Following a wave of global sanctions, corporate boycotts, and draconian censorship laws, a “Digital Iron Curtain” appears to be descending across Russia. To circumvent these restrictions, many Russians have turned to VPN apps like Secure VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Turbo VPN, and Psiphon.

In this article, we analyze the meteoric rise of such apps in Russia. We used our Top Charts Explorer to identify the most popular iOS and Android VPNs and then turned to our App Watchlist to dig into the details.

Here’s what we cover (click the links below to jump to the relevant sections):

• What Is a VPN App?
• The Top VPN Apps in Russia
• The Top 5 Android VPN Apps in Russia
• The Top 5 iOS VPN Apps in Russia
• Analysis of the Top VPN Apps in Russia
• Downloads in Russia (February 7th, 2022 - March 7th, 2022)
• Top Chart Rankings (February 7th, 2022 - March 7th, 2022)
• Final Thoughts
  

What Is a VPN App?

To begin, let’s make sure we’re singing from the same sheet music. A VPN (short for ‘virtual private network’) provides online privacy and anonymity by creating a private network from a public internet connection. By hiding user IP addresses, VPNs create virtual “tunnels” that obscure online activity (i.e. links that users click, files they download, etc.) from snooping third-parties, like government agencies.

VPN services, such as the apps covered in this article, enable users to establish secure, encrypted connections no matter where they’re connecting — whether they’re at home or using a public hotspot.

What’s more, many VPN services enable users to browse the internet via international IP addresses. In other words, with an app like Turbo VPN, users in Russia can connect using an American IP address. As such, they can browse websites and access web-based services that are unavailable in Russia (think Netflix, Twitter, Facebook, etc.).

The Top VPN Apps in Russia

The Top 5 Android VPN Apps in Russia

1. Secure VPN－Safer Internet by Signal Lab

• Short Description: Secure VPN－Safer and lightning fast VPN.
• 30-Day Downloads in Russia: 698,050
  

2. VPN Proxy Master - Safer Vpn by LEMON CLOVE PTE. LIMITED

• Short Description: Access blocked content, enjoy streaming video and keep network private with VPN
• 30-Day Downloads in Russia: 449,100
  

3. Turbo VPN - Secure VPN Proxy by Innovative Connecting

• Short Description: Enjoy fast streaming, secure & private internet with Turbo VPN proxy.
• 30-Day Downloads in Russia: 318,165
  

4. Psiphon Pro - The Internet Freedom VPN by Psiphon Inc.

• Short Description: Access everything on the Internet with Psiphon Pro, the free VPN with a purpose.
• 30-Day Downloads in Russia: 239,806
  

5. VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy by VPN Super Inc.

• Short Description: Unlimited VPN master to unblock sites, WiFi hotspot security, protect privacy.
• 30-Day Downloads in Russia: 216,880
  

The Top 5 iOS VPN Apps in Russia

1. VPN Proxy Master - Super VPN by ALL Connected Co.,Ltd

• Short Description: Best VPN to browse in private.
• 30-Day Downloads: 614,696
  

2. VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy by Mobile Jump Pte Ltd

• Short Description: WiFi Security & Privacy VPN.
• 30-Day Downloads: 410,476
  

3. VPN - super unlimited proxy vpn by VPN Proxy Secure Express & Private X Hotspot VPN Browser Apps

• Short Description: Wi.Fi Security, 360 E.xpress.
• 30-Day Downloads: 476,139
  

4. Psiphon by Psiphon Inc.

• Short Description: The open-source VPN.
• 30-Day Downloads: 540,898
  

5. VPN Proxy Master by Maple Labs Co., Ltd

• Short Description: VPN Proxy 360.
• 30-Day Downloads: 102,644
  

Analysis of the Top VPN Apps in Russia

Downloads in Russia (February 7th, 2022 - March 7th, 2022)

Android:

Above you’ll find daily global downloads for the top five Android VPN apps in Russia — Secure VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Turbo VPN, Psiphon Pro, and VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy. In particular, this chart depicts global downloads between February 7th, 2022 and March 7th, 2022.

