ExpressVPN vs. Proton VPN: Two of the Best VPNs for Privacy Go Head-to-Head

Not every VPN cares about your privacy. But if you’re looking for a VPN that takes your privacy seriously, ExpressVPN and Proton VPN are among the best — and specifically ones I recommend most to people with critical privacy needs. While Proton VPN offers a few additional privacy features like double VPN and Tor over VPN servers that ExpressVPN lacks, ExpressVPN includes forward-thinking privacy protections like post-quantum encryption, which Proton VPN doesn’t provide. Beyond a strong commitment to privacy, ExpressVPN and Proton VPN are both fast, easy to use and excellent for streaming. Based on our latest tests, Proton VPN has a slight edge when it comes to speed, but Express is easier to use across platforms. 

If you’re looking for a better overall value, need multihop connections or want access to servers in more locations for travel or streaming, I’d recommend going with Proton VPN. And if you don’t want to pay for your VPN, Proton VPN’s free tier is the only free VPN we recommend at CNET. If you don’t mind paying a premium and want the most streamlined app experience across platforms, the easiest router setup for devices that don’t natively support VPN apps, the most consistent streaming content unblocking or post-quantum protections, then go with ExpressVPN.   

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ExpressVPN vs. Proton VPN at a glance

	ExpressVPN	Proton VPN
Price	$13 a month, $75 for the first 15 months or $98 for the first 28 months (one- and two-year plans renew at $100 a year)	Free, $10 a month, $60 for the first year or $108 for the first two years (one- and two-year plans renew at $80 a year)
Avg. Speed Loss	18%	16%
Server Network	11,500-plus servers in 105 countries	15,100-plus servers in 126 countries
Encryption	AES 256-bit, ChaCha20	AES 256-bit, ChaCha20
VPN Protocols Available	Lightway, WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2	WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEV2/IPSec, Stealth
Jurisdiction	British Virgin Islands	Switzerland
Simultaneous Connections	10	10
Compatibility	Windows, MacOS, Linux (with GUI), Chromebook, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Fire TV, Android TV, Routers, Browsers	Windows, MacOS, Linux (with GUI), iOS, Apple TV, Android, Android TV, Fire TV, Chromebook, Routers, Browsers

Speed winner: Proton VPN by a hair

All VPNs will slow your internet speeds to a certain degree — sometimes even by 50% or more. At CNET, we consider a VPN fast if it can maintain an average speed loss of 25% or less during our speed testing. Proton VPN and ExpressVPN both fall below our 25% threshold, ranking as the second- and third-fastest VPNs, respectively, in our 2025 testing. The 16% speed loss we calculated with Proton VPN barely edged the 18% we measured with ExpressVPN during our 2025 speed tests.

If you want to achieve the best possible speeds from either provider, I recommend connecting through Lightway with ExpressVPN and through WireGuard with Proton VPN. Both VPNs offer functionality that can theoretically boost your VPN speeds. ExpressVPN upgraded its proprietary VPN protocol with Lightway Turbo and added Data Channel Offload (DCO) to OpenVPN this year, while Proton VPN says that its VPN Accelerator can boost your VPN speeds by up to 400%. ExpressVPN’s Lightway Turbo and DCO translated to a significant boost in speeds during the multiple rounds of speed tests I conducted before and after their implementation earlier this year. However, I didn’t notice a substantial improvement in my VPN speeds when I ran some informal tests with Proton VPN’s Accelerator feature enabled. But Proton VPN says that its VPN Accelerator may not improve performance under ideal network conditions, and you might only notice faster speeds while on a slower or more unreliable connection with high latency or packet loss.  

Value winner: Proton VPN delivers better overall value on all subscription plans

On the whole, Proton VPN is much cheaper than ExpressVPN, from its free plan (something ExpressVPN doesn’t offer) to its basic tier and bundled subscriptions. 

Proton VPN offers a lot of value with its basic VPN Plus subscription plan, which also allows for up to 10 simultaneous connections, but includes the VPN as well as Proton’s NetShield ad, tracker and malware blocker, and costs $10 a month, $60 for the first year or $108 for the first two years. The annual and two-year plans both renew at $80 a year after the initial term. 

By contrast, ExpressVPN’s basic, VPN-only tier doesn’t offer much value for the money. ExpressVPN’s Basic subscription plan allows for up to 10 simultaneous connections and includes only the VPN and its ad and tracker blocker and costs $13 a month, $75 for the first 15 months or $98 for the first 28 months. The introductory pricing is fairly reasonable, but the yearly and two-year plans both renew at $100 a year after the initial term, which is expensive for a base VPN plan.

Either VPN provider lets you bundle additional privacy and security tools, like password managers, antivirus software, identity theft protection services and other apps. But with Proton Unlimited, you pay much less while getting a lot more for your money than even ExpressVPN’s Pro plan.

ExpressVPN’s Advanced plan offers perhaps the best value out of the company’s three tiers and costs $14 a month, $90 total for the first 15 months or $126 total for the first 28 months. Both the annual and two-year plans then renew at $120 a year following the initial subscription term. The Advanced subscription plan allows up to 12 simultaneous connections and includes the VPN, password manager, full suite of Advanced Protection features and most Identity Defender features.

