Sure, NordVPN might offer a bit more privacy if it increases the number of servers you own, but we’re talking about 5,200+ servers in 60 countries, a zero-logging policy, and a jurisdiction in Panama. It’s the encryption powerhouse, and it has a feature that enables VPN to Tor .
- Is NordVPN worth it? And, what does NordVPN do, precisely?
- What does NordVPN do?
- NordVPN Specs
- How Much Does NordVPN Cost?
- Similar Products
- Surfshark VPN
- Private Internet Access VPN
- ProtonVPN
- CyberGhost VPN
- TunnelBear VPN
- ExpressVPN
- Mullvad VPN
- Mozilla VPN
- Can I Try NordVPN for Free?
- Payment Options
- Speed
- Security and privacy
- NordVPN Payment Options
- NordVPN Deals and Discounts
- NordVPN Deal
- Advantages of the NordVPN
- Get your NordVPN deal. Here is how it works:
- Disclaimer
- Should I buy NordVPN?
- NordVPN Coupons
Is NordVPN worth it? And, what does NordVPN do, precisely?
Having a VPN while we’re all online more often than usual can be a great investment. Products like NordVPN have become popular thanks to the promise of great security, fast internet speeds, and access to more of the content you need.
Is NordVPN any good? We will find out.
Today, we’re going to provide a NordVPN review to help you determine if it’s really worth investing in a product like this for your online convenience and security.
If you want to check out the latest offers and promotions before continuing, just click here.
What does NordVPN do?
If you’re wondering “is it worth buying a VPN?” NordVPN is one of the more famous options on the market. A Virtual Private Network is a common type of internet security service that can alter your web address and hide your location.
VPNs will also encrypt your data as you browse the web, making it harder for hackers to find you.
Normally, when you browse the web, your internet traffic service goes through your ISP. Your “ISP” can see everything you are doing – even if you are using “Incognito.
A VPN carries your internet traffic through a remote server that hides your IP address, with encryption so that other people can’t ‘hack’ your connection.
This advanced security feature routes traffic through two VPN servers instead of one, encrypting your data twice. It is necessary for people like activists and journalists who live in hostile countries.
NordVPN Specs
Blocks ads | Yes |
Free version | No |
Concurrent VPN connections | 6 |
Over 500 servers | Yes |
Server locations | 59 countries |
Geographically diverse servers | Yes |
Free version data limit | No free version |
How Much Does NordVPN Cost?
NordVPN costs $ 11.95 a month or $ 99 a year. The company offers its annual plan at a discounted rate of $ 59, but you’ll pay $ 99 when the subscription comes in for renewal. NordVPN sometimes offers different plans at different starting rates. For example, you can currently get a two-year subscription of $ 99, which will revert to the annual subscription of $ 99 when it’s renewed. We are not fans of this kind of pay rise lurking in the fine print.
Since 1982, PCMag has tested and evaluated thousands of products to help you make better purchasing decisions. (See how we test.)
You can pay with credit cards, various anonymous cryptocurrencies and PayPal as well as other online payment methods. VPN companies often offer promotions, so you may see a different price when you go to checkout. As of this writing, the average cost of the VPN service we reviewed is around $ 10.05 per month and $ 69.10 per year. This puts NordVPN on the expensive side.
While it may be tempting, we advise against making long-term plans immediately. Instead, use the free version or short-term subscription to test the VPN in your home environment. While all free VPNs have limitations, ProtonVPN is the only one we’ve tested that doesn’t limit the amount of data free data subscribers can use. NordVPN has ended its free trial by stating that scammers are using it.
Similar Products
Surfshark VPN
Private Internet Access VPN
ProtonVPN
CyberGhost VPN
TunnelBear VPN
ExpressVPN
Mullvad VPN
Mozilla VPN
You can certainly buy the best VPN subscription for less. For example, Editors’ Choice Mullvad VPN only costs 5EU ($ 5.73 at the time of this writing) per month, and top-of-the-line ProtonVPN has all the same features (but with fewer servers) for just $ 10 per month. At $ 29.99 per year, Kaspersky Secure Connection VPN and Ivacy VPN stand out for the lowest annual fee of any non-free VPNs we’ve tested.
NordVPN only offers one subscription add-on: Static IPs for $ 5.83 per month ($ 69.96 per year). You can select an address for France, Germany, the Netherlands, Great Britain or the United States. A static IP address can help prevent your VPN connection from being blocked, especially if you are constantly connected to the same region.
Can I Try NordVPN for Free?
NordVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. So, while it doesn’t offer a traditional free trial like many other free trial VPNs, we still have the chance to try NordVPN risk-free.
It’s worth mentioning that NordVPN charged our cards straight away, but the first 30 days were completely risk-free so we were able to cancel for whatever reason. NordVPN made such an impression on us that we never considered canceling. However, if we felt different, all we would do is contact customer service to initiate the cancellation.
