Best VPN 2026: Nord, Proton, Express Compared

NordVPN: best overall, fastest US, most-audited, renewal sting

NordVPN: Best VPN for Windows 11 overall, and the fastest US server we tested, per Gizmodo. Once connected there, it came in at 164.11 Mbps, ahead of Proton VPN and ExpressVPN, according to Gizmodo. Deloitte last audited the no-log policy in late 2025, and our NordVPN review has more on its features, according to Gizmodo. On a two-year term, the Basic plan is under $3.50 a month, and renewal is about $139 a year, according to Gizmodo. NordVPN covers 152 countries, according to Gizmodo.

Best Overall: NordVPN, 5.0 / 5, $3.49/mo 75% off, On the 2-year plan, $14.99/mo billed monthly, 30-day money-back guarantee, We tested the refund and got it, per TheBestVPN. 100% streaming hit rate across our 9-service panel, 87.8% average speed retention across our five test routes, per TheBestVPN. No-logs audited by Deloitte (2025), RAM-only servers, per TheBestVPN. No port forwarding for torrenting, per TheBestVPN. NordVPN has delivered excellent speeds over the years of testing, retaining 86% of the initial speed on average, according to CyberNews. Independently audited no-logs policy, Its no-logs policy has been audited 6 times by PricewaterhouseCoopers AG Switzerland, and Deloitte, according to CyberNews.

So NordVPN wins on three counts: Gizmodo fastest US server, TheBestVPN 100% streaming + 87.8% retention + 5.0/5, CyberNews 86% retention + 6 audits + 211+ locations. The catch is renewal: $3.49/mo on 2-year plan becomes about $139/year on renewal, per Gizmodo — roughly $11.58/mo, more than triple the headline. And no port forwarding for torrenting, per TheBestVPN. If you stream and want one app that does everything, NordVPN is the pick — but set a calendar reminder before renewal, or you pay the real price.

Proton VPN: best privacy, fastest in one test, free plan that matters

Gizmodo Proton: 10.2% loss (not felt daily), UK 178.89 Mbps, kill switch passed cable-pull/force-close, WireGuard over TCP in <10s on blocked networks (fastest recovery), open-source apps, Swiss, Securitum audits yearly since 2022, Secure Core (Switzerland/Iceland/Sweden first) cost 12.1% speed. ReviewsAlly: Nord best overall balance, Proton fastest in 9-provider test (247.3 Mbps median, #1 of 9, 5 streaming passes, open-source, audits, Secure Core, Stealth, clean leaks, port forwarding random port, technical interface, Secure Core overhead, no unlimited tier, free 1 device / paid 10, $4.99/mo 2-year $119.76 then $83.88/year, $9.99 monthly). TheBestVPN Windows: Nord best overall (NordLynx, Threat Protection Pro, Deloitte 2025), Surfshark cheapest ($2.39/mo unlimited), Proton strongest privacy (Swiss, open-source, Securitum 2025, Stealth, largest network of five, $2.49/mo or $9.99 monthly, free tier credible, long-distance -17.6%).

Best overall for Windows: NordVPN — NordLynx speeds, Threat Protection Pro baked into the Windows app, Deloitte 2025 no-logs audit, per TheBestVPN Windows guide. Cheapest pick: Surfshark — unlimited devices at $2.39/month on the long plan, per TheBestVPN Windows guide. Strongest privacy story: Proton VPN — Swiss jurisdiction, open-source Windows client, Securitum 2025 audit, per TheBestVPN Windows guide. How we tested: we ran 30 VPNs on a Windows 11 desktop with spot-checks on a Windows 10 laptop, timing real reconnects across Ethernet-to-WiFi handoffs and verifying streaming from the Windows apps themselves, according to TheBestVPN Windows guide. Proton also runs a credible free tier if you want to try the Windows client before paying anything; the paid plan opens at $2.49/month, or $9.99/month month-to-month if you don't want a multi-year commitment, according to TheBestVPN Windows guide. Best for: privacy-first users who value Swiss jurisdiction, open-source code, and a free tier worth testing before paying, per TheBestVPN Windows guide. Not ideal for: anyone whose top priority is raw speed on long-distance hops, per TheBestVPN Windows guide. Why we recommend it: open-source Windows client, Securitum 2025 audit, Secure Core multi-hop, Stealth protocol for blocked networks, and the largest server network of the five, per TheBestVPN Windows guide.

So Proton is the privacy pick with a real free plan: Swiss jurisdiction, open-source apps, Securitum audits since 2022, Secure Core, Stealth, fastest in ReviewsAlly's 9-provider test (247.3 Mbps median), quickest reconnect on blocked networks (Gizmodo, under 10 seconds). Trade-offs: more technical interface, Secure Core costs speed (12.1% Gizmodo), no unlimited-device tier, long-distance drops 17.6% in TheBestVPN Windows tests. If privacy documentation matters more than one-click simplicity, pick Proton — and try the free plan first.

ExpressVPN, Surfshark, PIA, IPVanish, PureVPN: the rest of the table

ExpressVPN: 7.8% average speed loss (Gizmodo, tied NordVPN), 14 of 14 streaming (Gizmodo), obfuscation on every connection, under $3/mo starting, per Gizmodo. ExpressVPN is a great all-rounder, with identical apps on mobile and desktop, a single connect button, and the Lightway protocol for stable speeds, according to CyberNews. In our tests it unblocked every major streaming platform, including Netflix, Disney+, and BBC iPlayer, from $2.99/month, according to CyberNews. Lightway Turbo, a mode that uses several connections at once, brought no speed increase on our 190 Mbps connection, according to Gizmodo. So ExpressVPN is the set-and-forget pick: identical apps, one button, Lightway stable, 89% streaming in TheBestVPN's 9-service panel (vs 100% Nord/Surfshark), $2.99/mo 2-year, $14.99 monthly, KPMG 2025 audit, per TheBestVPN table.

