Before we get started, watch the video above and familirize yourself with torrents. Even you experts will enjoy the video. Next, I would be doing you a disservice if I allowed you to take one step further without selecting a VPN below.

These companies are the most trusted out there for torrenting. Luckily, by visiting CalibreCompanion.co, you have the opportunity to access secret pages that have discounts on them. We have linked to them below for your convenience. And you won’t be able to find those pages if you just searched for the VPN itself.

QUICK OVERVIEW: Preliminary Downloads for Torrent Sites

The world might be gravitating to online streaming, but peer-to-peer file sharing through torrents remains ever-popular. It's important to stay safe while torrenting by using a virtual private network (VPN), even when sharing something entirely legal, but which clients are the best for the job?

PRELIMINARY DOWNLOAD	FEATURES
NordVPN VPN for safe Downloading Read Our Nord VPN Review Allows for Netflix out of the USA Quick and Helpful Support Team Kill-Switch feature

QBittorrent has been mentioned, so if you wanna go extremely extremely stripped down (like if you run windows on a piece of dust, or want a portable torrent client) PicoTorrent is just like uTorrent but minus the shit. But qBittorrent is the very best:). The Best BitTorrent Clients for 2019. BitTorrent is a powerful protocol for downloading everything from perfectly legit content to the shadiest stuff on the web. We’d also like to mention that you need a torrent client to engage in P2P traffic – no matter which operating system you use. To help you find the best one, here is our guide to the best torrent clients (and these are the best torrent clients for macOS as well).

STOP: Did you select a VPN to use? If yes, continue. If not, scroll back up to and select one to use.

We don’t want you to end up like the people we talk about below!

Are you just getting started torrenting and looking to find your new favorite torrent site to use?

I could never understand why anyone wants a list of 10-20 torrent sites when at the end of the day you can simply go to 1 – 3 really great ones to find what you’re looking for.

I’m a big believer in saving time because it is truly the most valuable asset. Each of these sites were selected with this purpose in mind. All have been tested from start to finish so you can get in and get out with anything you need.

Below are tables of the best torrent sites to use.

Site	Overall Rating	Uptime
The Pirate Bay	4.8/5	4.2/5
Kickass	4.6/5	4.0/5
Rarbg	4.7/5	4.7/5

(Note: Because the viability of torrent sites is ever-changing, I will be adding to this list periodically.)

Table of Contents

• The Pirate Bay
  
• Kickass Torrents
  
• Rarbg
  
• YIFY
  

The Pirate Bay

The Pirate Bay is by far the #1 torrent site out there. The creators behind the popular torrenting network have been around for an extremely long time and their reliability is unmatched.

This reputation is well-earned from its initial days in 2003 up to the present. If you can find the torrent on The Pirate Bay, you know you will have a smooth experience with the download.

A lot of times many torrent sites will tell you they have something when really no one is seeding it and it just becomes a waste of your time. There’s nothing worse than picking out your favorite movie and only having it stuck at 15% for weeks on end while only uploading <1kb/s.

Another huge issue is downtime for torrent sites. The Pirate Bay solved this issue by having so many different mirrors of its site constantly running so that if one was taken down, the sheer number of sites offering access to the network will not be interrupted.

And while the site has been forced to change its domain names to avoid international authorities, you can still find its latest incarnation by asking on Reddit and other online forums.

Thus, your user experiences are never impacted directly. The Pirate Bay has cycled through multiple different domains but is on its tried and true .org currently. Hopefully, this does not change anytime soon

The Top 100

The most powerful part of The Pirate Bay is its Top 100 feature.

The Top 100 feature enables visitors who want to see the most downloaded and in-demand movies, audio, e-books, software, and more. You can search for the Top 100 of all categories – or you can narrow the search based on what type of experience you’re looking for.

For example, if you’re looking to watch a new film but don’t know where to start, the Top 100 can give you some good ideas. Searching the Top 100 can also give you a good idea of what’s trending rather than was regularly featured on the news, music charts, and more. Whether you want to stay current or use it for a business marketing venture, the Top 100 gives you an idea of what people really want.

Best of all, these new torrents tend to have numerous seeders of content, ensuring that you can download what you want fast and uninterrupted.

