The shutdown of Kickass Torrents didn’t mark the end of torrenting. Since then, several torrent sites have sprung up, making choosing torrent websites as good as the KAT challenging.
Like anything else, not all the KAT alternatives you see online offer the same value. Some sites have remained resilient and have distinguished themselves from the numerous options available. These, the very best ones, are the sites this article reviews.
Top Kickass Torrents alternatives – Quick list
- The Pirate Bay is a quality alternative to KAT and a popular torrent source with the most extensive library and magnet links. The website’s colossal database boasts torrents in virtually any category one can imagine.
- Snowfl: The site has all the marks of a genuinely helpful Kickass Torrents alternative. Its extensive directory lets you torrent files across a wide range of categories.
- YTS: It has an excellent interface and an impressive library. Furthermore, the website features millions of torrents, including obscure titles you can stream in HD quality.
- EZTV: This has the most extensive collection of TV shows on the internet. It also has a reasonably great speed and a sizeable collection.
- TorrentDownloads: This is a popular Kickass alternative with many magnet links and torrent files across various categories that you can download at reasonable speeds.
- RARBG: The website boasts an easy-to-use interface with a vast following and video content.
- LimeTorrents: Has an active community; hence it only features torrents approved by users. Besides, it also has a user-friendly interface for easy navigation and use.
- IsoHunt: Another excellent Kickass Torrents alternative with a comprehensive directory featuring all the famous torrent categories.
- YourBittorent: It has a robust directory, a user-friendly interface, and various types of content.
- Torrent9 is a new yet promising platform that is the best site for finding files from different torrent trackers. It’s a French website with an advanced search option to find torrents of your choice based on language, category, etc.
Want to know about all? Read along to find our complete list of the top 20 Kickass Torrents alternatives.
Quick guide: How to use a VPN for safe torrenting
Torrents pose several risks, such as malware, software vulnerabilities, legal troubles, data leakage, etc. To avoid these issues, it’s essential to use a VPN for torrenting safely. The following outlined steps will guide you through how:
- Select your preferred VPN provider and subscribe to it. We recommend ExpressVPN as it offers total anonymity, advanced security features, and fast speeds.
- Download the VPN app and sign in using the credentials you created at the time of signup.
- Now, connect to a VPN server of your choice. If you picked a quality service, you would have P2P-compatible servers offering the best possible download speeds and keeping you safe.
- Enable your selected VPN’s kill switch feature. For example, if you went with ExpressVPN, you could find its Kill Switch in ‘Options.’ The provider has set its kill switch name to ‘Network Lock.’
- Download and install BitTorrent or any other torrent client (if you don’t already have one).
- Next, head on to a torrenting website of your choice.
- That’s it. You are set to download torrents from one of the KAT alternatives listed in this article or any other P2P website you wish.
A note before you begin torrenting
Torrenting is not illegal if you consider its nature. However, uploading/downloading copyright-infringing content is illegal. PrivacySavvy does not recommend using torrent sites for illegal activity, regardless of need or case. We want to make all internet users privacy savvy, not pirates.
You are free to legally access videos, TV shows, software, movies, and other license-free content or to which you boast a right to access through any of the torrent sites listed.
Again, protecting your identity, privacy, and security through a VPN is critical for many reasons (discussed later in this article) while using these torrent websites. Besides, ethically, you should prefer seeding torrents you have downloaded to let others also download at reasonable speeds.
Best Kickass alternatives today (detailed analysis)
Since the US government took down KAT, many people understandably keep searching for alternatives as good as Kickass Torrents. If you are one of them, your look-up should end today. Below you will find the 20 best Kickass alternatives that actually work.
Note:
We used different traffic estimation tools to calculate the estimated number of monthly visits to each listed site. The research team at PrivacySavvy keeps re-calculating the figures alongside testing these alternatives regularly to ensure the information we provide is up-to-date.
1. The Pirate Bay
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| thepiratebay.org | 195.2 million | 195.2 million | September 2003 | EasyDNS Technologies Inc | thepiratebay.by ; tpbpirateproxy.org/en ; www.pirateproxy.space |
We start our list with The Pirate Bay, a trusted alternative to Kickass Torrents with millions of monthly visitors, fast download speed, and the largest directory of magnet links and torrents. This site has been around even before KAT became a thing.
Although it has faced many blockages, DMCAs, and server downtimes, the site has weathered the storm and is still a force to be reckoned with in the industry. The website has an Always-Online technology and The Pirate Bay Proxy to gain alternative access when the leading site is blocked.
