Despite the endless list of streaming services and TV channels, torrenting is still an incredibly popular option among users, and torrent websites, despite being reported on in a negative light, still receive tens of millions of monthly visitors from all around the world. There is a massive variety of content to choose from through various torrent websites including games, movies, music, and eBooks!
However, even the most popular torrent sites have been taken down over the past few years as governments from around the world are putting pressure on the torrenting community. For newbies especially, it can be tricky to find a torrent website that is still running and not overrun with intrusive ads and other annoyances. Not sure which torrent sites are reliable, safe, and packed with content? We’re here to help! Keep reading to find out the best torrent websites in 2022!
The best torrent websites quick guide
- The Pirate Bay – Best overall choice
- RARBG – Personalised interface
- YTS – For high-quality movies
- 1337x – Privacy focused
- EZTV – For TV shows
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What to consider when looking for a torrent website
Not sure what makes a good torrent website? Here is a list of important criteria that should be considered before choosing a site to torrent content –
- Founding year – With the increasing crackdown on torrenting websites due to copyright laws, sites that have been around for 3, 5, or even 10 years without being shut down are likely to be well-established and credible.
- Interface – The best torrents site should be easy to navigate and not overloaded with intrusive or distracting ads such as auto-play videos, fake buttons, and pop-ups. A torrent website that is packed with ads should be avoided as it could potentially host malware. Find out how to further prevent malware here.
- Alexa ranking – The Alexa ranking shows how popular a particular website is in relation to all internet users around the world.
- Content library – Whether you want to download movies, music, software, books, or games, you need a torrent website that has a wide variety of content in high-quality.
- URLs / Mirror Sites – Alternative URLs (mirror sites) are copies of a website that’s hosted on another server. These are used to evade censorship, as if the main site is blocked or inaccessible due to geo-restrictions, then users have other options to turn to.
- Banned countries – As torrent websites can be blocked in regions all over the world, you need to be aware of if a particular site is available in your area. We try to mention all the countries where each torrent site we listed is banned in.
- Seeder/Leecher Ratios – Seeds indicate how many times a file has been downloaded and left to “seed”, meaning that a user has downloaded 100% of the file and is now uploading it so others can download it too. The more seeders a torrent file has, the faster it will download. Leechers, on the other hand, indicate how many users have downloaded the file but have chosen not to seed it. When looking for a torrent website, search for a few random files and see the seeder to leecher ratios to get an idea of how quickly you can download content.
- Monthly visitors – Of course, the more monthly visitors a site has, the more likely it is trusted, reliable, and packed with a wide selection of content.
Our top recommended best torrent websites in 2022
Based on the above criteria, we’ve researched, tested, and list the top 5 best torrent websites. All these options are incredibly popular among the torrenting community due to their large content libraries, seeder ratios, visitor rates, and user-friendly interfaces.
- The Pirate Bay
Founded in 2003, The Pirate Bay has grown to be one of the best-known torrent websites in the world. The site receives up to 30 million monthly visitors (probably even more due to the number of mirrors) and has an Alexa ranking of 547.
Countries with at least one ISP that has attempted to block or censor this torrent site include Australia, Austria, Brazil, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, India, Iran, Italy, Norway, Russia, Spain, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
Despite numerous blocking attempts, The Pirate Bay still stands strong and features millions of torrents including movies, TV shows, software, games, and music. Content can be quickly searched through the user-friendly interface and the majority of files will download in record time thanks to the torrent site’s fantastic seeder to leecher ratio. On this site, ads are minimal and non-intrusive, so your risk of becoming infected by malware is low.
Overall, The Pirate Bay has one of the biggest torrenting communities, meaning that their database is regularly updated with reliable and safe files. If there’s any particular content you want to torrent, no matter how old or obscure, then The Pirate Bay will likely have it listed.
Alternative URLS (mirror sites) include thepiratebay.org, thepiratebay.rocks, thepiratebay.vip, TPBMirror.org, proxybay.xyz, thepiratebay10.org & thepirate-bay.org.
- RARBG
Established in 2008, RARBG is a close runner-up to The Pirate Bay and features high-quality torrents, an active community, and regular content updates. RARBG has an estimated 50 million monthly visitors and has an Alexa ranking of 1,063.