To wrap this topic up, most people who torrent are looking for something specific and never think about just casually browsing. The Top 100 allows you to see the free market demand of torrents globally on The Pirate Bay. You can go down endless rabbit holes finding excellent content and enjoy the thrill of discovery.

How Do I Know if The Pirate Bay is Down?

You’ll know If The Pirate Bay is down if you see a screen like the one above. When this happens expect it to be back up in running within a few hours to sometimes days. In the meantime, you can search out other options, like proxy sites or your trusty backup.

Warning about The Pirate Bay

If you are a conspiracy buff, you may want to reassess the risks of downloading torrents and illegal streaming in the first place. There is certainly an element of “too good to be true” when it comes to torrenting. After all, in the space of minutes, you can download materials that could potentially cost thousands of USD with virtually zero repercussions…

As it is speculated, some believe that government entities set up some torrent sites and mirrors as a way to monitor criminal behavior in its citizens. This is why VPNs that obscure your IP address through encryption can be invaluable to individuals that want to stay on the right side of the law.

Therefore, it’s important to note that you are using the correct link for The Pirate Bay. Many think the Pirate Bay has been compromised and seized by the FBI. We think this is why you will not find it in search results of Google, Bing, Yahoo, and other popular search engines.

You will find, however, a mirror that ranks number one on those search engines and is gathering up all the traffic that should be going directly to The Pirate Bay. Until more is known, it’s advisable to tread with caution.

KickassTorrents

KickassTorrents (KAT) is always a favorite backup when looking for torrents. It’s a close second to The Pirate Bay, often having a wide variety of torrents that aren’t available elsewhere.

And if The Pirate Bay doesn’t have the torrent you were looking for, there is still a very good chance that KAT has it. It features a busier, list-oriented layout than The Pirate Bay, but you will get used to the site’s features in short order. The search function works like the Pirate Bay, so you can find what you’re looking for easily.

Are Kickass mirrors safe?

In 2017, Kickass dealt with similar issues to The Pirate Bay above about downtime. Their owner was arrested and the site was shut down; however, some relentless employees set up lots of mirrors to make sure the site was still operational.

You still may have to sift through ad-filled mirrors or consult a current Reddit thread to find active links to legitimate torrent sites, but Kickass still has a viable and active presence.

Best Torrent Sites for Movies

Rarbg

I would be doing our readers a disservice if I didn’t talk about Rarbg. When you show up at Rarbg’s homepage you are greeted with movie and tv show news along with some nice alerts about some scam sites to watch out for.

While the site has a basic layout, It’s generally a pleasant experience. I really enjoyed the fact that they are not trying to shove a vpn down your throat like all of the other options. That doesn’t mean to not use a vpn of course.

I plan to start using Rarbg more simply based off of how great the experience is right now. It looks like they are less focused on monetization and more about their user’s experience on the site.

I used to have a hard time finding the movie and tv show files that I wanted on other platforms, but now you will have no issue finding them with Rarbg.

YIFY

Torrenting movies took a while for me to find a source that I truly loved and had a high enough quality to continue coming back. Torrent sites can be a bit bland when it comes to the visual aspects, and the selection within The Pirate Bay Top 100 has the ability to get stale if you feel like you have seen everything. Enter YIFY.

YIFY is a torrent site completely dedicated to movies. It’s not as nice as Netflix but what do you expect? They usually have the newest movies and are normally pretty consistent when it comes to your ability to actually download what you want.

What is a torrent?

I know that it might seem odd that I decided to give the definition of a torrent, but you’d be surprised by the number of people that don’t know what it means.

I bet a cent that you probably don’t know what it means either.

According to the definition on Tech Terms website, a torrent is a file sent through the BitTorrent protocol. A torrent can be used to send just about any type of data including movies, songs, games, applications, and even programming scripts.

Torrent is based on a peer to peer file transfer method. What this means in layman terms is that if two computers were to share a file, for instance, both machines could act as a host and a recipient at the same time.

The major difference between a torrent file and a regular file download is that a torrent file can be downloaded from more than one server at a time. It is the BitTorrent protocol that allows multiple computers to transfer a single file at the same, therefore, reducing the bandwidth required by each computer for upload.

