People look for a Proton VPN alternative when they want to pay without a Proton account, need more than one device on a free plan, or find that the best price is a first-term rate. Some want an even smaller vendor, some want more devices, and some want a different jurisdiction from Switzerland.
Short answer: The first three alternatives to Proton VPN in our VPN services ranking are Mullvad VPN, IVPN and Windscribe. The first three places are kept for challengers when the category has enough of them; the best-known brands come after that, in ranked order. Choose Mullvad VPN if you want to pay without handing over an identity and can live with five devices. The 11 entries that follow are all ranked in Best VPN Services in 2026; each one explains what sets it apart from Proton VPN.
Vendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. How that works.
Pricing: Free plan on one device; Plus and Unlimited bundle published; 30-day refund
Established in: Switzerland
Built for: Buyers who already use Proton Mail or Pass and want one account for all
Not for: People who need a flat rate that never changes after the first term
01
Why buyers look past Proton VPN
01
Free means a single device at a time
Proton's pricing page lists the free plan as one device at a time, medium speed and servers in 10 randomly selected countries. It is a fair test, but a household or a laptop plus phone needs a paid plan, and you cannot choose the free countries.
02
Paid prices are quoted for a long term
The monthly figures we saw are for the 2-year term: VPN Plus at 3.49 dollars and Unlimited at 7.99. The page shows $83.76 for the first 24 months of Plus, then $83.88 every 12 months, and $191.76 then $119.88 for Unlimited. Shorter terms were not priced on the page we read.
03
The bundle is the headline product
Unlimited bundles the VPN with premium Mail, Pass, Drive and Calendar, with 500 GB of Drive and 15 email addresses. VPN Plus allows 10 devices and includes free plans of the other products. If you only want a tunnel, you pay for the VPN tier and ignore the suite.
you want unlimited devices and double hop, with extras only if you pay up
#10
03
What each one does differently
1
Mullvad VPN
Sweden · Published
Mullvad is owned by its two founders and run from Sweden. An account is a generated number, so no name or email is requested, and payment can be cash sent by post. One flat monthly rate applies whatever the term. Expect five devices per account, no port forwarding, and a 14-day guarantee that excludes cash payments.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want to pay without handing over an identity and can live with five devices.
Gibraltar is home to IVPN Limited, which says its ownership has not changed since 2009. Nobody has to give an email address to join, and the privacy policy spells out exactly which records exist. The entry tier is the plain VPN, while mail aliasing, DNS filtering and an application firewall sit higher up. Servers span 41 countries, a smaller map than Proton's claim.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want a small, long-running vendor that documents what it keeps and audits yearly.
Windscribe Limited is registered in Ontario and describes itself as self-funded and bootstrapped. Its free plan allows 10 GB a month, against Proton's free plan with no stated data cap, but Pro removes the limit on data and devices. A build-a-plan option charges per location. Refunds are narrow: seven business days and under 10 GB used.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want a free tier plus a paid plan that does not cap devices.
Privado Networks ehf. is organised under Icelandic law and gives free users 10 GB every 30 days on one device, with a few server locations. Paid terms run for 1, 12 or 24 months with a 30-day money-back guarantee. We saw a mismatch on its own pages: the pricing page says Switzerland-based, the privacy policy names Iceland.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want to test a small free allowance and then pay by the year or two years.
Toronto is where TunnelBear LLC signs off. It offers a 2 GB free tier, an Unlimited plan and a per-user Teams plan with central billing. It says it is the only consumer VPN provider that audits annually and publishes the results, a claim we did not test. The free tier is a trial rather than a daily tool.
Switch from Proton VPN if you need a team plan with central billing and a simple client.
Bucharest is the base of CyberGhost S.R.L.; Kape Technologies PLC appears in the privacy policy as ultimate holding company. A single plan is sold by term, with seven devices on every term. The 45-day guarantee applies to long terms; the monthly plan gets 14 days at a much higher monthly price. A dedicated IP costs extra.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want a long refund window to test and accept Kape group ownership.
Surfshark B.V. has an Amsterdam registration, and the company states a merger with Nord Security. Every listed plan bundles the VPN with extras such as Alternative ID and scam protection, so a VPN-only tier is not shown. Devices are unlimited. The headline monthly number is a price for the first term, spread across 27 months.
Switch from Proton VPN if you have many devices and want bundled extras from one vendor.
NordVPN is run by nordvpn S.A. under Panamanian jurisdiction, with parent Nord Security in the Netherlands. One account covers 10 devices, though only five share a server at once. To get the 7-day trial you must pick a 1- or 2-year plan, pay by card or PayPal, and live in one of 15 listed countries. The 30-day refund covers the first purchase only.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want tiered plans from a very large vendor and accept the trial conditions.
