As the number of online streaming platforms continues to grow, so does the popularity of torrenting.
However, it’s crucial to utilize only the best and safest torrent sites available.
Navigating the vast landscape of torrent sites can be challenging, as many are plagued with low-quality files, intrusive pop-up ads, and viruses.
That’s where I come in.
As an avid user of peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing, I maintain an up-to-date list of the best torrent sites to ensure a secure and reliable experience.
To help you avoid potential risks and find trustworthy sites that still work, I’m sharing my curated list with you!
Please keep in mind that although torrenting has legitimate applications, it’s also frequently used to unlawfully distribute copyrighted material.
I do not support or condone any illegal activities associated with torrenting.
Nonetheless, cybersecurity and privacy concerns remain the same regardless of your torrenting intentions.
Thus, if you decide to torrent, do so responsibly and safely.
An essential tool for maintaining safety while torrenting is a VPN.
Don’t forget to explore our guide on the Best VPNs for Torrenting to further enhance your security and privacy.
Quick Overview of the Best Torrent Sites
In a rush? Here’s a sneak-peek at the best torrent sites that still work:
- 1337x – Best All-Round Torrent Site
- The Pirate Bay – Largest and Oldest Library
- TorLock – Verified Torrents Only
- EXT.to – Fast-Growing Magnet Index
- LimeTorrents – Big Library With Health Ratings
- TorrentDownloads – Best for Obscure Software
- Knaben – Searches Many Sites at Once
- EZTV – Best for TV Shows
- BitSearch – Clean Meta-Search (Formerly SolidTorrents)
- Nyaa.si – Best for Anime
- RuTracker – Huge Archive for Rare Releases
- FitGirl Repacks – Best for Games
- TorrentFunk – Shows Verified Uploads
- Torrends.to – Simple Torrent Search Engine
- YTS – Small Movie Files (With a Privacy Catch)
Looking for RARBG, Torrentz2, Zooqle, ETTV or TorrentGalaxy? All five have shut down – see Torrent Sites That Have Shut Down before you trust a site using one of those names.
Can’t open one of these sites? Test all 15 from your own connection – our checker shows which are down for everyone and which your internet provider blocks.
I talk about what each torrent site is best for, its official address, where courts have ordered it blocked, and (where appropriate) things to watch out for.
What Constitutes a Good Torrent Site?
When curating and updating this list, I consider the essential attributes that make a torrent site exceptional.
Of course, the site must be functional to qualify as a good torrent site, let alone one of the best.
However, there are several other factors to take into account:
- Age (Resilience) – Torrent sites often face government scrutiny due to copyright laws. The longer a site has been operational, the more resilient it is against take-downs.
- Age (Reliability) – Longevity also speaks to a site’s reliability. Sites plagued with malware and viruses tend to lose users quickly. However, don’t assume an older site is immune to issues.
- Proxy/Mirror Links – These links allow access to the site’s content if the main domain is blocked by your government or ISP, making them crucial for users in countries with geo-restrictions.
- Library Size and Variety – A vast and diverse library increases the likelihood of finding the desired content. Niche content seekers may prefer smaller, specialized sites.
- Monthly Traffic – High user traffic over time generally indicates a quality content library.
- Number of Seeders – More seeders improve the sharing process, so the higher the number, the better.
- Download Speeds – Speeds can vary significantly, but faster sites are preferable.
- Security – Although difficult to measure, a site that actively removes malicious files is safer for users.
- Ads and Pop-Ups – Ideally, torrent sites should minimize ads and pop-ups, as they can be irritating, slow connection speeds, and introduce malware.
- Instant Download – The best torrent sites enable instant downloads without additional steps or account creation requirements.
The Best Torrent Sites That Still Work in October 2026
I re-checked every site on this list in September 2026. Four sites from my previous list have closed since I first published it – RARBG, Torrentz2, Zooqle and ETTV – so I replaced them and moved them to their own section along with the clones now trading on their names.