Heads Up: While NordVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, it can’t refund your money if you’ve purchased the plan or product from Apple’s app store. However, you can contact Apple Support directly if you want a refund.
Payment Options
NordVPN accepts many payment methods, including credit cards and cryptocurrencies.
Payment methods | NordVPN |
---|---|
Visa | Yes |
MasterCard | Yes |
Maestro | Yes |
American Express | Yes |
Discover | Yes |
JCB | No |
Paypal | No |
Google Pay | Yes |
GrabPay | Yes |
AmazonPay | Yes |
UnionPay | Yes |
Apple Pay | No |
Bitcoin | Yes |
Ethereum | Yes |
Ripple | Yes |
Drop | Yes |
Litecoin | Yes |
Zcash | Yes |
Of course, the greater your commitment, the greater the discount you will get. But given the wide range of features, we are happy to sign up for a long-term commitment.
Speed
- average speed loss: 53% speed loss in Autumn 2020 testing
- Number of servers: more than 5,200 servers
- Number of NordVPN server locations: 60
- Number of IP addresses: 5,000
We ran our NordVPN speed tests over the course of three days, using both wireless and Ethernet connections. US Internet speeds vary widely by state and provider. For any speed test, results will depend on local infrastructure and a hyper-fast internet service gives you higher test speed results.
This is one reason why we’re more concerned with speed loss as using any VPN can usually cut your internet speed in half or more. NordVPN cut our connection speed by an average of 53% compared to the 32% speed loss we measured when testing it in 2019. While it’s not as fast as some of its competitors such as ExpressVPN and Surfshark, we found NordVPN’s speeds to be reliably fast; there have never been any sudden drops or service interruptions, and where we expected him to be weaker, it has proven itself at the task.
NordVPN
NordVPN’s overall global average speed during my testing was 91 Mbps, in a non-VPN mid-speed dataset of 194 Mbps. While it’s normal for a VPN to cut your internet speed by half or more, the notable context is that in the averages of my five test zones, I’ve never seen NordVPN drop below 85Mbps. It’s still one of the most consistent, stable VPNs I’ve worked with.
Singapore excelled at 98 Mbps, while UK speeds are a hair ahead of European speeds. At 99.93 Mbps, connections in the UK overtook French and German connections, which averaged 91.90 Mbps. NordVPN also had a different finish during testing, with Australia beating the US results, ranging from 88Mbps to 86Mbps. Neither of these judgments are results that can be viewed from above.
Security and privacy
- Jurisdiction: Panama
- Encryption: AES-256, 4096-bit RSA key, Perfect Forward Secrecy
- No leaks detected
- Includes a configurable kill switch
We like that NordVPN is based in Panama, which is generally considered a privacy-friendly country due to the lack of surveillance-sharing agreements with other countries.
Its encryption is AES-256-CBC standard and it supports Perfect Forward Secrecy, which means it changes encryption keys frequently to avoid security breaches. NordVPN also uses the OpenVPN protocol (one of the most secure protocols available) and IPSec / IKEv2 (which is less secure but still fairly fast). During our testing, no IP address, DNS leak, or other potentially identifying data leaks were detected.
The VPN tool offers a useful kill switch security feature that prevents your network data from leaking outside your secure VPN tunnel in the event of a VPN connection failure. Those unfamiliar with the software should note the additional customizable kill switch that allows you to choose which apps to kill in case your VPN breaks. Please note that any applications not included in this list will continue to transmit information over the Internet and may therefore become a privacy liability.
Additional features include a site filter to block a wider range of malicious sites, as well as optional ad and tracker blocking. The latter goes a long way in maintaining speed for the average VPN user. We also like Nord’s double VPN feature, which allows users to hop between multiple servers for extra encryption. And we found obfuscation (the process of making a VPN not look like a VPN) effective for all testing purposes.
While the VPN service has long been on our list of recommended providers, we moved it to the penalty bracket in October 2019 to reevaluate our recommendation after a report came out that one of its rented servers was obtained without authorization in 2018. Nord’s post-discovery efforts included – ultimately – multiple security audits, a bug bounty program, and greater investment in the security of VPN servers.
While we would have preferred NordVPN’s team to disclose the issue much earlier, the fact that the breach was very limited in nature and did not include any user identification information to further verify that NordVPN does not keep any logs of user activity. NordVPN’s subsequent transition to making full use of RAM – meaning it doesn’t store anything on its hard drives – as a response to the breach helped convince us of the company’s commitment to security. As a result, Nord remains on our list of recommended suppliers.
- Usability: Friendly interface with easy control
- Platforms: Mac, Windows, Android, iOS, Linux
- Price: $ 3.67 / month (69% discount) for a two-year plan
- Number of simultaneous connections: 6
We like NordVPN’s clean, easy-to-use interface, its control switches, and its server search features. Interactive map graphics are nice to design, but could be more useful if their default setting were cities, not just countries.
