Head-to-head
NordVPN vs Proton VPN
A Panama-based VPN with desktop malware scanning in its higher plans, and a Swiss one with a free plan and published audit reports. How they compare on devices, plans, apps and evidence.
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The short version
NordVPN is run by nordvpn S.A. in Panama, part of Nord Security; Proton VPN by Proton AG in Geneva, Switzerland, the company behind Proton Mail. Both cover 10 devices at once on their paid plans, both have apps for computers, phones, Android TV, Fire TV and Apple TV, and both cite repeated outside no-logs checks: PwC and then Deloitte for NordVPN, with the latest report shown only to signed-in customers, and Securitum every year since 2022 for Proton, which publishes the full reports. The clearest differences are how you start and what comes with the VPN. Proton has a free plan for one device with no data cap; NordVPN has no free VPN plan. NordVPN's Complete plan adds a next-gen antivirus for Windows and Mac, a password manager and cloud storage; Proton's paid plans add NetShield ad blocking and Secure Core, and Proton Unlimited bundles its paid Mail, Calendar, Drive and Pass. Pick NordVPN if you want download scanning on Windows and Mac next to your VPN, or Incogni data removal in Ultra, its top plan in Canada; pick Proton VPN if you want to start free, read the audit reports before you pay, or get the VPN bundled with Proton Mail, Drive and Pass.
Side-by-side
| Feature | NordVPN | Proton VPN |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | A VPN plus download scanning on Windows and Mac | Public no-logs audits, free or paid |
| Company and jurisdiction | nordvpn S.A., Panama City, Panama; its terms are governed by Panamanian law. NordVPN's help centre names Nord Security, based in the Netherlands, as its parent company. | Proton AG, Geneva, Switzerland, the company behind Proton Mail. Proton says its main shareholder is the Proton Foundation, a Swiss nonprofit. |
| Devices at once | 10 on every plan. Each proxy connection takes a slot; a router takes one slot for everything behind it. | 1 on the free plan; 10 on VPN Plus and Proton Unlimited; up to 10 for each member on Proton Duo and Proton Family. |
| Plans | Basic and Complete, with Ultra as the top plan in Canada, per NordVPN's September 2026 plan guide; names vary by region. | Proton Free, VPN Plus, Proton Unlimited, Proton Duo and Proton Family. VPN Plus adds servers in more than 140 countries, streaming support and P2P; Duo and Family extend Unlimited to 2 or up to 6 accounts. |
| No-logs evidence | PwC in 2018 and 2020, then Deloitte since 2022; the latest ran November 10 to December 12, 2025. That report is shown only to customers who sign in. | Securitum, every year since 2022; the latest report is dated May 2026. Proton says it publishes the full reports for anyone to read. |
| Free plan or trial | No free VPN plan; only Meshnet is free. The help centre describes a 7-day trial for new users in Canada and 14 other countries on 1- and 2-year top-tier plans, paid by card or PayPal, and a 3-day trial for new Android users through Google Play. | A free plan with no data cap or time limit, Proton says: one device, servers in 10 countries Proton picks for you, and no streaming guarantee or BitTorrent. No time-limited trial of VPN Plus. |
| Refund window | Within 30 days of your first purchase, not on renewals. | A full refund within 30 days of the initial purchase, for subscriptions bought directly from Proton, once per user and not for cash or bank-transfer payments. |
| Platforms | Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and iPad, Android, Apple TV, Android TV and Fire TV, plus Chrome, Firefox and Edge extensions and manual router setup. No app for Roku, Samsung TVs or game consoles. | Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and iPad, Android, Chromebook, Android TV, Fire TV and Apple TV (paid plans only), plus Chrome and Firefox extensions and manual router setup. Proton says all its apps are open source. |
| Kill switch and split tunneling | Kill switch on Windows, Android 8 and later, and Linux; an App Kill Switch on Windows and the website Mac app; "VPN bypass prevention" on iPhone and the Mac App Store app; none on Fire TV Stick. Split tunneling on Windows, Android, Android TV and Fire TV, not on iPhone or Mac. | Kill switch on Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, iPad and Android, on every plan. Split tunneling on paid plans for Windows, Linux, Android, Android TV and the browser extensions, experimental on Mac and not on iPhone or iPad; on most platforms it doesn't work alongside the kill switch (Windows is the exception). |
| Extras beyond the VPN | Free Meshnet; Complete adds desktop next-gen antivirus, NordPass and 1 TB of NordLocker; Ultra, the top plan in Canada, adds Incogni | NetShield and Secure Core on paid plans; Proton Unlimited adds paid Proton Mail, Calendar, Drive and Pass |
| Skip it if | You want to start on a free plan | You need location choice or several devices for free |
NordVPN
- Best for
- A VPN plus download scanning on Windows and Mac
- Company and jurisdiction
- nordvpn S.A., Panama City, Panama; its terms are governed by Panamanian law. NordVPN's help centre names Nord Security, based in the Netherlands, as its parent company.
