We never list markets. Check the first and last six characters of every address before you sign in.

The Hidden Wiki

Tor News

Tor VPN Beta for Android – Hands-On Overview

By admin 15 min read
On this page
  1. The real choice is app by app
  2. What Tor VPN Beta is, and how it works
    1. How it works
    2. How it compares
  3. Setting it up
    1. A note on Android’s own VPN settings
  4. App by app: what to route through Tor
    1. Browsers
    2. Messaging
    3. News, email and reading
    4. Social media
    5. Banking, payments, maps and delivery
    6. Updates, streaming and games
    7. Crypto wallets
  5. What Tor VPN can’t protect
    1. Beta means beta
    2. Who it’s for, right now
  6. On censored networks
  7. Keeping it updated
  8. When something goes wrong
  9. Where to go next
  10. Sources

The real choice is app by app#

Most VPN apps ask you one question. On or off. Tor VPN Beta, the Tor Project’s own Android app, asks a different one. Which of your apps should go through Tor?

It may seem like a small difference, but it changes how you should think about the whole thing. A commercial VPN sends everything on your phone through a single tunnel to one server. Tor VPN sends the apps you select through the Tor network, and gives each one its own separate path, called a circuit, with its own exit address. Because your messaging app and your news app take different routes, someone watching the network can’t easily connect the two. The Tor Project calls this per-app routing, and it’s based on the way Tor Browser keeps different websites apart.

The catch is that not every app works well over Tor, and not every app needs to go through it. Some will be slower, some won’t work at all, and others will still send identifying information over Tor, because that information is inside the app, not in your network connection. So the useful question isn’t whether Tor VPN is good. It’s which of your apps it’s good for.

This guide is built around that question. We’ll explain what Tor VPN Beta is and how it works, walk through setting it up, then go through a typical phone app by app, from browsers and messengers to banking and maps. We’ll also be clear about what it can’t protect, how it handles censored networks, and what to do when something goes wrong.

One thing first, and the Tor Project says it plainly. This is beta software. It’s meant for early adopters who want to help improve it and can do so safely. In the Tor Project’s own words, if you face extreme surveillance risks, they recommend against using Tor VPN Beta. If that’s you, the safer options are covered in our guide to Using Tor on Android and iPhone.

What Tor VPN Beta is, and how it works#

The idea dates back to 2021. In the Tor Project’s user research, the same request kept coming up. People wanted Tor to protect their whole phone, not just their browser, including messaging, social media, email and everything else. Android came first, because that’s where the need was greatest and where the project could reach the most people in censored regions.

A limited version was released in the autumn of 2025. On September 9, 2026, the Tor Project published what it had learned in a post called Tor VPN Beta: What we’ve learned building our own VPN for Android from scratch. The biggest lesson was about who was using it and why. The main use turned out to be simply unblocking the internet. Early adoption was especially strong in Iran and Turkmenistan, and users in the Global South engaged much more deeply than Tor Browser for Android usually sees. The team has since put more of its focus on circumvention.

How it works#

Android lets only one app at a time act as the phone’s VPN, and Tor VPN takes that slot. When an app you’ve selected opens a network connection, a component called Onionmasq picks it up and passes it to Arti, the Tor Project’s newer implementation of Tor written in Rust, which sends it across the Tor network. Each selected app gets its own circuit and its own exit address. Apps you haven’t selected keep using your normal connection. Google’s own help pages explain how Android handles VPN apps in general.

Because it runs on Arti rather than the older C version of Tor, Tor VPN gets its security fixes through Arti releases. We explain what that means in Arti 2.7.0: Tor’s Rust Rewrite Explained.

A few other facts are worth knowing. According to coverage of the September release, the app was built with help from the Guardian Project and LEAP. Its builds are reproducible, so anyone can check that the published app matches its source code, and its underlying design was reviewed by the security firm Cure53 in June 2025. It can also reach onion addresses, so the apps you route through it can connect to onion services directly.

