McAfee Safe Connect VPN Review 2025: Is It Safe to Use?

McAfee is a name we trust, so imagine our surprise when we tested the Safe Connect VPN and didn’t get the results we expected.

McAfee Safe Connect VPN is essentially just an add-on to McAfee's powerful antivirus. This VPN only has servers in 47 countries, no features beyond a kill switch and split tunneling, and it can significantly impact your speeds. 

McAfee Safe Connect VPN can unblock Netflix libraries and prevent data leaks. It has basic VPN functionality, which might be enough as an added perk of McAfee antivirus. 

We'll break down the pros and cons in this McAfee Safe Connect VPN review and recommend the best VPNs you can pair with your antivirus.

Pros
  • Bundled into McAfee security suite
  • Works on major operating systems
  • Passed all leak tests
Cons
  • Next to no features beyond a kill switch and split tunneling
  • Standalone app is impossible to use
  • Tendency to crash

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  • #1 rated VPN with 8,000+ servers ultra-secure, high-speed servers in 120+ countries
  • Reliably unblock popular streaming services like Netflix with a single click
  • All-in-one security product with antivirus, ad blocker, password manager, and more

In this article
At a glance
Our experience
Who is it best for?
Prices and subscriptions
Features
Test results
Compatibility
Customer support
Alternatives
FAQs
Bottom line

At a glance

Price $2.49-7.49/mo (first year only)
Free version Yes
Max # of connected devices 5
# of servers Unlisted in 47 countries
VPN protocol WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2, IPSec
Encryption AES-256
No-logs policy No logs
Headquarters United States
Netflix access Limited
Learn more Get McAfee Safe Connect VPN

How we test and rate VPNs

We complete standardized hands-on tests for each VPN we review so we can put their claims to the test. This includes vigorous third-party testing by comparing our internet speed while connected to different servers, checking for DNS leaks, making sure the kill switch actually works, and more. We also make sure we can comfortably access popular streaming sites, like Netflix, and still do our day-to-day work without interruption.

Once we’ve completed the testing, our editorial rating is calculated by taking into account key features you’d expect from a good product. We score each VPN in the following categories and use a weighted average to calculate the final rating out of 5 stars: price, server count, speed, security, and features.

To learn more about how we test, check out our full VPN methodology here.

We last tested McAfee Safe Connect VPN on August 12, 2025.

3.7
Editorial Rating
Learn More
On McAfee Safe Connect VPN's website
VPN
McAfee Safe Connect VPN
  • Easy to use
  • Bundled into McAfee security suite
  • Next to no features beyond a kill switch and split tunneling

Our experience

McAfee Safe Connect gave us a lot of trouble during our most recent testing. Initially, we were going to test McAfee Safe Connect from the antivirus dashboard. Yet no matter how many times we tried to load the virtual private network (VPN), we kept receiving an error and could never use it. 

McAfee Total Protection app open on Secure VPN tab (loading endlessly)

Then, we tried to download the standalone McAfee Safe Connect app on our laptop. We were unprepared for how lackluster this app is. 

First, we connected to the fastest location server. This server slowed our speed by about 80%, and continued to tank our speed with each server we tried. 

When we attempted to switch servers, McAfee Safe Connect wouldn't switch because we were "already connected to another VPN." 

McAfee Safe Connect VPN pop-up window detecting another VPN

But when we'd click the stop protection button, McAfee Safe Connect wouldn't disconnect. So the only way for us to switch servers was by restarting our laptop, which is way more effort than anyone should put into their VPN.

If you’re getting the McAfee security suite (McAfee Total Protection) anyway, you might as well benefit from the VPN when you can. You’ll receive some encryption, so it could be fine for low-risk situations like checking directions on public Wi-Fi or reading a news site in a cafe. 

We just recommend sticking to the McAfee Safe Connect tab on the Total Protection app rather than downloading the frustrating standalone app. 

Who is McAfee Safe Connect VPN best for?

  • Recommended for someone who wants a light VPN bundled into their security software.

McAfee Safe Connect isn’t the most robust or reliable VPN available. However, it was able to encrypt our web traffic.