A word on addresses: popular torrent sites attract look-alike domains, and some of the old addresses I used to list now forward to scam pages. Only use the official domain I give for each site, and treat any “mirror” that asks you to install an extension or a special download client as a red flag.
1. 1337x
1337x has been around since 2007, and it’s my first stop today – TorrentFreak ranked it the second most visited torrent site in its 2026 list, behind only YTS.
Its library covers every category you can think of – movies, TV, games, software, music and eBooks – and the interface is clean and well organised.
Search results show how many times a torrent was downloaded and how many seeders and leechers it has, and 1337x even shows when its moderators last checked a torrent.
The downside is the advertising. The ads on 1337x are sleazy to the extreme, and some of them lead to malware, so run an ad-blocker such as uBlock Origin (or NordVPN’s Threat Protection) and scan every download with an antivirus.
| Official domain | 1337x.to |
| Best for | Movies, TV, games and software |
| Blocked by court order in | UK, Australia, India, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Denmark, Portugal, Belgium |
2. The Pirate Bay
The Pirate Bay is so well known that its name is practically synonymous with torrenting – and it has been online since 2003, despite raids, lawsuits and its founders’ convictions.
It still has one of the largest libraries of any public site, a simple search box, and magnet links by default, which start downloads without a .torrent file. It reopened new-member sign-ups in June 2023 after four years.
Anyone can upload, though, so stick to uploaders with a VIP or trusted badge and read the comments before you download.
Be careful with addresses: The Pirate Bay has spawned more proxies and clones than any other site, and the proxy address I used to list now forwards to an unrelated domain. The official site is thepiratebay.org.
| Official domain | thepiratebay.org |
| Best for | Huge library, older releases |
| Blocked by court order in | UK (since 2012), Australia, India, Italy, Spain, France, Netherlands, Denmark, Portugal, Belgium |
3. TorLock
TorLock is an excellent choice if you’re new to P2P file-sharing, because it only lists verified torrents.
Its moderators check uploads, and TorLock has long offered to pay users who report a fake torrent so it can be removed – a policy few sites match.
The library isn’t as large as 1337x’s or The Pirate Bay’s, but you’ll still find material the bigger sites lack. Expect some pornographic and disturbing ads, so keep an ad-blocker switched on.
TorLock has been around since 2010 and still answers at its original address.
| Official domain | torlock.com |
| Best for | Beginners who want verified torrents |
| Blocked by court order in | UK (since 2014), Australia, Denmark |
4. EXT.to
EXT.to is the biggest newcomer on this list – it entered TorrentFreak’s top 10 for the first time in 2026, in sixth place.
It has been around since at least 2019, but it grew quickly after TorrentGalaxy disappeared in 2025 and many of that site’s users moved over.
EXT.to only serves magnet links, so there’s no .torrent file to download first. Search results are fast and show seeders, leechers and file sizes at a glance.
Because the site is newer and less moderated than 1337x or TorLock, check the uploader and the comments before you open anything.
| Official domain | ext.to |
| Best for | Recent releases, magnet links |
| Blocked by court order in | No blocks found in the lists I checked |
5. LimeTorrents
LimeTorrents launched in 2009 and is still one of the largest public torrent sites – eighth in TorrentFreak’s 2026 ranking.
Search results show when a torrent was uploaded, its size and a “Health” score based on the seeder-to-leecher ratio, which makes it easy to skip dead downloads.
Two cautions. Older torrents are often poorly seeded, so downloads can crawl, and only some files are verified – I have run into fake links here before.
Important: LimeTorrents’ old .pro address, which this page used to link to, now forwards visitors to a scam “survey” page. The working domain is now limetorrents.fun: the limetorrents.lol address in TorrentFreak’s 2026 ranking forwards there.
| Official domain | limetorrents.fun |
| Best for | Large library with health ratings |
| Blocked by court order in | UK (since 2014), Netherlands, Denmark |
6. TorrentDownloads
TorrentDownloads is my pick for obscure software, though it also carries plenty of movies, series and eBooks.
