By 2026, split tunneling has turned into one of the handiest features in modern VPN apps. It lets you decide which apps, sites, or types of traffic go through the encrypted tunnel and which stay on your normal internet connection. That extra control can ease the drag on streaming, gaming, and big downloads, and it can keep things like banking apps, Wi-Fi printers, smart home gear, and network storage working without forcing you to switch the VPN off. The tradeoff is simple: anything you leave outside the tunnel no longer has VPN protection.
Most providers handle split tunneling in one of two ways, exclude mode or include mode. NordVPN and CyberGhost offer both, and some router setups can push that control further, covering devices across your whole home network.
Support still varies a lot depending on the provider and the platform. Proton VPN covers more ground, while Apple’s macOS and iPhone have long made split tunneling tougher to build and maintain, even if that situation is starting to loosen up.
If you use a VPN all the time, split tunneling can be genuinely useful, but you need to be careful with it. Anything left outside the tunnel loses that layer of VPN protection. For that reason, it’s smart to avoid using split tunneling on public Wi-Fi or for financial activity, private conversations, confidential files, and corporate networks, where one compromised device can turn into a bridge for attackers. Best practice is to leave out only low-risk traffic.
You can now find split tunneling in a VPN market used by about 30% of internet users worldwide in 2026, roughly 1.6 billion people. In the U.S., the figure is 32% of adults. Enterprise use is concentrated around Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams, though the feature has faced more scrutiny since the DNS leak reports that surfaced in early 2024.
