ProtonVPN was launched in 2017 by Proton AG, the Swiss company that created ProtonMail — the world’s largest encrypted email provider. The service is headquartered and legally domiciled in Switzerland, which has some of the strongest privacy laws in the world and is outside the Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, and Fourteen Eyes intelligence-sharing alliances. This Swiss jurisdiction is ProtonVPN’s foundational differentiator for users to whom legal privacy protections matter. The free plan is ProtonVPN’s most distinctive offering in the VPN market. It provides unlimited data with no data caps, no advertising, and no user data selling — funded by paid plan subscribers rather than by monetizing free users. The free plan is restricted to 5 server locations and 1 device, with intentionally slower speeds on servers that may be under heavier load from free users. For users who need occasional VPN protection or are evaluating the service, the free plan provides genuine access without the usual free VPN compromises. VPN Plus at $2.99 per month on a 2-year plan provides access to 17,200+ servers in 120+ countries, 10 simultaneous devices, Secure Core routing (multi-hop through Switzerland, Iceland, or Sweden before exiting), NetShield (ad and malware blocker), and the Stealth protocol designed to bypass VPN blocking in restrictive countries. Proton apps are all open source and have been independently audited. The no-logs policy has been verified in practice — Swiss authorities requested user data from Proton and received nothing because no logs existed. The Proton Unlimited bundle at $7.99 per month on 2-year includes VPN Plus, ProtonMail, ProtonDrive, Proton Pass password manager, and Proton Calendar — significant value for users who want the full Proton privacy ecosystem. ProtonVPN is the right VPN for privacy-focused users who want Swiss jurisdiction, verified no-logs, open-source auditability, and a genuine free tier.
ProtonVPN
Software Specs
- Free Trial: Yes — genuinely free plan (unlimited data, 5 locations, 1 device)
- Learning Curve: easy
- Only reputable VPN with a genuinely free unlimited-data plan — no data caps, no ads, no data selling
- Swiss jurisdiction outside Five Eyes — strongest legal privacy protections of any major VPN provider
- Open-source apps independently audited — transparency that no-logs claims can be verified against
- Free plan limited to 5 server locations and 1 device — paid plan required for streaming or full server access
- Speed on free servers is intentionally limited — free users share servers that may be under heavier load
- 17,200+ servers but server count and location breadth still smaller than NordVPN's 9,300 across 130 countries
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. ProtonVPN's free plan provides unlimited data with no monthly cap. It is restricted to 5 server locations (US, Netherlands, Romania, Japan, Poland), 1 simultaneous device, and intentionally slower speeds. There are no ads and no user data is sold. The free plan is funded by paid subscribers. It is the only major VPN provider offering a genuinely unlimited free tier without data monetization.
Switzerland has strong privacy laws and is not a member of the Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, or Fourteen Eyes intelligence-sharing alliances. Swiss courts require a high legal standard before compelling data disclosure, and even when legal orders are issued, ProtonVPN has confirmed it holds no user activity logs to provide. For users in countries with surveillance concerns or who face legal risk from their VPN usage, Swiss jurisdiction provides stronger legal protection than VPNs based in the US, UK, or EU.
Secure Core routes your traffic through two VPN servers — first through a hardened server in Switzerland, Iceland, or Sweden (countries with strong privacy laws and physical security), then through your chosen exit server. This multi-hop routing protects against advanced network attacks where an adversary monitoring the exit server cannot trace traffic back to your IP because it arrives from the Secure Core country rather than your actual location.
Proton Unlimited at $7.99/month on 2-year includes: ProtonVPN Plus (full VPN access), ProtonMail (encrypted email with custom domain), ProtonDrive (encrypted cloud storage), Proton Pass (password manager), and Proton Calendar (encrypted calendar). For users who want privacy-focused alternatives to Google Workspace or iCloud, the bundle provides significant combined value.
NordVPN has a larger server network (9,300+ vs 17,200+ — ProtonVPN actually has more servers), faster speeds in most independent tests, and lower introductory pricing. ProtonVPN has stronger privacy credentials (Swiss jurisdiction, open-source audited apps), a genuine free plan, and the Proton ecosystem bundle. For pure VPN performance and price, NordVPN is competitive. For privacy-first users who want verified credentials and Swiss legal protections, ProtonVPN is the stronger choice.
Advertiser Disclosure: Pricing verified April 2026 from ProtonVPN's official pricing page.. We may receive compensation for clicks or purchases on this site.