Currently, Secure VPN leads the way in total downloads. Over the last 30 days it’s tallied 698,050 downloads in Russia alone. Turbo VPN came next (318,165), followed by VPN Proxy Master (307,084), Psiphon Pro (237,943), and VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy (211,653).

Secure VPN also had the best single day performance, reeling in 167,309 downloads on March 7th. However, VPN Proxy Master wasn’t far behind, with 123,078 downloads on the same day. As for the rest, Turbo VPN topped out at 44,321downloads on March 7th, Psiphon Pro hit 28,716 on March 6th, and VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy reached 47,919 on March 7th.

Notably, downloads first began to tick up on February 26th, two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized “special military operations" in Ukraine. However, things really ramped up on March 6th, when it was announced that Russia had begun active preparations to disconnect from the global Internet. The story is similar for the iOS apps…

iOS:

As with the previous chart, this one depicts global downloads for the top iOS VPN apps in Russia. Here, you’ll find downloads for VPN Proxy Master - Super VPN, VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy, VPN -super unlimited proxy vpn, Psiphon, and VPN Proxy Master over the last 30 days.

Among iOS users, VPN -super unlimited proxy vpn, VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy, and Psiphon were the biggest winners, generating 530,798, 445,711, and 425,509 downloads respectively. However, VPN Proxy Master - Super VPN (296,498) and VPN Proxy Master (122,538) were not far behind. And indeed, VPN Proxy Master - Super VPN has been on a steep upward trajectory since March 7th.

As for single day performances, the best so far has been Psiphon, with 65,388 downloads on February 27th. VPN -super unlimited proxy vpn, meanwhile, topped out at 54,915 downloads on February 28th, VPN Proxy Master - Super VPN hit 54,859 on March 2nd, VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy reached 39,284 on February 27th, and VPN Proxy Master managed 22,077 on March 7th.

As noted above, iOS downloads followed a similar pattern as those of the Android apps. They ticked up following Russia’s entrance into Ukraine, and soared when Russia announced their exit from the global Internet.

Top Chart Rankings (February 7th, 2022 - March 7th, 2022)

Android:

Next up, we take a look at top chart rankings for the top Android VPN apps in Russia. More specifically, this chart depicts rankings in the ‘Tools’ category of Russia’s top charts over the last 30 days.

First, while Secure VPN and Turbo VPN have long performed well in Russia, the other apps have until recently enjoyed only modest success in the top charts. VPN Proxy Master and VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy, for instance, rarely broke into the top 200. So, their sudden ascent is remarkable. And once again, the upward trajectory began February 25th.

In any case, as of March 7th, each app ranked in the top 20 overall top charts, while Secure VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Turbo VPN, and VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy ranked 1, 2, 4, and 5, respectively, in the ‘Tools’ category.

iOS:

Finally, this takes us to the top iOS VPN apps. As before, this chart represents genre-specific rankings in Russia. In this case, ‘Productivity’ (VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy, VPN Proxy Master - Super VPN, VPN Proxy Master) and ‘Utilities’ (Psiphon, VPN -super unlimited proxy vpn).

Two apps (VPN Proxy Master - Super VPN and VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy) have long ranked in the top 20, while the rest have traditionally struggled to break into the top 150. Indeed, Psiphon wasn’t even ranked until February 25th. However, following Russia’s entrance into Ukraine, the apps took off quickly. Now, each rank in the top five genre-specific top charts and in the top 15 overall charts.

Final Thoughts

Now, we’re an app intelligence company that specializes in mobile and connected TV app analytics. Geopolitics, however interesting, is a little out of our range. Nevertheless, trends in the global app market provide another perspective for the state of play in Russia, as well as countries within their immediate sphere of influence.

For instance, not only are VPN apps rocketing up Russia’s top charts, so are financial services apps like Mir Pay, Tinkoff, Sberbank, QIWI Wallet, and VTB-Online. In Belarus, meanwhile, similar trends are playing out with regard to VPNs. While in Ukraine, apps like Повітряна тривога (an air alarm managed by the country’s Civil Defense System), Breaking News: Local & Alerts, and Signal Private Messenger currently rank prominently in the top 10.

In any event, it’ll be interesting to keep an eye on the situation as sanctions against Russia, coupled with the country’s own isolationist policies, continue to take a toll on their economy.

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