Pirate Bay has a huge database of torrents with several categories, such as Games, Software, Movies, TV Shows, etc. In addition, it has excellent security quirks, with a dedicated community informing you when a torrent is unsafe. Also, the website boasts visual tags; this flags a torrent as either safe or potentially dangerous.
Looking at what the site offers, this is undoubtedly one of the best Kickass Torrent alternatives. Although many countries have banned it, you can bypass the restrictions with the right VPN.
Read also: Best Pirate Bay alternatives.
2. Snowfl
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| snowfl.com | 682K | United Kingdom (15.49%) | 2017 | Unknown | None |
Snowfl is another worthwhile KAT alternative that is free and easy to use. The site has a wide range of movies, music, applications, torrents, and software. It is a torrent aggregator that searches multiple public torrent indexes in real time for you. You only need to search your desired torrent using the quick search bar at the top-right.
Snowfl is one of the most reliable torrent sources. Its minimal design is one of the key things that makes it attractive to users. The website has a clean and straightforward interface that makes it easy to find what you need. Users can quickly find torrent files by entering keywords, file names, or URLs using the search function at the top of the page.
Snowflake is also known for its reliability. The site is designed to provide consistent and fast search results regardless of the number of files searched. Snowfl updates its content regularly to provide users with the latest content.
3. YTS
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yts.mx | 117.8 million | Indians (11.50%) | November 2017 | ABCDomain LLC | yts.lt ; yts.am ; yts.ag |
This is the best Kickass Torrents alternative site if you want to find movie torrents or have limited bandwidth. It compresses its torrents; hence, you can stream HD content without consuming much bandwidth.
This torrent site attracts over 115 million monthly visitors with a 3 to 4 MB download speed per second. It has a phenomenal interface, but the website also has an impressive library on display.
YTS focuses on movies and TV shows; hence, you may not get games, music, and software here. But you will find the most classic and obscure films in relatively HD quality.
However, as is the case with most torrent sites, it offers some illegal movies torrents. Therefore, you must stay cautious when downloading a movie.
4. EZTV
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| eztvx.to | 21 million | Americans | May 2005 | EZCLOUD LIMITED | eztv.tf ; eztv.yt ; eztv.wf |
EZTV is not necessarily a beautiful site. Its metrics aren’t impressive compared to other torrent sites, with just about 20 million visitors/month and a download speed of 2 to 3 Mb/s. Still, this is one of the best KAT alternatives for many reasons.
First, it has the most extensive collection of TV shows you can find anywhere, with millions of trackers to its name. Also, the website has a surprisingly active community and instantly uploads new releases. That’s why many users prefer this torrent site despite its downsides.
5. TorrentDownloads
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| torrentdownloads | 13.9 million | Americans (12.70%) | November 2010 | NameCheap, lnc | torrentdownloads.me ; torrentdownloads.net ; torrentdownloads.123unblock.best |
TorrentDownloads isn’t new to the game; it has been around for a long time. However, this torrent site lost its popularity for a few years, dropping as low as 5 million monthly visitors and a download speed of 2 to 3 Mb/s. However, it has significantly improved in recent times.
This website features numerous magnetic links and torrent files in several categories that users can download. You can download music, anime, books, games, applications, movies and TV shows. While it does not require registration, you will get more features when you register.
It has a library of obscure titles; this includes rare books and video games with lots of Asian content. So, if you love content like this, then do well to check out TorrentDownloads.
6. RARBG
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rarbgproxy.to | 92.3 million | Americans (27.86%) | April 2015 | Tonic Corporation | rarbgmirror.com/index80.php ; rarbgprx.org/index80.php ; rarbgunblock.com/index80.php |
RARBG is another great competitor in the torrenting industry.
Although the site came on board in 2008, BREIN sued the website, which led to its shutdown. It’s unavailable in most countries like Saudi Arabia, the UK, India, Portugal, Bulgaria, Denmark, etc. Therefore, you will need a reliable VPN like ExpressVPN to access it there.
While its interface is clunky and the site is ugly, it makes up for this by providing a personalized experience. Users can navigate the site to quickly view the top ten torrents and magnet links in various categories. Like Kickass Torrents’ information boxes, you also get critical data on them, such as popular digital products.
One downside we noticed was the site hosts a lot of ads. However, using a quality ad-blocker would help you avoid such distractions.
7. LimeTorrents
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| limetorrents.lol | 12.5 million | Americans (16.18%) | July 2018 | NameCheap, lnc | limetorrents.info ; limetorrents.asia ; limetor.com |
LimeTorrent is another excellent alternative if you are looking for sites like Kickass Torrents. It hosts tons of torrent files that are available in various categories. This torrent site became the go-to site after the shutdown of popular torrent download portals right after it entered the sector. Not only is KAT, but it’s also an excellent ExtraTorrent alternative.