The site has been up since 2007 and has a clean layout with an advanced search that filters by category, status and content. Results show each torrent’s seeders and health, so it’s easy to find downloads that will actually finish.
The downside is annoying and potentially malicious pop-ups, so keep uBlock Origin or NordVPN’s Threat Protection switched on while you browse.
| Official domain | torrentdownloads.pro |
| Best for | Obscure software, older files |
| Blocked by court order in | UK (since 2013), Denmark |
7. Knaben
Knaben isn’t a torrent site so much as a search engine for them – it queries many public sites at once and shows the results on one page.
That makes it a real time-saver now that Torrentz2, the search engine I used to recommend, is gone. Results list the source site, size, seeders and upload date, so you can go straight to the best-seeded copy.
Knaben says it has been running since 2016. It has moved between domains after takedowns, so use knaben.org and be wary of other extensions.
| Official domain | knaben.org |
| Best for | Searching many sites at once |
| Blocked by court order in | Denmark (older knaben.ru and .xyz domains) |
8. EZTV
EZTV is a niche torrent site for one thing: TV shows. It has a huge selection of series, from obscure older shows to new episodes, and a schedule of upcoming releases.
Know its history, though. The original EZTV group shut down in May 2015 after a hostile takeover, and the site operating as EZTV today is run by the people who took over the brand. It’s still seventh in TorrentFreak’s 2026 ranking.
There’s no option to download a full season in one go, so you’ll grab episodes one by one, and ads have crept in over the years.
| Official domain | eztvx.to |
| Best for | TV episodes |
| Blocked by court order in | UK (since 2013), Australia, Netherlands, Denmark |
9. BitSearch (Formerly SolidTorrents)
BitSearch is the torrent meta-search engine that used to be called SolidTorrents – the old solidtorrents.to and .net addresses now forward to it.
It indexes files hosted on other sites and puts effort into showing torrents from credible sources, with seeders, size and date on every result.
The design is plain, but it’s quick, and it’s a good second search engine to pair with Knaben. As with any meta-search engine, BitSearch can’t vouch for the files it indexes, so scan every download.
| Official domain | bitsearch.eu |
| Best for | Clean, fast meta-search |
| Blocked by court order in | No blocks found in the lists I checked |
10. Nyaa.si
If you’re a fan of anime, Nyaa.si is the place to go. It started in 2017 as a replacement for the original Nyaa platform and is now the third most visited torrent site in TorrentFreak’s 2026 list.
The focus is anime, manga, Asian dramas and Japanese music, and the listings make it easy to see whether you’re getting a whole season or a single episode, plus which fan group made the subtitles.
About half its visitors come from Japan, so expect the busiest swarms during Japanese evening hours.
| Official domain | nyaa.si |
| Best for | Anime and Asian media |
| Blocked by court order in | Australia (2018), India (2020) |
11. RuTracker
RuTracker is one of the largest torrent archives in the world – it has been running since 2004 and had 13.9 million registered users and more than 30 million visits in February 2025.
The interface is in Russian, but the archive is unmatched for rare films, old TV, lossless music and software that has long since disappeared from other sites.
Ironically, RuTracker has been blocked in Russia itself since January 2016.
| Official domain | rutracker.org |
| Best for | Rare releases and lossless music |
| Blocked by court order in | Russia, Australia, India, Italy, Denmark |
12. FitGirl Repacks
FitGirl Repacks is the name gamers look for – fifth in TorrentFreak’s 2026 ranking. It’s not a general torrent index: it publishes compressed “repacks” of PC games that are much smaller to download than the originals.
The trade-off is installation time, because a repack has to be decompressed on your PC, which can take a long time for big games.
Popular names attract impostors, so be careful with look-alike domains and never run an installer that arrives from anywhere else.
| Official domain | Check the name carefully – look-alike domains are common |
| Best for | PC games |
| Blocked in | Germany (ISP blocklist, June 2025) |
13. TorrentFunk
TorrentFunk is an aggregator that has been around since 2011: it pulls torrents from other sites and lists them on its own pages.
