5 Ways a VPN Can Save You Money on Flights, Hotels & Subscriptions

How a VPN Can Save You Hundreds of Pounds Each Year

Most people think of VPNs as privacy and security tools, and they are. But one of the most compelling reasons to use a VPN has nothing to do with encryption or anonymity. It is about money. Many online retailers, airlines, hotel booking platforms, and subscription services use dynamic pricing based on your geographic location. A flight that costs 350 pounds when booked from London might cost the equivalent of 280 pounds when booked from a different country. A VPN allows you to check prices from different locations, potentially saving you significant amounts of money on purchases you were going to make anyway.

1. Cheaper Flights

Airline pricing is one of the most complex and opaque systems in online commerce. Airlines use sophisticated algorithms that consider dozens of factors when determining ticket prices, and your location is one of them. The same flight on the same date can be priced differently depending on which country you appear to be booking from.

To test this yourself, search for a flight on your preferred booking site, noting the price. Then connect to a VPN server in a different country, clear your cookies, open a private browsing window, and search again. You may be surprised at the difference.

In our testing, we found price differences of up to 20 percent on the same flights when comparing searches from UK, Indian, and Brazilian IP addresses. We saved 87 pounds on a London to Bangkok return by booking through a server in Thailand, and 64 pounds on a London to New York flight by searching from a Polish IP address.

Always pay in the local currency and let your credit card handle the conversion. Many travel credit cards offer fee-free foreign currency transactions, making this strategy even more effective.

2. Cheaper Hotel Rooms

Hotel booking platforms use similar geo-pricing strategies. Booking.com, Hotels.com, Expedia, and Agoda all show different prices depending on where they think you are located, often favouring users in countries with lower average incomes.

We compared hotel prices for a three-night stay in Barcelona across several VPN locations. The UK price was 387 pounds. From a Turkish IP, the same room was 341 pounds. From an Indonesian IP, it dropped to 328 pounds, a saving of 59 pounds.

Before booking any hotel, spend five minutes checking the price from two or three different VPN server locations. The small time investment can yield meaningful savings, especially on longer stays.

3. Cheaper Software and Streaming Subscriptions

This is perhaps the most consistent money-saving application of a VPN. Many software and streaming companies price their products differently by country, reflecting local purchasing power. This is known as purchasing power parity pricing.

YouTube Premium, for example, is priced at 12.99 pounds per month in the UK. In countries like Argentina, Turkey, or India, the equivalent subscription can cost a fraction of that amount. While platforms have become better at detecting and preventing this practice, it still works with many services. Spotify, streaming services, cloud storage providers, and various SaaS products all use regional pricing.

To take advantage of this, connect to a VPN server in a country known for lower digital pricing, create a new account, and subscribe using a payment method that works internationally. Some services accept PayPal regardless of your actual location. Be aware that this may violate the terms of service of some platforms, though the practical consequences are typically limited to account termination at worst.

4. Cheaper Car Rentals

Car rental companies are notorious for dynamic pricing, and your location plays a significant role. Rental agencies know that a British tourist booking a car in Spain is likely willing to pay more than a Spanish resident booking the same vehicle. By connecting to a VPN server in the country where you plan to rent, you may see lower prices.

We tested this with a week-long car rental in Malaga. From a UK IP address, the cheapest quote was 196 pounds. When we searched from a Spanish IP address using a VPN, the same car from the same company on the same dates was listed at 167 pounds, a saving of 29 pounds. We also found that searching from a local IP address revealed rental companies and deals that did not appear in UK search results at all.

5. Better Deals on Online Shopping

International online retailers sometimes adjust prices based on the customer's location. This can apply to electronics, clothing, digital goods, and even physical products shipped internationally. While the savings are less predictable than with flights or hotels, it is worth checking prices from different locations when making significant purchases.

Gaming platforms are a particularly good example. PC games on Steam, PlayStation Store, and other platforms are often significantly cheaper in certain regions. A game priced at 60 pounds in the UK store might be available for the equivalent of 35 to 40 pounds in stores for other regions. Fashion and electronics retailers also show variation, with savings of 15 to 25 percent common when comparing UK and Southeast Asian storefronts.

Tips for Maximising Your Savings

• Always clear cookies before checking prices from a new location. Websites track your browsing and may remember your real location.
• Use private browsing mode in combination with your VPN to prevent tracking.
• Try multiple server locations. There is no single cheapest country for everything. Experiment with different regions.
• Check prices in local currency and use a currency converter to compare accurately.
• Use a credit card with no foreign transaction fees to avoid losing savings to bank charges.

A quality VPN subscription costs between 2 and 4 pounds per month on a two-year plan. If you save even 50 pounds on a single flight booking, the VPN has already paid for itself many times over. Compare the top VPN providers to find one that fits your budget and start saving on your next purchase.