A monthly subscription can cost less for a short trip or temporary need, even when its
monthly rate is higher. Look for an explicit one-month billing option and compare the amount
charged today.
Mullvad charges €5 per month including VAT,
whether you buy one month or a longer period. It is an option when flexibility matters more
than a long-term discount. This is a euro price; account for currency conversion before
comparing it with the dollar offers above.
For example, suppose a monthly plan costs $5 and a 24-month plan costs $60 upfront. These
are illustrative prices, not provider offers.
Need three months?
Monthly plan: $15
Long plan: $60
Monthly billing costs $45 less.
Need two years?
Monthly plan: $120
Long plan: $60
The long plan costs $60 less.
The long plan advertises a $2.50 monthly equivalent. The total costs tie at twelve months;
monthly payments become more expensive after that. This example assumes unchanged prices, no
tax and no refund.
Yes. Proton Free has no data cap and is funded by paid subscribers. It has fewer choices and
features than the paid service, so check its limits if you need a particular location,
streaming support or multiple simultaneous devices.
A reputable free plan can be a sensible starting point. Check who operates it, how it is
funded and what it collects. Price alone does not establish trustworthiness.
Try Proton VPN Free. If you need more
features, compare Proton VPN’s paid plans with the full checkout totals above.
- Check the amount charged today. Confirm the currency, taxes, paid term and
bonus months. Remove optional extras you do not need. A rounded monthly equivalent multiplied
by the term may differ from the exact checkout total.
- Read the renewal amount and interval. A two-year introductory subscription
can renew annually. Divide the renewal payment by the months it buys to compare ongoing costs,
but keep the actual bill in view.
- Check practical limits. Confirm simultaneous connections, app support and required
features. A large server count does not establish good speed on your route.
- Read the refund conditions. Check when the period begins, which purchases qualify
and how to request a refund. Cancelling auto-renewal is not necessarily a refund request.
Look for maintained apps, documented protocols, a readable privacy policy and evidence
supporting important claims. Check an independent audit’s date and scope: a review of one
system does not guarantee everything a provider does.
Encryption slogans are a poor shortcut. WireGuard uses ChaCha20-Poly1305, so an AES-256 badge is not a requirement for a sound VPN protocol.
- Compare a nearby VPN server with your normal connection at roughly the same time.
-
Check your visible IP address and DNS routing with DoVPN’s IP leak test.
-
Follow the kill-switch test guide to check connection-drop
behaviour.
-
Try your streaming services, calls and everyday apps during the applicable refund period.
A successful leak check tells you about that connection. It does not establish a no-logs
policy, prevent phishing or make your accounts anonymous. Read our cheap VPN safety guide for more checks.
This comparison covers subscription costs and buying trade-offs across 10 paid providers.
We sort their listed introductory offers by monthly equivalent, show the first payment and renewal
schedule, and explain who might prefer each plan. Monthly and free alternatives cover readers
who do not need a long subscription.
The shortlist is not a survey of every VPN. Price observations support the billing
comparison; provider pages support the stated features. Neither establishes that all listed
services were retested for speed or streaming on the price-check date. Any hands-on result
needs its own method, platform and date. See how DoVPN reviews VPNs.
The updated date reflects changes to the guide or its listed prices; the table shows the
date of each accepted price observation. Unknown renewal amounts stay marked as unavailable.
Keep comparing only what you need
For a strict price ceiling, see VPN offers under $2 per month. For viewing needs, use the cheap streaming VPN guide. Household buyers can compare family VPN plans.
If a long plan fits, compare the first and renewal payments before opening
the offer. If your need is brief or basic, start with monthly billing or Proton Free.