How it compares#

  Tor VPN Beta A commercial VPN Tor Browser for Android
What it protects The apps you choose Usually the whole phone Only browsing inside it
Route Tor network, a separate circuit per app One tunnel to one company’s server Tor network, separated per site
Who could see your traffic’s origin No single relay sees both ends The VPN company No single relay sees both ends
Speed Slower, not built for speed Usually fast Slower
Protection against browser tracking None beyond the app’s own None Strong, by design
Cost Free Usually paid Free

The last two rows matter most. Tor VPN hides where your connections come from. It doesn’t change what your apps reveal about you once they’re connected, and it doesn’t give an ordinary browser the anti-tracking protections Tor Browser has. That’s why Tor Browser is still the right tool for browsing, even with Tor VPN installed.

Setting it up#

Setup takes a few minutes. Exact screen names can change between beta versions, so treat these steps as a guide rather than a fixed procedure.

  1. Get the genuine app. Tor VPN Beta is published by The Tor Project on Google Play, on F-Droid under the package name org.torproject.vpn, and as an APK from the Tor Project’s download pages. Search results for “Tor VPN” are full of imitations, some paid or ad-funded, so follow the link from the Tor Project’s own site rather than searching. We explain how to spot fakes in Fake ‘Dark Web’ Apps in 2026.
  2. Read the beta warning. The app explains clearly what it’s for and what its limits are. It’s worth reading once, properly.
  3. Allow the VPN connection. Android will ask whether to let Tor VPN set up a VPN connection, and you need to allow it. Because Android allows only one VPN at a time, starting Tor VPN switches off any other VPN app you were using.
  4. Connect. The first connection takes longer than later ones, because Tor has to learn about the network before it can build circuits. Give it a minute.
  5. Choose your apps. This is the crucial step, covered app by app in the next section. The app list is searchable, which helps if you have a lot installed. Don’t assume a sensible default has been chosen. Check exactly which apps are selected.
  6. Leave the exit location alone, unless you need it. Once connected, you can choose where your traffic appears to come from. For most people, letting Tor choose is better, because picking a country limits your traffic to fewer exit relays. Choose one only when a service you need won’t work otherwise.
  7. Set up bridges if Tor is blocked. If it won’t connect, your network may be blocking Tor. Tor VPN supports bridges, including WebTunnel since version 1.4.0, which disguises your connection as ordinary encrypted web traffic. More on that below.

A note on Android’s own VPN settings#

Android has system settings for VPNs, usually in your network settings, including options to keep a VPN always on and to block connections that don’t use a VPN. They’re useful, but with an app that routes only some of your apps, they can interact in ways that depend on your phone and Android version. If you turn them on, check afterwards that the apps you didn’t select still work as you expect, and that the ones you did select really are going through Tor.

App by app: what to route through Tor#

Here’s the simple rule the rest of this section follows. Tor VPN helps most when the network is the problem, either because something is blocked or because you don’t want anyone watching your connection to see which service you’re using. It helps least when the app itself already knows exactly who you are.

App type Route through Tor VPN? What to expect
Tor Browser No It has its own Tor connection built in
Other browsers, such as Chrome Rarely Hides your address, but not your cookies, logins or browser fingerprint
Messaging apps Often yes, especially if blocked Messages usually work, voice and video calls may not
News and reading apps Yes A good fit, especially for outlets blocked where you are
Email apps Often yes Usually works well, may trigger extra login checks
Social media apps If blocked, or to hide your location from the app Expect CAPTCHAs and verification prompts
Banking and payment apps No Often flagged as suspicious, accounts can be locked
Maps, ride-hailing and delivery No They use your GPS location anyway
App stores and system updates No, unless they’re blocked Large downloads strain the network and gain little
Video and music streaming No Slow, often blocked, and heavy on volunteer bandwidth
Games and video calls No They usually need connection types Tor doesn’t carry

Browsers#

This is the most common mistake, which is why it comes first. Routing Chrome or another ordinary browser through Tor VPN hides your IP address from websites, but that’s all it does. Your logged-in accounts, cookies and the browser’s unique fingerprint still identify you. Tor Browser for Android is designed to prevent exactly that, with its own security levels, so use it for browsing instead.

