Using a brilliant VPN, you can spoof your location and access region-locked websites while you’re at college. But what happens if it stops working all of a sudden? Our handy guide explains what to do if your VPN isn’t working with college wifi.
If you want to browse the web freely while connected to a college wifi network, a top-rated VPN can save the day. However, if the VPN you’re using at the moment is struggling, there’s a chance it isn’t hiding your location from the websites you’re trying to visit. Keep scrolling for our expert advice.
In this article:
Disclaimer: The GadgetMouse team does not support using a VPN to access dangerous, distracting or prohibited material at college. That could include social media websites or games blocked by the IT department. Instead, we suggest you use a VPN for sensible reasons that support your education – to legally access academic materials, for example. Think before you proceed.
At a glance: best VPNs to use at college
Some of the VPNs we’ve had our hands on are rubbish – they won’t work at college, which means websites will lock you out. On the other hand, the VPNs on this page do a fantastic job of unlocking sites in seconds, even if you’re traveling around.
If you’re in a rush and don’t have time to read our full article, sign up for one of these VPNs – all of them are designed to work over a college wifi connection and they’re budget-priced, too.
Note: all of the college VPNs below offer a 30-day, money-back guarantee.
| VPN name | Starting price (per month) | Why do we like it? |
|---|---|---|
 ExpressVPN | £5.75 | Offers over 150 servers and around-the-clock live chat support |
 Ivacy | 80p | A cheap but secure VPN with public wi-fi security |
 NordVPN | £3.49 | Servers in more than 50 countries and a built-in malware blocker |
 Atlas VPN | £1.34 | Effective tracking blocker with a strict no-logs policy |
 PureVPN | $2.08 | A trusted VPN that hides your real location at all times |
Why is my VPN not working at college?
If the website you’re trying to access discovers you’re browsing from an unauthorised territory, your connection at college could be blocked. However, a trusted VPN can still help you stream content from anywhere in the world, even if you’re traveling around.
Your VPN isn’t working on college wifi and that’s probably because it’s not hiding your real location. The VPN servers you have available to you through your current VPN might be blacklisted by the website you’re trying to unlock. By swapping to a better one, you’ll be able to browse the web without being interrupted.
Try these fixes:
Delete your browser cookies – Cookies that are saved locally on your PC or mobile phone will help websites and mobile apps to understand where you’re viewing content from. We suggest you clear your cookies so that the website you’re trying to access from college will no longer recognise your previous IP address.
Try connecting to a different VPN server – The server you’re trying to connect to at college might be acting slower than usual, or not at all. We suggest you try and connect to a different server to see if that solves your problem.
Contact a support team through your VPN – You might be able to reach out to the support team directly and ask why it isn’t working over college wifi. However, remember that not every VPN has a support team available around the clock.
Uninstall and reinstall your VPN software – Sometimes, a full reset of your VPN can solve issues and give you access to websites designed for countries all over the world.
Worked your way through the bullet points above and still seeing errors? We suggest you sign up with a different VPN, so keep scrolling for a list of great options.
If you’re still having problems using a VPN at college, switch to a better VPN. All of the VPNs below are highly-rated, so pick one and try it out today.
How do websites detect my VPN at college?
If your VPN isn’t hiding your real location at college, the website will interfere with the server you’re using, making your VPN useless. Bad VPNs take a long time to replace blacklisted servers.
The best VPNs you can download for college wifi do a really good job of replacing a blacklisted server. That means that, even if a website has disabled a server, a replacement will be up sooner rather than later.
Free VPNs for college
If your current VPN isn’t working at college, you might be thinking about a free VPN to save money. However, we recommend that you stay away from free VPNs for the following reasons:
⚠️ Some free VPNs aren’t safe. Because you don’t pay a standard, monthly fee, free VPNs might sell your personal data just to make a profit.
⚠️ Free VPNs can be slow. They might take ages to connect to a server and your connection could drop without warning.
⚠️You might not get many servers. The best VPNs have servers placed all over the world, which means you can instantly unlock loads of different sites. However, free VPNs only cover a small number of countries.
The best VPNs for college in 2023
ExpressVPN
- 1-month subscription: £11.16 per month
- 6-month subscription: £8.61 per month
- 1-year subscription + 3 months free: £5.75 per month (49% off)
| 🌎 Number of servers worldwide | 160 in 94 countries |
| 📈 Bandwidth allowance | Unlimited |
| 🗣️ 24/7 live chat service | Yes |
| 📱 Number of devices supported at once | 5 |
If you want to unlock websites while you’re at college, create a membership with ExpressVPN. It’s easy to use, delightfully fast and works well if you’re looking to access content that’s usually reserved for specific countries.
This VPN keeps your real IP address hidden at all times, so websites won’t know you’re accessing content from outside of a supported country. Every ExpressVPN member has access to servers in over 90 countries around the world. ExpressVPN works on a range of different devices including Mac, PC, Android or iOS smartphone.
Our verdict: This is one of our favourite VPNs to try over college wifi. The app is really snappy and backed by clearly-labelled menus and toggles.