The VPN company offers 24/7 customer support via live chat with an email option. NordVPN also has a well-built support section on its website that features a real library of frequently asked questions and tutorials.
If I want to browse another country’s Netflix library, NordVPN can help me safely access Netflix Australia, Canada, Japan, Netherlands, UK, and US. You can connect to virtually any server to enjoy Netflix from overseas, but all except the ones I just mentioned will direct you to the US version.
NordVPN Payment Options
Another really interesting thing about NordVPN is the many different payment methods. It may seem a little counterintuitive to enter your name and credit card information on a service whose primary purpose is to remain anonymous, and NordVPN doesn’t lose its irony. Therefore, they allow you to pay for a subscription using a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin. The advantage of paying this way is that it is completely anonymous – it cannot be traced back to you. This is very helpful for people who take their privacy seriously.
Did you know: The technology behind the cryptocurrency was first detailed in a 2008 article published by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitcoin was released the following year. 2
NordVPN Deals and Discounts
From time to time, Nord has been known to sweeten the deal by giving away free gifts when purchasing two-year subscription plans. As of this writing, Nord was participating in the draw for any buyer for a two-year free month, free one or two year free additional subscription period. It’s a pretty cool incentive, and with this service you’re almost guaranteed at least some extra free time. Sure, bigger prizes were rare, but hey – you never know. If you make a timely purchase and are lucky enough, you can walk away with four years of comprehensive coverage for the price of two. But if you really want the best Nord deal, check out our NordVPN Discounts page.
All things considered, I have to say that the two-year plan is the best option. It clearly offers the biggest savings – you don’t need to be a finance specialist to see this – and with your current contract, you can walk away with a four-year subscription for half the price.
Yes, two years is a really long commitment, but keep in mind that every plan offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. This is more than enough time to familiarize yourself with the service and determine if it is right for you. If you don’t like NordVPN, don’t worry – you’ll get your money back. If you like it and are ready for a long-term commitment, you are already prepared to realize the biggest savings. It is a win-win for both parties.
However, if that still feels like too much of a commitment, read our ProtonVPN review. They’re a great service – almost the same as Nord – but they offer a free version of their product for you to try. For more information on this, check out our guide to ProtonVPN pricing and bundles.
Is NordVPN any good? We believe NordVPN is a good investment due to its “no logging” policy itself. This means that NordVPN doesn’t store any information about your browsing habit.
NordVPN Deal
A NordVPN contract will help you prevent others from reading your data online by creating a shield over your IP address. Second, it will also protect your devices from hackers and surveillance. Finally, it will allow you to access information anywhere in the world without any restrictions.
Advantages of the NordVPN
Enjoy 2 years of NordVPN services for the price of 7-month monthly subscriptions.
The agreement will enable you to encrypt your internet connection, thanks to which you will be able to protect your data and privacy for two years at the price of 3,500.54 per month, allowing you to:
- Choose from over 5,500 servers worldwide
- No-logs policy
- Connect to 6 devices simultaneously
Get your NordVPN deal. Here is how it works:
Click Get NordVPN to get the 2-year plan.
This comes down to just $ 3.16 a month!
You will receive 1 month of free additional subscription period which will be automatically added to the 2-year plan.
Download the applications to your device and enter your credentials.
The only thing left for you to do is enjoy blazing fast and super safe browsing!
Disclaimer
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When it comes to dropped connections, which Nord luckily has few, NordVPN is backing me up. I can choose between an all-or-nothing switch that completely disconnects the internet in case the VPN connection drops, or an application-specific kill switch that allows me to choose which programs are protected.
Should I buy NordVPN?
Now, after using NordVPN for a few weeks, would I recommend it to others?
Despite its low price, NordVPN offers high-quality services with an excellent reputation. Highly recommended if you want to unblock region-blocked content from overseas, bypass censorship in countries like China, or just hide your torrenting activity from your ISP. The apps are easy to learn, whether you’re new to VPN or have been using them for years.
Desktop apps can be a bit slow and an Android app badly needs a kill switch, but overall these are minor complaints. NordVPN keeps more logs than I’d like, but none of them can directly identify you.
NordVPN Coupons
Here’s the newest and only NordVPN coupon
NordVPN is great, but it has some strong contenders.
ExpressVPN is more expensive, but with those extra costs it comes with really premium. It’s roughly the same as NordVPN when it comes to unblocking streaming sites, speed, and security, but offers better router support and includes a separate Smart DNS proxy service to unblock video streaming on devices that don’t normally support VPNs. The applications also support split tunneling.
If you are looking for a more economical alternative than Express, consider CyberGhost. It’s the fastest VPN I’ve tested and costs about the same as NordVPN while offering competitive security. However, it doesn’t work well in China, and it doesn’t unblock that many streaming sites.
Here’s a comparison of NordVPN against the two most popular services, ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access (PIA).