The idea of a torrent was created in 2001 by programmer Bram Cohen, a son of a computer scientist and a teacher from New York City.

How does a torrent work?

Torrent files are usually hosted on several computers, which act as servers from which the file can be downloaded. Therefore, this means that a single torrent file can be downloaded simultaneously from 10 networks or more to a single computer.

When torrent files are downloaded, they can be paused and resumed at various points in time as long as computers are hosting the torrent file.

Those that host a torrent file are called seeders, while those that download torrent files and upload less than they download are called leechers.

Even though torrenting (which is the act of downloading or uploading torrent files) is not a crime, the data usually uploaded on torrent websites are protected by copyright laws. This is why most of the files downloaded on torrent websites are termed “illegal.”

What Should I Know Before Using a Torrent?

Torrent Client

It is essential to understand that to download a torrent file, you need a torrent client. A torrent client is a software that helps to initiate, manage, and process the downloading and uploading of data using the BitTorrent file-sharing protocol.

Most torrent clients are free and what they do is allow you to find the files you want more efficiently, and download them too, while managing them all in one location. The most common free torrent clients are BitTorrent and uTorrent.

A torrent client can also help to speed up your torrent download, depending on the torrenting protocols used by the torrent clients.

VPN

This is usually regarded as the most essential thing to have before deciding to download files from a torrent site, a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This is because many of the files on torrent websites are illegal. Also, the access-to-all nature of torrent websites makes it easy for hackers to upload dangerous files containing malware and viruses.

A VPN is an application or software that helps to encrypt your IP address and to change the IP address that is seen by anyone searching for your IP address. A VPN also makes it difficult for hackers to intercept the information provided between your computer and any website you visit while it is on. Some of the popular and trusted VPN providers include ExpressVPN, NordVPN, CyberGhost, and Surfshark.

I cannot stress enough that it is more than vital that you get a VPN, even if it is a free one before you visit any torrent website for download. Government organizations like the FBI, Interpol, and some other crime-fighting organizations are always trying to track torrent users. Like I said before, torrenting is not illegal, it is the file that you download from a torrent website that determines if what you are doing is illegal or not. A rule of thumb is to know that downloading anything that you should otherwise be paying for is illegal in almost every country, so, I hope that information helps.

Torrent Website

The one last thing you need to get your torrenting adventures going without a hitch is a reliable torrent website.

Wait, what! You don’t know what that is?

Okay, a torrent website is any website from which you can get torrent files to download. Torrent websites are just like any other website on the internet, except that they are tough to find because of how hard authorities fight to close them down.

However, torrent websites are very resilient, and this is why most torrent websites are likely to have multiple mirror websites to avoid downtime during shutdowns.

Some of the qualities you want from a reliable torrent website are reliability of download, security in the sense that you are sure that most files on the website are secure. Fast download speed is also essential in choosing a torrent site for your downloading activities.

Some of the most popular and biggest torrent websites are The Pirate Bay, Kickass, and LimeTorrents

Massive torrent websites like The pirate bay and Kickass offer almost any type of file, but there are times when you need a torrent website that hosts certain types of files. This is why several torrent websites on the internet are dedicated to providing movies, games, programs, and even computer graphics software.

Antimalware

Another critical software you would require to enjoy a hitch-free torrent downloading experience is an Antimalware software or Antivirus software to protect you from hackers and viruses.

Due to the illegal nature of torrent websites, their URLs get changed a lot. Hackers tend to take advantage of this by creating similar sites to the original torrent websites and exploiting visitors of these websites.

Some of the popular antimalware software you can try are Bitdefender Total Security and Kaspersky Internet Security

Which Torrent Sites Should I Avoid?

Wow we’ve covered a number of solid choices to find what you looking for, you should know that torrent websites go down all the time, leaving an opportunity for criminals to set up decoy websites aimed to exploit unaware end-users. Some of these include:

• GoMovies
• h33t

The list goes on, but knowing which sites to avoid takes some common sense and intuition. There are a number of telltale signs that may indicate possible threats of malware, viruses, ransomware, and attempts to obtain your personal information.