Besides, it features magnetic links for its users. However, there are policies on the type of torrents you can submit on the website. Nevertheless, it’s a great torrent site. It has a strong community; hence you can expect only to get torrents that users approve.
It has an easy-to-navigate user interface with many new releases and a fast download speed. However, since it hosts recent content, finding older stuff may not be preferred.
8. IsoHunt
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| isohunt.app | 1.3 million | Americans (10.22%) | September 2015 | Tonic corporation | isohunt.tv; isohunts.to |
IsoHunt is one of the best alternatives to KAT, with tons of torrent users. It provides a broad range of downloadable torrents and allows users to upload torrents of various categories, such as TV shows, movies, games, books, anime, software, and music.
Its directory features the most popular content categories you can browse and download any file instantly. The interface is user-friendly. However, you must download the IsoHunt client before downloading any torrent.
9. YourBittorent
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yourbittorrent.com | 1.9 million | Americans (13.19%) | October 2005 | TLD registrar solutions ltd | yourbittorrent.nocensor.space ; yourbittorrent.unblockproject.casa ; yourbittorrent.u4m.space |
YourBittorent is another famous site and one of the safest alternatives to Kickass Torrents. It is also one of the first torrenting websites in 2003. The website offers excellent P2P files in all categories, including music, TV shows, movies, apps, ebooks, anime, and more.
The website has a minimal, exciting, and user-friendly interface. It helps you find content easily alongside quickly locating magnet links for torrent searches.
It doesn’t require registration before use.
Although some regions restrict its access, you can unblock it easily by using a robust VPN.
10. Torrent9
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| torrent9.site | 981K | Togo (13.84%) | March 2018 | Unknown | None |
Torrent9 is a well-known French torrent site. It has many torrent files, including TV shows, music, software, games, etc. The easy-to-use website is designed to help users find their desired content easily.
Being an aggregator makes finding the latest torrent files from various BitTorrent trackers a treat.
In addition, Torrent9 supports all major platforms and internet providers, making it accessible to the masses. The website has an extensive collection of over 2.3 million torrent files.
Overall, Torrent9 is one of the most popular and reliable sources of torrent files. In recent years, it has become almost as well-known as KickAss Torrents due to its popularity and extensive library of files.
11. 1337x
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1337x.to | 88.6 million | Americans (15.32%) | March 2018 | Tonic Corporation | 1337x.tw ; 1377x.is ; 1337xx.to |
Looking at the site, you will feel 1337x is an alternative URL for Kickass Torrents. Although, it’s no behemoth like RARBG or Pirate Bay, as it has a smaller library when compared to other sites. Still, 1337x pulls its weight.
This site attracts about 90 million monthly visits, mainly because they focus on TV shows, music, and movies.
Its well-organized and user-friendly interface enables users to browse content by award nominations, such as Oscar winners, new episodes, and lots more, a feature many users love. Also, the website has no intrusive ads and a decent download speed of 3 to 4 Mb/s.
12. TorrentFunk
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| torrentfunk.com | 2.8 million | Americans (15.19%) | March 2010 | TLD Registrar Solutions Ltd | torrentfunk2.com ; torrentfunk.unblockit.app ; torrentfunk.unblocked.mx |
TorrentFunk provides torrenting for almost everything, from movies, eBooks, software, TV shows, anime, audio, and more. So, whether you are searching for your favorite games or the latest music, you will likely find everything on TorrentFunk.
This Kat alternative site lets you see popular searches and offers the best torrents with magnetic links to download all your favorite content.
Although its interface isn’t that attractive, still, it’s easy to navigate, search and download anything instantly.
13. Demonoid
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| demonoid.is | 15.4 million | Americans (31.72%) | November 2014 | TLD Registrar Solutions Ltd | dnoid.to ; dnoid.pw ; demonoid.unblockit.uno |
Are you searching for torrents of your favorite apps, TV shows, comics, documentaries, anime, audiobooks, games, or movies? If yes, then check out Demonoid to find all that you need. It is a fantastic alternative to KickassTorrents, with a vast directory of torrents across an extensive range of categories.
Users can use any torrent client to download their favorite files from Demonoid.
Although its interface is dull, it’s functional and features the best and newest torrents you can imagine.
The site doesn’t require registration. Yet, doing so will give you access to more features.
14. BitLord
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bitlord.com | 59.8K | United States (13.51%) | January 2004 | Unknown | None |
BitLord is a torrent download and not a website that features torrents itself. It’s another reliable alternative to Kickass Torrents that’s worth looking into. The service has a simple and easy-to-use interface that makes finding video, audio, or text torrent files easy. The site is intuitive and easy to navigate.
