ProtonVPN and IVPN are two of the most principled VPN services in the industry. Both grew from a privacy-first philosophy, but they differ a lot on accessibility and market positioning.
ProtonVPN is a Swiss VPN from the Proton Mail team with open-source apps and a free tier that has no data cap or ads. It suits privacy-first users.
Gibraltar VPN with open-source apps and yearly Cure53 audits since 2019. Suits privacy-focused users who can accept a small network and patchy streaming.
ProtonVPN and IVPN are two of the most principled VPN services in the industry. Both grew from a privacy-first philosophy, but they differ a lot on accessibility and market positioning.
Both have remarkable principles. ProtonVPN offers Swiss privacy laws and open-source transparency. IVPN offers anonymous signup options and proactively removes features that could enable abuse. ProtonVPN is well ahead on free use with unlimited bandwidth (speed-limited), while IVPN has no free tier.
ProtonVPN's plans are tiered by subscription level, while IVPN charges by simultaneous connections (2 or 7 devices). ProtonVPN offers Secure Core routing and a broad set of security tools. IVPN concentrates on core privacy features and does them exceptionally well.
Neither service prioritizes geo-unblocking for streaming, though ProtonVPN has made more effort there. ProtonVPN's apps are more accessible, while IVPN's technical privacy focus has less mainstream appeal.
| Feature | ProtonVPN | IVPN |
|---|---|---|
Ad & Tracker Blocking | ||
Anonymous Payment Methods | ||
Connection Protocols | ||
Custom VPN Protocols | ||
Customer Support Availability | ||
Dedicated IP Option | ||
Encryption Standard | ||
Independent Audits | ||
IPv6 Leak Protection | ||
Kill Switch | ||
Multi-Hop | ||
No-logs Policy | ||
Open Source Apps | ||
RAM-only Servers | ||
Simultaneous Connections | ||
Split Tunneling | ||
Streaming Support | ||
Support Channels | ||
Torrenting Support |
This choice reflects your view of privacy and how accessible you need the service to be. Choose ProtonVPN if you want Swiss privacy laws, a full free tier and more accessible apps from a mainstream privacy service. Select IVPN if you're a privacy purist who values anonymous signup and ethical business practices and prefers a boutique privacy service. For most privacy-conscious users, ProtonVPN is more accessible and better value.
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A mainstream VPN with a no-logs policy audited five times and bundled security extras. It suits households with several devices and frequent travelers.
Surfshark is a lower-priced VPN with unlimited device connections and a no-logs policy verified twice by Deloitte. It suits households with many devices.
CyberGhost is a Romania-based VPN with servers sorted by task, such as streaming or torrenting. It suits streaming households who want a simple app.
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