Creating an account:

Perhaps these websites wish to emulate more legitimate torrent providers, but linking an email address and other personal information should be a dead giveaway. Unless you want to become a part of an exclusive torrenting network – something for advanced users only – avoid creating any profiles or login credentials that can be traced back to you.

Best Torrent Client For Mac

New windows/tabs:

One obvious sign that you’re looking for torrents with an illegitimate website or mirror is whether new tabs and separate windows redirect you to a new web page.

Pop-ups can be extremely annoying, but even just visiting a page can be dangerous. In what is known as a “drive-by attack”, users fall victim to unauthorized malware that requires no interaction. beyond clicking on a web address from a search engine. Cybercriminals plant a malicious script into HTTP or PHP code on unsecured websites and visitors are immediately at the mercy of their device’s virus protection (if any at all).

Strange URLs:

If you find a website with a strange URL, it might be a good decision to turn back. Subdomains that have irregular spellings like wvw. and www1. are common for scammers.

Top-level domains (TLDs) tied to countries with lax penalties for cybercrime are also suspect. For example, .ua (Ukraine), .ro (Romania), and others should set off alarm bells. If you are a victim of crime originating in these countries, you will have little recourse when dealing with foreign authorities (and you may even implicate yourself!).

How Safe is Torrenting?

When it comes to torrenting the safest way to torrent is to just be a leech.

In other words, providing content to others through seeding on torrent networks makes you more liable instead of just viewing content for personal use.

This is a completely anecdotal story below but I have always followed it and it has served well.

Growing up in Washington D.C. I had the privilege of having a neighbor who happened to be working with the government to go after internet piracy. One day my mother came home from walking the dog and told me that she had mentioned to him that I was torrenting! I was about 10 years old at the time so he told her that I won’t get in trouble as long as I’m only downloading and not seeding. They understand that cutting the head off of the snake is far more powerful than attacking individuals. I still can’t believe she was turning her own son in so easily!

The lesson I learned was not to make the situation worse for the people who are fighting it. You can choose to not be cannon fodder by simply not seeding.

Are Torrent Site Proxies Safe?

The short answer is no.

Do everything in your power to stay as far as you can from torrent proxies. Majority of the time a torrent proxy is setup by a hacker or someone nefarious. Since they set up the website, they create an ideal situation where they can monitor and attack your computer.

The only way to mitigate something like this is by utilizing a VPN. This adds an extra layer of protection and security.

How Do You Know If a Torrent Site is a Proxy and Not the Real Thing?

When you are browsing, a proxy can look absolutely identical to the real thing. The main thing they cannot copy though is the SSL certificate and the URL. Quickly double check your SSL certificate and URL when browsing for Torrents.

Once again make sure to just be using some type of trusted VPN and you won’t have any issues.

What Happens If You Don’t Use a VPN when Downloading Torrents?

We truly care about your safety and security so we have compiled this list of great resources to judge for yourself whether you want to surf naked on the internet.

• Here is a great reddit thread where numerous people were discussing all of the different fines they were facing for downloading movies and songs illegally.

• Here is a thread where people did not get in trouble but received threatening letters from their internet service providers.

Of course, these are just a few examples of when individuals get caught. Severity of penalties can vary by country, and violating copyright laws in other countries could lead to criminal and financial repercussions if you’re brought before foreign authorities.

Don’t be irresponsible. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail

Using the Tor Browser for an Added Layer of Security?

In addition to using a VPN for online security, you may want to look into using the Tor browser.

The Tor Browser enables you to anonymize your web browsing by connecting you to the internet through the Tor network.

As you may know, Tor is free, open-source software with a mission to keep the internet free. Typically associated with “dark web” activities, the truth is that the Tor browser was developed as a way to maintain the freedom of the Internet without governmental oversight.

How does Tor work?

When browsing Tor browser, your traffic is randomly directed through a network of servers around the world before reaching your final destination.

The easiest way to think about the Tor browser is how it was named The Onion Router, shortened to its acronym. Much like the futility of finding the center of an onion, the multiple layers of encryption makes it near impossible to trace your online activity.

Is Tor Browser a VPN?

No, the Tor browser is different from a VPN. While both are tools for protecting your privacy online, they are different technologies that protect you in a number of different ways.

