The Best NordVPN Alternatives in 2026

The renewal email is where many NordVPN subscribers start looking around. The second-year price is far higher than the one they signed up at, and suddenly the device cap or the missing free plan feels like a bigger problem than it did on day one.

NordVPN is still our top pick overall, so switching makes sense only when another one fixes your specific complaint. That’s how we built this list. Each of the five beats NordVPN at one thing, whether it’s privacy, price, device count, or a longer refund window, and each section says what you give up in return.

It helps to keep NordVPN’s own test results in mind as the benchmark. The five worth switching to in 2026 are right below.

Compare the Best NordVPN Alternatives

NordVPN appears in the first row as the benchmark. Speed loss is the average across our UK, US, and Japanese servers, and the streaming column counts how many of the nine services we tested each VPN unblocked, including Netflix US, BBC iPlayer, and Prime Video.

	Devices	Speed Loss	Streaming Services Unblocked	2-Year Price	Refund
NordVPN	10	7.8%	9 of 9	About $3.50/mo	30 days
Proton VPN	10	10.2%	7 of 9	Under $3/mo	30 days
ExpressVPN	10-14	7.8%	9 of 9	About $3/mo	30 days
PIA VPN	Unlimited	12.7%	6 of 9	About $2/mo	30 days
Surfshark	Unlimited	9.6%	8 of 9	About $2.50/mo	30 days
CyberGhost	7	13.3%	8 of 9	About $2/mo	45 days

The 5 Best NordVPN Alternatives

1. Proton VPN: Best NordVPN Alternative for Privacy

Proton VPN beats NordVPN on transparency, which is why it takes the top spot. The company is based in Geneva, outside the 5, 9, and 14 Eyes alliances, and every Proton VPN app is open source, so anyone can check what the code does. NordVPN publishes only its Linux app code.

Proton VPN’s no-logs policy is also audited every year, and its network covers 149 countries, close to NordVPN’s 152. On top of that, Proton VPN adds privacy tools of its own. Secure Core sends your traffic through a second server in Switzerland, Iceland, or Sweden before it exits, which helps if you don’t trust the country you’re connecting to.

NetShield blocks ads and malware, and Stealth disguises the connection on hotel or office networks that block VPNs. In our Proton VPN testing, it unblocked seven of our nine streaming services but couldn’t unblock ITV or Pluto TV. As for speed, Proton VPN lost 10.2% on average, a little more than NordVPN, which you’ll notice only on distant servers.

The VPN Plus plan costs under $3 a month on a two-year term and covers 10 devices. Post-quantum encryption hasn’t arrived yet, so if protection against future quantum attacks is on your list, ExpressVPN already offers it.

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2. ExpressVPN: Best NordVPN Alternative for Simple Apps

ExpressVPN is the closest like-for-like replacement. It tied NordVPN on speed with a 7.8% average loss, and it unblocked all nine of the streaming services we tested, the same result as NordVPN. Its Lightway protocol, rebuilt in Rust, has post-quantum protection enabled from the start, and its connections were among the fastest we’ve tested.

The apps are where it pulls ahead for beginners. You choose a country and connect, and everything else remains in the background. Its privacy setup pairs AES-256 encryption with servers that wipe all data on every reboot and a no-logs policy that has passed repeated independent audits.

The Basic plan costs about $3 a month on a two-year term for 10 devices, and the Express Pro plan covers 14. That simplicity has a cost, though. You lose Meshnet, Double VPN, and NordVPN’s wider menu of specialty servers, and there’s little to adjust beyond the protocol, the kill switch, and split tunneling.

After the app redesign, those settings are under Profile and the ad blocker under Add-ons, a layout I found a bit confusing. So if you use NordVPN’s advanced features every day, ExpressVPN will feel like a step down.

Visit ExpressVPN

3. Private Internet Access: Best NordVPN Alternative on a Budget

Private Internet Access is the budget answer. It costs around $2 a month on the two-year plan, noticeably less than NordVPN, and it sets no limit on simultaneous connections, so one subscription covers every phone, laptop, and TV in the house. The network spans 113 countries, with servers in all 50 US states.

PIA also does well on privacy for the price. Its apps are open source, and its no-logs policy has been tested in court: when US authorities requested user data, PIA had none to hand over. Its MACE ad blocker also stopped more ads in our PIA tests than NordVPN’s did, and Linux users have a full graphical app.

The drawbacks are streaming and comfort. PIA lost 12.7% on average and unblocked six of our nine streaming services, failing on Netflix Japan, Prime Video, and HBO Max. Its desktop apps are my least favorite of the five, cluttered and old-fashioned, and the Windows app starts on OpenVPN.

Switch the protocol to WireGuard in Settings for better speed. PIA is also US-based, part of the Five Eyes, so Proton VPN is the better choice if you care about jurisdiction.

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4. Surfshark: Best NordVPN Alternative for Streaming

Surfshark was the overall surprise of our tests. It unblocked eight of our nine streaming services, missing only ITV, and it was the fastest of the six on UK servers, with a 9.6% average loss across all three locations. For most viewers, that’s the same experience as NordVPN at a lower price.

