Do I need a VPN in China, and which ones still work?
Needed for hotel Wi-Fi, a local SIM or a long stay. Install two at home; none is guaranteed and 2026 has been rough.
What it depends on
- IfPhone only, on a travel eSIM→ thenOften no VPN needed on cellular data. Install one anyway as a backup for hotel Wi-Fi.
- IfHotel Wi-Fi, a laptop or work tools→ thenTwo VPNs from different providers, installed, signed in and tested at home on every device.
- IfMainland SIM or a stay of several months→ thenEverything blocked is blocked without a VPN. Set up a paid one before arrival and save its manual setup files.
- IfYou already pay for NordVPN or LetsVPN→ thenNordVPN's own China pages say its apps are blocked; LetsVPN says mainland service isn't guaranteed, though some travellers report it working again since late September 2026. Bring a second VPN either way.
On a short trip, a travel eSIM often covers the phone without a VPN: many route data outside mainland filtering (see our travel eSIM guide). You need a VPN on hotel, café and airport Wi-Fi, on a mainland SIM, for a laptop, and on long stays. A VPN runs on top of a working connection. It does not replace a data plan. If a VPN fails on a laptop, sharing your phone's travel eSIM as a hotspot is the fallback travellers mention most.
The rules do not mention tourists. The State Council's international networking regulation (1996, revised March 2024) says in Article 6 that no organisation or individual may set up or use other channels for international networking; Article 14 lets police order the connection stopped, give a warning and fine up to ¥15,000. MIIT's January 2017 notice bars setting up or renting dedicated lines, VPNs included, for cross-border business without approval; days later MIIT said companies' own office use through licensed carriers is unaffected. Apple removed VPN apps without a government licence from its China App Store in July 2017. We found no official statement on how any of this applies to visitors, so we make no claim about enforcement either way.
2026 has been a bad year for VPNs in China. In April, LetsVPN, long popular with expats, said continuous blocking forced it to end mainland service; it resumed global operations on 8 May but says it cannot guarantee mainland availability. Even so, several travellers on Reddit (r/chinalife, r/chinatravel, 20 September to 3 October 2026) said LetsVPN was working for them again, while one said it wasn't; treat that as a report, not a promise. ABC News (4 June 2026) reported a new round of VPN blocking from April. NordVPN's own help centre says its iOS, Android and macOS apps are “fully blocked in China” and gives manual IKEv2 setups instead; its Windows page says you can't connect (pages last edited November 2025 to April 2026). NordVPN moved its Obfuscated servers to a new protocol, NordWhisper, in mid-2026, but we found no NordVPN page saying the China block is fixed. Many “best VPN for China” lists still put NordVPN first. Most of those sites earn commission on sales, so we give more weight to each provider's own help pages and to firsthand trip reports.
Astrill says its StealthVPN protocol is built for restrictive networks. Unusual Nomad's team found Astrill the most consistent VPN on their China trips in spring and summer 2026, but on 1 October 2026 reported that Astrill is acknowledging connection problems in China and recommends StealthVPN in UDP mode. It is expensive: US$30 for one month, or US$12.50 a month on a two-year plan (Astrill's price page, read 5 October 2026), and reviewers say it has no standard money-back guarantee. On Reddit, several users, including a two-year Astrill subscriber, reported Astrill dropping or crawling around 19-23 September and again from 30 September to 3 October 2026. Long-term residents there say most VPNs get worse around major holidays and political events, such as National Day on 1 October.
Surfshark's China support page (edited 2 October 2026) tells users to set up a manual WireGuard connection if the app can't connect. That needs a configuration file from Surfshark's website, so download it before you fly. Testers report it working some of the time and needing more reconnecting than Astrill. Proton VPN says no VPN can guarantee 100% reliability in China and recommends its Stealth protocol plus alternative routing; Stealth is on every plan, including Free. A Gizmodo review last modified in July 2026 says Proton works “sometimes”, so treat it as a spare.
ExpressVPN has no China page we could find on its site; its general troubleshooting page says to contact support if you are in a heavily censored country. 2026 reports disagree: Unusual Nomad and Trip.com (May 2026) call it inconsistent, while affiliate test lists say it works. Keep it if you already pay for it, and bring a second VPN. Mullvad says the Great Firewall blocks all its servers in Asia and suggests US servers with obfuscation.
Prices change; the figures above are introductory or monthly list prices from each provider's site in early October 2026. Reports go stale within weeks. Each claim here carries its date; check the provider's China page in the week before you fly.