The good news is that TorrentFunk shows when the original site’s moderators have verified a torrent, together with its upload date, seeders and uploader.
Because it only aggregates, you’re less likely to find obscure content here – for that, start with a search engine such as Knaben.
| Official domain | torrentfunk.com |
| Best for | Browsing verified uploads |
| Blocked by court order in | UK (since 2014), Denmark |
14. Torrends.to
Torrends.to is a simple torrent search engine that finds direct and magnet links on other sites, including several on this list.
Results show the uploader, upload date, file size, link health and current seeders, which makes it easy to stick to uploaders you trust.
It’s less established than Knaben and shows more ads, so I keep it as a backup search engine.
| Official domain | torrends.to |
| Best for | Backup torrent search |
| Blocked by court order in | Denmark |
15. YTS (Yify Movies)
YTS (formerly known as Yify Movies) is the most visited torrent site of 2026, according to TorrentFreak, and it’s still the go-to for small, good-quality movie files. The interface feels familiar to anyone who has used Netflix.
So why is it last on my list? Privacy. According to TorrentFreak, the YTS operator handed users’ email addresses, IP addresses and download records to film-company lawyers in 2020.
Its address has also been unstable: the long-running yts.mx domain stopped working in November 2025, TorrentFreak has since reported yts.bz as its home, and the site went down for more than two days in May 2026.
Be careful with yts.gg. When we checked on 29 September 2026, yts.bz forwarded visitors there, but TorrentFreak hasn’t reported the move and security scanners flag the domain.
Never register an account with a real email address, and don’t let the site see your real IP.
| Official domain | yts.bz (TorrentFreak, May 2026); it now forwards to the unconfirmed yts.gg |
| Best for | Small movie files |
| Blocked by court order in | UK (since 2013), Australia, Netherlands, Denmark |
Torrent Sites That Have Shut Down
These sites were once household names, and people still search for them every day. None of them is coming back, and the sites now using their names are knock-offs at best and malware traps at worst.
RARBG (Closed May 2023)
RARBG topped my list for years thanks to its verified uploads and clean interface. It shut down on 31 May 2023, and its team said at the time that there are no official mirrors – every site calling itself RARBG today, including the RARGB and TheRARBG look-alikes, has nothing to do with the original. For verified uploads, use 1337x or TorLock instead.
Torrentz2 (Offline Since 2020)
Torrentz2 was the unofficial revival of Torrentz, the search engine that closed in August 2016. Its .eu domain was suspended in June 2020 on a Belgian prosecutor’s order, and the .is domain has shown an error since November 2020. The domains that still carry the name are parked or unofficial. Knaben and BitSearch do the same job today.
Zooqle (Offline)
Zooqle dropped out of TorrentFreak’s top 10 in early 2022 and no longer loads. It was a popular Pirate Bay alternative with a big movie and TV library – The Pirate Bay itself and 1337x cover the same ground.
ETTV (Closed February 2022)
ETTV, which I used to list as an EZTV alternative, shut down in February 2022 because it ran out of money. Its old domain now runs a script redirect, so don’t visit it. For TV episodes, use EZTV.
TorrentGalaxy (Offline Since 2025)
TorrentGalaxy was sold in the summer of 2024, suffered repeated outages and has been offline since late February 2025. By November 2025 its domain was showing a cryptocurrency promotion. Many of its users moved to EXT.to.
6 Torrent Sites to Avoid
YTS narrowly misses being added to this list, and that’s purely because it’s easy to stay safe from the site operator’s practices.
However, there are some sites better off left alone – even as an absolute last resort:
1. IPTorrents
IPTorrents is a private tracker that makes you create an account and pay before it gives you anything. With no clear advantage in privacy or security, you’re better off with the free options above. It is also blocked in the UK and Australia.
2. PassThePopcorn
PassThePopcorn is an invite-only private tracker, and it’s virtually impossible to join. The “sign-up links” that appear on Reddit are fakes – some are jokes, others are phishing. In December 2025 it was also named in a US lawsuit against six private trackers (TorrentFreak later reported the plaintiff may be an impostor). It’s best not to click on any of those links.
