Firefox VPN
Ranked 5 of 15 VPN services by recommenders
Free VPN built into Firefox that lets people change apparent region and hide their IP from sites. Critics say it is only a browser proxy, not a full VPN.
Free VPN built into Firefox that lets people change apparent region and hide their IP from sites. Critics say it is only a browser proxy, not a full VPN.
38 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 16
- criticize it
- 22
- approval share
- 42%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 16 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 0.7 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Adds privacy, fits Mozilla's mission
“This feature actually sounds like something that is aligned to Mozilla's mission of an open internet”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “Firefox's VPN service also has its privacy-related uses”
Comment from 13 Jun 2026 in “Leaving Mozilla” “This seems like a win for user-privacy”
Comment from 24 Mar 2026 in “Firefox Now Has Free VPN” Quick region switching for blocked content
“Useful if you want to switch region quickly without the OS and many apps now thinking you're in a different country”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “Firefox’s built in free VPN can usually access them”
Comment from 28 Oct 2026 in “Archive.today links going forward” Easy built-in use for non-technical users
“for many non technical users that is very useful, if they can get that with a click”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “Firefox has a built in VPN now... give it a try.”
Comment from 29 Sep 2026 in “California farmers are struggling to sell grapes as demand for wine drops” “using the convenient Firefox VPN”
Comment from 20 Jul 2026 in “FIFA World Cup Triggers a Global Anti-Piracy Crackdown”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Browser maker should not run VPN
“Why does a browser need screen sharing built in? Why does it need a vpn client?”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “Gross. Browser, tracker blocking, and VPN should ALWAYS be different entities.”
Comment from 24 Mar 2026 in “Firefox Now Has Free VPN” “if I want a VPN I'll use an actual VPN. Focus on making a great browser”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” - Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149”
Free model may not last
“it ended up being abused, and a free VPN will go thought the same path”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “I don't care who is running a free-only VPN is a huge red flag”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “Another Mozilla project to be discontinued in 18 months”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” - Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149”
Browser-only proxy, not a full VPN
“I honestly find it distasteful that they may call it a VPN without it actually being one.”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “This looks like it's just a traffic proxy, and isn't actually a full VPN.”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “i want any VPN to cover the whole system, not just the browser”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” Distrust of Mozilla's privacy record
“What makes me not want to use it is I assume Mozilla has a legal presence all around the world.”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “ships its software with telemetry on by default and has a history of data-mining its users”
Comment from 19 Mar 2026 in “Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149” “Another useless distraction which is only nominally privacy-focused”
Comment from 24 Mar 2026 in “Firefox Now Has Free VPN”
Other VPN services people recommend
The four most recommended other VPN services, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mullvad VPN | 255 | 146 | 64% | 12 | 4.5 yrs4 owners | — |
| Proton VPN | 63 | 35 | 64% | 13 | 3 yrs4 owners | — |
| iCloud Private Relay | 26 | 20 | 57% | 11 | — | — |
| Cloudflare WARP | 18 | 10 | 64% | 7 | — | — |
| Firefox VPNThis page | 16 | 22 | 42% | 7 | — | — |
What people said
36 of the 38 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Firefox’s built in free VPN can usually access them”
“Firefox has a built in VPN now... give it a try.”
“used to have it but switched to Wireguard”
“with firefox vpn, I'm sorry but that's a MITM”
“seems to have broken this feature; I hope they'll fix that at some point”
“using the convenient Firefox VPN”
“Firefox's VPN service also has its privacy-related uses”
“I hit this a lot with Firefox VPN and it's ridiculous”
“New Firefox VPN feature comes in really handy here”
“This is ff being late to a party they shouldn't have come to.”
“but its still a good step”
“I guess Firefox VPN will hide the IP at least”
“This seems like a win for user-privacy”
“Another useless distraction which is only nominally privacy-focused”
“Mozilla is providing a genuine high quality free vpn.”
“Gross. Browser, tracker blocking, and VPN should ALWAYS be different entities.”
“they don't help against DPI at all”
“i don't see why it has to be made and ran by the browser maker itself”
“i want any VPN to cover the whole system, not just the browser”
“What makes me not want to use it is I assume Mozilla has a legal presence all around the world.”
“the demo video sold me more than the text”
“This feature actually sounds like something that is aligned to Mozilla's mission of an open internet”
“This looks like it's just a traffic proxy, and isn't actually a full VPN.”
“for many non technical users that is very useful, if they can get that with a click”
“It's a developer tool for website developers.”
“Useful if you want to switch region quickly without the OS and many apps now thinking you're in a different country”
“Why does a browser need screen sharing built in? Why does it need a vpn client?”
“it ended up being abused, and a free VPN will go thought the same path”
“Another Mozilla project to be discontinued in 18 months”
“I think a VPN is a great add-on for Firefox and way for Mozilla to monetize itself”
“ships its software with telemetry on by default and has a history of data-mining its users”
“Sadly no countries are mentioned where such VPN is really needed (due to strict internet censorship).”
“I honestly find it distasteful that they may call it a VPN without it actually being one.”
“Where's the money for this VPN going to come from?”
“I don't care who is running a free-only VPN is a huge red flag”
“if I want a VPN I'll use an actual VPN. Focus on making a great browser”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.