Tested & last reviewed: 26 October 2026. Two runs, at 09:39 and 09:57 UTC, from a server in AWS’s Mumbai region (ap-south-1b). Each provider’s India endpoints were taken from its own public server list, then measured with 30 ICMP pings, five TCP connections to port 443 and an mtr route trace. The test measures distance and routing from Mumbai. It does not measure VPN throughput, app quality or logging, and a home line on Jio or Airtel adds its own latency on top. Proton VPN’s endpoints could not be reached without its app. The raw output is kept with the site’s records.
Since CERT-In’s 2022 Directions, the “India” entry in a VPN app’s location list often isn’t in India. Some providers say so on their own pages. Others leave you to work it out. So instead of repeating what the providers claim, we measured it: from a server in Mumbai, how far away is each provider’s India location really?
The physics makes this easy to read. Light in optical fibre covers roughly 100 km of distance for every millisecond of round trip. A server that answers in 2 ms is in the same city. One that answers in 140 ms is on another continent, whatever the app calls it.
what we measured
| Provider and listed location | Round trip from Mumbai | Where the route ends | Provider’s own label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windscribe Mumbai | 1.6 ms | Mumbai | Not marked virtual |
| Windscribe New Delhi | 28 ms | Delhi | Not marked virtual |
| Windscribe “Fake Mumbai” | 145 ms | Outside India, via European transit | Named “Fake Mumbai” in its list |
| NordVPN Mumbai (two servers) | 55 ms* | Singapore (last named hop) | Flagged virtual in its server API |
| Surfshark Mumbai | 137–140 ms | Europe (last named hop: London) | Tagged virtual |
| Surfshark Delhi | 121–127 ms | Europe (last named hop: Frankfurt) | Tagged virtual |
| Surfshark Singapore, for comparison | 54 ms | Singapore | Not virtual |
| Mullvad, nearest relay (Singapore) | 55 ms | Singapore | No India location offered |
| Proton VPN India | Not measured | Singapore, per Proton | Smart Routing |
*NordVPN’s servers don’t answer ping, so its figure is the TCP connection time to port 443, which tracked ping within a millisecond everywhere both worked. The two runs, 18 minutes apart, agreed to within 6 ms on every endpoint.
Two of the nine endpoints are in India. Both are Windscribe’s, and both answer in times only a server in Mumbai or Delhi can manage. Everything else is in Singapore or Europe, and the providers’ own data says as much: NordVPN’s public server API flags all 23 of its Mumbai servers as a virtual location, and Surfshark’s tags both of its Indian locations virtual.
what a virtual location costs you
A virtual Indian location gives you an IP address that geolocation databases read as Indian, so Indian sites and apps treat you as local. Your traffic still goes to the real host country first and comes back. From Mumbai, that added 55 ms through Singapore and 120 to 140 ms through Europe, on every connection, before the website you’re visiting even starts to answer.
For browsing or streaming, 55 ms is hard to notice. At 140 ms, page loads feel heavier, video calls pick up a delay, and online games become frustrating. The Surfshark result is the clearest example. Its own Singapore server answered in 54 ms, while its “India” servers were two and a half times further away. If you only want an encrypted tunnel and don’t need an Indian IP address, the nearest real country is usually the faster choice.
A physical server in India is the fastest option, and Windscribe’s Mumbai and New Delhi locations show the difference plainly. But a physical Indian server is also the setup the CERT-In Directions were written around, so read how the provider says it handles them before you rely on one.
what the 2022 CERT-In Directions require
CERT-In issued its Directions under section 70B(6) of the IT Act on 28 April 2022. Paragraph (iv) requires covered entities to keep logs of their ICT systems for a rolling 180 days. Paragraph (v) requires data centres, VPS providers, cloud service providers and VPN service providers to record validated subscriber names, the hire period, the IPs allotted, the email, IP and timestamp used at registration, the purpose of hire, a validated address and contact number, and the ownership pattern. That record has to be kept for five years after the service ends. CERT-In’s May 2022 FAQ says logs may be stored outside India (Q35) and that enterprise VPNs fall outside paragraph (v) (Q34). A 27 June 2022 notice moved the subscriber-validation deadline to 25 September 2022. On 26 October 2026, CERT-In’s Directions page listed nothing issued after that notice.
Nothing in the Directions bans an individual from using a VPN. They place obligations on providers, which is why several providers moved their Indian locations offshore. This is general information, not legal advice. For how a VPN works underneath, see the VPN basics explainer, and the myths round-up covers what a VPN won’t do for you.
the five providers
Listed in no particular order. Prices and plan details are from each provider’s own pages on 26 October 2026.
Windscribe: the only physical India servers here
Windscribe’s server page says every server is physically in the country it claims, and its India results back that up. Mumbai answered in 1.6 ms and New Delhi in 28 ms. Its server list also includes a location it openly names “Fake Mumbai”, which measured like a server in Europe, so the labelling is honest too. Its server list marks India as Pro-only, so the free plan won’t get you there. Pro costs $9 a month or $69 a year, and the Build-a-plan option charges $1 per location per month, with a $3 minimum.
NordVPN: India served from Singapore
NordVPN’s public server API listed 23 servers under Mumbai, every one flagged as a virtual location, and the routes to both servers we checked ended at a Singapore hop at about 55 ms. That makes it the closer of the two virtual-India options we could measure. NordLynx, its protocol, is built on WireGuard. Its pricing page blocked our automated check, so no price is quoted here. Long plans usually renew higher, so check the renewal price at checkout.