Don’t route Tor Browser itself through Tor VPN. It already connects to Tor on its own, and going through Tor a second time adds delay without adding protection. If you’re not sure which Android browser is the real one, see Using Tor on Android and iPhone.

Messaging#

Messaging apps are one of the main reasons people asked for Tor VPN in the first place. Routing one through Tor hides your IP address from the messaging company, and hides from your network which service you’re using. That matters where messaging apps are blocked or watched. It doesn’t hide who you are to the service, because your account is usually tied to your phone number.

Text messages, images and files should work, if a little more slowly. Voice and video calls are a different story. Tor carries ordinary TCP connections, and many calling features depend on a different kind of connection, UDP, which Tor doesn’t carry. Calls may fail, or the app may fall back to a slower method.

News, email and reading#

These are the best fits. News apps load text and images, which Tor handles well, and reading news that’s blocked in your country is one of the clearest uses for Tor there is. Some publishers, such as the BBC, also run their own onion sites, as we list in News Onion Sites.

Email apps usually work too, though providers may ask you to verify your login more often when you connect from a Tor exit. Some, such as Proton, are designed with Tor users in mind, as we explain in Secure Email Over Tor.

Social media#

Once you’re logged in, a social media app knows who you are, so Tor won’t make you anonymous there. It can still hide your location and IP address from the app, and get you past a block. Expect more CAPTCHAs, more “is this you?” checks, and sometimes a temporary lock while the service decides whether your login is suspicious.

Banking, payments, maps and delivery#

Leave these out. Banks and payment apps watch for logins from unusual places, and Tor exit addresses are a common trigger for fraud checks and locked accounts. You gain almost nothing in return, because the bank knows exactly who you are. Maps, ride-hailing and delivery apps use your phone’s GPS location, so hiding your IP address doesn’t hide where you are. It just confuses the app.

Updates, streaming and games#

App store downloads, system updates, video streaming and games all move large amounts of data. Tor relays are run by volunteers, often at their own expense, and heavy traffic slows the network for everyone, including people using it to get past censorship. Unless one of these is blocked where you are, keep it off Tor. Games and video calls usually need UDP anyway, so they wouldn’t work well regardless.

Crypto wallets#

Wallets are a judgement call. Routing one through Tor can stop wallet servers from linking your IP address to your addresses and balances, which is a real privacy gain. But some services block Tor exits, and a wallet is exactly where you can’t afford a mistake. If you try it, test with a small amount first, and never copy wallet addresses from anywhere you don’t trust, for reasons we explain in Onion Phishing: How Fake Mirrors Clone Real Addresses.

What Tor VPN can’t protect#

The app’s own store listing is unusually honest about this, under the heading “Important limitations”. It’s worth expanding on, because these are the gaps that catch people out.

  • Your phone can still identify itself. The Tor Project warns that some Android platform data can still identify your device, and that no VPN can fully prevent this. Phones carry identifiers, settings and account links that apps and the operating system can read and send, whatever route the traffic takes.
  • Apps know what you tell them. If you’re logged in, the service knows who you are. If an app reads your contacts, location or advertising ID and sends them home, Tor carries that information safely to the one place you might not want it to go.
  • Notifications travel their own way. On most Android phones, push notifications arrive through Google’s systems rather than through each app’s own connection. Whether that traffic goes through Tor depends on which apps you’ve selected, and the content of a notification may be visible to whoever delivers it unless the app encrypts it end to end.
  • Apps you didn’t select aren’t protected at all. That’s the point of per-app routing, but it’s easy to forget which apps are which. Check your list now and then, especially after installing something new.
  • It doesn’t fix an unsafe browser. Hiding your address isn’t the same as resisting tracking. For browsing, use Tor Browser.

Beta means beta#

The Tor Project is clear that Tor VPN Beta isn’t suitable for high-risk users or sensitive uses during the beta period. Expect bugs, crashes and rough edges. It may also leak information in ways that haven’t been found yet, which is part of why it’s still in beta.