Surfshark and Private Internet Access allow unlimited devices, according to ReviewsAlly. Surfshark is the easier household bundle; PIA is the more technical and customizable option, according to ReviewsAlly. Compare all seven picks, Straight from our January 2026 test round, per TheBestVPN: NordVPN Best overall, Surfshark Best value, Proton VPN Privacy-first, ExpressVPN Set-and-forget, PIA Budget pick, IPVanish Speed-first, PureVPN Budget streaming, per TheBestVPN. Our test score (of 30 pts): Nord 30, Surfshark 29, Proton 29, Express 28, PIA 28, IPVanish 28, PureVPN 26, per TheBestVPN. Speed retained (5-route avg): Nord 87.8%, Surfshark 88.3%, Proton 88.6%, Express 86.5%, PIA 86.8%, IPVanish 90.1%, PureVPN 85.8%, per TheBestVPN. Streaming hit rate (9 services): Nord 100%, Surfshark 100%, Proton 100% (in this table; Gizmodo's 14-service panel gave Proton 10/14 — different panels, different counts), Express 89%, PIA 67%, IPVanish 75%, PureVPN 100%, per TheBestVPN. Leak & kill-switch tests: Passed for all seven in this table, per TheBestVPN. 2-year price: Nord $3.49/mo, Surfshark $2.39/mo, Proton $2.49/mo, Express $2.99/mo, PIA $2.19/mo, IPVanish $2.39/mo, PureVPN $2.15/mo, per TheBestVPN. Monthly price: Nord $14.99, Surfshark $16.45, Proton $9.99, Express $14.99, PIA $11.99, IPVanish $14.99, PureVPN $12.95, per TheBestVPN. Audited no-logs: Nord Deloitte 2025, Surfshark Deloitte 2025, Proton Securitum 2025, Express KPMG 2025, PIA Deloitte 2025, IPVanish Schellman 2025, PureVPN Undisclosed 2023, per TheBestVPN.

IPVanish: Fastest download retention in our latest speed runs, The speed-first pick; streaming is more mixed, per TheBestVPN. IPVanish review, #7 of 30 tested, per TheBestVPN. PureVPN: Streaming-first on a budget, with port forwarding, A niche pick that nailed our latest streaming check, per TheBestVPN. PureVPN is a privacy-focused VPN that offers strong security features at a competitive price, according to CyberNews. It supports all major platforms and provides access to over 6,000 servers across 65 countries, according to CyberNews. PureVPN doesn't stand out for its speed, but it still delivered solid results, according to CyberNews. It retained 81% of baseline speed on nearby Swedish servers, according to CyberNews. On longer-distance connections such as the US, speeds dropped to 76%, and on Australian servers, they fell to 65%, according to CyberNews. PureVPN doesn't publicly provide audit results or which firms performed the audits, according to CyberNews. So PureVPN is cheapest ($2.15/mo 2-year) and streaming-first, but audit disclosure is weakest (Undisclosed 2023, per TheBestVPN) — don't pick it if audit transparency is your priority.

Promotional monthly prices can hide the real commitment, according to ReviewsAlly. Use our VPN cost and renewal study to compare the total first charge, included months, renewal amount, and effective renewal rate — not only the large discount headline, according to ReviewsAlly. Leak testing materially changed one recommendation, according to ReviewsAlly. PrivateVPN delivered useful port forwarding and strong WireGuard results, but our real ISP DNS appeared in its documented Miami test, according to ReviewsAlly. Scope matters: these results describe our documented test devices, servers, protocols, accounts, dates, and network conditions, according to ReviewsAlly. They are not guarantees that every server, streaming catalog, protocol, or future app version will behave identically, according to ReviewsAlly. A good VPN pairs an independently audited no-logs policy and strong encryption (AES-256 or ChaCha20) with a kill switch and leak protection, according to CyberNews. The best VPNs keep your browsing private, your public Wi-Fi connection secure, and streaming services from other countries unlocked, all while delivering an intuitive user experience and high speed retention, according to CyberNews.

Verdict: Nord for most, Proton for privacy, Surfshark for households

NordVPN for most: best overall (TheBestVPN 5.0/5, 30/30), fastest US (Gizmodo 164.11 Mbps), 100% streaming (TheBestVPN 9-service, Gizmodo 14/14), 6 audits, $3.49/mo 2-year — but renewal ~$139/year, no port forwarding. Proton VPN for privacy: Swiss, open-source, Securitum since 2022, Secure Core, Stealth, quickest blocked-network reconnect, real free plan, $2.49/mo 2-year, $9.99 monthly — but technical interface, Secure Core overhead, no unlimited devices. ExpressVPN for set-and-forget: identical apps, one button, Lightway, $2.99/mo, KPMG 2025 — but 89% streaming (TheBestVPN), Lightway Turbo no gain on 190 Mbps. Surfshark for households: cheapest audited pick, unlimited devices, $2.39/mo, 100% streaming (TheBestVPN), 88.3% retention — but Gizmodo 13/14 streaming, 9.6% loss. PIA for budget technical: $2.19/mo, unlimited, protocol controls, Deloitte 2025 — but 67% streaming (TheBestVPN), 12.7% loss (Gizmodo). IPVanish for speed: 90.1% retention (TheBestVPN best) — but 75% streaming. PureVPN for budget streaming: $2.15/mo, 100% streaming — but audit undisclosed. Whatever you pick, check the renewal price, not just the headline, test the refund in 30 days, and turn on kill switch + leak protection before you trust it on public Wi-Fi.