One of the most appealing things about BitLord is that it helps you organize your downloads so you can easily find them later. The site lets you track the audio and video files you download.
It allows users to play content even while it’s being downloaded. You also get OpenSubtitles-powered subtitles in your language.
Additionally, BitLord is as reliable as KickAss Torrent, as it does not support ads or pop-ups, protects users from malicious links, and prioritizes their digital privacy.
15. iDope
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| idope.se | 11.8 million | Americans (13.4%) | July 2016 | binore.se | idope.pw |
iDope is another popular and well-loved website that fulfills all your torrenting needs. Its interface is elementary, attractive, and easy to use. Thus, downloading your favorite torrents is straightforward.
At iDope, you can search and download anything you like, from movies to games and software.
You can also search through their list of popular and latest uploads via various categories, such as music, games, movies, videos, and more. It attracts millions of visits every month, a testament to its acceptability. The site dubs its creation “a tribute to Kickass Torrents” and has a reasonably fast download speed.
16. Kodi
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| kodi.tv | 9.5 million | Americans (23.67%) | May 2014 | GANDI SAS | None |
Kodi is not a torrenting platform but a streaming service that uses BitTorrent protocols to extract content from torrent directories.
It’s one of the best Kickass Torrents alternatives, allowing you to watch almost anything you can imagine. Examples include documentaries, anime, live TV, TV shows, movies, and more.
If you are a Kodi user, you would already know how to download torrents. If you are not, you only need to download a Kodi addon to torrent from it.
But to stream freely without geo-blocks, it’s necessary to have a Kodi VPN, as that will bypass geo-restrictions and prevent third parties from noticing your online activities.
Although Kodi allows you to stream almost anything, these contents are unavailable for download. However, you can bypass this limitation using third-party add-ons like Neptune Rising.
You do not need to signup to use the site just as long as you have the Kodi Client on your device.
17. TorLock
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| torlock.com | 6.1 million | Indians (13.85%) | June 2010 | TLD Registrar Solutions Ltd | torlock2.com ; torlock.unblockit.lat ; tlock.unblocked.to |
Last but not least on our list is TorLock, an excellent resource for instant browsing and downloading your favorite torrent files. This website features torrents across several categories, such as movies, software, books, music, etc.
The website interface is like every other torrent site, meaning it’s easy to use and navigate.
The downloading is free; however, you can sign up for an account to get more features. It has a reasonably decent download speed and attracts millions of monthly visitors.
18. TorrentGalaxy
| Website | Visitors | Users’ Majority | First launched | Registrar | Mirror links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| https://torrentgalaxy.to | 15 million | The US | 2018 | unknown | siteget.net/torrentgalaxy-proxy freeproxy.io/torrentgalaxy-proxy |
Torrent Galaxy is a valuable resource for anyone accessing various files and content. The site offers access to a huge library of files, including movies, TV shows, music, games, and software, attracting over 15 million monthly visitors.
One of the key features of Torrent Galaxy is its focus on providing high-quality files. Many of the torrents available on the site are in HD and other high-quality formats, and the site has a strong community of users who contribute to maintaining the quality of the files and ensuring they are safe to download.
The platform also supports magnetic and direct links, allowing users to download files directly from the site’s servers without needing a torrent client. Like other torrenting platforms, users should exercise caution and ensure they are not downloading copyrighted materials or malware.
19. GloTorrents
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First Launched | Registrar | Mirrors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| https://glodls.to/ | 564K | The UK | 2013 | unknown | glotorrents.nocensor.art/ glotorrents.proxybit.ink/ |
GloTorrents is a popular torrenting site that attracts over 3 million monthly visitors. With a download speed of up to 4 MB per second, it is one of the fastest torrenting sites available. This site is perfect for those with limited bandwidth or looking for a site to find movie torrents. It also provides all the usual information, such as the number of seeders and leechers and upload dates.
This torrenting site has a range of links available for users to download content, including magnet links and torrent files. The site has an impressive interface and library of movies, TV shows, music, games, and software. However, it’s important to note that GloTorrents does not compress its torrents like Zooqle, so streaming HD content may consume more bandwidth.
20. Nyaa proxy
| Website | Visitors | Users’ majority | First Launched | Registrar | Mirrors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| https://nyaa.eu/ | 310K | Asia | 2005 | unknown | https://nyaa.si https://nyaa.iss.one/ |
Nyaa is a popular torrenting site that specializes in anime content. It attracts many visitors monthly and offers a user-friendly interface and an extensive library of anime torrents. Like YTS, Nyaa is a great alternative for those looking for limited bandwidth usage. It compresses its torrents, making it possible to stream HD content without consuming too much bandwidth. Nyaa uses magnetic links to allow users to download anime content directly without downloading a separate torrent file.
