You Should Never Buy A 'Lifetime' VPN Subscription - Here's Why

A lifetime subscription always sounds like a steal: you pay a fixed sum and enjoy the service for a lifetime. That may be true in some cases, but if history tells us anything, lifetime VPN subscriptions are rarely a good deal. They don't necessarily last a lifetime, and even when they last more than a few years, the quality of the service often goes downhill, leaving you unsupported.

A quick Google search will reveal a bunch of VPNs offering lifetime subscriptions, but these deals mostly appear on bundle and coupon marketplaces and not on the VPN's own website. Plans on the VPN's official website are generally limited to monthly and annual packages, and even longer plans typically last for two years. And there's a reason for that.

Developing and maintaining a premium VPN service costs a lot of money. Setting up servers, integrating security protocols and encryption standards, ensuring proper routing and tunneling, takes up a large part of their financial resources. Some new VPN services, in a bid to attract customers and raise money, offer lifetime subscriptions at dirt cheap prices, only to shut down shop later because the model is financially infeasible. Running a secure VPN requires a constant stream of funds, which comes in through monthly and annual subscriptions — which may be enough for the provider to offer free VPN plans. Lifetime subscribers who make fixed, one-time payments often become a burden that must be dealt with, and the solution is almost never in customers' favor.

When you buy a lifetime VPN subscription, it doesn't mean your lifetime. In most cases, it's the product's or company's lifetime, or even a fixed period. Some VPN subscribers claim their lifetime plans were capped at five years, and while the provider doesn't exactly hide this information, they simply bury it in the fine print. By the time you realize this, it's too late, and the refund window is already closed.

Other than that, there's the possibility that the VPN service will be discontinued. In 2025, BulletVPN shut down operations, leaving lifetime subscribers in a lurch. Also, if the VPN service is taken over by a new set of owners, they may not always uphold the commitment made by the earlier ones. This happened with VPNSecure in 2025, where two years after an acquisition, the new owners started deactivating accounts that had been inactive for six months, and later canceled all lifetime subscriptions. Although they did provide discounted renewal offers, the episode highlighted how buying a lifetime subscription doesn't always guarantee a lifetime of service, or even a few years. The provider may cancel it any day without prior notice or a refund.

Even when the VPN service lasts beyond a few years, it might not remain as safe as you think. Lifetime subscribers may not get the latest updates or features, putting security at risk. In an age where cyberthreats are evolving by the day, VPNs need to constantly update their privacy and security protocols, which as expected, costs money. And since lifetime subscribers are not the most valuable asset, they often lose out on these. On top of that, many lifetime VPN providers may not undergo regular audits, leaving users with little clarity.

Sometimes, the number of available servers is cut down for lifetime subscribers in an attempt to push them into monthly or annual subscriptions. Or worse, their data is sold to third parties for advertising purposes. When the prices are surprisingly low, companies sometimes resort to such practices in order to raise funds to keep operations running smoothly. Of course, these are usually the not-so-popular options in the market.

If you have been planning to buy a lifetime VPN subscription, it's worth reconsidering. A VPN is a service and not a product. And when a service offers lifetime functioning for a paltry sum, there's typically a catch. Either they are not being honest upfront, or even if they are, the security is likely at stake. So, it's better to go with monthly or annual VPN plans for the best service, security, and reliability.