qBitTorrent Review (Best µTorrent Alternative)

You can't go wrong using qBittorrent as your torrent download client. Start using this µTorrent alternative now. 

If you do a search for best torrent clients, qBitTorrent is almost guaranteed to be near the top of the list. And don't confuse qBitTorrent vs µTorrent. They're different.

But is qBitTorrent really that good? And if so, what exactly makes it so awesome?

We’ll break it down for you in our full qBitTorrent review. Keep reading for the details.

qBitTorrent Best Features

Here are some of qBitTorrent’s most important – and impressive – features.

Lightweight, Simple Interface

No one wants a torrent client – or any other software that’s going to be running in the background for hours at a time – hogging up a bunch of system resources and slowing down their computer.

Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about that with qBitTorrent. It has a lightweight design, with a simple, minimalist UI. And it doesn’t come packaged with a bunch of bloatware and other less-than-useful programs, like some torrent clients. Cough, µTorrent, cough.

Fully Open Source

Unlike, say, µTorrent, qBitTorrent is fully open source. In fact, it was originally created as an open-source alternative to µTorrent.

What does that mean? In short, its “open” nature means that anyone, including you and me, can poke our heads in and take a look at the code.

That not only allows volunteers to test, maintain, and update the software (which keeps it free), it also makes the software more secure, since it’s more difficult to insert and hide malicious code.

Completely Free (With No Ads)

That leads us to our next point: qBitTorrent doesn’t have any ads. None.

And no, you don’t have to pay to turn them off. In fact, no paid version exists. The software and its features are all completely free.

Note: This only applies to the desktop versions (PC, Mac, Linux), not mobile (Android, iOS). 

Built-In Search Engine

Usually, you’d need to visit your favorite torrent search site, find what you’re looking for, and transfer it over to your client. Not with qBitTorrent.

The software has a built-in search function. Just install the search plugin for your torrent site (or sites) of choice, then search for the file you’re looking for right from within qBitTorrent.

This isn’t just more convenient, it’s safer too, since your nosy ISP will no longer see you going to torrent search engines if you forget to activate your VPN while web browsing.

There are currently official search plugins for the big boys, like The Pirate Bay and 1337x. The official plugins can be installed right from within qBitTorrent, but here's a guide for setting them up.

There are also unofficial plugins for other notable torrent search engines, including top anime torrent sites Nyaa.si and Horrible Subs. 

RSS Feed Support

To further streamline your torrenting, you can take advantage of qBitTorrent’s RSS feed supporter. Just add the feeds you want to the list, and the client will download torrents automatically as they become available.

This is great if you subscribe to something like showRSS.

Remote Torrent Management

Do you do a lot of torrenting? Then you probably know what it’s like to have a full docket of torrents queued up while you’re out and about, whether at work or school, without any way to check on them.

This won’t be a problem any longer, at least not if you set up qBitTorrent’s remote management feature. It allows you to check on and control your torrents from any web browser, whether it’s on your smartphone or your office computer.

Bandwidth Scheduler

While qBitTorrent won’t hog up your system resources, it could very well hog up your bandwidth – if you let it. That’s why the ability to set bandwidth caps is so useful. Simply allocate a set amount of bandwidth to your torrenting, while saving some for yourself, whether it’s for streaming or just web browsing.

qBitTorrent takes this a step further by allowing you to schedule these bandwidth changes ahead of time. For instance, you could set it to use as much bandwidth as it wants when you’re at work, then automatically limit the bandwidth when you get home in the evening.

Combined with the remote management feature, you’ll have plenty of control over what and how you download, even when you’re not at your main computer.

Is qBitTorrent Safe?

qBitTorrent’s open-source nature makes it about as safe as you can get for a torrent client, as long as you download it from a verified source, like their official website. However, torrenting itself is inherently unsafe, no matter which client you’re using.

You can find more details at that link, but here’s the deal: if you do a lot of unprotected torrenting, especially if you’re downloading and seeding the most popular files, you’re going to eventually have issues, whether it’s a warning letter from your ISP or a full-on lawsuit.

That’s why we recommend you always use a VPN when torrenting. It not only hides your IP, it encrypts your traffic, so not even your ISP can see what you’re downloading.

Here are the best torrent VPNs to use with qBitTorrent: 

So, Is qBitTorrent the Best µTorrent Alternative?

Depending on your level of tech savviness, this review either told you everything you need to know – or left you scratching your head. If you’re in the latter camp and just want to know, “Is qBitTorrent any good?”, we’ll make it easy for you:

Yes!

qBitTorrent is open-source, ad-free, and has a minimal footprint, all while giving you more control of your torrents than nearly any other torrent client. Of course, everyone has their personal preferences and needs, but qBitTorrent is definitely one of the best torrent clients you can get.