It’s also not built for speed. The September blog post said plainly that Tor VPN doesn’t behave like a commercial VPN optimised for speed. Reporting on the release says the team plans to bring performance features from the older C version of Tor into Arti, including congestion control, which should help over time.

There’s a quieter limit too. Tor is a shared network run by volunteers. The Tor Project’s planning for the open beta, published on its issue tracker, includes growing the number of testers gradually, so that a wave of always-on phones doesn’t overload the network. That’s one more reason to route only the apps that need it.

Who it’s for, right now#

Tor VPN Beta suits you if Use something else if
Apps you rely on are blocked where you live You face serious, targeted surveillance
You want to hide which services you use from your network You need a browser that resists tracking
You’re comfortable with beta software and reporting bugs You need everything to work every time
You understand that apps still know your accounts You expect the app to make you anonymous on its own

If you’re in the right-hand column, the stable options are Tor Browser for Android and, for routing other apps, Orbot, both covered in our guide to Using Tor on Android and iPhone. For the most sensitive work, a dedicated system such as Tails on a computer is still the stronger choice, as covered in Tails 7.14.

On censored networks#

Since the people using Tor VPN most are usually trying to get around blocking, it’s worth knowing how it handles that. If your network blocks Tor, an ordinary connection to the Tor network won’t work. Bridges are the answer. They’re unlisted entry points that are harder for a censor to find and block.

Tor VPN supports bridges, and since version 1.4.0 that includes WebTunnel, a type of bridge that makes your connection look like ordinary encrypted web traffic. Even so, the app’s description is candid that users in heavily censored regions might not be able to connect at all. Censorship keeps changing, and what works one month may be blocked the next.

For a full explanation of bridges, Snowflake and WebTunnel, and which to try first, see Bridges, Snowflake and WebTunnel. And if you live somewhere uncensored and want to help people who don’t, the Tor Project’s Snowflake Volunteer app for Android, launched in August 2026, lets your phone act as a temporary Snowflake proxy for them.

Before using any circumvention tool, it’s worth knowing the rules where you live. In a few countries, the tools themselves carry legal risk, as we explain in Is Tor Legal? Using Onion Services Responsibly.

Keeping it updated#

Tor VPN runs on Arti, so its security fixes arrive through Arti releases rather than through the C version of Tor that Tor Browser and Tails use. Arti 2.7.0, released on October 1, 2026, included fixes for low- to high-severity security issues. Keep the app updated from wherever you installed it.

  • Google Play updates it automatically, if automatic updates are on.
  • F-Droid updates it through the F-Droid app, without needing a Google account.
  • An APK won’t update itself. Check the Tor Project’s download page regularly, and verify each new APK before installing it, as described in How to Download and Install Tor Browser Safely. The Tor Project’s download site is also reachable over onion, as listed in Tor Project’s Official Onion Sites.

When something goes wrong#

Problem What to try
It won’t connect at all Try another network, then turn on a bridge, starting with WebTunnel
One app stopped working Remove that app from the list. Some apps simply won’t work over Tor
A service locked your account or keeps asking you to log in again Take that app off Tor. It’s flagging the Tor exit address
Everything is slow That’s expected over Tor. Route fewer apps, and leave large downloads off Tor
Your other VPN stopped Android allows one VPN at a time. Starting Tor VPN switches the other off
Calls fail but messages work Calls often need UDP, which Tor doesn’t carry. Make calls without Tor, or accept the risk of not using it
Something looks wrong and you’re not sure what Disconnect, and report it to the Tor Project

Reporting bugs is part of the deal with any beta. The Tor Project’s bug and feedback page explains how. A short report saying which app, what you did and what happened is far more useful than “it doesn’t work”.

Where to go next#

Sources#

1 comment

  1. Pingback: Tails 7.14 – The Amnesic OS That Routes Everything Through Tor

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Onion addresses posted here are checked against our directory automatically. Never trust an address from a comment until you have verified it.