VPN basics · Plain-English answer
Both a VPN and a proxy route your traffic through another server and change your visible IP address. The key difference is encryption and scope. A VPN encrypts all traffic from your whole device, while a typical proxy handles only one app or browser and usually adds no encryption of its own.
A proxy sits between one application and the internet. You might configure your browser to use it, and only that browser's traffic is redirected. Everything else on your device, including other apps and system services, connects normally. Most proxies also pass traffic through without encrypting it, so your ISP can still see what you are doing.
A VPN operates at the system level. It captures traffic from every app, encrypts it, and sends it through the tunnel, which protects you on untrusted networks as well as changing your IP.
For privacy, security on public Wi-Fi, or anything involving sensitive data, use a VPN. The encryption and full-device coverage matter. A proxy can make sense for narrow technical jobs, such as testing how a website appears from another country in a single browser, or in scraping and automation work where per-request control matters more than privacy.
For everyday personal use, a VPN does everything a proxy does and adds real protection on top, so it is the sensible default.
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