The site attracts over 10 million monthly visitors and offers a download speed of around 2-3 MB per second. It has an impressive library of anime content available for download, including classic and obscure titles. Nyaa’s focus on anime means that it doesn’t offer games, music, or software. However, users looking for anime content will find plenty of options here. As with most torrent sites, Nyaa does offer some illegal content. Users should exercise caution when downloading files and be sure to use a VPN to protect their identity and privacy.
Best clone substitutes for Kickass Torrents
Since Kickass Torrents’ shutdown in 2016, many Kickass clone websites, the KAT proxy sites, have emerged. These mirror sites feature the same library as the original KAT, which users can access anywhere.
Although these websites get blocked due to copyright infringements from the copyright holders, there are still ways to access these sites without restrictions.
By far, the most effective and common way is through the use of a VPN.
With a VPN, you can conceal your IP address. It gives you a new IP address from a different region that isn’t restricted, making it appear like you are in another country. That allows you to avoid geo-restrictions on these Kickass mirror sites and grants you free access to torrent content.
Below are the six best KAT proxy websites available today:
- Kat.sx
- Kat.am
- Kat.li
- Kickass.cd
- Tor-cr.org
- Kickasstorrents.to
Please note some of these sites might not be available to you, depending on your country, as different authorities keep shutting down the Kat clone sites like they did the original portal. That said, our team regularly updates the list to ensure all sites are accessible in most of the countries.
1. Kat.sx
When the kickass torrent went down completely, Kat.sx was among the first couple of clones to spring up. This clone website has the same outlook and design as the Kickass portal. Also, it has a robust search engine that lets users quickly find files available for download on the site.
2. Kat.am
It is also one of the earliest kickass clones to come up. To date, it still functions smoothly; you won’t experience any trouble accessing the website. Besides, it lets you download all the kickass torrents you have always wanted to download.
If you experience any trouble accessing kat.am, using a VPN will help change your IP address to another region where the website is accessible, thereby allowing easy access to its contents.
3. Kat.li
Kat.li is another functional Kickass clone with a powerful and fast torrent search engine like the original website. The site has a directory of torrent files from several domains, offering users a massive collection of downloadable ones. Also, it features diversified content, including TV shows, movies, games, music, apps, and lots more.
4. Kickass.cd
If you want a website close to Kickass, that site is kickass.cd. It is reputed to be the best clone version of KAT. It is reliable and good enough to meet your torrenting needs.
This clone site features the original Kickass library, with various categories that cut across software, music, series, movies, and more.
5. Tor-cr.org
Tor-cr.org is yet another replica of Kickass Torrents. It has become a valuable and effective clone website, offering the same content as KAT.
The website is easy to access from any region unless restricted to your area.
But even if it is, you can use a VPN to bypass such restrictions, gain access to the website, and download torrents from various content categories.
6. Kickasstorrents.to
Kickasstorrents.to is probably the oldest clone of the KAT. The site is functional worldwide, but you might need a VPN to access it in some countries. It offers users a complete Kickass directory with many connections, including series, documentaries, movies, etc.
Besides, the website has an active community that constantly updates the latest torrents available for download.
Private Torrent Sites: Good Kickass alternatives for some
Alongside the sites listed above, you can also use private sites as alternatives to Kickass.
Private torrent sites are the same as regular ones. However, the thing that makes them “private” is their accessibility. You necessarily need someone to “invite” you to join the platform, unlike the traditional websites listed above that anyone can use.
While that’s a limitation, you might prefer them, given the pros of private torrent sites, such as continuous updates in the content and less probability of interaction with malicious users. All you need is to actively contribute to the community by balancing your uploads and downloads.
As for accessibility, you can easily find some platform members on Reddit or Discord. You can be friends with them and ask them to invite you to private sites.
Alternatively, you can also keep looking for invitation codes that the members of the admins of such sites share publicly for a limited time.
However, not all private torrent sites may benefit you since their content might vary depending on users’ locations.
Nonetheless, you can use the following private sites as Kickass alternatives where you may find your desired content.
Bibliotik
- Website: https://bibliotik.me/
Bibliotik is a dedicated private site for ebook and audiobook torrenting. It has a massive library with books from various genres. So, once you step in, easily find your desired book here.
But getting in here is the main issue since you can’t just sign up, even with a donation. The platform has strict rules for the members, thus necessitating an invite from a site member.
