Tor is an open-source tool designed to anonymize your browsing by routing your traffic through a series of nodes.

VPNs, meanwhile, ensure your online privacy by routing your traffic through an encrypted tunnel.

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What’s the Difference Between Tor and VPN?

Tor vs VPN: Which Is Better for Anonymity & Safety in 2025?

In contrast,Tor is an open-source online grid that is maintained by a community of volunteers worldwide.

Each relay encrypts the data traveling through it, including your IP address.

This makes it much harder for anyone to trace your online activity back to your IP address.

An image showing how the Tor browser routes your internet traffic through several nodes before it reaches the website you’re visiting

Note that your data is decrypted when it comes out of the exit node

To summarize, premiumVPNs are generally faster, safer, and more convenient to use.

Tor, on the other hand, is slower and less user-friendly.

Tor vs VPN: When Should I Use Tor and When a VPN?

An image showing how the Tor browser routes your internet traffic through several nodes before it reaches the website you’re visiting

Note that your data is decrypted when it comes out of the exit node

A lot of users reach the dark web with Tor, which contains content that can be dangerous.

On top of this, it was only designed to encrypt data that uses the TCP protocol.

So, anything that uses the UDP protocol wont be protected.

An image showing how the Tor browser routes your internet traffic through several nodes before it reaches the website you’re visiting

VPNs arent limited to only the TCP protocol like Tor is, either.

Thanks to modern encryption algorithms (or locks), its near impossible to break into your data.

It would just look like gibberish.

A screenshot showing someone encrypting the phrase

To test this,I used an AES encryption generator to encrypt the phrase ‘vpnMentor.

Spies can see your traffic once it leaves the connection, but not where that data came from.

The Tor community actively hunts for and removes bad nodesusing both automated tools and manual reporting.

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Many legitimate websites have mirror sites with a .onion subdomain for these purposes.

Facebook has a .onion mirror site so that people in heavily-censored regions can use it to communicate.

Everything is automatically configured so you might start using the Tor internet right away.

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This will also allow you to access websites that block Tor users.

This method requires more technical know-how because youll need to configure your VPN client to work with Tor.

So, youll still need to be careful about sending sensitive information over your connection.

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Are VPNs faster than Tor for torrenting?

This additional encryption considerably slows your connection.

Choosing a server that’s closer to your physical location can greatly reduce latency and improve your torrenting speeds.

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Should I use a VPN with Tor?

Can Tor prevent ISP throttling as VPNs can?

On what devices can I use Tor vs VPNs?

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In addition, most VPN providers offer manual setup guides for other devices like routers or gaming consoles.

Some VPNs also offer net web surfer extensions that can be used with popular browsers like Chrome or Firefox.

My top pick is ExpressVPN, as it comes with obfuscation, robust security, and fast speeds.

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An image showing how the Tor browser routes your internet traffic through several nodes before it reaches the website you’re visiting

A screenshot showing someone encrypting the phrase