
Hong Kong | 3.1 | 2.22 | 592 |
Japon | 1.74 | 1.58 | 568 |
Malasia | 0.35 | 1.23 | 624 |
Africa – Middle East – India | |||
South Africa | 1.86 | Failed | 455 |
India | 17.21 | 4.63 | 108 |
Jordan | 2.42 | 3.47 | 308 |
Others | |||
New Zealand | 1.11 | Failed | 748 |
Australia | 1.03 | 1.77 | 709 |
We do stress the VPN performance when it comes to speed test. What other VPN review websites do is just connect to a server and find the best server around. In that way, the speed might look exaggerated. On the other hand, we connect to the location we would like to test, then, we ping back to our ISP to see the accurate results.
After testing so many locations all around the world, Ivacy VPN failed in some by getting disconnected and giving us poor speed results. In other words, Ivacy VPN is not the fastest VPN in the world. Yet, our browsing speed was fairly fast enough to have great surfing experience on any website we wanted.
Speaking of performance data collected all around the world, Ivacy VPN has a long journey ahead to reach out to its competitors in the market.
Ivacy VPN torrenting performance
People love to download free stuff. Torrent is one of the best ways to make this happen. On one hand, you can almost download any digital product you want with a single software, on the other hand, you would be risking your online identity while doing so. In this sense, VPN service providers are a great help to hide our IP address while torrenting.
I have tested Ivacy VPN to download a popular TV show around 650 MB. The download speed in the P2P server peaked up to 400KB/Sec. It took more than 30 minutes to download the full show and the average speed was around 300KB/Sec. As you can also see in the speed panel, I did not have any kind of disconnection issue. Yet, severe ups and downs killed my download speed excitement totally.
Unfortunately, Ivacy VPN could not pass the torrenting test with great values.
Ivacy VPN Popcorn time Experience – Is it fast enough?
Another platform where you can watch popular TV series, as well as any movie you want, is Popcorn time. This software helps you watch the shows while you are downloading it.
In order to have a great experience with Popcorn time, you should be downloading the media file around 500 KB/Second. Below this, you will be having some lag issues. Above this, you can even watch the movies in full HD.
According to our test, Ivacy VPN proved to be working great with Popcorn time. We had a smooth watching experience with around 1.80+ KB/sec download speed.
Depending on the “Active Peers”, the download speed could be even greater!
Time to time we had some ups and downs issues. At the very beginning, the performance peaked up to 2.5MB/sec. Later on, it stuck around 1.5 MB/sec and kept on downloading the file without any connection drops.
Ivacy VPN has passed Popcorn time test successfully.
Ivacy VPN online gaming experience
Coming soon…
Ivacy VPN NetFlix and BBC iPlayer experience
Ivacy VPN has a dedicated feature helping you find the best server you actually need.
On the left side of the menu, you will find a unique feature called “Streaming”. This menu will lead you to a special page where you can find streaming services to unlock. Netflix USA is one of them.
I connected to the suggested VPN server. It was a success!
The software is working great to watch Netflix. However, the video quality was not satisfying on my end. I was unable to watch the show in Full HD.
IVacy VPN BBC iPlayer?
In order to watch BBC iPlayer shows, we must have a United Kindom IP address. Therefore, I chose “BBC iPlayer” purpose and connected to Maidenhead server.
Same as Netflix, Ivacy proved to be working great with streaming services.
Overall, I do like the way Ivacy VPN help us stream. Via new software, it is easier to access streaming servers and unblock the geo-blocked contents. On the other hand, the quality could be better. Both Netflix and BBC iPlayer streaming quality was way less than HD.
Pricing and refund policy
When compared to other VPN service providers, Ivacy VPN is quite inexpensive. Especially, the 24-month plan is a big steal if you do plan to use a VPN service in long term.
Each plan gives us the same features.
Ivacy VPN has so many payment options. No matter where you are located, you will be able to complete your payment. If you like, you can also choose to pay with coins.
In a case the software is not working fine for your end, you can always as for a refund within 30 days. However, there are some important points I want to take your attention to.
- The refund has to be claimed within 30 days.
- If you breach any kind of Ivacy policy, and your account is terminated, you cannot ask for a refund.
- In case you have consumed more than 500 GB of data or connected to Ivacy VPN servers more than 30 sessions, you cannot ask for a refund.
- The payment methods: Paymentwall and Bitcoins are not refundable.
- If you have already claimed a refund before, you cannot do it for the second time.
Same rules also apply to the renewals…
Desktop software and mobile apps
Ivacy VPN used to have one of the most confusing software interfaces earlier. However, like many other VPN services, the company adopted a minimalist design.
New version 5v omits all unnecessary features and offers a compact design for end users.
The welcoming interface of the software starts with the most beneficial feature: “Fast Unrestricted Access”. As a person living in Turkey, this is actually what I need to bypass IPS firewall!
The same line of the menu goes like “Secure download”, “Streaming”, “Unblocking”.
Each purpose will offer you different server options.
For example, when you choose “Secure download” it will just line up the P2P servers. You can choose the closest one to you and start downloading your favorite torrent files.