It also includes more per dollar. The plan costs about $2.50 a month on a two-year term and includes the CleanWeb ad blocker, no device limit, and Alternative ID, which generates a masked email address and a throwaway identity for sign-up forms. Its newest protocol, Dausos, uses AEGIS-256X2 encryption and was audited by Cure53.

Surfshark also says it’s faster than standard protocols. On the other hand, connections sometimes took a few seconds longer to start than on NordVPN, and the company is based in the Netherlands, a 9 Eyes country, though Surfshark’s no-logs policy is independently audited.

If you’re leaving NordVPN because of the company itself, note that Surfshark and NordVPN share a parent company, Nord Security, while operating separate apps and networks.

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5. CyberGhost: Best NordVPN Alternative for a Longer Refund Window

CyberGhost usually loses to NordVPN on features, but it wins on time. Its long-term plans come with a 45-day money-back guarantee, 15 days longer than the other four, so you can test it properly before committing. It also costs around $2 a month on the two-year plan. The monthly plan is different: its refund window is only 14 days.

For streaming, CyberGhost labels its servers by service, so you choose “Netflix US” or “BBC iPlayer” instead of guessing which server works. It unblocked eight of our nine services, but it couldn’t unblock Netflix Japan, even from the server labeled for it.

Speed was the weakest of the six, a 13.3% average loss, which is enough for HD streaming on nearby servers. CyberGhost has also published transparency reports since 2011, and its no-logs policy has been independently audited. Two limits will rule it out for some people.

One subscription covers only seven devices, and there’s no obfuscation to hide VPN traffic, so it won’t work in China, where NordVPN and Proton VPN usually do. If you travel to countries that restrict VPNs, choose one of those two instead.

Visit CyberGhost

What to Look For in NordVPN Alternatives

NordVPN loses ground in a few specific places. Match your reason for leaving to the VPN that fixes it:

• You have more than 10 devices. NordVPN stops at 10. PIA and Surfshark set no limit, so one account covers every phone, TV, and console in the house. The head-to-head between PIA and Surfshark shows which of the two fits you better.
• You want a lower bill. PIA and CyberGhost cost around $2 a month on two-year plans, and Proton VPN costs under $3. NordVPN’s renewal price is also the highest of the six, so the difference grows after the first term.
• You want to try before paying. NordVPN has no free plan, only its 30-day money-back guarantee. Proton VPN’s free plan has no data cap, but it comes with other limits.
• You want a longer safety net. CyberGhost refunds within 45 days on its long-term plans, while the others offer 30.
• You want open-source apps. Proton VPN and PIA publish their app code for every platform. NordVPN does it only for its Linux app, which also gained a full graphical interface in 2025.
• You want simpler software. NordVPN’s apps put many features on one screen. ExpressVPN keeps things to a country list and a connect button.

Free Alternatives to NordVPN

NordVPN has no free version, so a free VPN is the only way to skip paying entirely. These five are the free VPNs we trust, but each one has a real limit:

Free Plan	What You Get	Main Limit
Proton VPN Free	No data cap	1 device, server assigned for you, no P2P
PrivadoVPN Free	10 GB/month, 10 countries	Data cap, renewed by hand each month
Windscribe Free	10 GB/month with a confirmed email, unlimited devices	Data cap
Hide.me Free	No data cap, 7 countries	Slower speeds, no streaming or P2P
TunnelBear Free	2 GB/month	No server choice, cap runs out quickly

In practice, the data cap is the biggest problem: 10 GB of HD streaming lasted us about five hours, so a month of normal use runs out long before the month does. Proton VPN’s free plan avoids the cap, but it assigns the server for you and isn’t reliable for streaming, while Windscribe and PrivadoVPN unblocked more services and still hit their caps.

Torrenting is also blocked on most free plans. Be careful with other free VPNs. A VPN that doesn’t earn money from subscriptions usually earns it by logging and selling browsing data or injecting ads, which defeats the point of using a VPN. If budget is the real issue, a cheap paid plan removes every one of these limits.

Switching From NordVPN

Before you subscribe elsewhere, turn off NordVPN’s auto-renewal so you aren’t charged for another term. It’s a toggle in your Nord Account, and the steps for canceling NordVPN also cover the refund. If you’re still within 30 days of buying, NordVPN refunds the full amount, which you can request through live chat.

If price is the only complaint, check your plan first. The Complete and Prime plans add antivirus and identity protection, and switching to the Basic plan at renewal lowers the bill without changing the VPN. Otherwise, all five alternatives have a money-back guarantee of their own, so your new choice works as a trial too.

Verdict

NordVPN remains the most complete of the best VPNs we’ve tested, and none of these five beats it across the board. What decides a switch is how much you use NordVPN’s extras. If you rarely touch them, Proton VPN is our pick of the group, and you’ll lose little in daily use.

If speed and streaming matter most, ExpressVPN was the only VPN to match NordVPN on both in our tests. PIA, Surfshark, and CyberGhost make sense when a large household or a tight budget is the real problem, and a shorter feature list is a fair trade for that.

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