IPTorrents
- Website: https://iptorrents.com/
It’s a good site for downloading safe torrents. The platform boasts a massive library of diversified content. However, it typically requires you to have an invite from a site member to join, despite a “sign up” feature. The site claims it introduced the invite-only option to fend off “cheaters.”
While finding an IPTorrent member online isn’t tricky, convincing that member to send you an invite is tricky. The site threatens to suspend existing members’ accounts if they notice them inviting wrongdoers. So, be sure to have built a rapport before expecting to get an invite for IPTorrent.
Alternatively, you can become a site donor to sign up without waiting for an invite. Since IPTorrents accepts Bitcoin payments, you can easily donate to the site and become a member without sharing explicit personal details.
How to torrent safely on Kickass alternatives
You still need to protect your information even if you decide to torrent with the Kickass alternative on this list. Your ISP can block your connection if you use Kickass alternatives. Much worse, you can face legal issues or infect your computer with a virus with malicious Kickass alternatives.
This is how you minimize torrent risks:
Use a reliable VPN and antivirus software
Always use a VPN when accessing torrenting sites, even if you are not downloading anything. It will alter your IP address and encrypt your data to make you anonymous.
The best VPNs for torrenting should protect your data and ensure your IP address and DNS requests don’t leak. Thankfully, most premium VPN providers offer a money-back guarantee to allow you to test them without financial risk.
On the other hand, an antivirus will prevent malware if you accidentally visit a malicious torrenting site.
Check your country’s torrenting laws
At the onset, we don’t encourage illegal downloading. Copyright laws differ worldwide. Some countries criminalize sharing torrent files and copyrighted material, while others permit copyrighting for personal use.
So, check the copyright laws in your country before torrenting to be safe.
Be cautious when downloading torrents
A VPN and an antivirus are sufficient security measures to protect you when torrenting. However, they won’t safeguard you against malware, viruses, or other cyber threats if you find trouble. Here are some tips for torrenting safely.
- Avoid sharing your data – No legitimate torrenting site will ask you to provide your personal data. So, be wary of sites that ask you for your login details or collect your information, like your IP address.
- Research before you download – Check reviews and comments for the torrent files you want to download on platforms like Reddit. Other torrent users will alert you if the files you want to download have viruses.
- Pay attention to links – Avoid clicking on malicious links when downloading torrents.
Disclaimer: This article only provides information about torrenting and not legal advice. Although based on extensive research, readers shouldn’t consider it a professional legal opinion.
Why you should always use a VPN with these sites
Here are the key reasons you should always use a VPN when uploading, streaming, or downloading torrent files.
Bypass the regional torrent restriction
Some countries and regions have blocked torrenting websites to forestall possible copyright infringement. Hence, you can’t get your hands on the files you want if you reside in any of these blocked regions.
That is where a VPN comes in. With a quality VPN, you can bypass any geo-restrictions effortlessly. To achieve it, the VPN connects you to another server in a different region where a specific site is not blocked. So, understandably, all you need to ensure is you connect to a server in another country that isn’t blocked.
Selecting a VPN with a large server network gives you many choices to connect to your required server location.
This will come in handy more for those living in countries like Australia. In 2018, the Australian Federal Court gave an injunction ordering ISPs to ban 181 pirate domains linked to 78 sites. Unfortunately, this injunction will be in effect for three years, meaning that Aussie fans of torrenting won’t be able to access their favorite torrent resources for that period (at least).
However, using a VPN in Australia lets you continue as though nothing happened since you appear to be accessing these sites from a different region.
Protect your privacy
Top-notch VPNs are known to have watertight security and strong privacy features. A VPN encrypts users’ data and provides a secure connection to keep your data private. It also prevents ISPs from monitoring your online activities.
Encrypting your data with a VPN makes it impossible for hackers to access sensitive information or infect your system with malware.
Prevent potential legal consequences
While torrenting, there is always a chance that you may accidentally upload or download copyrighted materials. You may be slammed with legal action if caught, even if it was an unintentional mistake.
Hence, to avoid such situations, you need a VPN.
If you download using a VPN, you mask your activities, making it tough for anyone to trace your online activities back to you.
The best VPNs to access Kat’s alternative sites
There are tons of VPNs in the market, all claiming to be the best. Some even offer their services for free but are only a disguise to lure you in and expose you to what they should protect you from.
With all these, choosing only the best VPN is necessary for every security-conscious person. It guarantees excellent speed and the privacy required for safe and hassle-free torrenting.
While a free VPN may seem tempting, you should avoid them. They are often slow, do not bypass geo-blocks, and sometimes leak your information to third-party agents. Even some paid VPNs aren’t that great regarding anonymous torrent downloads.