Try ExpressVPN with our unique discount code (30-day money-back guarantee)
NordVPN
- 1-month subscription: £10.99 per month
- 1-year subscription: £4.19 per month (40% off)
- 2-year subscription: £3.49 per month (50% off)
| 🌎 Number of servers worldwide | 5,200+ in 59 countries |
| 📈 Bandwidth allowance | Unlimited |
| 🗣️ 24/7 live chat service | Yes |
| 📱 Number of devices supported at once | 6 |
Here’s another VPN that lets you use region-locked websites at college. NordVPN has servers all over the world and all of them are protected by military-grade encryption. With Nord’s enhanced encryption technology, you can even stay safe on public wi-fi networks without speeds being affected.
NordVPN’s servers are brilliantly secure and you can connect without handing over personal data. This VPN doesn’t watch how you’re using the service, so privacy is guaranteed. You can also try the CyberSec feature, which blocks suspicious-looking websites and lowers the risk of your device being infected with data-grabbing malware.
Our verdict: NordVPN is really easy to set up and use at college. Even if it’s your first time using a VPN, you’ll likely be up and running in just a couple of minutes.
Try NordVPN with our unique discount code (30-day money-back guarantee)
Ivacy
- 1-month subscription: £8.22 per month
- 1-year subscription: £2.91 per month (65% off)
- 5-year subscription: 80p per month (90% off)
| 🌎 Number of servers worldwide | 5,700 in 100+ locations |
| 📈 Bandwidth allowance | Unlimited |
| 🗣️ 24/7 live chat service | Yes |
| 📱 Number of devices supported at once | 10 |
Ivacy is a great pick for college students, and it’s well-suited if you don’t want to spend lots of money. This service supports 256-bit encryption, which helps keep cybercriminals away. You also get public wi-fi security that protects your gadgets against malware if you’re connecting to a hotspot in a public area.
You can use Ivacy to access geo-restricted websites and apps at college without anybody knowing about it. Ivacy enforces a very strict no-logs policy, which prevents your valuable personal data from being sold to sinister third parties.
Our verdict: This is a popular college-friendly VPN that we recommend regularly. Wherever you are, you’ll have no trouble unlocking region-locked websites without giving away your true location.
Try Ivacy with our unique discount code (30-day money-back guarantee)
Atlas VPN
- 1-month subscription: £8.09 per month
- 1-year subscription: £2.42 per month (70% off with code BIGDEAL)
- 2-year subscription + 3 months extra: £1.34 per month (83% off with code BIGDEAL)
| 🌎 Number of servers worldwide | |
| 📈 Bandwidth allowance | |
| 🗣️ 24/7 live chat service | |
| 📱 Number of devices supported at once |
Atlas VPN can be your shield against online threats and also unlocks region-locked content at college. It comes with a tracker blocker that battles against ads, suspicious websites and phishing links.
Other features include a data breach monitor that alerts you if personal details have been exposed online. Atlas VPN has a no-logs policy, plus a network kill switch that halts the service if your connection becomes unstable. You get over 700 unique servers all over the world. Connect to one based in a supported country and then you can start watching content on your PC or smartphone from college.
Our verdict: If you’re at college, Atlas VPN will easily unlock websites for you. Have a look at the pricing options and pick the best deal for your needs.
Try Atlas VPN today with our exclusive code (30-day money-back guarantee)
PureVPN
- 1-month subscription: $10.95 per month
- 1-year subscription: $3.24 per month (70% off)
- 2-year subscription + 3 months FREE: $2.08 per month (81% off)
| 🌎 Number of servers worldwide | 6,500+ in over 78 countries |
| 📈 Bandwidth allowance | Does not limit bandwidth per user |
| 🗣️ 24/7 live chat service | Yes |
| 📱 Number of devices supported at once | 10 |
PureVPN is one of our favourite services to recommend for VPN newbies at college. It’s simple to use and doesn’t limit bandwidth. Members have access to optimised servers that are specifically designed to provide a buffer-free experience.
As soon as you connect to PureVPN, your data is encrypted and then passes securely through a series of tunnels that lead to the company’s servers. That means you’re completely anonymous. You have a 24-hour support team at your disposal, so you can reach out at any time if you have a question or need help.
Our verdict: this tried and trusted student-friendly VPN offers up thousands of servers from around the world.
Try PureVPN with our unique discount code (31-day money-back guarantee)
Use VPN with college wifi on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android
Before you start using a VPN while you’re at college, you need to pick a geo-restricted website or service that you’re aiming to unlock.
As an example, let’s say you’re based in the UK and you want to use HBO Max – that service is usually only available to viewers based in the US. So, to unlock HBO Max while you’re at college in the UK, you would need to run through these steps:
- Pick one of our suggested VPNs – we’ll use ExpressVPN for this example.
- Once you’ve created your ExpressVPN account, sign in.
- From Windows or Mac, open ExpressVPN and select a server in a supported country. In this example, you could choose a server based in the US.
- Once you’re connected, head to the HBO Max website.
- Log in to your HBO Max account and enjoy.