This is definitely not a great option if you’re looking for real security. If you’re on public Wi-Fi and want something light to encrypt your traffic, you may be ok using this VPN.

McAfee Safe Connect VPN prices and subscriptions

McAfee VPN's payment options are pretty straightforward: you'll pay anywhere from $2.49-7.49/mo (first year only). It only offers annual plans, there's no way to pay per month. 

You can purchase the VPN alone, with McAfee security, or in the full bundle (McAfee Total Protection), including McAfee security and identity theft protection. You won’t get any extra VPN features by including security or identity protection, but you will expand the features available to you in the McAfee dashboard.

Because the VPN is meant as an addition to McAfee security, there aren’t any additional features as you move up in price. Your best value would be the Privacy + Security plan because it’s the same price as the Privacy plan and adds antivirus.

We don’t suggest purchasing the VPN as a standalone product, as there are other VPN services with more features and better security.

Features Privacy Privacy + Security Privacy + Security + Identity
Price $2.49/mo (billed annually) $3.25/mo (billed annually) $7.49/mo (billed annually)
VPN
Antivirus
Identity theft insurance
Data cleanup tools
Learn more View plan View plan View plan

You can try McAfee Safe Connect for free, but will be limited to 250 MB per month and only one server. If you want to try out the premium version, there's a 30-day money-back guarantee.

McAfee Safe Connect VPN features

As far as VPNs go, McAfee Safe Connect’s features offering is fairly conservative. If you’re looking for a VPN with a lot of robust and interesting add-ons, this is likely not it. 

However, if you’re looking for a security bundle that includes a way to encrypt your traffic, this could be what you’re looking for in a VPN.

Server count and countries

  • Unlisted in 47 countries

McAfee won’t give you an exact total on how many servers it offers, but it tells you that you can choose from 47 countries. When you connect to the VPN, the fastest VPN server is recommended. You can, however, use the drop-down menu to choose another location if you want to be specific.

You can't select servers at a city level with McAfee. There aren’t a ton of options, including no way to filter or search the server locations that are available.

What you can do, however, is use it to appear like you’re in a general location. This will suffice for geo-specific content, like checking the price of a new VPN in the country where you’re headed next.

McAfee Safe Connect virtual location list

No-logs policy and headquarters

  • McAfee Safe Connect VPN logs policy: No logs
  • McAfee Safe Connect VPN headquarters: United States

McAfee Safe Connect seems almost like an afterthought for the security giant. There’s a single line in the privacy policy stating, “Note that if you use our VPN services, our VPN servers do not look at or log any information that you send or receive on the internet.” 

That’s great and all, but there isn’t much more information than that. Even that line is a little unclear. If there are truly “no logs,” then just outright state, “We log nothing.”

Also, the Safe Connect website claims its VPN has been independently audited, but the provided link takes you to a TunnelBear webpage. Apparently, the McAfee VPN uses TunnelBear’s technology. 

So do the logs follow McAfee’s privacy policy or TunnelBear’s policy? It’s unclear, and we couldn’t get more answers from customer support either.

McAfee's headquarters are located in the U.S., which also gives us pause. The U.S. is part of the Five Eyes alliance, which is a grouping of countries that have entered into intelligence sharing agreements. That means McAfee VPN could be legally required to hand over your internet activity if requested. 

This, combined with the unclear logs policy, is concerning. 

Kill switch

Safe Connect is a fairly bare-bones product, but it does include a kill switch. McAfee markets this feature as “Safe Reconnect” rather than kill switch. 

It does the same thing: interrupting your internet connection in the event the VPN disconnects. This security feature is meant to keep your IP address safe if your VPN connection fails.

McAfee Safe Connect VPN settings

Split tunneling

Safe Connect VPN now offers split tunneling, but it's only available with a couple of streaming services. Other VPNs allow you to list specific websites and apps you wish to be excluded from the VPN connection, but we're glad Safe Connect added this feature.

McAfee Safe Connect VPN split tunneling pop-up explanation

If you want to use a VPN for most of your online activities while using some sites or apps that block VPNs, you’ll want to get a VPN that offers split tunneling. It’s helpful to keep most of your activity private while still allowing you access to sites you want.