The best feature of RARBG which puts it in close competition with The Pirate Bay is its personalised user experience. There are top ten lists shown in various categories along with a ‘news’ section and scam alerts. This torrent site is perfect for users who want to just browse a catalogue rather than search for a specific file. RARBG also has a huge content library, so you’re likely to find exactly what you’re looking for in high-quality.
This torrent site is blocked in several countries, mainly due to its facilitation of copyright infringement, including Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Italy, India, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
RARBG looks very professional, adding to its credibility, and is incredibly easy to navigate. Files also have plenty of seeders, so you can download content quickly. The community at RARBG also works hard to verify all torrents and take down any malicious files, so this site can be considered reasonably secure. The one downside of this torrent website is that there are a lot more ads compared to The Pirate Bay. However, this can be avoided using a VPN with a built-in ad blocker.
Alternative URLs (mirror sites) include rarbgmirror.com, rarbgunlock.com, rarbg.is, & rarbgunblock.com/index80.php.
- YTS
Founded in 2011, YTS (also known as YIFY) is one of the best torrent sites for finding high-quality movies in a Netflix-style interface. Although the original YTS website was shut down in 2015 by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), numerous clone sites appeared soon after.
The official domain for YTS, YTS.MX, now maintains millions of monthly visitors from all around the world and has an Alexa ranking of 405.
The YTS interface is well-designed and intuitive, displaying lists of the popular and latest movies in addition to upcoming uploads. With each movie torrent, there is an included trailer, screenshots synopsis, genre overview, and critic score (Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb). There’s also a reviews section and a tech specs summary including the file size, resolution, languages, and movie length. Users can even request subtitles for each available movie.
YTS movies can be downloaded in up to 4K and there’s a great seeder/leecher ratio so each file will take minimal time to download. There are little-to-no ads present on this torrent website, so users can have a fast and efficient experience when browsing and downloading content.
Alternative URLs (mirror sites) include yts.unblocked.mx, yts.gd, yts.am, yts.pm, yts.ag, & yts.lt.
- 1337x
Founded in 2007, 1337x is another beloved torrenting website that has built a loyal community through its dedication to protecting user privacy. 1337x receives over 70 million monthly visitors and has an Alexa ranking of 479.
1337x gained a massive surge in popularity after the closure of KickassTorrents and according to TorrentFreak, became the third most popular torrent site in 2021. 1337x is currently blocked in Austria, Australia, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.
There are few ads on 1337x and the website is being moderated daily, so users can have a reasonably secure torrenting experience. The main form of funding comes from crypto donations, so it’s safe to say that this torrent site carefully considers and protects the privacy of its users.
Although it was once criticised for being clumpy and hard to navigate, 1337x revamped its interface which is now neat and contains helpful information such as daily/weekly popular files and trending uploads. In each torrent page, users can find screenshots, subtitle information, genres, file sizes, resolution, framerate, and other useful details.
Alternative URLs (mirror sites) include 1337x.is, 1337x.st, x1337x.eu., x1337x.se, & 1337x.gd.
- EZTV
Established in 2015, EZTV is the most popular torrent website for TV shows, allowing users to find both new and old shows in their highest possible quality. EZTV receives a modest 30 million monthly visitors and the Alexa ranking of this torrent site is not currently known.
EZTV’s interface is not as visually appealing as the other torrent websites’ we’ve mentioned, but it’s still informative and fairly easy to navigate. There are additional sections that are incredibly helpful including a TV series countdown list, upload calendar, FAQs, episode discussions, and forums.
There is an abundance of pop-up ads, so we recommend you use some sort of ad blocking technology before using this site. Despite the bombardment of ads, the large content library which is regularly updated makes this torrent site worth giving a try. Multiple ISPs in Australia, Canada, Italy, Ireland, and the United Kingdom have blocked access to 1337x.
Alternative URLs (mirror sites) include eztv1.unblocked.is, eztv1.unblocked.si, eztv.unblocked.llc, eztv.unblocked.mx, eztv.unblocked.bet, & eztv.red.
A final note
If you’re interested in using torrenting websites then we highly recommend that you protect your identity and remain anonymous by using a VPN. Check out our list of the best VPNs for torrenting in 2022!
(Please note that VPN-Expert does not promote or encourage the use of torrent websites for downloading copyrighted content.)