Using a VPN, all of your data is secured with end-to-end encryption. That data is directed through a safe channel to a remote server that connects you to the website you are trying to visit.

The Tor browser, on the other hand, is actually very easy to use. You simply download and install Tor browser, then connect to the Internet – much like you would with any other browser. Your data is bundled into layers of encrypted packets before it enters the Tor network, which is then routed through a series of servers operated by volunteers known as relays or nodes. One drawback to this as amount of encryption is speed, where a VPN shines in comparison.

For now, the only vulnerability of Tor is its exit nodes, which can inform those surveilling your activity some clues to your online activity, including your usage of Tor. However, trying to find out what your activity was and your location is near impossible due to the endless layers of encryption.

If you’re looking for the best way to stream or torrent, a VPN offers much better protection and speed.

Without going into much detail, there are a number of ways to pair a VPN with Tor browser, but they can compromise each other’s activity.

Some VPNs make it even easier by offering a built-in Tor service (like NordVPN’s Onion over VPN service), enabling you to connect to Tor without Tor browser. The best of both worlds!

The world might be gravitating to online streaming, but peer-to-peer file sharing through torrents remains ever-popular. It's important to stay safe while torrenting by using a virtual private network (VPN), even when sharing something entirely legal, but which clients are the best for the job?

ProPrivacy has compared several BitTorrent clients out there to find the cream of the crop, so you don't have to! Keep reading to discover which one is best for you.

What are the best BitTorrent clients?

There are many BitTorrent clients out there to choose from and not all of them were built equal. Take a look at what ProPrivacy considers the best of the best to torrent with:

qBitTorrent

qBitTorrent is the best torrenting client out there, being both open source and full of features

PROS

• Open source
• Lightweight
• Efficient
• Can bind to VPN
• Fully featured

CONS

• Can't think of any

As a long-term Vuze fan, it took quite something for this lightweight open source BitTorrent client to replace Vuze on my desktop. One reason I stuck with Vuze for so long is the ability to bind the torrent client to my VPN interface.

Although not strictly necessary if your VPN software features a kill switch, I have always appreciated this extra layer of security. It prevents the client downloading torrents when the VPN is not active.

qBitTorrent not only supports this feature, it makes it much easier to implement. This was a big factor in me making the change, as was qBitTorrent’s lean-and-mean 100 MB or less install size (exact size depending on platform). There is no bloat with qBitTorrent!

Despite this, qBitTorrent features just about everything most torrenters will need. This includes BitTorrent protocol encryption, torrent prioritization, torrent querying, selective content download, torrent creation, remote access, and RSS subscription. You can search for torrents from within the client, and the built-in media player is handy.

qBitTorrent is 100% free and ad-free. It is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux. For a more detailed look at this excellent software, including instructions on how to bind qBittorrent to your VPN interface, please check out 5 Best VPNs for qBittorrent.

Transmission

Transmission has overcome older problems to build a reputation for itself as a great torrent client

PROS

• Open source
• Lightweight
• Tons of features
• Pretty
• Available natively on many obscure OSs

CONS

• Not much (vulnerability should be fixed by the time most of you read this)

Transmission started life as a Mac and Linux-only BitTorrent client, where it built up a formidable reputation. Windows users can now also get in on the act. Although a very capable BitTorrent client, the main draw of Transmission is its beautiful user interface, complete with Growl notifications for Mac users.

But it’s not all about looking pretty. Transmission features webseed support, BitTorrent protocol encryption, watch directories, tracker editing, global and per-torrent speed limits, and more. It also supports optional add-ons that can expand its feature-set. These include RSS subscription tools and a Kodi plugin.

Transmission has recently hit the headlines thanks to a vulnerability that can be exploited by hackers. I discuss this a little later in the article, but a patch is available, and the issue is very easy to fix yourself, anyway. I have therefore decided to not let this problem affect Transmission’s ranking in this 5 Best guide.

Transmission is 100% free and open source. It is available for Windows, Mac OSX/macOS, Linux (many distros), FreeBSD, Gentoo, and more.

The Transmission Vulnerability

A security researcher discovered a flaw in Transmission that could allow hackers to execute malicious code on targets’ computers. In theory, this could allow them to completely take over the infected system.