VPN protocols

While we found a support page that stated you can choose from a variety of VPN protocols, we were unable to find that option on the Windows app. The protocols listed are WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2, and IPsec. 

After asking customer support, it was determined that you can only choose which protocol you want to use when using the Android or iOS app. The Windows version connects to WireGuard by default and you can't change it manually.

McAfee Safe Connect agent confirms you can't choose protocol on Windows

McAfee Safe Connect VPN test results

Considering we already had issues with connection, we weren’t optimistic about completing our tests with this VPN. Here's what happened for each feature we tested.

Speed tests

  • Speed test results: McAfee Safe Connect dropped our download speeds by an average of 80%. 

When we test VPNs, we compare how the different servers available with the software differ in terms of impact on your internet speeds. Even the best VPNs will likely slow down your speeds a little.

We tested McAfee Safe Connect on a laptop running Windows 11 from a physical location in the U.S.  

No VPN US to US US to CA US to EU US to AU
Download speed 417.37 Mbps 81.89 Mbps 77.92 Mbps 102.21 Mbps 73.01 Mbps
Upload speed 239.29 Mbps 74.93 Mbps 81.99 Mbps 86.12 Mbps 86.85 Mbps
Latency (ping) 16 ms 39 ms 44 ms 122 ms 197 ms
Download speed % difference N/A -80.38% -81.33% -75.51% -82.51%
Upload speed % difference N/A -68.69% -67.44% -64.01% -63.71%
Latency % difference N/A +143.75% +175.00% +662.50% +1,131.25%
Test results as of 08/08/2025.

McAfee Safe Connect isn't the speediest VPN, but we've never seen download and upload speeds as terribly slow as our most recent retest. We started by connecting to McAfee Safe Connect's fastest location, which was an unspecified U.S. server.

Speed test results for McAfee Safe Connect VPN while connected to a server in Chicago (81.89 download, 74.93 upload, and 39 ping)

This fastest location dropped our download speed by 80% and upload speed by over 68%. We tried running the speed test again, and our speeds only got slower.

Surprisingly, McAfee's U.K. server achieved the "best speeds," but our download speed still dropped by about 75%. We'd recommend against using McAfee Safe Connect's standalone app if you're seeking speed. 

Speed test results for McAfee Safe Connect VPN (102.21 download, 86.21 upload, and 197 ping)

Netflix tests

  • Netflix test results: McAfee Safe Connect unblocked all the Netflix U.S., U.K., and Australia only. 

One benefit of using VPNs is unblocking geo-restricted content on streaming services. Netflix is the most persistent about stopping the usage of VPNs, so we test every VPN we review with the service. 

US to US US to CA US to EU US to AU
Did it work with Netflix?
Test results as of 08/12/2025.

McAfee Safe Connect sometimes unblocks all the Netflix libraries we test, and sometimes it struggles. 

This time, McAfee Safe Connect was immediately detected after we connected to the Canada server. There's only one server location for Canada, so there was no way to troubleshoot the issue. 

Other than Netflix Canada, McAfee Safe Connect had no issues with streaming the other Netflix libraries we tried. Just note that it's not the most reliable VPN for streaming

Netflix list of top shows in Australia today with McAfee VPN in the foreground

DNS leak test

  • DNS leak test results: McAfee Safe Connect passed its DNS leak test.

Domain Name System (DNS) is the internet’s address book. It allows us to type in website addresses, and the computer uses DNS to translate that into internet language and guide us to the right website. 

Computers read each other’s IP addresses during this exchange, and Safe Connect kept ours hidden. That’s a bonus!

McAfee Safe Connect VPN's DNS leak test results (pass)

WebRTC leak test

  • WebRTC leak test results: McAfee Safe Connect passed its WebRTC leak test.

If DNS is the address book, then WebRTC is the internet’s phone book. It’s the technology we use to make video and voice connections online. Whether you’re using Zoom or recording your voice sans video, you’re using this technology. 

McAfee Safe Connect also prevented WebRTC leaks in its most recent tests. 

McAfee Safe Connect VPN's WebRTC leak test results (pass)

Kill switch test

  • Kill switch test results: McAfee Safe Connect passed its kill switch test. 

