SweatVPN
might
mystify
you
if
you’re
not
a
gamer.
The
service
caters
specifically
to
gamers
so,
if
you’re
not
interested
in
hopping
into
online
Call
of
Duty
matches,
you
may
want
to
continue
your
search
for
the
best
VPN.
Even
the
name
“SweatVPN”
is
based
on
a
gaming
term
–
“sweaty”,
which
refers
to
a
highly
skilled
player
who
tries
so
hard
to
win
that
they’re
sweating
by
the
end
of
the
session.
Of
course,
if
you’re
looking
to
wind
down
on
the
weekend
or
after
work
with
some
casual
gaming,
then
running
into
“sweaty”
players
isn’t
ideal.
SweatVPN
promises
to
balance
the
playing
field
by
providing
access
to
lobbies
with
less
skilled
opponents,
allowing
you
to
enjoy
a
more
chilled-out
gaming
experience.
While
Sweat
VPN
is
priced
competitively
at
$6.99
a
month,
there
are
a
bunch
of
issues
with
the
service
that
keep
me
from
recommending
it.
Let’s
take
a
look.
SweatVPN
features
Sweat
VPN
offers
a
mix
of
standard
VPN
features
with
a
few
specialized
tools
tailored
for
gamers.
However,
there’s
very
little
that’s
actually
unique
to
this
VPN
provider
from
an
industry
perspective.
The
more
I
dug
into
it,
the
more
I
found
that
the
service
struggles
to
stand
out
in
a
competitive
market
where
many
VPNs
offer
the
same
suite
of
tools.
SweatVPN
has
more
than
forty
server
locations
available
–
and
claims
that
this
allows
you
to
access
“bot
lobbies”.
These
are
less
competitive
gaming
lobbies
(digital
waiting
rooms)
created
to
reduce
matchmaking
times
when
there
aren’t
enough
players
for
a
full
match.
So,
using
SweatVPN
to
change
your
location
to
a
region
with
fewer
players
when
playing
a
multiplayer
game
(like
Call
of
Duty)
means
you’ll
end
up
in
a
lobby
full
of
less-skilled
players
or
AI-controlled
bots
(non-human
players).
However,
this
feature
is
not
unique,
as
most
VPNs
can
change
your
virtual
location
to
achieve
similar
effects.
SweatVPN
does
one-up
regular
VPNs
with
its
ability
to
spoof
your
location
and
reduce
lag
with
its
“SweatDUMA”
feature,
which
geo-fences
you
to
a
specific
area
while
choosing
a
game
server,
but
still
allows
you
to
use
your
home
connection
in
the
game.
There
are
a
handful
of
extra
game-specific
features
built
into
SweatVPN
that
are
all
designed
to
optimize
your
gaming
experience.
The
FPS
booster
is
pretty
self-explanatory:
it’s
a
bunch
of
default
settings
that
ensure
you
get
the
best
framerate
when
running
a
game.
What’s
more
interesting
(and,
honestly,
concerning)
is
the
SweatBoost
feature.
Essentially,
it’s
a
series
of
macros
designed
to
enhance
your
aiming
abilities
when
playing
on
a
controller
by
eliminating
recoil.
I’m
not
going
to
argue
the
ethics
of
using
a
tool
like
this,
but
if
you’re
reported
for
using
it
in-game
you’re
probably
going
to
end
up
shadow-banned.
SweatVPN
ease
of
use
SweatVPN’s
UI
is
cluttered
in
a
way
that’s
not
obvious
until
you
compare
it
to
other
VPNs.
There’s
a
bunch
of
useless
information
added
to
the
connect
page,
which
feels
like
it’s
there
to
pad
out
the
page
space.
I’m
not
sure
if
anyone
has
ever
asked
for
random
geographical
facts
about
the
VPN
location
they’re
connecting
to.
The
rest
of
the
menus
are
poorly
organized,
too.
On
the
plus
side,
there’s
a
“Meta”
tab
which
provides
insights
into
the
current
best
loadouts
in
Call
of
Duty.
It’s
a
handy
time-saving
feature
that
saves
you
the
hassle
of
researching
optimal
setups
but,
obviously,
it’s
absolutely
useless
if
you’re
using
the
VPN
for
anything
that
isn’t
playing
CoD.
SweatVPN
performance
Every
millisecond
of
ping
counts
when
it
comes
to
gaming.
Too
much
lag
makes
your
gaming
session
unplayable,
even
if
you’re
getting
access
to
easier
lobbies
as
a
result.
There’s
also
the
issue
of
how
SweatVPN
performs
outside
of
a
gaming
setting
as
a
general
VPN,
too.