The flaw took advantage of lax security in Transmission’s remote web access feature. Note that this is a proof of concept attack, and there has been no evidence of it being exploited in the wild. The current version of Transmission has already implemented a fix.

Alternatively, if you wanted to be sure, the flaw is easy enough to fix for yourself. If you don’t use the remote web access feature, simply turn it off! Go to Preferences -> Remote and uncheck 'Enable remote access.” If you do use the remote web access feature, then change the default password to something secure. Easy!

Note that the security researcher who discovered the flaw has hinted that other BitTorrents clients may also be vulnerable. It is probably a good idea to check similar settings in whatever client you are using.

Vuze

Vuze might not be as lightweight as others in this list, but its feature-packed approach will appeal to some

PROS

• Ridiculously fully featured
• Can bind downloads to VPN
• Lots of plugins available to increase functionality
• Built-in video player
• Great Android apps

CONS

• Somewhat bulky and resource-heavy
• Ads
• Tries to install crapware
• Only partially open source
• Interface could be prettier and more intuitive

Vuze is a granddaddy of BitTorrent clients. It is no longer open source, and it creaks somewhat under the weight of its myriad features. It is, in other words, the polar opposite of lightweight clients such as qBitTorrent.

But who said a shed load of features is necessarily a bad thing? Most torrenters will never use all the tools available, but there is really almost nothing Torrent-related that Vuze can’t do. This includes being able to bind Vuze to your VPN adapter, but also loads more funky stuff such as content discovery through automated subscriptions, having an integrated media player, remote management, and much more.

You can convert files to multiple formats using Vuze’s drag-and-drop interface and analyse your downloads using a wealth of statistics and visualizations. Vuze is a power user’s dream.

On the downside, Vuze is resource-heavy and rather ugly (especially when compared to Transmission!) Its clunky interface is also showing its age. This situation is not helped by the inclusion of ads in the free version, or by the fact that you need to be careful during installation if you do not want to also install a load of crapware.

Although Vuze is primarily free, a premium version is also available for $29.90 USD per year. A Vuze Plus subscription removes the ads and provides built-in anti-virus scanning, a DVD burner, and 'play now' support. It is, admittedly, pretty funky!

This also brings me to the point that, despite its open source roots, Vuze is now closed source proprietary software. It is worth noting that reports of Vuze’s demise appear to be very premature. Vuze 5.7.6.0 was released in October 2017 and is fully functional.

Unlike the desktop client, the excellent Android app is lightweight and ad-free. A pro version is now available via in-app purchase (about $4), but I have been unable to determine what features this adds (and am too skinflint to shell out the money necessary to find out!).

Vuze Remote is a handy app for Android that allows you remote control your desktop torrent downloads.

Vuze is available for Windows, Mac OSX/macOS, Linux, and Android.

Popcorn Time

Popcorn Time has taken a leaf from Netflix's streaming book to present a video-only torrenting service

PROS

• Instant streaming of high quality BitTorrent content!
• Open source
• Very smart interface
• Chromecast, Airplay and DLNA support
• Available on just about every platform

CONS

• Only for video content

All the other programs on this list are BitTorrent clients. You download a .torrent file or click on a magnet link, and the content downloads to your computer where it is stored locally.

Popcorn Time is different; It is an open source app that uses BitTorrent technology to stream high quality video content to all major platforms. This means that unlike with traditional BitTorrent clients, you can watch a film or show without waiting for the download to complete. You might be thinking 'is Popcorn time safe?' While it can be dangerous for your computer, using a VPN can keep your machine secure.

It is notable for having a very slick and intuitive interface, and for providing access to a huge library of up-to-date content.

Although primarily a streaming platform, content can also be downloaded locally (and some content is always cached). Various versions (forks) of Popcorn Time are available, but I strongly advise only using one of the forks recommended in Best VPN for Popcorn Time guide.

Specific features vary a little depending on which fork you use, but steaming to your big-screen TV via Chromecast, Airplay and DLNA is pretty standard.

Popcorn Time is free, and respectable versions are free from ads and other crapware. It available for Windows, Mac OSX/macOS, Linux, and Android. PopcornTime.to even has an iOS VPN App that can be installed without jailbreaking your device.