3. SUMOTorrent
SUMOTorrent used to insist you install its own torrent client before showing any torrents – a huge red flag – and the site no longer loads properly. Anything using its name now is not worth the risk.
4. KickAssTorrents
KickAssTorrents would once have been on my list of the best. The original site’s domain was seized on 20 July 2016, and the staff-run revival (katcr.co) has been offline since July 2020 – its address now forwards to a scam page. The sites still using the KickAss name are clones, and fake KickAss sites have been caught pushing malware. Use 1337x instead.
5. Torrent9
Pop-ups are one thing, but redirects are a threat to a whole other ballgame. Torrent9 has no stable home – it’s a network of clones that frequently redirect visitors to adware, spyware and other malware. A Paris court ordered France’s four big providers to block it in April 2025.
6. YourBittorrent
YourBittorrent still loads, but visitors are flooded with pop-ups and pornographic ads as soon as they click anything. It’s far more invasive than any site on my list, which makes me very wary of its advertising partners.
Private Torrent Sites vs. Public Torrent Sites?
Simply put, a public torrent site can be accessed if you know the correct URL.
Private torrent sites, on the other hand, aren’t easily accessed by the public.
They’re usually hosted by people who know each other, even if only online, and grow very selectively.
And the torrent links on private torrent sites are only accessible to members.
If you read through my list of torrent sites to avoid, you’ll have seen me pointing out that PassThePopcorn claims to be a private one.
However, the fact PassThePopcorn is on the “to avoid” list shouldn’t make you think all private torrent sites are untrustworthy! So, what are the pros and cons of each?Pros and Cons of Public Torrent Sites
The PROS to PUBLIC torrent sites are:
- Accessibility – no sign-up necessary!
- Variety – although not always guaranteed, the fact public torrent sites are accessible means more users can contribute to the type of content.
- Instant Downloads – as another extension of the site’s accessibility, you get instant downloads, i.e., no extra steps or sign-up process necessary.
The CONS to PUBLIC torrent sites are:
- Potential for Bad Peers – bad peers on a public torrent site are those who introduce fake torrents with malware.
- Lack of Security – although some torrent sites are attempting to verify all torrents, it’s a difficult process, and especially when a site is already popular with a large content library. Some torrents (if not most) won’t get inspected, and there’s a higher risk of human error if moderators feel the need to rush through verifications.
- Slow Downloads – with public torrent sites, there’s always the risk of slow downloads caused by leechers. While a leecher is technically anyone downloading a torrent file, it’s more often only applied (as in this case) to those who download without contributing to the upload. When this happens, other peers will experience slower downloads.
The PROS to PRIVATE torrent sites are:
- Exclusivity Security – most private torrent sites are started among people who know and trust each other and slowly grow to include others they know and trust. While bad peers sometimes get in, they’re usually very quickly identified, removed, and blacklisted against future inclusion.
- Faster Downloads – bad peers can also include leechers (in the negative sense), and these, too, are regularly removed. To continue enjoying membership, you need to maintain a good seed-to-leech ratio. Some private torrent sites even have a minimum ratio requirement for an invitation to join.
The CONS to PRIVATE torrent sites are:
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Inaccessibility – a tad obvious, but private torrent sites are inaccessible to anyone who isn’t a member or able to become one.
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Lack of Privacy – because private torrent sites rely on a membership model, they have an inherent lack of privacy. Members need to be easily identifiable and will require some means of authenticating that identity when accessing the site. Some sites also require being personally known to at least one other member in good standing or being subjected to an interview. Others will want to see proof of a good upload-to-download ratio. All of this can actually make private torrent sites even more attractive to hackers and other parties interested in stealing private information.
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Payment Walls – this isn’t always the case, but some private torrent sites offer to let interested torrenters buy their way into membership with a “donation” that serves as a membership fee.