In
all
cases,
I
tested
SweatVPN
using
a
100
Mbps
connection
with
Ookla
Speedtest
to
capture
speed
test
results.
During
my
tests,
I
connected
to
UK
servers
and
observed
download
speeds
of
61.76
Mbps
and
upload
speeds
of
30.32
Mbps.
These
speeds
are
more
than
adequate
for
most
online
activities.
For
instance,
streaming
Netflix
in
4K
requires
about
25
Mbps,
meaning
my
download
speeds
were
sufficient
to
handle
high-quality
streaming
without
buffering.
You
should
keep
in
mind
that
connecting
to
a
VPN
will
always
make
your
connection
slightly
slower.
I
found
that
my
Ping
times
were
pretty
reasonable.
I
usually
get
around
25-40ms
when
connecting
to
EU
West
servers,
and
didn’t
really
notice
a
difference
when
using
SweatVPN.
So,
no
additional
lag.
I
didn’t
notice
any
extra
jitter
either,
as
my
gameplay
remained
smooth
and
stable
across
multiple
rounds.
This
was
the
case
throughout
the
day,
both
during
peak
and
off-peak
hours.
Netflix
and
global
stream
unblocking
While
SweatVPN
doesn’t
advertise
itself
as
a
streaming
VPN,
I
was
interested
to
see
if
it’d
be
able
to
unblock
any
popular
streaming
services.
Unfortunately,
the
VPN
fell
short.
While
it
does
manage
to
unblock
Tubi,
it
failed
to
access
every
other
streaming
service
I
tested
it
out
on.
To
be
clear,
my
usual
VPN
testing
regime
involves
accessing
regional
Netflix
variants
in
the
UK,
US,
Japan,
Canada,
and
Australia,
as
well
as
9Now,
BBC
iPlayer,
ITVX,
Amazon
Prime
Video,
and
Disney+.
In
every
case,
SweatVPN
caused
the
streaming
service
to
either
not
play
or
display
a
warning
telling
me
I
was
using
a
VPN.
Even
bouncing
between
different
servers
didn’t
help,
and
neither
did
the
SweatDUMA
service.
I’m
not
surprised,
as
SweatVPN
is
really
built
to
jump
between
Call
of
Duty
servers.
However,
SweatVPN
does
allow
torrenting.
It
performed
reasonably
well
during
my
connection
tests,
maintaining
good
speeds
with
a
variety
of
peers
across
the
world.
I
wouldn’t
necessarily
recommend
SweatVPN
as
a
torrenting
VPN,
however,
especially
as
there
are
some
leak
issues
(which
I’ll
discuss
later
in
the
article).
There’s
also
a
lack
of
locations
to
choose
from,
so
it’s
not
an
ideal
choice
when
most
top-tier
VPNs
offer
at
least
double
what
SweatVPN
does.
Privacy
and
security
The
real
issue
I
have
with
SweatVPN
is
that
it’s
not
private.
Again,
while
it
doesn’t
position
itself
as
a
privacy-focused
VPN,
I’ve
got
a
bunch
of
concerns
about
the
service.
The
privacy
policy
is
paper
thin.
All
it
does
is
outline
the
general
data
rights
you’ve
got
under
GDPR
and
tell
you
that
it
retains
data
in
accordance
with
Dutch
law.
It’s
difficult
to
determine
what
data,
if
any,
is
being
collected
or
stored.
Given
that
there’s
no
third-party
audit
and
a
lack
of
a
no-logs
guarantee,
it’s
quite
likely
that
SweatVPN
is
logging
your
IP
address
and
could
very
well
be
logging
your
internet
browsing
traffic
too.
They
also
state
that
any
data
you
hand
over
to
the
service
can
be
shared
with
their
commercial
partners,
which
is
terrible
news
if
you’re
concerned
about
being
profiled
by
marketing
companies.
In
terms
of
VPN
protocols,
it’s
pretty
bare-bones.
Only
OpenVPN
is
available,
and
while
it’s
secure
and
battle-tested,
it’s
also
pretty
slow
compared
to
some
of
the
newer
VPN
protocols
out
there
like
WireGuard.
I
was
surprised
to
find
that
SweatVPN
was
actually
leaking
my
IP
address
when
I
booted
up
the
app.
This
is
dangerous
behavior
for
a
VPN,
even
if
it
isn’t
a
privacy-first
service.
At
first,
I
thought
this
was
a
complete
failure
to
prevent
IP
leaks,
but
it’s
actually
not
as
bad
as
that.
