How to Setup a VPN on Android and iPhone

The term VPN refers to Virtual Private Network; it is mostly used to connect with other country's server. Sometimes, a situation comes when you need to connect with another County's servers; for example, you might want to download and access an app that is not available or banned in your country, keep your internet browsing private, and access web services that are regionally blocked, etc.

You have no idea how many organizations, governments agencies, or advertising companies are looking to your work out and your interest for better targets of ads at you. Using a VPN service on your smartphone you can encrypt all your browsing data. You can be sure that the data you are browsing and the apps you are using on your phone is only for your eyes and not for any third party.

The setup of a VPN on an Android device is quite simple. There are two ways to use VPN on your Android phone, tablets, or iPhone. The first option is to set up and use a built-in VPN on your Android phone, and the other option is to download, install, and set up a standalone third-party VPN app on your device.

How does VPN help web users?

Before moving to set up VPN on Android, iPhone, or other devices, you should know how a VPN service helps web users. While accessing the web on a computer, tablet, or smartphone using VPN services, the VPN connects your device to another computer (server) located in the internet world. After connecting to the server whatever you browse on your device, your device uses the server's internet connection. So if the connected server is located in a different country (UK, USA, etc.), it will show that you are present in that country and access from there. People are mainly using VPN services for the following reason:

• VPN allows bypassing geographic restrictions for accessing websites or other web services.
• It protects users from spying on untrusted Wi-Fi hotspots.
• It facilitates watching streaming media like Netflix and Hulu if they are unavailable (or band) in your country.
• It protects you from being logged in while torrenting.
• It helps you to hide your true location online.

Setup VPN on Android using Built-in Device Feature

Android smartphones have built-in integrated support for Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) and Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) VPNs. You can connect your devices with such types of VPNs without installing any third-party VPN apps, but none of these two are ideal. PPTP VPN is easy to set up, but it has a less secure connection; L2TP VPN is also a security issue but less than PPTP. If possible, we suggest you to use OpenVPN or a standalone VPN app. Even you want to use PPTP and L2TP; here are the steps you can connect:

Add or connect VPN

1. Open the Settings app of your Android phone.
2. Tap on the Connection & sharing (in some devices Wireless & networks) section.
   
3. Select the VPN
   
4. Tap on the "+" sign at the top-right to configure a new VPN server on your device.
   
5. Enter all the essential VPN information such as VPN type, server address, etc.
6. After providing VPN information, save
   
7. Go back to your VPN settings and select your VPN to connect. You will also be asked to secure your VPS settings by providing a username and password (PIN). You can also choose when your VPN turns on/off.
   

Disconnect or forget a VPN

1. Open the Settings app of your Android phone.
2. Tap on the Connection & sharing
3. Select the VPN
4. Next to VPN, you want to disconnect, tap on the Settings
   • To disconnect: turn off the toggle button of that VPN.
   • If you forget the network: tap on the Forget.

Edit VPN settings

1. Open the Settings app of your Android phone.
2. Tap on the Connection & sharing
3. Select the VPN
4. Next to VPN, you want to edit, tap on the Settings
   • If you are using a VPN app, it will get open.
5. Edit the VPN settings as you need, then tap on Save.

Stay connected all the time

1. Open the Settings app of your Android phone.
2. Tap on the Connection & sharing
3. Select the VPN
4. Next to VPN, you want to change the setting, tap on the Settings
5. Turn Always-on VPN to on.
   • If you have set up a VPN using an Android application, you may not find the always-on option.

Clear VPN notification

If VPN's always-on feature stops working, you will get a notification that will last until you reconnect. To clear that VPN notification, turn off the always-on feature of that specific VPN.

1. Open the Settings app of your Android phone.
2. Tap on the Connection & sharing
3. Select the VPN
4. Next to VPN, you want to change the setting, tap on the Settings
5. Turn Always-on VPN to off.

Use Standalone VPN App

Besides built-in VPN settings, you can also use a standalone VPN app to set up a VPN on your Android and iPhone. Several popular and widely used VPN services and have dedicated Android apps that are even easier to use.

Some of the favorite VPNs are ExpressVPN, StrongVPN, TunnelBear are the top choice for different types of users. ExpressVPN is easy to use, but it also allows sharing an account with different devices, including Android, iPhone, Windows, Mac, Linux, or even with your home router. StrongVPN is preferred among more advanced users, and if you are looking for a free trial, TunnelBear gives a free trial to you with 500MB of data. You can see the list of the best free VPN for Android.

Setting up VPN on iPhone

Setting up a VPN using the built-in feature of the iPhone is mostly the same as we do on Android devices. Open the Settings app of your iPhone and visit up to the location General > VPN > Add VPN Configuration. After that, go back to the previous screen and enter your username and password. Also, you need to enter all the essential details and save them.

Step-by-step instructions:

1. Open the Settings app of your iPhone, scroll up to General, and tap on it.
   
2. Now tap on the VPN
   
3. Tap on the Add VPN Configuration and select option PPTP protocol.
   
4. Go back to the previous screen and enter the username, password, and server name.
5. Finally, tap on the Done and enable the toggle status to start using VPN.

After connecting to the internet, you will see a small VPN logo at the top of the status bar, indicating that you are now accessing the internet of the outside world.

How to set up VPN on Windows 10

Using the PPTP protocol, you can also set up a VPN on your Windows (10) PC. For this, you have to navigate up to the "Add a VPN connection" settings on your PC. Visit the Network Settings and then click on the VPN option. From various VPN settings, click on the Add a VPN connection option. It will pop up a new screen from where you need to fill in all the required information, including connection name, server name, etc. Here is the step-by-step guide:

1. Click on the network icon at the left below the windows screen and then Network & Internet Settings.
   
2. From the list of various network options, click on the VPN.
   
3. Now, click on the Add a VPN connection
   
4. On the new popup windows screen, enter all the required information.
   • From VPN Provider, choose Windows (built-in).
   • Enter the connection and server name.
   • From VPN Type options, choose PPTP.
   • Checkmark the "Remember my sign-in info" option.
   • After that, click the Save button, choose VPN, and click the "Connect" button.
     

Other things to consider while using VPN

If you have chosen a free VPN service, there may be some restrictions in your browsing. You might get limited features from a free VPN service. It may be a limitation in data usage (per month limit) or maybe slow down your speed. Free VPNs offers limited server to connect.

Enabling the always-on feature in VPN reduces the phone's battery life. Because it runs in the background and consumes phone's battery, you should consider turning your VPN off when you are not accessing the internet.