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Potential for Fake Invites – with membership being on an invite-only basis, the more a private torrent site is heard about, the more people will want to join. Unfortunately, there are plenty of bad actors out there who are eager to create a phishing link designed to look like an invitation so that they can steal personal data. They might even take it a step further by holding a mock interview (some private torrent sites really do require an interview!) to get more of your personal data. And for private torrent sites that request a membership fee, the temptation is higher to scam eager would-be members out of their money.
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Lack of Variety – this isn’t always the case, but having a more selective membership means it’s going to be smaller… and that means potentially selective tastes and a smaller pool of users adding new torrents to the site’s content library.
Ultimately, it depends on your experience level and preferences.
No matter which type of torrent site you end up using, it’s still your responsibility to be safe.
How to Torrent? A Quick Guide
New to torrents?Don’t worry – all you need to do is follow these simple steps, where I discuss the process in detail.
Here we go!1. Download and Install a Torrent Client (I recommend qBittorrent)
Before you can start torrenting, you need a torrent client.
This is the desktop app that handles things like initiating and managing your uploads and downloads in the P2P network.
uTorrent is one of the most popular options, but I don’t typically recommend using it.
This is because, in 2018, some privacy and security issues with uTorrent were discovered.
Instead, I recommend qBittorrent.
As opposed to BitTorrent, qBittorrent is completely free (no paid premium versions) and isn’t riddled with “optional” downloads that somehow get installed on your PC even when you opt-out.
I also find it much faster and more lightweight than its “premium” counterpart.
Just visit the qBittorrent website, click the “Download” button, and choose the proper installation for your device.
After downloading qBittorrent, remember to scan the installation file with your antivirus software.
If all is clear, open the installation file and follow the on-screen instructions to finish the process!
2. Configuring the Client
Once the torrent client is installed, it’s time to configure it.
This is a subjective step – your config preferences might be different than mine.
For example, you can set qBittorrent to start running when your computer boots up or manually start the client when you want to use it.
You can also set a file destination for your torrent downloads.
But if you’re happy with the default, no need to change it!
However, I do recommend enabling UPnP port mapping as this will help give you the best possible download speeds.
And finally, if you want to set upload and download speed limits to save bandwidth, now’s a great time to do so.
You can always come back and change it later!
3. Download the .Torrent Files
With your torrent client configured, you’re ready to visit one of the best torrent sites from my list above!
Each site works a little differently, but the basic process is the same:
- Find the torrent content you’re looking for;
- Check the swarm health (how many peers are seeding vs. how many are leeching) and other information like file size and content quality;
- Click the download link and confirm.
It’s as simple as that!
Well, not really.
In a little while, I’ll share some essential safety tips to follow while torrenting, so these are just the basics for now.
4. Open the .Torrent Files to Download the Content
Surprise! The .torrent files you download from torrent sites aren’t the actual content.These files simply contain the metadata your torrent client needs to connect to the right peers to download the actual content.
You can think of them as “P2P URLs” if that helps.
When you click on them, they should now open in your torrent client and start downloading the content from seeding peers.
After the download is complete, you’ll find the content in the folder you set when configuring your torrent client.
Depending on the content type and file extension, you’ll need different software to open them – VLC Media Player for video and audio, for example.
I recommend scanning complete downloads with your antivirus before opening them.
What Torrent Site Is the Fastest?
Before I discuss which torrent site was the fastest for me, it’s essential to point out that speeds may vary depending on numerous factors.
For this reason, the speeds I got during my tests might not be the same as the speeds you get during your tests.
