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Author: Pavel Onuchin, VPN and network security specialist

11 min read

Free Amnezia VPN key: what Free, Premium and your own server give you

You can get a free Amnezia VPN key officially: it is a key for the Amnezia Free service issued by the project's Telegram bot, or a connection created right in the AmneziaVPN app. But Amnezia Free routes only certain blocked sites through the VPN, YouTube in Russia is not among them, and the rest of the traffic goes directly. Amnezia's full VPN is paid: a Premium subscription costs from 290 ₽ a month when paid for two years, according to amnezia.org as of October 23, 2026. The third route is the free app plus your own server, whose rental you pay for.

If what you need is not a key for its own sake but a working VPN without hunting for giveaways, we recommend BessyConnect: it is a ready-made app with its own servers, and you don't need to look for a key for it.

What is Amnezia Free and what does it unblock?

Amnezia Free is a free service from the AmneziaVPN developers, with no registration and no ads. Only traffic to a list of blocked resources goes through its servers; other sites open from your real address. The full list of resources is not publicly available.

That is how the service is described on amnezia.org and in the project documentation as of October 23, 2026. Hence the limitations people only discover after connecting:

  • YouTube doesn't open. The documentation says it plainly: "Amnezia Free does not provide access to YouTube in Russia".
  • An IP check shows your own address. An IP-checking site isn't on the list, so it opens directly. This isn't a malfunction; it is by design.
  • Gemini doesn't work. According to the Amnezia FAQ, Google identifies the addresses of the Free servers as Russian.
  • You can't choose a country. Location choice is only available in Premium.
  • Speed to blocked sites may be limited. The exact limit, according to Amnezia, depends on the region.
  • App only. Free can't be set up on a router.

The Amnezia FAQ names social networks and media outlets as examples; the Free page speaks of "socially significant sites". If the site you need isn't covered, the developers suggest writing to their support.

How do you get an Amnezia Free key?

There are two official ways: create a connection in the AmneziaVPN app or get a vpn:// key from the Amnezia Telegram bot. Both are free. The key from the bot comes in handy if the connection won't create in the app, or for the DefaultVPN app on iPhone.

The first way, through the app:

  1. Turn off other VPNs. The documentation requires opening the app from within Russia and without an active VPN.
  2. Install AmneziaVPN from the official site or from the releases on GitHub. As of October 23, 2026, the latest version is 5.0.3, released on September 18.
  3. Tap "Let's get started" or the plus icon.
  4. Choose "VPN by Amnezia", then "Amnezia Free RU" and "Connect".

The second way, through the bot:

  1. Open the official Amnezia bot in Telegram (the link is in the documentation at docs.amnezia.org) and tap Start.
  2. Tap the vpn://… key it sends; it will be copied to the clipboard.
  3. In the app, tap the plus, then "Paste", "Continue" and "Connect".

An important detail from the Amnezia FAQ: the bot issues one key per Telegram account. The keys were last changed on August 15, 2025, and if you got yours after that date, you can't get a second key. If a key has "stopped working", the developers write that it hasn't expired: the cause is usually an outdated app version, the server address being blocked or mobile internet running on whitelists.

Free uses the AmneziaWG 3.1 protocol. The key works only with AmneziaVPN 5.0.1.5 or later, or DefaultVPN 2.0.1.1 or later. It won't work in the separate AmneziaWG app; the Free page states this explicitly.

Amnezia Free or Amnezia Premium: what's the difference and how much does it cost?

Free is free access to a limited list of sites. Premium is an ordinary paid VPN for all traffic: a choice of country, the AmneziaWG 3.1 and XRay VLESS Reality protocols, up to 7 simultaneous connections. As of October 23, 2026, the official site shows three subscription terms.

Premium termPricePer month
6 months2,690 ₽448 ₽
1 year4,380 ₽365 ₽
2 years6,990 ₽290 ₽

According to the Amnezia FAQ, a 7-day trial of Premium is given on request to support; all you need is an email address. When paying on the site, a refund is possible within 14 days, and there is no auto-renewal. A subscription from the App Store or Google Play renews automatically.

All the options side by side:

OptionPriceLimitationsWho sees the traffic
Amnezia Free0 ₽Only certain sites, no YouTube in Russia, no choice of country, one key per Telegram accountAmnezia, but only traffic to sites on the list; the rest is seen by your ISP
Amnezia Premiumfrom 290 ₽ a month when paid for 2 years7 simultaneous connectionsAmnezia, all traffic
Your own server + AmneziaVPNThe app is free, the VPS at the hosting provider's rateOne server, one country; setup and maintenance are on youYou and the hosting provider
A key from a public giveaway0 ₽Works until the owner revokes the key or the address gets blockedAn unknown server owner

Amnezia states that it doesn't store users' activity history and that the Premium servers run in RAM only. This is the service's claim; it doesn't change the fact that your traffic passes through exactly these servers.

Can you make Amnezia free with your own server?

Halfway. The AmneziaVPN app is free and open source (GPL-3.0 license on GitHub), but you have to rent the server. amnezia.org puts it this way: when you create a self-hosted VPN, "you only pay for your own VPS server".

The app connects to the server over SSH, installs Docker and deploys the chosen protocol. You need the IP address, login and password of the VPS. The process is described in our Amnezia VPN review, and how much rental and maintenance cost is covered in the article your own VPN on a VPS.

