VPNInfobaseBefore price or brand, check whether the VPN allows P2P at all and on which servers: policies differ. On their own pages, PIA says torrenting is supported on every server, Proton allows P2P only on paid plans and on servers marked P2P, and IVPN allows it but asks you to avoid US servers. Mullvad stopped offering port forwarding in 2023. ExpressVPN’s page we read carries a copyright notice and no P2P rule. We rank none of them: this is what each says, read on 29 September 2026.
What each vendor says
| Provider | P2P policy (vendor wording) | Port forwarding |
|---|---|---|
| PIA | “full support for torrenting on every PIA VPN server” | On “selected servers” |
| Proton VPN | “P2P is only available on paid Proton VPN plans”; standard servers return “No P2P traffic permitted”; connect to a dedicated P2P server | On paid plans, Windows, macOS and Linux apps, P2P servers only |
| IVPN | “We do not restrict the use of any protocols”; asks users to avoid US servers, including US exits on multi-hop, because upstream providers have threatened disconnection over DMCA notices | Not available, per its help page |
| Mullvad | Not stated on the pages we read | Discontinued: new forwards unsupported, existing ports removed 1 July 2023, citing abuse |
| Windscribe | Not read on a vendor page this time | “Only included on Windscribe’s paid plans”; Pro users get ephemeral ports that last 7 days; permanent forwarding needs a Static IP |
| ExpressVPN | Page read says it “should not be used as a means of copyright circumvention” and that you must follow its terms, your content provider’s terms and the law; no P2P rule on that page | Not read |
Not read for this page: NordVPN (its pages block our reader), Surfshark (its support article returned an error), CyberGhost and others. Leaving them out is not a judgement.
What that means in practice
- P2P on every server, or only some. PIA and Proton sit at opposite ends. If your closest server does not allow P2P you will hit an error rather than a slow download.
- Port forwarding is a separate feature. IVPN explains in its help page that you can still download and upload with a closed port, you just cannot accept incoming connections. Whether it matters for you depends on your client and your peers.
- A vendor can change its policy. Mullvad’s 2023 post shows a feature removed after abuse, so check the page on the day you buy.
- Refund windows differ. If you are buying to try P2P, compare the refund policies first; PIA, Proton and IVPN each give 30 days on the first purchase.
What a VPN does for a torrent, and what it does not
A torrent swarm shows the IP address of every peer. Behind a VPN, peers see the VPN’s address instead of yours, so the trust question moves to the provider: what it logs and what it has told authorities. That is why the audit tracker, the incidents timeline and the no-logs explainer matter more here than a speed claim. We do not report speeds; we have not measured any. Whether a given use of BitTorrent is lawful depends on what is shared and on the country, and this page does not give legal advice. Where the provider is based is covered by VPN jurisdiction explained.
Before starting a download: connect first, turn on the VPN’s kill switch if it has one (see what a kill switch does), and check your address on a leak-test site of your choice.
Method
Researched from each vendor’s own pages, read on 29 September 2026; wording in quotation marks is theirs. Nothing was measured or bought by us. NordVPN is the one provider we earn commission on (disclosure). Reviewed every 90 days. See the sourced facts for PIA in the PIA review and for Mullvad in the Mullvad review.