Here’s the criteria I used:
| VPN Provider | NordVPN |
| Torrent Client | qBittorrent |
| Speed Without VPN | 203.14 Mbps |
| Speed With VPN | 187.46 Mbps |
| Torrent Size | (+/-) 1GB |
| Seed/Leecher Ratio (Avg) | 75% |
And here are my results (from fastest to slowest). These come from my original test; I have removed the sites that have since closed. In practice, speed depends far more on how many people are seeding a torrent than on the site you found it on.
| Torrent Site | Average Speed | Peak Speed |
| 1337x | 8.9 MB/s | 9.4 MB/s |
| ThePirateBay | 8.7 MB/s | 9.3 MB/s |
| TorLock | 8.4 MB/s | 9.1 MB/s |
| EZTV | 7.6 MB/s | 7.4 MB/s |
| Nyaa.si | 7.6 MB/s | 8.7 MB/s |
| LimeTorrents | 7.5 MB/s | 7.8 MB/s |
| TorrentDownloads | 7.0 MB/s | 8.2 MB/s |
| YTS (Yify Movies) | 7.0 MB/s | 7.5 MB/s |
| TorrentFunk | 6.8 MB/s | 7.4 MB/s |
| Torrends.to | 6.8 MB/s | 7.9 MB/s |
| BitSearch (then SolidTorrents) | 6.6 MB/s | 7.2 MB/s |
How to Be Safe While Torrenting?
You’ve learned the easy way to torrent – now it’s time to learn how to be safe while torrenting!Don’t worry, it’s pretty easy.
And I will discuss everything you need to know!
Let’s jump in!1. Always Use an Antivirus
I’ve mentioned this several times before, but it’s important enough to repeat it: always use an antivirus.
You should be doing so even when you’re not torrenting!
My first recommendation is Malwarebytes.
And while it has a limited free version that lets you manually scan your computer, it’s much better to use the premium version instead.
This way, you get real-time web protection and can set up automatic scans.
And the real-time web protection will help you avoid dodgy sites and will even block malicious (or potentially malicious) ads.
That said, I find using a properly modified Firefox with the uBlock Origin extension works better for getting rid of ads and pop-ups completely.
I recommend checking out this video by Techlore on Hardening Your Browser for better privacy and security:
Manually scan a torrent file by right-clicking it and selecting “Scan with Malwarebytes” before opening it with your torrent client.
And do the same for the final content download too, plus run a Quick Scan just in case.
My second “bonus” recommendation is VirusTotal. This online tool scans your files for free by running them through many popular antivirus programs.
VirusTotal is especially useful if you don’t want to download an actual antivirus program like Malwarebytes (though I still recommend doing so).
2. Always Use a Trustworthy Torrenting VPN
Using a trustworthy torrenting VPN is so important that even some of the best torrent sites warn you to use a VPN while torrenting!
A VPN (or Virtual Private Network) works by encrypting your data to keep it safe from anyone snooping on your traffic, like hackers or the government.
It also stops your ISP from seeing that you’re torrenting, so they can’t block your connection or throttle your bandwidth.
At the same time, a VPN also hides your real IP address by replacing it with the VPN server’s IP.
This is just as important as the encryption part because it stops malicious peers from seeing your real IP address and using it to identify you or launch a DDoS attack.
VPNs don’t just stop your ISP from blocking your connection.If you’re in a country where torrent sites are geo-blocked (like Japan and Australia), connecting to a VPN server in a different country will unblock the sites as well.
For getting past torrent geo-blocks, I usually find that VPN servers in Slovakia or Austria work best.
This is because I’m located in Slovakia.
With NordVPN you don’t have to hunt for special servers: P2P traffic is allowed on every standard server, so pick one in a country as close to you as possible for the best possible speeds.
I recommend NordVPN as a torrenting VPN.If you are interested in using qBittorrent, don’t forget to check our guide on how to set up and use NordVPN with the qBittorrent client.
3. Avoid Fake Torrents
When using even the best torrent sites, it’s crucial to know how to avoid fake torrents and stay safe.
Follow these essential tips to protect yourself:
- Examine the seed-to-leech ratio, which should have a healthy balance with more seeders than leechers. A 2:1 ratio is generally ideal. Be cautious of torrents with an excessively high ratio, as they may be fake.
- Opt for “verified” torrents when possible. Although not always feasible due to limited moderation on public sites, sites like 1337x and TorLock flag verified uploads, helping you identify trustworthy uploaders.