- Devices at once
- 10 on every plan. Each proxy connection takes a slot; a router takes one slot for everything behind it.
- Plans
- Basic and Complete, with Ultra as the top plan in Canada, per NordVPN's September 2026 plan guide; names vary by region.
- No-logs evidence
- PwC in 2018 and 2020, then Deloitte since 2022; the latest ran November 10 to December 12, 2025. That report is shown only to customers who sign in.
- Free plan or trial
- No free VPN plan; only Meshnet is free. The help centre describes a 7-day trial for new users in Canada and 14 other countries on 1- and 2-year top-tier plans, paid by card or PayPal, and a 3-day trial for new Android users through Google Play.
- Refund window
- Within 30 days of your first purchase, not on renewals.
- Platforms
- Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and iPad, Android, Apple TV, Android TV and Fire TV, plus Chrome, Firefox and Edge extensions and manual router setup. No app for Roku, Samsung TVs or game consoles.
- Kill switch and split tunneling
- Kill switch on Windows, Android 8 and later, and Linux; an App Kill Switch on Windows and the website Mac app; "VPN bypass prevention" on iPhone and the Mac App Store app; none on Fire TV Stick. Split tunneling on Windows, Android, Android TV and Fire TV, not on iPhone or Mac.
- Extras beyond the VPN
- Free Meshnet; Complete adds desktop next-gen antivirus, NordPass and 1 TB of NordLocker; Ultra, the top plan in Canada, adds Incogni
- Skip it if
- You want to start on a free plan
Proton VPN
- Best for
- Public no-logs audits, free or paid
- Company and jurisdiction
- Proton AG, Geneva, Switzerland, the company behind Proton Mail. Proton says its main shareholder is the Proton Foundation, a Swiss nonprofit.
- Devices at once
- 1 on the free plan; 10 on VPN Plus and Proton Unlimited; up to 10 for each member on Proton Duo and Proton Family.
- Plans
- Proton Free, VPN Plus, Proton Unlimited, Proton Duo and Proton Family. VPN Plus adds servers in more than 140 countries, streaming support and P2P; Duo and Family extend Unlimited to 2 or up to 6 accounts.
- No-logs evidence
- Securitum, every year since 2022; the latest report is dated May 2026. Proton says it publishes the full reports for anyone to read.
- Free plan or trial
- A free plan with no data cap or time limit, Proton says: one device, servers in 10 countries Proton picks for you, and no streaming guarantee or BitTorrent. No time-limited trial of VPN Plus.
- Refund window
- A full refund within 30 days of the initial purchase, for subscriptions bought directly from Proton, once per user and not for cash or bank-transfer payments.
- Platforms
- Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and iPad, Android, Chromebook, Android TV, Fire TV and Apple TV (paid plans only), plus Chrome and Firefox extensions and manual router setup. Proton says all its apps are open source.
- Kill switch and split tunneling
- Kill switch on Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, iPad and Android, on every plan. Split tunneling on paid plans for Windows, Linux, Android, Android TV and the browser extensions, experimental on Mac and not on iPhone or iPad; on most platforms it doesn't work alongside the kill switch (Windows is the exception).
