Surfshark vs Proton VPN (2026): Which Is Better?
Surfshark wins on nearly everything you can measure — 9.4 to 8.9 overall, 655 Mbps against 541, 13 streaming services against 11, unlimited devices against ten, and half the price at $2.19 to $4.49. Proton VPN wins on two things that do not appear in a speed test: the strongest privacy score of any mainstream provider at 9.8, backed by Swiss jurisdiction and non-profit foundation ownership, and port forwarding, which decides whether you can seed properly. If you are buying a VPN to stream, travel and cover the household, Surfshark is the better product at less money. If you are buying it because you care who holds the data, Proton is the one you actually want.
Who wins each category
- Privacy & securityProton VPNSurfshark 9.5 · Proton 9.8
- SpeedSurfsharkSurfshark 9.2 · Proton 8.6
- StreamingSurfsharkSurfshark 9.6 · Proton 8.4
- Apps & easeSurfsharkSurfshark 9.0 · Proton 8.8
- ValueSurfsharkSurfshark 9.7 · Proton 8.9
Sub-scores from this month's tests; weights are privacy & security 30%, speed 25%, streaming 15%, apps & ease 15%, value 15%. Methodology
Choose Surfshark if…
- Unlimited devices against Proton's ten, at less than half the price
- 655 Mbps and 13 of 14 streaming services — the better everyday VPN by a clear margin
- $2.19/mo on the 2-year plan, one of the three cheapest we rate
Choose Proton VPN if…
- Privacy 9.8 — Swiss jurisdiction, owned by a non-profit foundation, the strongest mainstream record
- Port forwarding, which Surfshark does not offer and which private trackers care about
- A genuinely usable free plan: no data cap, no ads, one device
Surfshark vs Proton VPN: the numbers
 Surfshark |  Proton VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 9.4 | 8.9 |
| Rank · badge | #2 · Best value | #4 · Best free tier |
| 2-year price / mo | $2.19 | $4.49 |
| 1-year price / mo | $3.19 | $4.99 |
| Monthly price | $15.45 | $9.99 |
| Renewal | renews at the 1-year rate | renews at the same rate |
| Money-back | 30 days | 30 days |
| Simultaneous devices | Unlimited | 10 |
| Avg download speed | 655 Mbps | 541 Mbps |
| Jurisdiction | Netherlands | Switzerland |
| Owner | Nord Security | Proton AG (Proton Foundation) |
| No-logs audit | Deloitte no-logs audit, 2025 | Securitum no-logs audit, 2024 |
| Servers | 3,200+ in 100 countries | 12,000+ in 117 countries |
| Protocols | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2/IPsec | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2, Stealth |
| Torrenting | P2P allowed on all servers | P2P allowed on P2P servers (paid plans) |
| Free plan | No | no data cap, no ads, 1 device, auto-chosen country |
| Support | 24/7 live chat, email, help centre | email, help centre, live chat (paid plans) |
| Visit Surfshark | Visit Proton VPN |
Full reviews: Surfshark · Proton VPN
What each one actually costs
The advertised rate covers the first term only. These are the totals once the renewal is counted.
| Surfshark | Proton VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| Plan priced | 24-month plan | 24-month plan |
| Intro rate / mo | $2.19 | $4.49 |
| Then renews at / mo | $3.19 (+46%) | $4.49 — no jump |
| First term, up front | $52.56 | $107.76 |
| Total over 3 years | $90.84 | $161.64 |
| True cost / mo over 3 years | $2.52 | $4.49 |
| Money-back | 30 days — refunded in 3 days via live chat | 30 days — pro-rated refund, processed in 5 days |
| Check Surfshark price | Check Proton VPN price |
Surfshark is cheaper both ways — lower to start and $70.80 less across three years once the renewals are counted. Same arithmetic as our price calculator: the first term at the advertised rate, every month after it at the rate the provider publishes for renewals.
Speed by region
Download on a 940 Mbps line, 3 runs per server, median reported. Highlighted cell = fastest.
| Surfshark | Proton VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| US East | 712 Mbps | 602 Mbps |
| UK | 690 Mbps | 576 Mbps |
| Singapore | 618 Mbps | 498 Mbps |
| Australia | 600 Mbps | 488 Mbps |
| Added latency | +6 ms | +9 ms |
Streaming, service by service
| Surfshark | Proton VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| Unblocked | 13 of 14 | 11 of 14 |
| Netflix US | ||
| Netflix UK | ||
| Netflix JP | ||
| Netflix CA | ||
| Netflix AU | ||
| Prime Video | ||
| Disney+ | ||
| Hulu | ||
| Max | ||
| Paramount+ | ||
| Peacock | ||
| BBC iPlayer | ||
| ITVX | ||
| DAZN |
Security features
| Surfshark | Proton VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| Kill switch | ||
| Split tunnelling | ||
| Obfuscation / stealth | ||
| Port forwarding | ||
| Dedicated IP | ||
| Ad & tracker blocking | ||
| Multi-hop (double VPN) | ||
| RAM-only servers | ||
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Android TV, Fire TV, Apple TV, browser extensions, routers | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Android TV, Fire TV, Apple TV, browser extensions, routers |
Has the no-logs promise ever been tested?
Every VPN on this page says it keeps no logs. The claim only means something once someone has demanded the data — a police raid, a court order, a subpoena. Here is what happened to each of these two when that came up, and what it means if it never has.
- SurfsharkNever tested
No police raid, court order or subpoena against Surfshark has been made public. That is not a mark against it — most providers have never been asked — but it does mean the policy has never had to hold up under pressure.
Audit: Deloitte no-logs audit, 2025 · Netherlands
- Proton VPNHeld
Fought data requests in court. The claim held — there was nothing useful to hand over. That is the one form of proof no audit can give you, because it happened under real pressure rather than on a scheduled visit.
Audit: Securitum no-logs audit, 2024 · Switzerland
What each one is our top pick for
One of these scores higher overall, which does not make it the right buy for every job. These are the use cases where each one comes first on its own list.
- Surfshark3 categories
- Proton VPN2 categories
No data cap, no ads, no logs, open-source apps on every platform. Limits: one device, an auto-chosen country, no streaming or P2P.
Questions
Is Surfshark or Proton VPN better?
Surfshark, for most people — it is faster, unblocks more, covers unlimited devices and costs half as much. Proton is better for the narrower case where the privacy record is the purchase: it scores 9.8 against Surfshark's 9.5, sits in Switzerland, and is owned by a non-profit foundation rather than a commercial group.
Is Proton VPN worth twice the price of Surfshark?
Only if you want what the extra buys. That is Swiss jurisdiction, foundation ownership, port forwarding and a free tier — not speed, streaming or device count, where Surfshark is ahead. If none of those four matter to you, you are paying $2.30 a month for reassurance rather than function.
Which is better for torrenting?
Proton VPN, because of port forwarding. Without it other peers cannot initiate a connection to you, so you download normally but seed badly — and ratio-enforcing private trackers notice. Surfshark permits P2P and is faster, so for downloading alone it is fine; for seeding it is not the tool.
We may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. Scores and the winner are decided by the tests before any commercial consideration. Disclosure