The Pro subscription plan offers up to 14 simultaneous connections, everything in the Advanced plan, plus the full suite of Identity Defender tools and a dedicated IP, but is considerably more expensive at $20 a month, $135 for the first 15 months or $210 for the first 28 months. Both longer-term plans then renew at $200 a year.  

The comprehensive Proton Unlimited subscription gives you full access to a VPN, secure email, calendar, encrypted cloud storage, password manager and secure wallet for $13 a month, $120 a year or $192 total for the first two years (renewing at $120 a year). 

If you don’t want to pay for a VPN at all, Proton VPN offers a legitimate free tier. Proton VPN’s free plan limits the number of simultaneous connections to a single device, randomly connects you to one of five server locations (US, Japan, Poland, Romania and the Netherlands) and doesn’t support P2P or streaming. Nevertheless, it offers the same basic privacy protections as its premium tier and doesn’t put limits on speed or usage — making it the only free VPN we recommend at CNET. Even though Proton says that it doesn’t support streaming on its free tier, CNET Senior Editor Moe Long and I successfully unblocked Netflix streaming content while connected to Proton VPN’s free servers.

Notably, ExpressVPN just released a standalone free VPN service called EventVPN that includes ads and limits users to a single active connection at a time, but offers access to servers in 35 locations and includes premium privacy protections like post-quantum encryption, RAM-only servers and a kill switch. While EventVPN is brand-new and I haven’t fully tested yet to determine whether it can compete with Proton VPN’s free tier, it looks promising on paper and might make for a compelling alternative for people who want privacy without paying.       

Privacy and security winner: ExpressVPN has a slight edge thanks to forward-thinking privacy initiatives

ExpressVPN and Proton VPN put an extreme focus on privacy and transparency, so if you’re a journalist, activist, whistleblower, attorney or anyone else with critical privacy needs, either one is an excellent choice. If you value the cutting-edge privacy of post-quantum encryption, substantial transparency, RAM-only servers and a willingness to push the industry forward, then I’d recommend ExpressVPN. If you prefer open-source apps or extra privacy features like double-hop connections or Tor over VPN capabilities, then I’d go with Proton VPN.

ExpressVPN has built a reputation for pushing the boundaries and helping usher the industry into the future. Along with Mullvad, ExpressVPN was one of the first VPN providers to implement post-quantum encryption, which can help guard against potential future threats from quantum computers. Although we’re still years away from quantum computing breaking today’s encryption standards, post-quantum protections are important to implement now because of “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks, where adversaries steal encrypted data now to decrypt later using quantum computers.

Post-quantum encryption is available when using ExpressVPN’s proprietary Lightway protocol or its new post-quantum WireGuard implementation. The company has open-sourced Lightway for the industry to implement, but acknowledging that other VPNs might be hesitant to adopt a “branded” solution, ExpressVPN rolled out a version of WireGuard with post-quantum protections and published a white paper detailing its process as a blueprint for others to follow. This is all emblematic of the company’s drive not only to spearhead innovative privacy efforts internally, but also to push the entire industry forward. 

Proton is taking a decidedly different route. The company is working on building post-quantum encryption for its email service, but remains deliberately cautious, citing the inherent risk in new cryptography not being battle-tested and security risks associated with misimplementation. There is virtue in being patient, and I’m confident that Proton will roll out post-quantum protections for VPN users when the company determines that the time is right. 

Meanwhile, Proton VPN’s current privacy protections are rock-solid and include a few extras that ExpressVPN doesn’t offer: Secure Core and Tor over VPN servers. While the average user just looking for general privacy or to stream content might not need Proton VPN’s advanced servers, they’re helpful for people with serious privacy concerns about online tracking. These specialty servers run your connection through multiple servers rather than just one, which provides additional encryption and makes it harder for others to track your online activity. Proton VPN’s fleet of Secure Core servers route your traffic first through servers located in privacy-friendly countries (Switzerland, Sweden and Iceland) before exiting through a second VPN server in another location. It functions essentially like a double-hop connection, but I like how Proton VPN goes to extreme lengths to physically secure its Secure Core server infrastructure by housing the Swedish servers in an underground bunker and the Icelandic servers on a former military base. Alongside robust double VPN connections, Proton VPN also lets you access the Tor Network through its Tor over VPN functionality.

Both ExpressVPN and Proton VPN are located in privacy-friendly jurisdictions (British Virgin Islands and Switzerland, respectively) and offer essential VPN privacy protections like AES 256-bit and ChaCha20 encryption, a kill switch, DNS leak protection and audited no-logs policies. Each VPN’s kill switch — which protects your privacy by cutting off your internet connection if your VPN disconnects unexpectedly — worked flawlessly, and we encountered no leaks during our latest tests. 