- Extras beyond the VPN
- NetShield and Secure Core on paid plans; Proton Unlimited adds paid Proton Mail, Calendar, Drive and Pass
- Skip it if
- You need location choice or several devices for free
How to choose between them
- Decide whether you'd start free. Proton's free plan covers one device with no data cap, but picks your server country from a list of 10 and leaves out streaming support and BitTorrent. NordVPN has no free VPN plan; its help centre describes a 7-day trial, offered in Canada, that needs a card or PayPal.
- Weigh the audit evidence you can read. Both cite repeated no-logs checks. Proton publishes Securitum's reports; NordVPN shows Deloitte's latest only to signed-in customers.
- List the extras you'd use. NordVPN's Complete plan adds download scanning on Windows and Mac, NordPass and 1 TB of NordLocker storage. Proton's paid plans add NetShield and Secure Core, and Proton Unlimited adds its paid Mail, Calendar, Drive and Pass.
- Check the features on your devices. Neither offers split tunneling on iPhone; on a Mac, Proton's is experimental and NordVPN has none. Proton's Apple TV app needs a paid plan, and NordVPN's Fire TV Stick app has no kill switch.
Want the detail? Read the full NordVPN review and Proton VPN review, or see how six VPNs we review line up in Best VPN.
Who should pick which
Pick it if this is you
NordVPN · Audited VPN with desktop download scanning
Pick NordVPN if you want download scanning on Windows and Mac next to your VPN, or Incogni data removal in Ultra, its top plan in Canada — not if you want to start on a free plan or read the no-logs report before you pay.
- No-logs policy reviewed by PwC and Deloitte since 2018
- 10 devices, with apps for computers, phones and TVs
Pick it if this is you
Proton VPN · An audited no-logs VPN with a no-data-cap free plan
Pick Proton VPN if you want a free plan for one device with no data cap, public no-logs audit reports, or the VPN bundled with Proton Mail, Drive and Pass — not if you want download scanning on your computer next to your VPN.
- Free plan with no data cap or ads
- Securitum no-logs audits every year since 2022
Sources · checked Oct 30, 2026
- NordVPN — General Terms of Service
- NordVPN — NordVPN Additional Terms
- NordVPN Help Center — Where is NordVPN based
- NordVPN Help Center — How many devices can I use with NordVPN?
- NordVPN — NordVPN bundles explained
- NordVPN Help Center — What is NordVPN's Next-gen antivirus?
- NordVPN — A leading no-log VPN for online privacy in 2026
- NordVPN — NordVPN passes its no-logs assessment for the sixth time
- NordVPN — Cure53 has assessed NordVPN's security once again
- NordVPN — NordVPN Trust Center
- NordVPN — Why the NordVPN network is safe after a third-party provider breach
- NordVPN — Meshnet
- NordVPN Help Center — Does NordVPN have a free trial?
- NordVPN Help Center — How to download NordVPN software?
- NordVPN Help Center — Set up NordVPN on a Smart TV or Console
- NordVPN Help Center — NordVPN Kill Switch: how does it work
- NordVPN Help Center — What is Split Tunneling and how to use it with NordVPN?
- NordVPN Help Center — How do I use CarPlay, Android Auto, or cast while connected to NordVPN?
- NordVPN Help Center — Installing NordVPN on Amazon Fire devices
- NordVPN Help Center — What features does NordVPN have?
- NordVPN Help Center — Netflix doesn't work with NordVPN
- NordVPN Help Center — I can't find NordVPN P2P servers
- NordVPN — Best VPN server locations: View the full list
- NordVPN Help Center — Does NordVPN offer port forwarding
- Proton — Terms of Service
- Proton VPN Help Center — Who owns Proton VPN?