Two details from the documentation that affect the choice:

  • Amnezia has its own hosting, but there is no free trial for a server, and a month's rental is not refunded.
  • On your own server you hand out the keys yourself. A guest key works on one device and with one protocol, and it can be revoked. A full-access key gives control over the server and can't be revoked.

If you are choosing between Amnezia and other tools for your own server, see the comparison Amnezia, Outline or a ready-made service.

What are a vpn:// key and an AmneziaWG config?

A vpn://… key is a connection string in AmneziaVPN's own format. It is pasted with the "Paste" button or scanned as a QR code. A .conf config is a file with AmneziaWG protocol parameters for the AmneziaWG app and routers.

According to the Amnezia documentation, a vpn:// key has to be copied in full: an extra or missing character will show up in the app as an error. The same key may come as a .vpn file. In addition, AmneziaVPN opens .conf files (WireGuard and AmneziaWG), .json files (XRay Reality) and vless:// and ss:// links from other servers.

What is written inside a vless:// link we covered in the article VPN key. About the AmneziaWG protocol and its neighbors, see the comparison Hysteria2, TUIC and AmneziaWG.

The query "ключ активации Amnezia" (Amnezia activation key) is based on a misunderstanding. The app is free and doesn't need to be activated. A key is needed only to connect to a server.

Why do free Amnezia keys from giveaways stop working?

Many people share a public key, while Amnezia keys are designed for one device or a small connection limit. The owner can revoke the key at any moment, the server address gets blocked, and paid keys run out of connection slots.

The specific mechanisms are described in the Amnezia documentation itself:

  • A guest key is designed for one device. That is what the documentation for self-hosted servers says, and the owner can revoke such a key at any moment.
  • Premium has a limit of 7 connections. A slot is taken by every device that has connected with the key at least once. When the slots are full, new devices get error 1108.
  • The server is small. For the servers of its own hosting, Amnezia names a tested capacity of up to 10 keys.
  • The address becomes known. The documentation notes that if a guest key leaks, outsiders learn the server's IP.

A separate word on security. The Amnezia documentation says it directly: "Do not use connection keys from public sources: they may be posted in order to intercept your personal data". The server owner sees your IP, the times of your connections and the addresses of sites. The content of pages over HTTPS is not available to them, but you shouldn't log in to your bank, email or work systems through such a key. There will be no names of giveaways here: the risk is the same with all of them.

Why we recommend BessyConnect

To those who are looking for a free Amnezia key just to get a working VPN, we recommend BessyConnect. It is a ready-made app with its own servers: no key is needed, the server list is already inside.

  • No need to look for a key. There is no string that can be revoked and no giveaway that will end tomorrow.
  • Camouflage. The VLESS protocol with Reality: the traffic looks like ordinary HTTPS.
  • Addresses to spare. There are more than 100 servers.
  • No logs are kept, registration is not required, and there is a trial period.

The apps are released for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, Android and Android TV:

Now the limits. If you already have your own Amnezia server and it works, you don't need the service: the "VPS plus AmneziaVPN" combination covers the same task and gives full control. Amnezia is stronger in other areas too: open source code, clients for Windows and Linux (there is no BessyConnect app for Windows), and for iPhone in Russia Amnezia has DefaultVPN. Its page in the Russian App Store is available, version 2.0.2 of September 21, 2026, and the app accepts vpn:// keys. AmneziaVPN itself, like BessyConnect, isn't in the Russian App Store: to install it you need an Apple ID from another country.

What neither BessyConnect nor any other VPN solves: when mobile internet runs on whitelists, the connection won't be established. The Amnezia documentation acknowledges this too. How such restrictions work is covered in the article on mobile internet whitelists.

The bottom line is this. If you only need the social networks and media on the list and the limitations don't bother you, the official Amnezia Free is enough. If you have time to administer a server, your own VPS with AmneziaVPN will do. But if you are looking for a new key every week and want a ready-made VPN without giveaways, we recommend BessyConnect: the apps for all platforms are gathered on the download page.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get an Amnezia VPN key for free? Yes, officially: the Amnezia bot in Telegram issues a free vpn:// key for Amnezia Free, one per account. This key unblocks only certain blocked sites; YouTube in Russia doesn't work through it.

Does Amnezia VPN need an activation key? No. The AmneziaVPN app is free and open source, and no activation is required. A vpn:// key is needed only to connect to a server: Free, Premium or your own.

Why isn't my Amnezia Free key working? According to the Amnezia FAQ, the key doesn't expire. Most often the cause is an old app version (below 5.0.1.5), mobile internet whitelists, the server address being blocked, or apps such as antivirus software. One more cause: the key was pasted into the AmneziaWG app, while it works only in AmneziaVPN and DefaultVPN.

How much does Amnezia Premium cost? As of October 23, 2026, on amnezia.org: 2,690 ₽ for 6 months, 4,380 ₽ for a year and 6,990 ₽ for two years, that is, from 290 ₽ a month. The subscription includes up to 7 simultaneous connections.

Do I need a key for BessyConnect? No. BessyConnect runs on its own servers, the list is already in the app, and there is no need to add a key or a subscription. We recommend it to those who don't want to hunt for keys; there is no app for Windows.

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