Why is CyberGhost Slow When Torrenting?

CyberGhost can slow down torrenting because your traffic has to be encrypted and routed through a VPN server before reaching other peers. Some speed loss is normal, but if your downloads become dramatically slower, the VPN itself might not be the problem.

Start with the CyberGhost server you're using. A distant or busy server can reduce your speeds, so try connecting to a nearby server or switching to another one. Your VPN protocol can also make a difference. If CyberGhost supports WireGuard on your device, it's worth testing it against the other available protocols.

Before blaming CyberGhost, check the torrent itself too. Torrent speeds depend heavily on the number and quality of seeders and peers. A poorly seeded torrent can be slow regardless of how fast your VPN connection is.

When I tested CyberGhost with qBittorrent, I used the official Ubuntu torrent so I could test it with a healthy, well-seeded download. Connected from the UK to a CyberGhost torrenting server in Germany, I reached around 14.1 MiB/s. Without CyberGhost, the same torrent reached around 13.1 MiB/s.

In other words, CyberGhost wasn't slower at all in my test.

I did discover another problem, though. With qBittorrent set to "Any interface", my torrent IP leak test detected both the CyberGhost IP and my real IPv4 address. After binding qBittorrent directly to the CyberGhost WireGuard interface, only the VPN IP was detected.

You can see exactly what happened in my CyberGhost and qBittorrent IP leak test.

If CyberGhost is slow for you, try another nearby server, switch VPN protocols, check your torrent client's speed limits and test a torrent with plenty of seeders. Change one thing at a time and compare the results.

A little speed loss with a VPN is normal. A huge drop isn't something you should automatically accept. Based on my own test, CyberGhost itself isn't necessarily the bottleneck, so it's worth checking the server, torrent and your qBittorrent configuration before blaming the VPN.

If you're still deciding whether CyberGhost is a good choice for P2P in general, you can also read my full CyberGhost torrenting review.