VPNs aren’t completely banned in China, but they’re intended for businesses, and only government-approved providers are permitted. This doesn’t mean you have to submit to country-wide surveillance, though.
We’ll discuss China’s recent crackdown on VPNs, reveal how prevalent VPN usage is on the mainland, and explore alternatives for privacy-conscious tourists who don’t want to take any risks during their visit.
Are VPNs banned in China?
In China, it’s technically illegal to use any VPN not approved by the state. Despite this, there are no verifiable reports of international travelers being arrested solely for using a VPN. Chinese citizens face harsher penalties, with fines and jail sentences for those caught using or operating unapproved VPN services.
China has the world’s lowest online freedom rating (tied with Myanmar at 9/100), according to nonprofit Freedom House. Additionally, Reporters Without Borders names the country “the world’s largest prison for journalists”. If you’re planning a trip to mainland China and are worried about digital anonymity, here’s everything you should know:
- Most foreign VPN websites are blocked, and they’re not available on app stores either. If you already have a VPN with advanced obfuscation installed, it may still work in China.
- State-approved VPNs are legally required to help the government investigate users suspected of crimes or posing a risk to national security. In short, you can’t trust services backed by the state to protect against the state’s surveillance.
- Foreign eSIM services bypass China’s Great Firewall without requiring a VPN. You can get an eSIM without providing identification in most English-speaking countries.
- You cannot use most Western messaging platforms. Facebook, Gmail, and Discord are all blocked, so set up alternative means of contact before you leave. You could, for instance, create a new Outlook account and communicate via email.
- The rules are not the same everywhere. At the time of writing, VPN usage is still completely legal in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.
Your guide to Chinese censorship and VPN usage
VPN usage is primarily regulated by two acts: State Council Decree No. 195 (1996) and Cybersecurity Law of the People’s Republic of China (2017). These make it an offense to access the internet through anything other than a government-approved channel and compel VPN operators to provide “technical assistance” to the state upon request. Remember: a VPN willing (or able) to undermine its own encryption to benefit an authoritarian power offers no privacy benefit whatsoever.
Individuals are rarely punished for using VPNs (authorities tend to target the providers themselves), but it does happen. Consequences can include fines of up to ¥15,000 ($2,218 USD) and seizure of any money made as a result of your VPN usage. These harsh punishments discourage people from speaking freely about their online activities. As such, until now, it has been difficult to estimate how many people in China regularly use VPNs.
What percentage of Chinese citizens use VPNs?
In 2023, the Chinese government hired a company called Geedge Networks to summarize internet traffic from three of the country’s largest ISPs. These reports were leaked in 2025, and while they focus only on one part of the country (the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region), they offer fascinating insights into the lives of Chinese citizens trying to avoid surveillance.
Between January and July 2023, the most-popular foreign apps accessed via VPN (in this region) were WhatsApp, Google, and Twitter. While some ISP data was missing, the Global Public Policy Institute estimates around 4 percent of locals (at least 100,000 people) used VPNs during this period. Unfortunately, we can’t extrapolate this data to measure VPN adoption in the rest of China because its state-backed oppression of Uyghur Muslims could skew VPN usage in either direction (increased adoption due to a greater need for anonymous communication or decreased adoption due to fear of receiving harsher punishment than the typical citizen).
How does a VPN bypass China’s Great Firewall?
VPNs encrypt your internet traffic, preventing anyone from seeing which sites you visit and what you do there. This isn’t inherently suspicious since most traffic is encrypted, though VPNs can sometimes be identified by their traffic patterns. This is why VPNs that still work in China tend to prioritize obfuscation, ensuring your data doesn’t look like anything out of the ordinary.
Encrypting your data forces the Great Firewall to decide whether your activities should be permitted or not, using only metadata. This might involve looking at how much bandwidth you’ve used, your connection duration, and the timing of data packet transfers. This information alone is enough to block most commercial VPNs, but if providers can clear this hurdle, their users should have full access to the open internet.
Which websites are blocked in China?
China is constantly blocking new websites, but its censorship system is far more nuanced than a blanket ban. Authorities can force social media platforms like Weibo to remove specific posts, and ISPs may even have their own specific blocklists. Further, many internet users self-censor to avoid saying anything that might land them in trouble.
We’ve compiled a list of the most popular websites banned in China, but generally, you can expect content to be blocked if it is:
- Pro-democracy
- Pornographic
- Anti-censorship
- Gambling-focused
- Designed to enable the free flow of information between users
- Covering the Chinese Communist Party in an unfavorable light
- Social media that’s based outside of China
- An encrypted messaging service
Unsure if your favorite website is available or not? Comparitech has a tool that lets you check if a website is blocked in China before you depart.
Do any VPNs still work in China?
Yes, some VPNs still work in China, but very few. Even some that claim to work fail to work in practice. We continuously test over 70 VPNs every 2 hours, and as of June 2026, these are the most reliable VPNs for China:
Conclusion
It’s technically legal to use a VPN in China, but only if you use a provider that’s agreed to help the government undermine your privacy. While a few foreign VPNs still work, use them at your own risk. Purchasing an eSIM before traveling will allow you to access the wider internet in China without breaking anti-VPN laws. Just make sure you have a backup plan for communicating with friends in case your preferred messaging apps are inaccessible.
Related: How to get a Chinese IP address
