Last Updated on June 8, 2023 by Daniel Wright
The better choice between Hoxx VPN and Surfshark is Surfshark. Here are all the things which we’ve tested:
- Privacy: Hoxx VPN has worse privacy features than Surfshark
- Features: Hoxx VPN has less features than Surfshark
- Speed: Hoxx VPN is faster than Surfshark
- Countries: Hoxx VPN has less countries available than Surfshark
- Security: Hoxx VPN has better security than Surfshark
- Price: Hoxx VPN is cheaper than Surfshark
- Compatibility: Same price
- Support: Hoxx VPN has less options to contact support than Surfshark
1. Privacy
I’ll start with a comparison of the most important aspect of any VPN – privacy. During review I will consider whether VPN logs anything (IP address, traffic, DNS logs, bandwidth, or any type of timestamps) and the jurisdiction of VPN’s country of origin.
Name | Hoxx VPN | Surfshark |
---|---|---|
IP address | Yes | No |
DNS | Yes | No |
Traffic | Yes | No |
Bandwidth | Yes | No |
Timestamps | Yes | No |
Hoxx VPN is located in United States which is part of 5 9 14 eyes countries and is part of enemies of the internet countries while Surfshark is located in British Virgin Island which is not part of 5 9 14 eyes countries and is part of enemies of the internet countries.
It’s important to note that If you are like me and you will be using VPN only to unblock GEO-restricted content, privacy will not be that important factor but it’s still essential for any VPN.
2. Features
The next category I want to compare are features of Hoxx VPN and Surfshark such as kill-switch, unblocking of streaming, support of P2P traffic (torrenting). I am a heavy user of various streaming platforms so for me it’s important whether VPN unblocks major streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO or BBC. I don’t do much torrenting but it’s always good to use a VPN while doing so. If this is an important factor for you, definitely look for a VPN which supports P2P traffic.
Name | Hoxx VPN | Surfshark |
---|---|---|
Kill-switch | No | Yes |
Streaming (Netflix) | No | Yes |
P2P traffic – torrents | No | Yes |
As you can see from the comparison table above, Hoxx VPN doesn’t have kill-switch, doesn’t support streaming services, and doesn’t support torrenting. On the flipside Surfshark has kill-switch, supports streaming services, and supports torrenting.
3. Speed
Being hidden behind VPN shouldn’t limit the speed of your connection. I’ve measured the speed of each VPN against a 100mbps connection – which should be sufficient for any activities including heavy streaming in 4K or downloading large files.
In my test Hoxx VPN was more on the below average side while Surfshark had average speed. If there were no limits in speed on a 100mbps connection, I consider VPN a “fast” one. If the speed is limited somehow but still achieving decent values, I categorize it as “average”. The “slow” is usually used for VPNs which limit your bandwidth significantly.
4. Security
I will start by comparing the type of encryption Hoxx VPN and Surfshark use, what tunnelling protocols are available, and finally we’ll test whether it leaks the IP address or DNS.
Name | Hoxx VPN | Surfshark |
---|---|---|
Encryption | 4096-bit | 256-bit |
Tunneling protocols | OpenVPN, SSTP and L2TP/IPsec | OpenVPN and IKEv2 |
IP leaks | Yes | No |
DNS leaks | Yes | No |
The most important factor of a VPN service is a strong encryption of the traffic which is forwarded through the VPN servers. The most common encryption types in cryptography are SHA encryption or AES encryption which are not really comparable against each other. There might be different lengths of encryptions (eg. 128-bit, 256-bit, 2048-bit) and while usually the higher is the better, for most use cases you will be fine with any encryption. Watch-out if there is no encryption at all. Hoxx VPN uses 4096-bit and OpenVPN, SSTP and L2TP/IPsec protocol and Surfshark uses 256-bit and es 4096-bit and OpenVPN and IKEv2 protocols. I’ve tested both VPNs also for IP and DNS leaks and Hoxx VPN had no IP leaks and No DNS leaks while Surfshark had No IP leaks and No DNS leaks.
5. Price
Probably one of the most important decision factor for the majority of users will be price. Shocking? Not really. We all love to compare things and I am not different. It’s always good to get the best value for your hard-earned money, isn’t it? So let’s see whether Hoxx VPN or Surfshark is cheaper.
Name | Hoxx VPN | Surfshark |
---|---|---|
Price | Free | $1.99 |
Trial version | Yes | Yes |
6. Compatibility
Hoxx VPN supports unlimited connections at the same time while it works fine on all the platforms below. You can use Surfshark on unlimited devices at the same time with support of all these platforms:
Name | Hoxx VPN | Surfshark |
---|---|---|
Windows | Yes | Yes |
MacOS | Yes | Yes |
Linux | ||
Android | Yes | Yes |
iOS | Yes | Yes |
7. Support
Should you have any problems with Hoxx VPN or Surfshark you can reach out to their support via:
Name | Hoxx VPN | Surfshark |
---|---|---|
Livechat | No | Yes |
Yes | Yes | |
Phone | No | No |
Summary
Hoxx VPN ranked in our list on 67. position while Surfshark. is on 2 position. If you are looking for a better choice, see our rankings here.
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