How to Turn Off VPN on Any Device: A Step-by-Step Guide

How to Turn Off VPN on Different Devices and Operating Systems?

One of the easiest ways to disable your VPN is if you’re using a third-party app. There’s usually at least two ways you can use to turn off your VPN:

1. Exit the VPN app. Most third-party services have a dedicated VPN app that has to run in the background for the connection to work. If you quit the application, in most cases, it won’t restart by itself and it’ll forcefully close the connection.
2. Disable the connection within the application. Every VPN app will have a dedicated on/off button available at least somewhere within the application itself. All you have to do is trigger the slider or button to disable your connection.

If you want to disable a VPN that’s integrated into your operating system, the steps will be slightly more complicated.

How to Turn Off Your VPN on Windows

Some organizations will establish a VPN connection on the operating system level. If you’re allowed to disable your VPN (or if you added one through OS settings yourself), for Windows you’ll need to:

1. Open “Settings”. You can do so by pressing the “Windows” button on your keyboard or opening up the search menu at the bottom left of your screen and typing in “Settings”.
2. Click on “Network and Internet”.
3. Click on “VPN” at the left-hand side of the screen.
4. Remove the VPN connection or disable the sliders.

After completing these steps, check your VPN status on a website like What is My IP Address. If you see your regular IP address and location, the VPN service has been disabled.

How to Disable Your VPN on macOS

To disable a VPN on macOS, you’ll follow steps that are fairly similar to the ones listed for the Windows operating system.

1. Start by opening up the Apple menu in the top-left corner. Click on “System Settings”. On older systems it may be called “System Preferences”.
2. Click on “Network”. If your menu was called “System Preferences”, you’ll find the “Network” selection under “Internet & Wireless”
3. Find the VPN connection network interface. It should be located in the left-hand column.
4. Click on “Disconnect” or, if it’s a switch, toggle it off.

Once again, you should verify that you’ve successfully disabled the VPN software by visiting a website that can showcase your IP address.

How to Disable Your VPN on Android

Android devices are nearly identical to Windows when you want to disable a VPN. In fact, even most of the settings are named the same:

1. Click on “Settings” by finding the icon or by searching.
2. Select “Network and Internet”
3. Tap the “VPN” button to turn it off.

Disabling a VPN on Android is likely the simplest out of all operating systems.

How to Disable VPN on iPhone/iPad

iOS devices mostly follow the same procedure, even if the devices are quite different. The steps outlined below will work for most iPhones and iPads:

1. Find the “Settings” app on your screen or through search.
2. Scroll down to find the “General” tab and click on “VPN & Device Management”. On older devices it may be labeled “VPN”.
3. Toggle the switch to disable the VPN client.

How to Disable a VPN on Smart TVs and Gaming Consoles

There’s almost infinitely many different types and brands of smart TVs, so the steps should be seen more as guidelines than an exact guide. Regardless, most smart TVs will have some VPN settings available:

1. Find and open the smart TV “Settings” app.
2. Look for a “Network” or “Internet” section and open it up. There may be something akin to “VPN Settings” in some rare cases as well.
3. There could be many different VPN settings available, however, all you need to do is turn it off through a slider or clicking a button.

For gaming consoles, the steps will be nearly identical to those of smart TVs. Finally, a VPN server can also be set up on your router.

How to Disable a VPN on a Router

Again, there are numerous different types of routers available on the market. All of them will have a VPN settings section, so you’ll need to follow these steps:

1. Log in to your router. Try visiting 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1 through your browser. You will need to enter a username and password. You can find these in the manual or on a sticker on the router itself.
2. Navigate to the VPN settings. They could be visible instantly or hidden under some networking settings. For example, Linksys routers have VPNs hidden under “Connectivity” and “Internet Settings” wherein the IPv4 address will be the one of a VPN server. ASUS routers, on the other hand, have a direct “VPN Server” tab.
3. Delete the login credentials or disable the VPN.

Disabling a VPN on your router is only necessary if one is installed. If there is one, however, no matter how much you tinker with VPN settings on your device, the VPN will still be running. So, if you want to turn off a VPN for sure, always check if there isn’t one on your router.

How to Automatically Turn Off a VPN?

If it’s installed directly into your OS or router, you’ll have to perform most actions manually. Apps, however, usually have additional features that let you customize when you turn off a VPN.

Two main features come into play – scheduling and split tunneling. The former is exactly what it sounds like, you can set a duration for how long (or until) the VPN will be enabled. Once that time elapses, the VPN connection will be disabled automatically.

Split tunneling is a feature that allows you to turn off a VPN for specific websites or applications. Not all VPN providers do have that feature, but for those that have it, you can easily make use of it to only enable a VPN connection on specific websites.