However, each VPN’s MacOS app operates differently if you jump from one server directly to another. A seasoned VPN user would likely anticipate that switching from one server to another on MacOS typically breaks the encrypted connection and prepare accordingly by exiting out of any apps or websites they wanted to keep hidden. But some VPN users may not realize that their public IP address and internet activity can be exposed even if the connection is disrupted for a fraction of a second during the server switch. ExpressVPN’s MacOS app displays a warning pop-up that says “Your internet traffic may be unsecure during reconnection” if you attempt to jump from one server directly to another, whereas Proton VPN’s app does not issue such a warning, which is surprising given Proton VPN’s strong overall privacy posture. 

Although both providers have been regularly audited over the past few years, ExpressVPN’s 23 audits since 2018 — including its latest audit this summer — outpace the six total audits Proton VPN has commissioned since 2019, including annual audits from 2022 through 2025. The results of Proton VPN’s most recent audit were published in September 2025. While it’s impossible to verify a VPN’s claims with 100% certainty, regular audits are important and can help build trust. Fewer or less frequent audits don’t necessarily mean that a VPN’s infrastructure is less secure or that it’s less equipped to protect user privacy. But given the massive amount of trust users need to put in their VPN provider, it’s essential for VPN companies to exhibit a strong, sustained commitment to transparency through independent audits — and ExpressVPN has been by far the most consistent in that regard. 

The two companies have different, albeit sound, approaches to server infrastructure and safeguarding data. I like that ExpressVPN’s entire fleet of servers runs strictly on RAM, which helps ensure no data remains on a hard drive because the servers are completely wiped each time they’re rebooted. ExpressVPN’s TrustedServer technology takes the RAM-only concept to the next level by reinstalling the entire software stack when the server is rebooted in addition to wiping it clean. Proton VPN doesn’t use RAM-only servers, instead opting for full-disk encryption, which the company says is neither more nor less secure than RAM-only servers, but allows the company to do things like more easily run diagnostics and analyze server performance. Regardless, if the VPN doesn’t log any useful user data, then there shouldn’t be anything of consequence on the server anyway.            

Usability winner: ExpressVPN is the easiest VPN to use

Of the VPNs we tested, ExpressVPN is the easiest one to use across all platforms, with no learning curve whatsoever, whether you’re completely new to VPNs or have been using them for years. I like ExpressVPN’s slick, minimalist app and the uniform experience I get whether I’m using it on my mobile devices or laptops. The provider’s new mobile apps have a recognizable interface but include additional elements that let you customize the look of the app and more easily adjust settings and access recommended servers. The new iOS app even works with Siri. 

Proton VPN’s app takes a little more time to get used to, but is nonetheless intuitive and gives you more options to fine-tune your experience. I like how you can set up custom profiles that let you save and quickly connect to customized server connections based on the location, specific server and VPN protocol. You can choose whether the custom profile connection goes through the standard server network, Secure Core servers, Tor over VPN servers or P2P optimized servers (which can be great for torrenting). So if you prefer an app that gives you more control over your experience, Proton VPN is a great choice.

Both providers offer apps for Windows, MacOS, Linux, Chromebook, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Fire TV and Android TV. Linux users who prefer a graphical user interface over using the command line may appreciate that ExpressVPN and Proton VPN offer a full Linux GUI app. In addition to device-specific apps, both also offer browser extensions and router support. But if you want the easiest VPN to use on routers, ExpressVPN is unbeatable with its intuitive router app that works on compatible routers as well as the company’s Aircove router. That said, Proton VPN offers detailed instructions on how to get its service up and running on various routers. 

During our latest round of tests, ExpressVPN and Proton VPN both proved excellent for streaming across all of the platforms we tested, including on streaming devices like Apple TV and Fire TV. Both providers are great options if you want to get around geographical restrictions and access streaming content not normally available in your location. ExpressVPN and Proton VPN were able to unblock streaming content on popular sites like Netflix, HBO Max, Disney Plus, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and BBC iPlayer. However, Hulu detected ExpressVPN and denied access to its library on my Fire TV Stick and when my colleague Moe attempted to stream the content on his Android TV box.

Keep in mind that unblocking geo-restricted content on streaming services is a perpetual cat-and-mouse situation — content you’re able to unblock today with a VPN, you may not tomorrow, and vice-versa. That said, in my experience, ExpressVPN and Proton VPN are among the most reliable options for consistently unblocking streaming content. If you happen to run into issues with either provider, a simple server switch or a little patience can do the trick.     

Bottom line

Ultimately, whether you choose ExpressVPN or Proton VPN, you’re making an excellent choice. Each provider has its own distinct approach to privacy, but rest assured that both have your back, whether your privacy needs are critical or if you’re just looking for general privacy protections. Both are also otherwise well-rounded services that are fast, easy to use and excel at unblocking streaming content. 

Which one you choose will likely boil down to your budget, which provider’s privacy philosophy you align with most and which specific features you’re looking for. If you need specific features like double-hop and Tor over VPN connections, want the more budget-friendly option or are a world traveler who needs access to a vast network of global servers, go with Proton VPN. But if you’re new to VPNs and looking for a ridiculously easy-to-use service, or have critical privacy needs and require a VPN delivers cutting-edge privacy protections and extreme transparency, then ExpressVPN is the way to go.