- Avoid torrenting the latest movies or series, as they are not only illegal but also more likely to contain malware. For instance, Marvel’s Black Widow movie has already been exploited for malware distribution.
- Steer clear of WMA and WMV files for video or audio torrents. These outdated extensions often redirect you to download additional software that may be infected with malware. Instead, use MP3, MP4, AVI, or MKV files and scan them with antivirus software.
- Finally, always check the comments section on the torrent site before clicking download. If anyone else notices the file is corrupt or full of malware, they’ll warn others in the comments to look after their peers.
Torrent Site Not Loading? Here Are Tips to Fix It
Occasionally, you might find that a torrent site isn’t loading.
Most of the time, it’s because your ISP is blocking access to the site.
Usually, this is because the government ordered them to do so as a heavy-handed attempt to prevent online piracy of copyright materials.
To check whether a site is blocked just for you or down for everyone, run our torrent site checker: it tests every site on this list from your own connection.
The best way to fix this issue is by using a VPN with P2P-friendly servers.
This way, you can beat the geo-blocks by spoofing your location – and, at the same time, hide your real IP address and encrypt your online traffic.Unblock Torrent Sites With NordVPN
However, a law enforcement agency might have seized the torrent site’s domain in more severe cases.
If only the main domain is seized, you can still use the mirror domains to access the torrent site.
Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case, and you might need to resort to trying a different site from my list above.
FAQ
Is Torrenting Legal?
Yes, torrenting (using Peer-to-Peer/P2P file-sharing) is legal – but torrenting copyright material (like popular TV shows and movies) without the copyright holder’s permission is not.
I do not condone or promote using torrents to download or distribute copyright material.
But there are many legal applications, such as getting your Blizzard Entertainment game updates or downloading free, open-source software (FOSS).
How Can I Access Private Torrent Sites?
Private torrent sites are password-protected and invite-only.
Typically, the only way to gain access is by knowing a member and requesting an invite.
Occasionally, you might get lucky and score an invite on a Reddit thread or on the TorrentInvites.org forum.
However, securing an invite isn’t always easy.
Sometimes the process calls for interviews and a close study on your current seed/leech ratio.
Why Does the Torrent Site I Use Have a Different Address?
Because torrent sites are often targeted by law enforcement and sometimes taken down, they usually reopen with a new address (domain name).
Some of the best torrent sites will have alternative addresses prepared in advance, which can also help users get past geo-blocks if local government and ISPs haven’t blocked the alternatives yet.
These alternative addresses are called mirror links because they resolve a website that mirrors the main domain.
What Are the Best Torrent Trackers?
The best torrent trackers (or torrent sites) are those that survived a long time, have an active community of peers maintaining a large and varied torrent library, and, ideally, have some kind of torrent or uploader verification in place to keep users safe from malicious downloads.
Whether you prefer to stick to public torrent trackers or private ones that require an invitation, it’s important to remember that even the best is far from perfect.
You should always follow torrenting safety guides and use a reliable torrenting VPN.
What If I Get Caught Torrenting?
What happens if you get caught torrenting will depend on the content involved and your country’s laws.
Torrenting copyright material is always illegal and will likely lead to fines or arrest.
Some countries take a heavy-handed approach and ban all torrenting, ignoring the fact there are many legal applications for P2P file-sharing.
In such countries, getting caught torrenting can lead to criminal charges regardless of the content involved.
Conclusion
Torrenting offers a convenient way to share large files and even applications with others. By relying on peers to upload portions of a file simultaneously, it enables faster distribution.
In this guide, I’ve shared 15 of the best torrent sites that are still functional. However, it’s crucial to remember that your online privacy and safety while torrenting remain your responsibility, even when using the best sites.
Always employ a trustworthy VPN, ad-blocker, and antivirus software for optimal security. If you found this guide helpful, please share it with friends and family who may be interested in torrenting!
For those seeking the reliable VPN for torrenting, consider signing up for NordVPN using this link to get NordVPN’s current discount, backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.






