What is Tor?
Tor stands for "The Onion Router." Your traffic bounces through three random servers around the world. Each server only knows the previous and next step. Nobody sees the full picture.
You → Guard → Middle → Exit → Website
You → VPN Server → Website
With Tor, your traffic takes three jumps. The first server (guard) knows you but not your destination. The last server (exit) knows the destination but not you. The middle knows neither.
Even if one server is compromised, your identity is safe.
If the VPN is compromised, they see everything.
Tor's three-hop design means breaking one link is not enough. An attacker would need to control all three servers at once - extremely difficult.
Run by thousands of volunteers worldwide.
Run by one company you must trust.
Tor is decentralized. No single company controls it. VPNs require trusting one provider not to log your activity.
Access .onion sites (hidden services).
Only regular internet access.
Tor lets you visit hidden services that only exist on the Tor network. These sites are harder to censor and can offer extra privacy.
The bottom line: Tor provides stronger anonymity than VPNs by using three random hops. Use it when privacy really matters.