OpenVPN Connect, the “official” OpenVPN Inc. app is designed to be more user friendly for VPN users with little technical understanding. It’s not as feature-rich openvpn for Android, which is geared toward more advanced OpenVPN users.
Openvpn for Android, a openvpnandroid.com/nordvpn-vs-ipvanish-vs-expressvpn-vs-openvpn/ free open-source client developed by Arne Schwarzbe, enables you to connect with any VPN service that uses the OpenVPN protocol. It’s a great option for devices that aren’t compatible with pre-configured “off the shelf” VPN apps that are available in the Google Play Store. The setup is fairly simple. It is as simple as importing your VPN profile files (the configuration files have an extension of.ovpn) which you can obtain from the website of your provider or by calling their live chat support team.
After you’ve transferred your profile to the app, tap on the server to connect. Once connected it will ensure that all Internet traffic is sent through an encrypted tunnel and then directed to the server chosen by the application. The Status tab lets you see your connection’s details as well as the status. A kill switch is enabled by default and will block your Internet connections when the VPN tunnel drops.
The application provides a per-app VPN as and an option to be always on that automatically creates an VPN connection each time the app is opened, and it will continue running after your device has gone to sleep or switched networks. However, this feature requires Android 7.0 or higher and could drain your battery more than usual.