If you are an expat and trying to access geo-blocked content abroad, then you should choose the “Streaming” menu. This will bring about the following features to your end.
I have tried several servers in this menu and they all work fine. In case, you have a problem with it, simply vote down the question as “No” then the tech team will start an investigation and try to make it function as it is supposed to. I do like this feature!
Furthermore, you will find shiny features like “Kill Switch, Split Tunneling, DNS leak protection etc” in the settings menu. However, you have the right to freak out as these “Kill Switch and Split Tunneling” features are Windows only.
Instead, here is what you will get with MAC.
Simple features you can find in almost any VPN service in the market.
Do you need more?
Yes. It is so weird that not all features are present in MAC.
Overall, Ivacy VPN has moved a big step further by going minimal and super user-friendly. Almost all of the useless features are gone and new interface offers truly what we need!
Looking forward to seeing missing features added to the MAC platform.
Ivacy VPN for mobile devices
Ivacy VPN has one of the nicest looking mobile app in the market. It is super easy to use. Menu navigation is perfectly touched and it gives us better navigation while on mobile. Yet, speed performance was disappointing.
Before talking about performance, I would like to give you more detail about the mobile app.
Once you launch the app, Ivacy VPN will welcome you same as the image below. With a single touch, you can easily connect to a VPN server.
If you have the desired location, touch “Choose Location” and it will lead you to the country selection page.
Moreover, the same feature: “Purpose” can also be found in the mobile app.
If you like to use the VPN service for a special purpose, I strongly suggest you use this option. This will give you the best location and the server.
Lastly, there might be some points where you want to play with some settings. In the app, simply go settings and you will see some options like changing protocols, kill switch, split tunnel.
Besides the nice looking app, unfortunately, the speed performance on 4G and Mobile on Wifi could not meet my expectation. While I was getting 37,30 Mbps to download and 4,17 upload speed on our normal fiber connection without VPN, the numbers dropped to 2,14 Mbps download and 3,3 upload on 4G and 5,59 Mbps download, 5,20 Mbps upload on Wifi+VPN.
Security protocols
Currently, Ivacy VPN provides 5 different protocols: PPTP, L2TP, SSTP, OpenVPN, and IKev2. The encryption is by 256-bit and offers standard protection in the market. Bundled with DNS leak, IPv6 and anti-theft protection, you can enjoy anonymous browsing.
I have tested all of the protocols on Windows and Mac. The connection was stable. I was able to switch between protocols without any issues. However, we have a problem with MAC!
The company states “a Mac VPN not only gives you security, anonymity, and privacy but also allows you to: … stop ISP tracking”. It is very unfortunate that Ivacy got caught by my ISP (SuperOnline) and did not allow me to connect to the VPN servers.
Rather than providing a single protocol for Mac, I strongly suggest Ivacy VPN consider other options. Countries like Russia, Turkey, Iran or China tend to block different protocols from time to time and this problem leads malfunctioning for MAC users.
Free services from Ivacy VPN
Currently, there is no free service from Ivacy VPN.
Is Ivacy VPN working properly?
Depends!
With the new version 5v, Ivacy VPN introduced simplicity along with rich features. The service handles the streaming, unblocking and torrenting promises quite well. Therefore, we can say server-side functions pretty astounding. However, I cannot say the same for the software end.
While using secure downloading function and switching between server, I experienced software crashes.
The worse scenario is you do not know how to fix this problem. I tried to quit the software, restart PC. Yet, the problem still persisted. Certainly, the software needs updating.
Other than bug problems, Ivacy VPN works well.
Customer support
As a blogger, I have asked Ivacy VPN to test their service. The software worked great on my desktop. However, I had some connectivity issues on my smartphone and I decided to connect to live chat. The answer was instant and my problem was solved within 2 minutes.
Besides, live chat support, there is a great page where you can learn more about technical issues, FAQ, guides etc…
Ivacy VPN logging policy! Does Ivacy VPN keep logs?
Here comes one of the most important part. Ivacy VPN has a super clear statement on their website about logging policy. The company only logs the email addresses to manage the billing and sending you to account credentials.
Moreover, Ivacy VPN does not collect any data or monitor your activities meaning that when there is legal demand from the company, there is nothing they can give.
Summing up!
When it comes to privacy and anonymity, Ivacy VPN is one of the top VPN service providers you can pick from. Stable servers, no-log policy, easy to use desktop software and mobile apps, 30-day money back guarantee and 5 simultaneous connection are some of the core features you will make use of Ivacy VPN. Yet, there is a chance that you will have some software bug problems.
Except for the slow speed from Ookla test, IVacy VPN proved to be working great for torrenting, streaming and unblocking geo-blocked contents.
Furthermore, inexpensive pricing plan will help you enjoy online privacy starting from 2.25$/month…
I’m a part-time traveler on a mission: to explore the world and uncover the intricate demands of VPN usage. Fueled by curiosity, I meticulously navigate the realms of privacy, streaming, and unblocking needs in every destination I visit. With a keen eye, I analyze the local and global VPN demands of each country, translating my findings into informative articles about VPN-related topics.