Deluge

Deluge has no ads, compared to some of the more popular torrent clients out there

PROS

• Open source
• Lightweight
• Lots of features
• Expandable via plugins (incl. RSS)

CONS

• Less fully featured than some other clients

Like qBitTorrent, Deluge is a fairly conventional but lightweight and open source BitTorrent client. Its feature list is not huge, but should be more than enough to satisfy most users. Features include remote web management and support for magnet links.

Functionality can be further extended with a range of both in-house and third-party plugins. Highlights include plugins for RSS support, Growl notifications, streaming while downloading, and more.

Deluge is completely FOSS, with no ads or crapware. It is available for Windows, OSX, Linux (various distros), and FreeBSD.

Check out our 5 best Deluge VPNs page for a list of the best services to use with this BitTorrent client.

Why not uTorrent or BitTorrent?

uTorrent and its almost-identical sibling, the official BitTorrent client, remain the most popular BitTorrent clients in the world. It is, therefore, reasonable to ask why I have not included it in this best 5 BitTorrent list. Please note the different between BitTorrent as a protocol and the BitTorrent client to avoid confusion.

Both uTorrent and BitTorrent are closed source and supported by ads. These ads can be turned off if you delve deep enough into the software’s settings, but this is still very irritating. It is my personal view that this means uTorrent has all the disadvantages of Vuze, but not as many useful features.

So if you want a slightly clunky closed-source ad-supported BitTorrent client, but one that compensates for this by offering a wealth of features, then use Vuze. Other opinions are available.

What is BitTorrent?

BitTorrent is a popular peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing protocol. Instead of being stored on a centralized server from which you download, torrented files are shared among many other BitTorrent users. Popular files can easily be shared among hundreds of users in this way.

When you 'download” (which is something of a misnomer when it comes to torrenting) a file using the BitTorrent protocol, what you are actually doing is sharing small pieces of it with everyone else who is downloading that same file.

A file is 'downloaded” once you have all the pieces needed to reassemble that file. It is considered good form to 'seed” (continue sharing) the file for a while after it has been downloaded, in order to help others reach 100% completion.

Why use a Client?

Although still very popular, BitTorrent use has declined somewhat in recent years. This is in part thanks to the wealth of legal streaming options available from providers such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, hulu, and many more. The popularity of illegal options, such as Kodi and streaming websites, is also a factor. For top tips and the best VPN for Streaming, take a look at the guides below:

The more traditional method of downloading using a BitTorrent client, however, continues to offer some major advantages:

• BitTorrent content is downloaded locally, so it is available forever and can be easily physically transferred between devices.
• Literally, any kind of digital content can be download – not just video content. This includes software, images, eBook, games, and… you name it!
• But when it does come to video content, the quality is often considerably higher than streamed content. This is because there is no need to keep file sizes down to avoid buffering issues, since content is played locally.
• BitTorrent is a very efficient and resource-light way to share and promote your own content with others.

Many Linux distros find torrent links are the best way to distribute their software without having to host it on costly servers.

Use a VPN when torrenting

BitTorrent content is shared among multiple home computers. This is not good for privacy because sharing files with a bunch of other random 'downloaders” on the internet is hardly private.

Using the right software (which includes many popular BitTorrent clients), it is very easy to see the unique Internet Protocol (IP) addresses of every other person also sharing ('downloading”) the same file.

As demonstrated in Vuze above, I can see the IP addresses of every other person who is downloading the same files as me.

Is torrenting legal?

Yes, torrenting is entirely legal, while the content you share might not be. Torrenting is just a protocol that allows you to share things peer-to-peer. Since laws differ around the world, it's difficult to say what is legal and what isn't, although sharing copyrighted material without the express permission of the owner almost always errs on the side of illegal.

It's pretty easy to catch those that torrent illegally shared content, because the nature of torrenting means your IP address is on show to anyone else sharing the file. All the copyright holder, or a third party representing them, would need to do is notify your internet service provider (ISP) to take legal action against you.

This is why it is important to use a VPN to protect yourself online.

Why should I use a VPN when torrenting?

