What is VPN Split Tunneling?

Split tunneling is a VPN feature that lets you route some of your internet traffic through the VPN while allowing other traffic to go directly through your normal connection, giving you control over what gets encrypted and what doesn't.

Split tunneling is a VPN feature that divides your internet traffic into two paths: one that routes through the encrypted VPN tunnel, and one that goes directly through your regular internet connection. This lets you protect sensitive activity while keeping other traffic — like local streaming or banking apps that block VPN IPs — outside the tunnel.

Think of it as a divider that lets you use a VPN selectively, rather than applying it to everything.

How Split Tunneling Works

Without split tunneling, all traffic on your device travels through the VPN. With split tunneling enabled, you get granular control:

• App-based split tunneling — Specific apps use the VPN; others connect normally
• URL/domain-based split tunneling — Specific websites go through the VPN; others bypass it
• Inverse split tunneling — Everything goes through the VPN except apps or sites you exclude

Common Use Cases

• Streaming — Access Netflix US through the VPN while simultaneously accessing your local bank (which may block VPN IPs) without the VPN
• Gaming — Keep gaming traffic outside the VPN to reduce latency, while browsing through the VPN
• Work + personal — Route work applications through the VPN while personal browsing goes direct
• Local device access — Some split tunneling setups allow you to reach printers and local network devices that would otherwise be unreachable through the VPN

Split Tunneling and Speed

Routing all traffic through a VPN can slow your connection — encryption takes computing resources, and traffic has further to travel. Split tunneling lets you apply the VPN only where needed, which can significantly improve overall performance for non-sensitive tasks.

Security Considerations

Split tunneling does reduce your protection by design. Traffic that bypasses the VPN is visible to your ISP and subject to bandwidth throttling. Your real IP address is exposed for any connections outside the tunnel. If DNS leak protection isn't configured carefully, split traffic can also reveal DNS queries.

Which VPNs Support Split Tunneling?

ExpressVPN, NordVPN, and Surfshark all support split tunneling on Windows and Android. iOS support is limited by Apple's platform-level restrictions — full split tunneling is not possible on iOS due to how Apple handles network extensions. ProtonVPN also offers split tunneling on Android and Windows.