I think it's worth keeping in mind that there are multiple different reasons that people use VPNs, and that different solutions are appropriate for those purpos

I think it's worth keeping in mind that there are multiple different reasons that people use VPNs, and that different solutions are appropriate for those purposes. Some want security, they want to be sure that the local network operator/ISP/government isn't monitoring their traffic. Those people should run their own VPN at a trusted location. Some want to evade geoblocking or use P2P services without fear of copyright letters. This is what commercial VPN providers are for IMO. Some want anonymity. Normal VPN services can't really provide this, but Tor and the like can. --- Personally my focus is on the security side of things. I have a VPN endpoint at home for personal use and a similar setup for my company. If I'm going somewhere particularly untrusted I'll set up a temporary VPS with a trusted provider just for use while I'm there and trash it afterward.