A VPN will protect you while downloading because:

• A VPN will hide your IP address from other downloaders. As mentioned in the previous section, torrenting puts your IP address on display for others that are sharing the file. Connecting to a VPN server masks your IP address to protect your privacy.
• A VPN encrypts all internet traffic between your computer and the VPN server. This means that your ISP cannot see what you've been getting up to online. Of course, deep packet inspection will reveal that you have been downloading, but they will be none the wiser as to what.

VPNs with robust logging policies will have nothing to hand over to the authorities, no matter what pressure they may come under. A VPN will also unblock websites if they are censored for any reason.

So as long as P2P is permitted, a VPN is very effective at protecting your privacy while downloading.

For a more in-depth look at how VPNs work, please check out VPNs for Beginners – What You Need to Know. For a more in-depth guide to using a VPN while torrenting, check out Best VPN for Torrenting guide.

BitTorrent protocol encryption

Some BitTorrent clients support BitTorrent protocol encryption. These include Transmission, qBitTorrent, and Vuze. It is a feature designed to hide the fact that you are torrenting from your Internet Service Provider (ISP).

VPNs also do this, as well as hiding your real IP address from other torrent users and anyone else watching on the internet. Furthermore:

Analysis of the BitTorrent protocol encryption has shown that statistical measurements of packet sizes and packet directions of the first 100 packets in a TCP session can be used to identify the obfuscated protocol with over 96% accuracy.

This means that even the most basic Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) techniques can determine that you are using BitTorrent. Now, it is true that DPI can also easily detect VPN use (unless obfuscated), but while there are many legitimate reasons to use a VPN, there is only one reason to use BitTorrent protocol encryption…

Using BitTorrent protocol encryption is therefore probably better than using nothing at all, but using a VPN provides much better protection while downloading.

How do I use a BitTorrent client?

One reason for the popularity of online streaming services (including via the use of Kodi boxes) is the perception that torrenting is a geeky pastime that requires technical know-how. In reality, however, torrenting is very easy:

1. Download and install a BitTorrent client from the list above.
2. (Optional but strongly recommended) Ensure you have a VPN running. This will bypass censorship of torrent sites, hide your IP from others you fileshare with, and hide your downloads from your ISP. Check out our VPN for Torrents guide for a list of recommended services.
3. Visit a BitTorrent website. These websites host links to torrent files. You can browse for content that interests you, or search for something specific. Many websites include user-reviews of torrents, which can help you pick good torrents.
4. When you have found the content you want, simply click on the torrent link or magnet link. The torrent will open in your BitTorrent client and begin downloading.
5. When the download is 100% completed, enjoy! Some BitTorrent clients have media-players built-in, but VLC will play pretty much any media file you can throw at it.

Seeding

BitTorrent is a decentralized file-sharing platform. In order for it to work, users share files with other users. This happens while you download a file, but it is considered good form to leave your BitTorrent client open after you have finished downloading a file in order to benefit other users.

This is called seeding, and it is considered good netiquette to seed to a ratio of at least 1:1 (i.e. upload the same amount of data you downloaded). Most BitTorrent clients will display the seed ratio of downloaded files.

Other Stuff

You don’t need to know much more about torrenting than the information provided above. If you ever wish to explore the subject further, however, this glossary is a good introduction to the jargon used.

Movie torrents, in particular, have a great deal of jargon associated with them. To make informed decisions about the content you plan to download, it is useful to familiarize yourself with it.

One thing to watch out for on public torrent sites is sponsored links. These are often prominently displayed and are deliberately designed to confuse. They typically point to either commercial direct download sites or Usenet services. Look for a link that specifically says 'Torrent” or 'Magnet Link.”

Find the best torrent sites

Findinf the best torrent sites can be quite difficult these days due to the blocks ISPs imposes on these websites. However, check out our best torrent sites article for a list of our favorite in 2021.

Conclusion

If anything, the torrenting crowd is over-served by great BitTorrent clients! Indeed, this top five list hardly even scrapes the surface of the many that are available. The fact that most of them are free and open source software (FOSS) warms the cockles of my heart!

With such a wealth of options available, I’m sure many of you will have a favorite that is not listed here. If so, do please write in to tell me and other readers why you think it is so great!

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