Rwanda is a small landlocked country located in East Africa. It has an estimated population of 11.2 million people. You will find that there are a number of reasons to visit this tiny country. Those include world-class hiking and trekking, the cultural people of Rwanda, great beaches, and more. When you are not enjoying the outdoors, we highly suggest that you connect to a VPN. We can tell you more about that in a few moments. Before we do, though, please have a look at our list of the best VPNs for Rwanda.
| Rank | VPN Service | Our Score | Server Locations | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | 9.8 | 160 |  |
| 2 |  | 9.4 | 87 | |
| 3 |  | 9.2 | 76 | |
| 4 |  | 9.0 | 110 | |
| 5 |  | 8.8 | 280 | |
In a Freedomhouse.org report, Rwanda scores 22 out of 100 for freedom. That means it is not free. That is actually down from previous years. If you can get internet access, you can bet that the Rwandan government is watching and just waiting to arrest people that it sees as a threat. The solution is to connect to a VPN. By doing so, you can create a secure and private encrypted connection. That will make it much more difficult for anyone to get ahold of your browsing activity.
The next reason to connect to a VPN is to help you get around geo-restrictions and government censorship. As you know, you will run into problems if you are trying to access content from your home region. The key is to connect to a VPN in a different region. That will make the blocking software think you are located there. Because of that, you should be able to watch what you wish to be able to or get around any government censorship.
What is the best VPN for Rwanda?
We focused on the following criteria to determine our list of the best VPNs for Rwanda:
- High levels of encryption to protect your online privacy from the Rwandan government
- Speed test results from VPN servers in South Africa for each provider
- Preference given to VPNs with multiple server locations that are close to Rwanda
- Ability to unblock popular streaming services and channels
- Support for torrent traffic and popular online games.
- Mobile apps and support for Amazon Firestick devices
Without further delay, here is a list of the best VPN services for Rwanda:
1. Best VPN for Rwanda: ExpressVPN
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ExpressVPN brings together fast VPN access with MediaStreamer which acts as a Smart DNS service to unblock access to geo-restricted content. The VPN service will help encrypt your connection and unblock live sporting events. You will even find a list of the latest live entertainment and sporting events on their website. Being in the British Virgin Islands puts ExpressVPN outside the 5 eyes and 14 eyes countries. They maintain a no-log policy that has been verified through high profile legal requests over the years.
ExpressVPN manages a very large VPN network. Beyond the USA, the ExpressVPN network boasts thousands of servers in key locations to help protect their user’s privacy. You can use their network to protect your privacy, unblock censorship, and watch your favorite streaming services from anywhere.
The ExpressVPN app allows you to select a server location down to the city but you can not choose a specific server. Instead, the client will select a server in your chosen location. You will want to select the “All” tab, open Africa and then South Africa. At this point, you can select a server there. As you can see, we tested a server in South Africa to Kigali and the speed was 106.50 Mbps.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of using ExpressVPN is their support for a wide range of devices. ExpressVPN offers custom VPN software for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. Connect from your desktop and mobile at the same time with up to 3 simultaneous connections. You can also install the ExpressVPN web extension for Chrome or Firefox. Want to protect your entire home network with a single VPN account? If so you can use the ExpressVPN router app to get all set up. The MediaStreamer feature adds Smart DNS support for game consoles (PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, etc.), media boxes (Apple TV, Roku, Nvidia Shield TV, etc.), and Smart TVs.
Save 49% and get 3 months free with 12 months of our #1 rated VPN
ExpressVPN performed very well in our speed tests. They are a great choice for privacy and to unblock geo-restrictions. Customer support is available 24/7 to provide assistance and answer any questions. Enjoy the best VPN for less with confidence as ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
2. Best VPN for Rwanda: NordVPN
Sign up for 36 months for just $3.49 per month (70% discount)
NordVPN is based in Panama which some users prefer to using a VPN company that’s actually headquartered in the United States. You will find that NordVPN has a strong presence in the US with servers located throughout the country. Members have full access to their network in the USA and beyond for a very good price.
You will find that NordVPN has perhaps the best mix of services for the price if you subscribe to a longer-term account. All users have full access to their network and custom software. You can connect using the VPN client for Windows or Mac. They also have an easy to use mobile app for both Android and iOS (iPhone, iPad) devices.
NordVPN hosts a number of servers in South Africa. From the console, clicking on the 3 horizontal dots to the right of the country, you can locate the server area and see the percentages of the servers available. We tested the servers there and the download speed was 47.97 Mbps.