SweatVPN
comes
pre-packaged
with
the
settings
that
lower
your
ping
in
a
Call
of
Duty
lobby
as
much
as
possible,
so
only
the
features
that
spoof
your
location
are
turned
on.
Once
I
changed
the
NAT
type
to
direct,
it
passed
all
of
the
IPv4
leak
tests
I
threw
at
it.
I’m
not
impressed,
but
it’s
not
as
bad
as
the
VPN
just
straight
up
not
working.
I
can’t
say
the
same
about
DNS
leaks.
Even
after
adjusting
the
settings
to
prevent
IP
leaks,
the
VPN
continued
to
expose
my
DNS
requests
–
meaning
every
site
I
requested
while
using
SweatVPN
was
still
being
sent
to
my
ISP.
Ultimately,
they’d
be
able
to
see
both
my
home
IP
and
every
site
I
visit.
There’s
also
no
kill
switch,
split-tunneling,
or
anything
else
in
the
way
of
security
you’d
expect
from
a
top-tier
app.
Also,
installing
it
set
off
my
anti-virus
scanner.
SweatVPN
claims
it’s
due
to
the
“encryption”
it
uses
on
its
app,
but
I
would
never
recommend
a
VPN
client
that
my
AV
suggests
is
actually
a
trojan
with
full
access
to
my
computer.
(Image
credit:
SweatVPN)
Server
network
All
of
SweatVPN’s
servers
are
optimized
specifically
for
gaming.
It
doesn’t
offer
any
streaming
or
torrenting
servers,
so
unless
you
want
a
dedicated
gaming
VPN,
there’s
not
much
on
offer
in
terms
of
extras.
There
are
40
server
locations
to
choose
from,
however,
ranging
from
those
you’d
expect
like
the
UK,
US,
Canada,
Greece,
and
Spain,
to
slightly
more
obscure
locations
such
as
Nigeria,
Thailand,
Kyrgyzstan,
Indonesia,
Singapore,
and
South
Africa.
Given
that
SweatVPN
tries
to
give
you
access
to
locations
with
lower
player
bases,
it
makes
sense
that
there’s
a
fairly
scattered
set
of
locations
to
connect
to.
SweatVPN
apps
The
actual
SweatVPN
app
is
only
available
for
Windows,
although
there
is
a
way
to
allow
your
console
to
connect
to
the
SweatVPN
service.
You’ll
need
a
USB
Wi-Fi
adaptor
to
do
so,
however,
as
you’re
essentially
turning
your
PC
into
a
router
that
your
console
connects
to
in
order
to
use
the
VPN
service.
It’s
a
pretty
ingenious
method,
but
it’s
also
an
absolute
headache
to
get
set
up
and
requires
installing
a
virtual
machine
and
running
an
extra
network
adapter
to
get
right.
It’s
far
from
the
most
user-friendly
experience
in
the
world,
even
if
you’re
following
along
with
the
extensive
guide.
As
far
as
the
Windows
app
goes,
it’s
also
kind
of
a
pain.
I
had
to
disable
both
Windows
Defender
and
my
AV
system
just
to
get
it
to
install,
and
I
found
that
I
couldn’t
uninstall
it
without
downloading
a
separate
uninstaller
file.
There’s
no
other
availability
here:
no
MacOS,
no
Linux,
no
Android
or
iOS.
It
makes
sense,
as
SweatVPN
is
based
entirely
around
giving
you
an
edge
in
Call
of
Duty.
However,
I
suspect
there’s
another
reason.
Much
of
SweatVPN’s
extra
functionality
is
built
around
the
DS4Windows
driver,
which
provides
native
device
support
for
a
bunch
of
console
controllers
including
the
PS4
controller.
As
far
as
I’m
aware
there
isn’t
an
equivalent
on
MacOS
or
Linux,
and
I
doubt
SweatVPN’s
developers
are
building
their
own
controller
drivers
any
time
soon.
(Image
credit:
SweatVPN)
SweatVPN
customer
support
SweatVPN’s
customer
support
is
pretty
limited
in
comparison
to
other
VPN
services.
The
primary
support
channel
is
a
Discord
server
where
you
can
interact
directly
with
the
developers,
but
this
is
only
available
if
you
pay
the
extra
fee
for
VIP
support.
The
issue
with
this
is
that
the
support
staff
aren’t
terribly
professional,
and
most
of
the
time
if
you
can’t
get
the
lobbies
you’re
looking
for
they’ll
tell
you
that
you’re
on
your
own.
Sweat
VPN
does
not
offer
a
dedicated
24/7
live
support
team,
or
an
AI
chatbot,
and
their
support
literature
is
somewhat
lacking.