To ensure you get the best, we have taken the time to test all the top VPNs in the market and have come up with the best two. They include:
1. ExpressVPN
- Over 3000 super-fast servers in 94 countries
- Anonymous and offshore VPN
- Effective kill switch
- Excellent 24/7 customer support
- Watertight security features
Stress-free torrenting requires excellent speed and dependable security. Fortunately, ExpressVPN has the fastest P2P servers you can imagine. Also, the VPN features a large server network across 94 countries. And since all of its 3000 servers support peer-to-peer, you will hardly find a server crowded with torrent traffic, giving you fast speeds.
The provider is based in the British Virgin Islands, a privacy-friendly location free from 14-eyes spying, government interference, monitoring, and other anti-piracy laws. Therefore, when using ExpressVPN, your online activities can never be traced back to you.
The most impressive thing about ExpressVPN is that while it’s super-fast, this doesn’t come at the expense of security, as the VPN provides military-grade encryption. Also, it boasts AES 256-bit encryption, shared IPs, and DNS leak protection.
It also has a strict no-logging policy and features an auto-kill switch that protects private information by preventing leaks even when your VPN connection suddenly drops. Besides, the VPN utilizes OpenVPN alongside other VPN protocols to protect your data. It prevents your information from getting into the wrong hands.
Furthermore, it offers an impressive unlimited bandwidth; therefore, you can enjoy unlimited downloading. The best part is it comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
ExpressVPN can also easily support most streaming sites, including BBC iPlayer, Netflix, Showtime, Sling TV, Netflix, Hulu, DAZN, Amazon Prime Video, and more. Moreover, it works on most devices, including Windows, Android, iOS, Linux, Chrome, macOS, and Android TV.
2. Surfshark
- Torrenting/P2P support
- No log policy
- Fast connection
- Kill switch feature
- 24/7 live chat support
If you are looking for the best yet most affordable torrenting VPN, you’ve got a winner in Surfshark.
This VPN is suitable for torrent fiends as it offers P2P support on most of its servers, is a VPN that supports Bitcoin payment, has a zero-logging policy, and boasts no-knowledge DNS servers. Apart from working as a typical VPN, it also blocks ads and supports split tunneling.
Like ExpressVPN, Surfshark has military-grade security (AES 256-bit encryption) and leakproof protection. Also, it includes a kill switch on macOS, iPhones, Windows, and Android apps.
If you struggle to get your Surfshark VPN running with your torrent website, you can reach a handy 24/7 customer support via live chat or email.
Surfshark allows using VPN on an unlimited number of devices with one subscription. That means you can use the VPN on your Mac, PC, TV streaming devices, router, mobile, gaming consoles, and any other device with just one account.
Criteria to choose the best torrenting VPN
We have listed the most trustworthy VPNs to ensure your safety while using any Kickass Torrents alternatives. When you are in the market for a VPN, consider using the following factors:
- Reliable money-back guarantee: A dependable refund policy allows you to try the VPN and receive your money back if you are unsatisfied.
- User-friendly apps: Choose a VPN provider with easy-to-use applications for popular platforms. Interactive 24/7 customer support that quickly responds to any query in case you get stuck.
- Fast-speed servers: While a VPN’s working mechanism can slow down your internet connection, the speed drop is minimal and unnoticeable with some premium options. Ideally, opt for a VPN that does not significantly affect your speeds to get fast download time for your torrents.
- Robust privacy and security Features: Choose a VPN that provides top-notch security and privacy features such as 256-bit encryption, leak protection, and a kill switch.
- No logs policy: Ensure the VPN follows a strict no-logs policy to protect your privacy while torrenting.
- P2P-optimized servers: Look for a VPN that supports Peer-to-Peer traffic and offers unlimited bandwidth. This enables you to download and upload torrents without any limitations.
Using a free VPN for torrenting
Most free VPNs won’t protect torrenting activities. They lack sufficient security measures like kill switch and robust encryption, which are necessary when downloading torrents. Moreover, many collect user data and sell it to third parties.
It is unlikely to get a free VPN to torrent safely. Your ISP might see you are downloading torrents and block your connection. Also, you could face legal issues if the government intercepts your torrenting connections and sees you are downloading copyrighted material.
The torrenting dangers
Torrenting poses various dangers, including legal consequences, malware infection, and privacy breaches. Some torrent sites, such as The Pirate Bay (TPB), claim to function as search services, leaving the decision of how to use their service up to users.
However, various governments and law enforcement agencies do not support this claim. As a result, the main founders of TPB were fined and arrested for copyright infringement, and Kickass Torrents was shut down, with its owner taken into custody.