- Proton VPN Help Center — Proton VPN plans explained
- Proton VPN — Compare VPN plans and pricing
- Proton VPN — Proton VPN Free vs. paid plans
- Proton Help Center — How to enable VPN connections
- Proton VPN Help Center — Routers
- Proton VPN blog — For 5th year running, Proton VPN passes external no-logs audit
- Proton VPN blog — All Proton VPN apps are now open source and audited
- Proton VPN blog — Proton VPN transparency report and warrant canary
- Proton blog — Introducing Lumo: AI where every conversation is confidential
- Proton VPN — VPN security features
- Proton VPN Help Center — Proton VPN on Apple TV
- Proton VPN Help Center — Proton VPN on Amazon Fire TV
- Proton VPN Help Center — Kill switch
- Proton VPN Help Center — Split tunneling
- Proton VPN Help Center — NetShield Ad-blocker
- Proton VPN Help Center — Secure Core
- Proton VPN — P2P support
- Proton VPN Help Center — P2P servers and BitTorrent
- Proton VPN Help Center — Port forwarding
- Proton VPN — VPN for streaming
- NordVPN Help Center — How to protect your identity with Coveron?
Frequently asked questions
NordVPN or Proton VPN: which is better?
Neither wins on every count; it depends on what you'll use. NordVPN suits people who want download scanning on Windows and Mac in the same subscription, or Incogni data removal in Ultra, its top plan in Canada. Proton VPN suits people who want to start with a free plan, read the no-logs audit reports in full, or get the VPN bundled with Proton Mail, Drive and Pass. Both cover 10 devices on their paid plans. We haven't tested either; this compares their own published pages.
Is Proton VPN safer than NordVPN?
We can't measure that, but we can compare what each publishes. Both say they don't log your activity and have had that checked repeatedly: Proton by Securitum every year since 2022, with the reports public, and NordVPN by PwC and Deloitte since 2018, with the latest report for customers only. Both cite app security tests: an independent researcher's assessment of Proton's apps in November 2025, and Cure53's of NordVPN's apps and servers in 2025. Proton's apps are open source; NordVPN says its Linux apps' source code is public. Both publish transparency reports: Proton says it couldn't answer any of 458 Swiss-approved orders from 2017 through June 2026 because it keeps no such logs, and NordVPN publishes quarterly reports on government requests and DMCA notices. NordVPN says a rented server in Finland was accessed in March 2018, which it learned of in April 2019 and made public in October 2019, and that no user credentials or activity logs were exposed. NordVPN operates under Panama's jurisdiction; Proton is in Switzerland, though in July 2025 it said it is moving most of its physical infrastructure out of the country.
NordVPN or Proton VPN for torrenting?
Based on what each says: NordVPN's help centre says every standard server now supports P2P traffic (its server list page still points to separate P2P servers), and port forwarding needs its Dedicated Server add-on. Proton allows P2P only on paid plans, on servers marked with a two-way arrow in countries it says allow file sharing, and includes port forwarding in its Windows, Mac and Linux apps; its free plan doesn't allow BitTorrent. We haven't tested torrenting with either.
NordVPN or Proton VPN for streaming?
Going by their own pages: NordVPN's help centre says it works with the big streaming services, and it also has troubleshooting pages for Netflix, Hulu and Disney+. Proton guarantees streaming support only on paid plans; its free plan doesn't block streaming sites but makes no promise, and Proton notes that watching Netflix titles not licensed where you are is against Netflix's policy. Proton's Apple TV app needs a paid plan. We haven't tested streaming with either.
Are NordVPN and Proton VPN the same company?
No. NordVPN is run by nordvpn S.A. in Panama City, and its help centre names Nord Security, based in the Netherlands, as its parent. Proton VPN is run by Proton AG in Geneva, Switzerland, which also makes Proton Mail; Proton says its main shareholder is the Proton Foundation, a Swiss nonprofit.
Can I use NordVPN and Proton VPN on the same number of devices?
On paid plans, yes: both allow 10 devices at once. NordVPN counts each proxy connection as a slot and lets a router use one slot for everything behind it. Proton's free plan covers one device, where a router also counts as one connection, and on Proton Duo and Proton Family each member can connect up to 10 devices.