There
is
a
single
support
page
that
lists
a
few
support
guides
necessary
for
installing
SweatVPN
but,
upon
further
inspection,
at
least
half
of
these
articles
are
very
clearly
spewed
out
by
some
variant
of
ChatGPT.
It’s
also
pretty
hard
to
find
these
documents
at
all,
as
they’re
hosted
on
a
separate
subdomain
I
only
found
while
using
some
Google-fu
on
the
site.
It’s
not
available
anywhere
from
the
main
page,
either,
so
you
won’t
have
access
to
it
until
you
buy
a
subscription.
Overall,
while
there’s
certainly
some
support
on
offer
for
SweatVPN,
it’s
nowhere
near
the
standard
I’d
expect
from
a
specialist
VPN.
SweatVPN
pricing
plans
Sweat
VPN
offers
a
range
of
subscription
plans,
including
options
for
one
week,
one
month,
three
months,
and
one
year.
However,
the
one-week
package
is
suspiciously
listed
as
“out
of
stock.”
which
raises
a
few
questions
given
that
VPN
subscriptions
are
digital
products.
They’re
virtual.
There’s
nothing
to
run
out
of!
Jokes
aside,
this
is
a
fairly
scummy
tactic
designed
to
make
you
view
the
rest
of
the
price
options
as
“discounts”
to
a
package
you
literally
cannot
buy.
The
one-month
plan
costs
$15,
while
the
three-month
package
is
priced
at
$35.
If
you
opt
into
the
VIP
plan,
which
promises
additional
server
locations
and
access
to
a
VIP
Discord
server,
the
cost
is
$20
per
month
or
$50
for
three
months.
An
annual
VIP
subscription
is
available
for
$150.
However,
I
don’t
think
the
VIP
plan
provides
substantial
value,
as
the
extra
server
locations
aren’t
terribly
useful
and
Discord
access
offers
little
advantage
beyond
connecting
with
other
Call
of
Duty
enthusiasts
and
a
direct
line
to
the
support
staff.
All
in
all,
SweatVPN
is
pretty
expensive
compared
to
the
competition
given
how
little
there
is
from
a
VPN
perspective.
Maybe
it’s
worth
it
to
you
for
the
extra
Call
of
Duty
features,
but
given
that
there
are
much
better
cheap
VPNs
out
there,
I’d
suggest
you
steer
clear.
(Image
credit:
SweatVPN)
Track
record
It’s
hard
to
gauge
SweatVPN’s
track
record
given
that
it’s
a
relatively
new
company.
However,
there
are
a
bunch
of
extremely
angry
customers
in
SweatVPN’s
reviews
across
sites
like
Trustpilot
insisting
that
the
app
doesn’t
work
–
and
I’m
inclined
to
agree.
The
issue
with
a
product
like
SweatVPN
is
it’s
trying
to
give
you
a
service
that’s
hard
to
guarantee.
You’re
trying
to
fool
Call
of
Duty’s
matchmaking
system
into
giving
you
better
lobbies
to
play
in,
but
it’s
a
black
box
that
you
have
very
little
feedback
from.
There’s
also
some
weirdness
about
where
SweatVPN
is
based.
I
can’t
find
any
meaningful
information
about
the
developers
behind
the
program,
and
while
the
Privacy
Policy
suggests
they’d
be
managed
under
Dutch
law,
the
support
address
listed
on
Trustpilot
is
actually
for
an
office
in
Poland.
There’s
very
little
actual
transparency
about
who
or
what
is
funding
SweatVPN
which,
in
the
context
of
everything
else
SweatVPN
fails
on,
I’d
call
a
big
red
flag.
SweatVPN
review:
Final
verdict
There
are
so
many
things
wrong
with
SweatVPN
that
I
don’t
know
where
to
begin.
First,
and
foremost,
is
that
it
set
off
my
anti-virus
during
installation.
This
simply
should
not
happen.
Then
there’s
the
issue
of
the
bot
lobbies.
Lots
of
gamers
dislike
skill-based
matchmaking,
sure,
but
using
a
VPN
to
bypass
it
by
connecting
to
locations
filled
with
bots
is
both
unfair
and
will
eventually
get
you
shadow-banned.
Even
if
you
wanted
to
argue
the
morality
of
using
a
VPN
to
snipe
bot
lobbies,
the
extra
aim-assistance
macros
that
SweatVPN
offers
are
outright
cheating.
On
top
of
that,
SweatVPN
is
simply
a
bad
VPN.
It
doesn’t
unblock
streams,
it’s
not
particularly
fast,
and
it
lacks
almost
all
of
the
security
features
you’d
need
to
use
a
VPN
with
total
peace
of
mind.
