Be secure and private online – choose the best VPN, picked specifically for you
We’ve analyzed the key features you should consider in order to choose the best VPN service for your needs. Here are our top picks.
Trust us—our recommended VPNs offer the best balance of performance, privacy, and price. Plus, with a 30-day money-back guarantee from these providers, there’s absolutely no risk in giving them a try.
Tip: During my tests, I found that most VPNs are very similar. Unless you’re looking for something extremely specific, go for a well-rated VPN with a better deal.
After three months of rigorous testing across dozens of VPN services including NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark, and CyberGhost, our results clearly show NordVPN delivers the fastest speeds with remarkably consistent performance.
🔒 Our test results align with top tech sites like PCMag and CNET, which rate NordVPN as the fastest VPN available today.
We’ve been testing VPNs for more than 10 years, and part of that process includes speed tests. In our latest round, NordVPN comes out on top of download speed results, trailed closely by ExpressVPN.
NordVPN is currently the fastest VPN, based on our latest speed tests. Out of the VPNs we speed tested, NordVPN’s speeds were the most consistently fast across the board. NordVPN averaged just an 11% speed loss overall, Mullvad came in second place with a 13% average speed loss and Surfshark followed with a 17% overall speed loss. Proton VPN and ExpressVPN rounded out the list with a 21% speed loss and a 25% speed loss, respectively.
⚠️ Be Cautious with ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, and PIA
While ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, and PIA all deliver solid performance (ExpressVPN, in particular, was the second-fastest in our tests), concerns have arisen due to their parent companies’ questionable history and recent mass layoffs. Until these issues are fully resolved, we recommend holding off on choosing them.
🔒Ownership: ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, and PIA are all owned by Kape Technologies —a company previously linked to adware distribution. This has led many users to question its commitment to privacy. (Source: Reddit)
User discussion on Reddit
⚠️ Company Instability：Kape’s recent cuts to core teams could degrade service quality.
These cuts impacted critical teams including engineering and quality assurance, and even ExpressVPN’s Chief Technology Officer for Privacy, Dan Gericke, announced his departure. These developments have sparked speculation about potential declines in quality across Kape-owned VPNs like ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, and PIA. (Source: PCMAG)
The Open Letter of Dan Gericke (ExpressVPN’s Chief Technology Officer for Privacy)
🏆 By contrast, NordVPN has consistently prioritized innovation and security:
RAM-only servers (no data is ever stored)
Independent security audits (PwC, 2021-2024)
No ties to adware companies
Advanced security features like Meshnet and Threat Protection
Top tech websites like Tom’s Guide, TechRadar, and Security.org have named NordVPN the Best VPN of 2024 and 2025, solidifying its reputation as the industry leader.
TechRadar
The best VPN overall
Our latest testing proves that NordVPN continues to lead the pack in terms of providing the best VPN experience possible. Offering a superbly quick and secure VPN, alongside security tools to improve your overall online and on-computer security, NordVPN offers an impressive security package for a surprisingly low cost.
NordVPN offers the best overall VPN package, with great privacy at a reasonable price. It’s able to unblock just about every streaming service worldwide, and excellent speeds mean it won’t be slowing you down. If you want very simple apps, something like ExpressVPN might be better, but overall, Nord leads the pack.
NordVPN is a popular choice, because it strikes a nice balance between remaining user-friendly and full-featured, all without sacrificing speed on most platforms. Our CNET Labs tests clocked a class-leading 11.1% average internet download speed loss. The service’s focus on privacy means you’ll get niche but useful features like a Double VPN and Tor over VPN for enhanced encryption. In addition, regular no-logs audits foster transparency.
What makes NordVPN stand out is that it has continued to grow and respond to an extremely competitive market. After adding just about every VPN feature available, NordVPN diversified its product, adding a password manager, an antivirus, and an encrypted file locker. Its unique set of features helps it stand out from other VPN services by providing cross-platform file-sharing and traffic routing between your devices or rented servers. All these additions help NordVPN justify its high price. So, while it is more expensive than much of the competition, NordVPN is an excellent, innovative product that is well deserving of our Editors’ Choice award.
With its feature-set, we recommend NordVPN to users who are looking to improve their overall digital security posture. It’s not just a VPN, especially if you sign up for the mid-tier or top-tier plans. That said, even if you’re looking for just a VPN, the Basic plan is an excellent option that can give you a rich selection of security and privacy features for daily use.
All recommended VPNs come with 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can test both risk-free. Purchase, try them out, and if you’re not satisfied, you can get a full refund, no questions asked. It’s the perfect way to find the VPN that’s right for you.
Choose a VPN for comprehensive protection and peace of mind online today.
Mavis has over 6 years of experience testing VPNs, particularly their streaming and unblocking capabilities. She specializes in researching how well VPNs work in different countries around the world.