This is usually the part where we use IPleak.net to see if our real IP address shows up when switching servers with the kill switch on. Turning on this functionality has frozen the app in the past, so we didn't have high hopes.

This time though, McAfee Safe Connect VPN kept our real IP address a secret. We switched from a server in France to a server in Denmark and there were no leaks. 

McAfee Safe Connect VPN's kill switch test results (pass)

McAfee Safe Connect VPN compatibility

McAfee claims compatibility with both Microsoft and Apple products. You should be able to use the VPN on your computer or phone if it’s running one of these operating systems.

According to their customer support, McAfee Safe Connect is compatible with:

  • Windows
  • Android
  • iOS
  • macOS
  • Chrome OS

McAfee Safe Connect VPN customer support

McAfee does boast 24/7 customer support, which is available through chat or phone. Thankfully it was relatively easy to get connected with an agent, and is accessible through their support page.

Live chat and phone

We connected to a live chat agent almost immediately at 1 PM Eastern Time on a Tuesday. Though the agent was nice and tried to help, our question seemed a bit more technical than what they're used to so it took a bit to clarify what we wanted and to get an answer.

McAfee Smart Connect Customer Service

If your question is related to more standard things, like issues connecting or billing questions, then this chat option is likely good enough.

Online guides

Though McAfee has plenty of guides, they actually relate to everything McAfee and not just the VPN. This made it more difficult to find relevant answers and their search function wasn't the best we've seen.

Top alternatives

If you’re searching for a VPN provider with a lot of features and tight security, you may notice that Safe Connect doesn’t fit the bill. The options below are some of the best VPN services available, which include all the security features a VPN should offer:

Award Best overall VPN Best value VPN Best privacy VPN
Star rating
5.0
4.9
4.9
Price $3.39–$17.99/mo $1.99–$20.65/mo $3.59–$9.99/mo
Max # of connected devices 10 Unlimited 10
# of servers 8,000+ servers in 120+ countries 3,200+ servers in 100 countries 13,800+ servers in 120+ countries
Netflix access
Learn more Get NordVPN Get Surfshark Get Proton VPN

McAfee Safe Connect VPN FAQs

Is McAfee VPN good?

McAfee’s VPN is okay. It offers some basic protection and a few features like a kill switch and different VPN protocols. 

Is McAfee VPN good for streaming?

Yes, McAfee VPN unblocked Netflix libraries from the U.S., the U.K., and Australia. 

Is McAfee VPN free?

McAfee VPN does have a free option, but you're limited to only one server and 250 MB a month. You can also get it bundled with your antivirus for the same price as buying either one on its own.

Bottom line: Is McAfee Safe Connect VPN good?

Overall, McAfee Safe Connect is a basic VPN provider that can get the job done so long as you stick with the Total Protection app. In the past, McAfee Safe Connect has only slightly dropped our speeds, unblocked all the Netflix libraries we tested, and blocked any data leaks. 

We tested with the standalone McAfee Safe Connect app and had significantly worse performance. Speeds tanked across the board and Netflix detected the VPN while connected to the Canada server. 

If you’re looking for a strong and secure VPN service, we recommend NordVPNSurfshark, and ExpressVPN, which can keep your IP address and online activity hidden. You’ll also likely notice faster speeds and better webpage loading times. VPN users are usually interested in online privacy and safe internet access, especially if your connection drops.

3.7
Editorial Rating
Learn More
On McAfee Safe Connect VPN's website
VPN
McAfee Safe Connect VPN
  • Easy to use
  • Bundled into McAfee security suite
  • Next to no features beyond a kill switch and split tunneling
Author Details
Mary is a seasoned cybersecurity writer with over seven years of experience. With a B.S. in Liberal Arts from Clarion University and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Point Park University, she educates audiences on scams, antivirus software, and more. Her passion lies in educating audiences on helpful ways to protect their data.
Kalleigh Lane is a passionate digital security advocate and the Managing Editor at All About Cookies. After completing her Master of Arts in English Literature, Kalleigh has gained over 5 years of editing and writing experience in the fields of cybersecurity, tech, and finance. She has been featured in major media outlets such as The Globe and Mail and CTV News, emerging as an advocate for digital security.