Does Mullvad work in Russia?

As of Jul 22, 2026, Mullvad is partially working in Russia.

Status: degraded
Confidence: medium
Last verified: Jul 22, 2026
Method: Default WireGuard blocked; vendor guidance for Russia is QUIC or Shadowsocks obfuscation to European servers, with Shadowsocks hit-or-miss by ISP; OpenVPN fallback removed entirely Jan 2026; iOS app pulled from the Russian App Store so iOS is effectively unusable without a foreign Apple ID

Working alternatives in Russia

No VPN is currently verified as working in Russia. We would rather say that than guess. Check back after the next weekly verification pass.

Set on Mullvad? It is partially working in Russia right now. Check the method notes above before you buy. Get Mullvad

What we're seeing

Mullvad's own guidance says Roskomnadzor is blocking most of its servers and recommends QUIC or Shadowsocks obfuscation to European servers; the iOS app is gone from the Russian App Store. OONI shows about 50 anomalies per day against mullvad.net through June and July 2026, with confirmed blocks peaking July 20-21. A guide updated February 28, 2026 still recommended Mullvad for Russia on the strength of its QUIC disguise, and ntc.party threads describe recovering access after recent blocking, so the obfuscated path appears alive.

Sources for the above:

vendor (Jul 22, 2026): Live vendor guidance: The Roskomnadzor in Russia is blocking most Mullvad servers; recommends QUIC or Shadowsocks to European servers; iOS app removed from Russian App Store; admission against interest, credible for the degraded half
user_report (Jul 22, 2026): OONI Jun 1 to Jul 21 2026: about 50 anomalies/day vs 13 ok/day for mullvad.net; confirmed blocks peaked at 16/day on Jul 20-21; website not tunnel but proves active current targeting
forum (Jul 22, 2026): ntc.party threads (snippet-observed, forum DNS-unreachable): recovering Mullvad access after its recent blocking via tunneling through a nearby country; mullvad.net listed under SNI plus IP blocking on Russian Cloudflare nodes; corroboration
news (Jul 22, 2026): Background (updated Feb 28 2026): guide still recommends Mullvad for Russia on the strength of its QUIC disguise; independent corroboration that obfuscated connections were getting through earlier in 2026

Latest reports for Mullvad here:

Working · 47d ago

Common questions

Is using a VPN legal in Russia?

Personal use is not banned, but a law passed in July 2025 fines advertising VPNs up to 500,000 rubles and treats VPN use as an aggravating factor in other offenses. The state also blocks VPN services that refuse to censor.

Which VPNs still work in Russia?

As of July 2026, none is verified fully working. Mullvad documents a partial path with QUIC or Shadowsocks, and Proton says Stealth connects for many, though forum reports say it is targeted. Seven of the ten we track are blocked.

Can I pay for a VPN from Russia?

It is hard. Visa and Mastercard stopped working for foreign payments in 2022, and several providers limit Russian accounts. Where a provider accepts them, vouchers or cryptocurrency are the practical routes.