If
I
haven’t
been
clear
enough
already:
do
not
buy
SweatVPN.
SweatVPN
alternatives
I
seriously
can’t
recommend
SweatVPN.
So,
with
that
in
mind,
here
are
some
reliable
picks
you’d
be
better
off
spending
your
money
on.
If
security
is
your
main
concern,
then
check
out
our
NordVPN
review.
Its
DoubleVPN
feature
routes
your
browsing
traffic
through
two
different
VPN
servers
making
it
much
harder
for
third-party
snoops
to
track
your
activity.
NordVPN
also
has
its
own
built-in
ad-blocker
and
malware
protection,
as
well
as
industry-standard
encryption.
Plus,
with
over
5,500
servers
worldwide,
you
can
count
on
high-speed,
low-ping
connections
to
pretty
much
any
part
of
the
globe.
Our
ExpressVPN
review
goes
into
detail
about
this
rock-solid
service,
too,
which
always
places
high
in
our
VPN
speed
tests.
This
makes
it
an
excellent
choice
for
gaming.
ExpressVPN
has
also
invested
in
a
vast
network
of
servers
in
105
countries,
so
you’ll
be
able
to
find
a
nearby
VPN
server
with
low
latency
no
matter
where
you
are
in
the
world.
ExpressVPN
also
supports
a
wide
range
of
devices
and
provides
24/7
customer
support.
Finally,
in
our
CyberGhost
review,
we
dig
into
this
budget-friendly,
low
cost
option
that
has
its
very
own
dedicated
gaming
servers.
CyberGhost
is
nice
and
easy
to
use,
even
for
total
newbies,
and
offers
the
same
bulletproof
security
you’ll
see
from
providers
like
NordVPN
and
ExpressVPN.
How
we
test
VPNs
TechRadar’s
team
of
VPN
experts
use
VPNs
every
day,
at
work
and
at
home,
and
perform
a
thorough
analysis
of
today’s
top
services
twice
a
year
to
make
sure
our
rankings
are
all
up
to
date
–
and
how
the
competition
has
developed.
First,
we’ll
take
a
look
at
each
provider’s
site
to
check
out
its
feature
list
and
privacy
claims,
and
whether
anything
has
changed
since
our
last
review.
We’ll
also
see
whether
the
provider
site
uses
cookies
to
track
visitors
and
if/when
they
activate.
We’ll
install
and
use
each
VPN
service,
next,
and
connect
to
a
range
of
servers
across
different
locations
to
get
an
overview
of
the
service’s
performance.
Then,
we’ll
dive
into
the
VPN
settings
to
ensure
all
features
work
as
advertised
and
which
protocols
are
available.
Our
VPN
team
isn’t
afraid
to
challenge
the
VPNs
they
test,
either,
and
will
cut
the
VPN
connection
to
see
whether
the
kill
switch
kicks
in
to
prevent
data
leaks
as
it
should.
We
test
every
facet
of
the
VPN
–
streaming,
speed,
customer
support,
ease
of
use.
Everything
you’d
want
to
know
about
a
service,
we
want
to
know,
too.
Check
out
our
dedicated
VPN
testing
methodology
page
to
learn
more.
SweatVPN
FAQ
Can
you
be
shadowbanned
while
using
a
VPN
in
Call
of
Duty?
Yes.
Although
SweatVPN’s
owners
claim
you
won’t
be
banned
while
using
the
VPN
because
it
doesn’t
violate
the
Terms
of
Service,
Activision-Blizzard
often
relegates
users
they
detect
using
VPNs
to
segregate
them
from
the
rest
of
the
population
who
are
playing
fair.
Is
it
normal
for
a
VPN
service
to
set
off
my
Anti-Virus?
No.
You
should
always
trust
your
VPN
provider
before
using
its
software,
and
while
there
are
occasional
false
positives,
nothing
a
VPN
does
should
set
off
your
malware
detection.
If
a
VPN
provider
is
aware
of
this,
it
should
be
rewriting
its
software
so
that
it
doesn’t
cause
these
issues.
Disclaimer
We
test
and
review
VPN
services
in
the
context
of
legal
recreational
uses.
For
example:
1.
Accessing
a
service
from
another
country
(subject
to
the
terms
and
conditions
of
that
service).
2.
Protecting
your
online
security
and
strengthening
your
online
privacy
when
abroad.We
do
not
support
or
condone
the
illegal
or
malicious
use
of
VPN
services.
Consuming
pirated
content
that
is
paid-for
is
neither
endorsed
nor
approved
by
Future
Publishing.