Want to access streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, or BBC iPlayer from anywhere in the world? If so NordVPN is a great choice. They are one of the only VPN services that can still unblock Netflix. You can sign up for unlimited VPN and SmartDNS service with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
3. Best VPN for Rwanda: IPVanish
Sign up for 12 months for just $5.20 a month (57% discount)
The USA is home to several popular VPN services, but none faster than IPVanish. We know from personal experience that IPVanish will work quite well no matter what region of the country you are in. Their servers are fast and the VPN service has more server locations in the United States than most VPN providers.
Along with a large footprint in the USA, IPVanish hosts servers in every continent other than Antarctica. Their VPN network has consistently been the fastest in North America in our speed tests. You will find multiple server locations in countries like the US and UK. You can select a location or get more specific by picking an individual server. IPVanish is excellent for gaming but can be hit and miss for unblocking popular streaming services.
IPVanish hosts a number of servers in South Africa and you can choose to connect to any of them. We suggest selecting one that starts with “a” in the server name. In most cases, you will find the “a” servers to be the fastest. We tested an IPVanish server in South Africa and found the speed to be 36.57 Mbps.
When it comes to value IPVanish is hard to beat. They offer unlimited access to their VPN network and custom software for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Amazon Firestick and more. You can even set up your router to protect every device on your network. A 7-day money back guarantee covers all new members.
4. Best VPN for Rwanda: CyberGhost
Sign up for 36 months for just $2.75 a month (79% discount)
CyberGhost was founded in 2001 by 7 enthusiastic young team members in Bucharest, Romania. Since that time the company has grown into one of the largest VPN services in the world. The team of 50+ members is focused on protecting users’ privacy. Robert Knapp, co-founder and CEO, continues to lead the team even after they joined the Crossrider group in 2017. Since that time the CyberGhost network has expanded quite a bit.
CyberGhost offers a nice mix of server locations, strong encryption, and the ability to unblock popular streaming services like Netflix, YouTube Red, and Amazon Prime. Some of the channels even let you unblock geo-restrictions for multiple regions. For example, you can access Netflix content in the US, UK, Italy, Germany, France and Japan. The Windows client also gives you the option to surf anonymously, protect WiFi, torrent anonymously, unblock basic websites (Google, Facebook Instagram, etc.), and choose a server.
Since we wanted to test a server in South Africa, we opened the Windows client and expanded the interface. From there, you will want to click on the “All Servers” tab if it isn’t already active. Scroll down to Africa and click to the right of the star. This will bring up a full list of servers in South Africa. The CyberGhost network includes a few servers there. We connected to a server there and we got a speed of 13.21 Mbps.
The CyberGhost VPN client is one of our favorites. It is very easy to use and includes a number of advanced features to help protect your online privacy. They have a development team in Germany that is continually adding features to the client and mobile apps. You can sign up for full access to the CyberGhost network with a 45-day money-back guarantee.
5. Best VPN for Rwanda: HMA
Sign up for 36 months for just $3.99 a month (67% discount)
HideMyAss was brought to life in 2005 when Jack Cator, a 16-year-old student in England, decided that he wanted to create a service to help people avoid censorship. Specifically, Jack was unable to access social media sites and online games because they were blocked on the school network. HMA added hundreds of thousands of users the first month and has since grown into one of the largest VPN services in the world with over 350 server locations. Privax, the parent company of HMA Pro VPN, joined the AVG team in 2015.
For those that want to find a VPN provider with the most server locations, HideMyAss is your best choice. Just keep in mind that HMA logs user activity which is a concern for some VPN users. HMA hosts some VPN servers in South Africa. To connect to a server there, you will want to go into the “Location Mode” and select “Change Location” to get started. Then click on the “Cities” tab and search for Johannesburg. We connected to a server there and tested the speed to Kigali. We found the speed to be 7.39 Mbps.
In 2016 HMA and a few other leading VPN providers led the way in simplifying their custom client software. The result is a full set of custom apps that make it easy for any user to connect to the HMA network and encrypt your connection. They have software available for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS. You can also connect to HMA through your router. HMA offers unlimited VPN access and offers all new users a 30-day risk-free money-back guarantee.
If you are planning on visiting Rwanda, you can see that it is very important that you connect to a VPN. In the above sections, we have provided you with some great options. Of course, there are more available on our top 10 VPN list. While they will all work, we optimized our choices to work while you are in Rwanda. That way, you will be able to protect your privacy and get around government censorship are using a VPN. When you take a look at our guide, we can help you make the proper decision.