Express Technologies Ltd. falls under the law of the British Virgin Islands and joined Kape Technologies in 2021. Three tiers cap devices at 10, 12 and 14. The advertised price covers 28 months and then renews annually at a higher figure. A dedicated IP is an add-on except in the top tier, and the refund is for new users.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want higher device caps and RAM-only servers and accept the Kape group.
Private Internet Access, Inc. gives a Denver address, and its privacy policy mentions Kape Technologies and a parent group, so US jurisdiction and Kape ties both apply. One subscription covers unlimited devices on RAM-only servers. The cheapest term is three years billed at once, and the refund covers new subscribers only.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want unlimited devices on RAM-only servers and can commit for three years.
IPVanish lists a New York address in its privacy policy, which also mentions the Ziff Davis group. All tiers include unlimited devices and 24/7 chat, with double hop in the feature set. Higher tiers alone add phone support, antivirus, a secure browser and cloud storage. Introductory prices cover the first 1- or 2-year term.
Switch from Proton VPN if you want unlimited devices and double hop, with extras only if you pay up.
Mullvad VPN: Accounts are generated numbers, cash by post is accepted, and each account gets five devices.
02
You want a vendor that lists exactly which records it keeps
IVPN: No email is requested at joining, the policy lists the records kept, and servers cover 41 countries.
03
You want a free tier but more than one use case
Windscribe: The free plan allows 10 GB a month, and Pro removes limits on data and devices.
04
You have many devices at home
Surfshark: Devices are unlimited, though every plan bundles extras and the headline price covers 27 months.
05
You manage a small team
TunnelBear: A per-user Teams plan with central billing sits beside the 2 GB free tier.
04
When Proton VPN is still the right choice
Proton VPN stays sensible if you value a Swiss company, a free plan with no stated data cap, and an openly published no-logs audit, all claims on its own home page. VPN Plus allows 10 devices and the 30-day money-back guarantee applies to every subscription. If you already use Proton Mail or Drive, Unlimited keeps billing in one place.
05
What moving off Proton VPN involves
01
Settings and server choices do not carry over
Custom DNS, split tunnelling lists and favourite servers live in the Proton app. Note them before you cancel, and check that the new client supports the same protocols. Proton names WireGuard and OpenVPN.
02
Overlap the two subscriptions briefly
The 30-day guarantee on Proton covers cancelling inside the first month only. If you are on a 2-year term, check the renewal date and turn off auto-renew before you test a replacement for a week.
06
Questions about replacing Proton VPN
6 answers
What does the Proton VPN free plan include?
One device at a time, medium speed and servers in 10 randomly selected countries. The pricing page FAQ says there are no data limits or artificial speed limits.
How much does Proton VPN cost?
VPN Plus is shown at 3.49 dollars a month on a 2-year term and Unlimited at 7.99. Billing is upfront, so check the renewal figure on the page before you subscribe.
Which alternatives take cash or no email?
Cash by post works at Mullvad, whose accounts are generated numbers. At IVPN, joining takes no email address. Check each vendor's payment page for current methods.
Is there a free alternative with more data than a cap?
PrivadoVPN allows 10 GB every 30 days, and Windscribe also offers 10 GB monthly. TunnelBear stops at 2 GB. Proton's free plan states no data cap, so these trade a cap for other features.
Which alternatives have more devices?
Surfshark, Private Internet Access, IPVanish and Windscribe Pro list unlimited devices. Windscribe prohibits account sharing despite that. Proton VPN Plus allows 10.
Do the alternatives avoid group ownership ties?
Mullvad is founder-owned, and Windscribe calls itself bootstrapped. Surfshark and NordVPN are tied through Nord Security, while CyberGhost, ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access name Kape.
—
Sources
Checked 4 November 2026
Proton VPN pricing: Free, VPN Plus and Unlimited plans, 2-year prices, 10 devices, 10 free countries, 30-day guarantee.
Proton VPN home: Swiss base, WireGuard and OpenVPN, published no-logs audit claim, 20,000+ servers in 140+ countries.
Mullvad: Numbered accounts, cash payment, five devices, 14-day guarantee.
IVPN: Gibraltar, no email signup, 41 countries, tiers.
Founder of The Knowledge Engineers and of 2 Steps Ahead, an AI search visibility agency. Editorially responsible for every page on this site; research and drafting are AI-assisted.
Checked and edited by Sebastiaan Smits, last on 7 November 2026. The editorial process explains the method.