Surfshark: unlimited devices, India via Europe
Surfshark offers Mumbai and Delhi, both tagged virtual in its own server data and on its India page. On our routes both went through Europe, at 121 to 140 ms. Its Singapore server was much closer. Its pricing page says paid plans allow unlimited simultaneous devices, which still makes it the household pick if you can live with the extra distance.
Mullvad: no India location, no email
Mullvad’s relay list covered 50 countries on 26 October 2026, and India wasn’t one of them. Its nearest relay, in Singapore, answered in 55 ms. You get an account number instead of an email login, and it costs a flat €5 a month including VAT, whatever the term. It accepts cash by post, and its no-logs claim held up when Swedish police served a search warrant at its office in 2023 and left without customer data.
Proton VPN: free tier, India via Singapore
Proton says it replaced its physical Indian servers with Smart Routing, and its locations page lists India as served from Singapore. We couldn’t measure it, because Proton’s server hostnames don’t resolve publicly without the app. Expect it to behave like the other Singapore-routed results, but treat that as an expectation, not a measurement. Its free plan covers one device with no data cap, and the apps are open source.
check any provider yourself
You don’t need our numbers. Take a server hostname from the provider’s app or server list and trace it from your own connection:
# Linux or macOS
mtr -r -c 10 in-mum.prod.surfshark.com
# Windows
tracert in-mum.prod.surfshark.com
ping -n 20 in-mum.prod.surfshark.comStart by pinging a site you know is hosted in India, to get your own line’s baseline, then compare. If the VPN’s India server answers within about 10 ms of that baseline, it’s in India. If it adds 50 ms or more, it’s in Singapore or further. Hop names in the trace often give the city away: “sgp”, “fra” and “lon” are common abbreviations for Singapore, Frankfurt and London. Some servers, NordVPN’s included, ignore ping. In that case the last hop that answers in the trace tells you where the route ends.
or skip the subscription
If all you want is secure traffic on networks you don’t control, a self-hosted WireGuard server on a small VPS in Mumbai is another route, and the step-by-step WireGuard guide covers it. It swaps the VPN company for a VPS provider without removing third parties. The VPS provider can see your traffic metadata, and VPS providers fall within the CERT-In Directions’ subscriber-record rules. You also get only one location.
mistakes people make buying a VPN in India
- Assuming the India server sits in India. In this test, seven of nine endpoints didn’t. Check the provider’s list for “virtual”, or trace it yourself.
- Picking India when you don’t need an Indian IP. A real nearby country, Singapore here, was faster than every virtual India location we measured.
- Paying monthly. Monthly billing usually costs more per month than a yearly plan. Take a yearly plan with a refund window, run the check above on your own line in the first week, and keep it or claim the refund.
- Buying lifetime deals. Servers cost money forever, so “lifetime” usually means the provider’s lifetime, not yours.
- Forgetting the renewal price. Introductory prices often jump at renewal. Set a reminder before the date.
FAQ
Can I get an Indian IP while travelling abroad?
Yes. Virtual and physical Indian locations both give you an address that geolocation databases map to India. That doesn’t change any service’s terms, though. Streaming platforms license content by region and generally prohibit using a VPN to reach another region’s catalogue. For your bank or employer, follow their own guidance on access from abroad.
Why is my VPN slow on Jio at night?
Check distance first. If your “India” server is really in Europe, you’re paying 120 ms or more before congestion even starts. Trace the server as shown above. If it’s close, try the provider’s TCP or obfuscated mode as a comparison, since evening congestion can affect UDP-based protocols differently. One slow evening won’t tell you whether the cause is your ISP, the route or the VPN server.
Should I just use a free VPN?
Only a reputable free tier funded by paid plans, such as Proton VPN’s, which covers one device with no data cap. Windscribe has a free tier too, but its India locations are on Pro only. Many free VPN apps of unclear ownership have been reported to collect browsing data or inject ads.
the short version
If you need an Indian IP address with the lowest latency, Windscribe’s physical Mumbai and New Delhi servers were the only real Indian locations in this test. If you need an Indian IP and are fine with Singapore distances, NordVPN’s virtual Mumbai location was the closest of the virtual options. If you don’t need an Indian IP at all, pick the nearest real country. And whichever app you use, trace its server once from your own line, because the location name alone tells you very little.
Sources
- CERT-In Directions of 28 April 2022 — the logging and subscriber-record rules discussed above. Not legal advice.
- CERT-In FAQ on the 2022 Directions (May 2022) — Q34 on enterprise VPNs and Q35 on where logs may be stored.
- CERT-In Directions page — checked on 26 October 2026 for later amendments.
- NordVPN public server API — India server count, plus the per-server virtual-location flag.
- Surfshark India servers and Surfshark pricing — virtual Indian locations and the unlimited-devices policy.
- Windscribe server locations and Windscribe plans — the physical-server statement and Pro and Build-a-plan pricing.
- Mullvad relay list and Mullvad pricing — countries served and the flat price.
- Mullvad: search warrant, customer data not compromised — Mullvad’s account of the 2023 police visit.
- Proton VPN: how Smart Routing works and Proton VPN Free — India served from Singapore, and the free plan’s limits.
Change log, 26 October 2026: rebuilt around the network test above. The previous version compared provider documentation only and claimed no testing.