Useful apps
Sources
- State Council — 计算机信息网络国际联网管理暂行规定 (2024 revision)Official
MOFCOM law database; Article 6 (no other channels for international networking), Article 14 (warning, fine up to ¥15,000); read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - MIIT — 关于清理规范互联网网络接入服务市场的通知 (工信部信管函〔2017〕32号)Official
original text; dedicated lines including VPN for cross-border business need approval; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - China News Service — MIIT: VPN clean-up does not affect foreign-trade and multinational firmsPress
reports MIIT's clarification: office use via licensed carriers unaffected
Open source ↗ - CNBC — Apple removes VPN apps in China App StorePress
Apple spokesperson quote: required to remove VPN apps that do not meet the new regulations
Open source ↗ - LetsVPN — A message to LetsVPN users (终止大陆业务)Official
vendor notice: ending mainland China operations after continuous blocking
Open source ↗ - LetsVPN — Resuming standard operationsOfficial
vendor notice: global operations resume; mainland China service status not guaranteed
Open source ↗ - ABC News — As Beijing cracks down on VPNs, internet users in China adaptPress
new round of VPN blocking from April 2026; disruption around sensitive dates
Open source ↗ - NordVPN Help — I can't connect from China on iOSOfficial
vendor page, edited 2026-03-27 per help-centre API; “fully blocked in China”, manual IKEv2 instead; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - NordVPN Help — I can't connect from China on AndroidOfficial
vendor page, edited 2026-04-21; app “fully blocked in China”; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - NordVPN Help — I can't connect from China on WindowsOfficial
vendor page, edited 2025-11-10; “You can't connect to NordVPN while using Windows in China”; macOS page same date says app fully blocked; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - NordVPN Help — Obfuscated Servers are getting an upgradeOfficial
vendor page, edited 2026-07-02; Obfuscated servers move to NordWhisper; no China-specific claim
Open source ↗ - Astrill — StealthVPNOfficial
vendor claim: obfuscation for networks that block VPN protocols; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - Astrill — PricingOfficial
US$30 for 1 month, US$15/mo yearly, US$12.50/mo two-year; read 2026-10-05
Open source ↗ - Surfshark Support — Connecting from ChinaOfficial
vendor page, edited 2026-10-02; manual WireGuard if the app can't connect; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - Proton VPN Support — Using Proton VPN in ChinaOfficial
vendor page; no VPN can guarantee 100% reliability; set up before travelling; Stealth + alternative routing; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - Proton VPN — Stealth protocol announcementOfficial
Stealth available on all plans including Free
Open source ↗ - Mullvad Help — Connecting from restrictive locationsOfficial
vendor page; Great Firewall blocks all Mullvad servers in Asia, try US servers with obfuscation; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - ExpressVPN Support — Can't connect to ExpressVPNOfficial
general troubleshooting; contact support in high-censorship countries; no China-specific page found; read 2026-10-04
Open source ↗ - Unusual Nomad — Best VPN for China (last checked 1 October 2026)First-hand
team trips spring/summer 2026; Astrill most consistent but currently acknowledging problems; ExpressVPN inconsistent; page carries disclosed affiliate links
Open source ↗ - Gizmodo — Does Proton VPN work in ChinaPress
dateModified in page metadata; title auto-shows the current month; “Sometimes”; affiliate review site
Open source ↗ - Gizmodo — Best VPNs for ChinaPress
affiliate review list; Surfshark 6 of 10 attempts; says Astrill lacks a money-back guarantee; ranks NordVPN first despite NordVPN's own China pages
Open source ↗ - Trip.com — Best VPN in ChinaPress
OTA editorial; ExpressVPN “highly inconsistent”; still recommends LetsVPN, which is outdated after LetsVPN's April notice
Open source ↗ - Reddit r/chinalife — VPN and eSIM Megathread, October 2026Community
user reports, read by PM in a logged-in browser 2026-10-05: Astrill disconnecting since ~30 Sep; LetsVPN working again (2 users); custom VPS setups
Open source ↗ - Reddit r/chinalife — vpn troubles?Community
user reports: Surfshark and Astrill degraded 19-23 Sep; 2-year Astrill user calls it the worst so far; holiday/event slowdowns
Open source ↗ - Reddit r/chinatravel — VPNs in China: what worked for me (2 weeks)Community
firsthand trip report (Beijing, Shenzhen, Jinan); comments 2-3 Oct say Astrill broken, eSIM hotspot best
Open source ↗ - Reddit r/chinatravel — Nord VPN trouble shooting against the great fire wallCommunity
multiple users: NordVPN unreliable in China even with obfuscation; one Surfshark-via-South-Korea success, one Surfshark hotel Wi-Fi failure
Open source ↗