How (and Why) to Get Started With Decentralized VPNs

Decentralized VPNs or dVPNs are touted as an evolution of VPNs. Their strength lies in their name: instead of offering the centralized setup of regular VPNs, they connect to the internet through nodes run by other users scattered around the world. All of this sounds interesting, but why would you use one and how do you get started?

What Is a Decentralized VPN and Why Should You Use One?

There are a few reasons why you should choose a decentralized VPN over a regular one. Some are more practical while others are more high-minded. One way in which dVPNs are idealistic is the idea that instead of paying money to a company, you pay other users; You could even make a few bucks yourself thanks to the way dVPNs are set up.

You could potentially use the dVPN platform for free as you could balance incoming payments with outgoing ones. This is pretty easy as dVPNs allow you to pay on demand, unlike regular VPNs. With plans being pretty low right now in September 2022, it means that even for paying customers, dVPNs should be a bit cheaper, except for people who run their VPN all the time.

Another great benefit of dVPNs is that they are transparent. As we explain in our article on no-log VPNs, regular VPNs are a black box and you have no idea what’s happening inside. They take their data protection claims at face value – or at least trust external auditors. With dVPNs, however, the process is much more open-ended and you can verify things yourself rather than taking the word of others.

What decentralized VPNs are available?

Now that we have an idea of ​​why you might want to use a dVPN, let’s take a look at how to get started. You have several working dVPNs to choose from: at the time of writing, you could use Orchid, Deeper Network, or Mysterium.

All have their pros and cons, some of which are simply due to the technology being so new. Expect weird glitches in apps or some client launch issues. at the moment it seems to go without saying. Let’s give a quick overview of each service so you have an idea of ​​what to expect.

mystery

Mysterium is probably the best dVPN to start with, especially if you’re not that familiar with crypto or setting up your VPN. To use it, all you have to do is download and install the client, buy some of the platform’s MYST coin, and you’re good to go. It works just like most regular VPNs, just click and connect.

Mysterium is available for Windows, MacOS, Linux and Android.

orchid

Orchid isn’t quite as easy to get started as Mysterium: while setting up the client and purchasing its OXT coin is just as easy, actually connecting to nodes is much more difficult. To do this, you must either learn how the Orchid protocols work, or have and use an OpenVPN account. It’s a bit daunting for first-time visitors.

Orchid is available for MacOS, iOS and Android.

deeper network

Our third entry is Deeper Network, which takes a very interesting path. Instead of offering a client that you can install on your device of choice, this dVPN requires you to directly purchase a small device to access its network. The upside is that after that initial $250-$350 purchase, you never have to pay anything again. The device itself is your gateway to the network and allows you to earn crypto.

How to use a decentralized VPN

Of the three options above, the mystery is the easiest to get started, so we’ll show you how it works. First go to the Mysterium website and download the client of your choice. Install and run like any other program. It will initialize and then, like most programs these days, it will go through all the reasons why you should use it.

Once this is all done, you will find yourself on Mysterium’s payment screen where you can buy MYST, the cryptocurrency associated with the platform. There is no way around it, you cannot use it without MYST.

The beauty of this is that Mysterium is their own exchange, so you can buy directly from them. You can pay with card, PayPal or another cryptocurrency. Currently, $2 buys you about 3.5 MYST. Most dVPNs, including Mysterium, use a pay-as-you-go model, so you only pay for the bandwidth you use. What your current purchase is bringing you in terms of online time is shown on the right.

To put that in perspective, when we were using Mysterium for Netflix, watching three full-length movies and doing a few other miscellaneous online activities cost us around 0.4 MYST. We’re tempted to say that overall it’s a pretty good deal. However, if you torrent frequently, you should use a regular VPN.

After the payment is completed, you will be taken to the main Mysterium client screen. It’s not too different from the interface offered by most regular VPNs. The most important thing to remember is that you are not dealing with servers. Instead, you’re dealing with knots. Go to the node overview and you’ll see a list that looks familiar if you’re used to more traditional VPN clients and group all nodes per country.

Unlike regular VPNs, Mysterium doesn’t show you specific locations or even IP addresses, only node addresses. This is difficult when you need a specific location in the country and we hope it gets fixed soon.

However, it is important to note the “R” next to some entries. This means it is a resident proxy, a node offered by another user. These are generally more expensive to use than the ones Mysterium has secured itself, but are better suited to streaming.

This brings us to another thing you might want to remember, which is that prices can differ between nodes. Luckily, this is clearly stated on each entry.

Once you’ve found a node you like, connecting it is as easy as pressing the connect button. Connection times are generally a bit slower than regular VPNs, and speeds are usually not great either. Expect much bigger hits than a regular VPN.

If you’re worried about how much you’re spending, Mysterium tracks your total remaining MYST at the top of the screen and the MYST you’ve spent for that session on the left. Other than that, however, it’s not much different from a regular VPN. If you’re interested in a new approach to VPNs, try Mysterium.

Be careful how much you spend though — unlike traditional VPNs, which tend to have an all-you-can-eat model for a single monthly fee, a dVPN like Mysterium is usage-based.