Who We Are
ShieldPick is an independent VPN review site built for UK users. We're based in London and we test every VPN ourselves — from a UK connection, on UK networks, for UK use cases like BBC iPlayer, Channel 4, and general privacy.
We are not owned by, sponsored by, or affiliated with any VPN company. No VPN provider has editorial input into our reviews or rankings. Our recommendations are based entirely on our testing results and analysis.
Our Mission
The VPN market is full of paid rankings and misleading "reviews" that are just ads in disguise. We started ShieldPick because we wanted something better: genuinely useful, trustworthy VPN advice for people in the UK.
Every review on this site reflects real-world testing. We don't copy specs from marketing pages — we run the VPN, measure the speeds, test the streaming, and read the privacy policy.
How We Test
Our review methodology covers 18 criteria across four categories:
- Speed & Performance: Download/upload speeds, latency, and consistency tested from UK servers using standardised benchmarks.
- Streaming & Unblocking: We test access to BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, Channel 4, Netflix UK, Disney+, and other popular services.
- Privacy & Security: We review logging policies, jurisdiction, encryption standards, kill switches, DNS leak protection, and audit history.
- Value for Money: Pricing, refund policies, simultaneous connections, and overall feature set relative to cost.
Each VPN receives a score out of 10, weighted across these categories. Scores are updated when we re-test (typically every 3–6 months or after major updates).
Editorial Independence
ShieldPick earns revenue through affiliate commissions. When you click a link to a VPN provider and sign up, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. This is how we fund our testing and keep the site free.
Crucially: affiliate relationships never influence our rankings or scores. We have given low scores to VPNs with generous affiliate programmes, and high scores to VPNs with small ones. If a VPN isn't good enough, we'll say so — regardless of what it pays.
For full details, see our Affiliate Disclosure.
UK Focus
Most VPN review sites test from the US and treat UK users as an afterthought. We do the opposite:
- All speed tests run from UK connections
- Streaming tests focus on UK services first
- We consider UK-specific privacy laws (Investigatory Powers Act, UK GDPR)
- Pricing is shown in GBP
Contact
Have a question, correction, or suggestion? We'd love to hear from you. Reach us at [email protected] or visit our contact page.