Even casual torrent users face legal and privacy concerns that make torrenting risky. Thus, it’s not a walk in the park for anyone using torrents, regardless of how often they engage in the practice.
Security and privacy issues
Torrenting often gets a bad reputation due to the high amount of pirated content. Some torrent sites, like The Pirate Bay, claim only to provide a search service, leaving it up to users to decide how to use it. However, governments and law enforcement agencies do not always agree, as evidenced by the arrests of the founders of The Pirate Bay and Kickass Torrents.
There are privacy and security concerns regardless of one’s intention to use a torrent site for legal purposes. When torrenting, your IP address is visible to everyone on the site, leaving you vulnerable to hacking or harassment. Swatting, a dangerous practice in which fake calls are made to police, has even resulted in fatalities.
In addition to privacy concerns, some torrent sites are susceptible to fake or malicious torrents. While some sites have safeguards in place, such as Rarbg only allowing registered users to upload files, others, like The Pirate Bay, rely on the honesty of seeders. Antivirus programs can help protect against malware, but a VPN is essential for privacy protection. It prevents personal information from being exposed and makes it harder to hack or swat users.
Illegal Issues
Many torrent sites are notorious for hosting pirated content, which has caused legal issues for both site owners and users alike. In some countries, torrenting itself may be considered illegal, leading to potential fines or even imprisonment for those caught engaging in the activity. Therefore, you should understand the potential legal risks associated with torrenting and how to navigate them to avoid running afoul of the law.
Using torrent sites can unintentionally lead to downloading copyrighted material, which is illegal in most countries. However, the authorities generally focus on site owners and heavy seeders rather than average torrent users. When using torrent sites, you are likely both downloading (leeching) and uploading (seeding) parts of a file, as the file is shared between users on a network. This is what makes torrents so efficient and fast.
However, it also makes you a file sharer, which can result in legal trouble if you share large amounts of copyrighted material, even if it is accidental. You may even be sharing files if you have not adjusted the settings on your BitTorrent client.
Usenet: The torrenting alternative
Usenet is an alternative to torrenting that does not rely on a peer-to-peer network to share files. Instead, Usenet providers host the files on centralized servers, eliminating the need to seed files for others to download. As a result, downloading from Usenet is typically much faster than torrenting and can fully utilize available download bandwidth.
However, Usenet requires a paid subscription, and downloading copyrighted content is just as illegal as torrenting. Despite being less popular than BitTorrent, Usenet is more private, which reduces the risk of facing legal consequences. It is still advisable to use a VPN while downloading from Usenet.
To access Usenet, you must have the following;
- An indexer/search engine.
- A newsreader client.
- A subscription to a provider.
Some providers offer a bundled package containing all three components for Usenet access. Otherwise, various free newsreader and indexer options are available on the internet. While Usenet may have a learning curve, it boasts several advantages over the more commonly used P2P alternative.
Conclusion
Kickass may have gone offline years ago, but that doesn’t mean torrenting has to end with it. Many alternatives to KAT still exist that function just as well as the real Kickass did.
Thanks to the great features and value they provide, thousands of users visit these alternative sites to access their favorite content every day.
In this article, we have reviewed 20 Kickass alternatives available for you to use today, along with some Kickass clone sites and private torrent websites. Perhaps, from this extensive list, you can easily find the one that best matches your needs.
However, we advise you to exercise caution while downloading anything to avoid illegal downloads. Please read the local laws and terms of use of the torrent site you are using to avoid going against any law. That is not only something that we at PrivacySavvy condemn, but it can also lead to severe penalties for you.
In the end, no matter what, ensure you are safe and well-protected with a quality VPN on your side!
FAQs
Not anymore. The US government shut down the website in 2016. Although there are mirror websites with the same design and name, they look dangerous. Hence, we don’t recommend you use them.
Torrenting is just a file-sharing method that is legal in most countries. However, it is illegal to download materials protected by copyright without seeking permission or paying the required fees. Still, downloading legal files can pose a risk, as your ISP can flag and even report you to the government. To avoid these, using a trustworthy VPN would help big time.
Sometimes yes. However, this depends on different factors, such as the VPN provider’s network size, connection speed, and location. Connect to a VPN server near you, and your torrent download speeds won’t be affected much. Sometimes, using a VPN can increase your speeds because some ISPs throttle torrent traffic.
You cannot use Tor as it isn’t configured to handle P2P sharing.
The Department of Homeland Security shut down KickassTorrents in conjunction with the IRS. Since then, it has remained inaccessible. However, there are alternative websites that offer the same content as KAT.
The best alternative to Kickass Torrents is, without a doubt, The Pirate Bay. It is resilient with a vast library, active community, and decent download speed.
