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NordVPN is as fast as it claims, but its apps sometimes get in their own way.
When we say that NordVPN is a good VPN that's not quite great, it's important to put that in perspective. Building a good VPN is hard, as evidenced by all the shovelware VPNs flooding the market. NordVPN may not be perfect, but it's easily top-five caliber and excels in certain use cases.
First, the bad: NordVPN's apps could all stand to undergo a little more quality control, with elements distracting from other elements and inconsistent designs from platform to platform. At least one of its FAQ pages directly contradicts itself. And while all the server locations could unblock Netflix, the one in Nigeria still showed U.S. content, indicating that our real location might have leaked.
However, there's a lot of good to balance that out. Speeds are fantastic and we saw no other hint of any kind of leak. Its server network is expansive and not overly reliant on virtual locations. The vast majority of servers are ideal for unblocking foreign websites. The real draw, though, is the extra features, including the innovative and flexible Meshnet, plus a malware blocker that acts more like a full antivirus and forward-looking quantum resistant encryption.
Findings at a glance
Check out a summary of our NordVPN review in the table below.
Category Notes Installation and UI Connections happen quickly and features are easy to use on all platforms UI sometimes gets in the way; map screens can be clunky and apps come with unnecessary notifications Surprisingly, the best UI may be in the browser extension Speed Extremely fast download speeds with only a 6.4-percent average drop Good latencies on nearby servers, but farther ones have some lag Fast upload speeds, but losses spiked in a few locations Security Uses acceptable protocols with uncracked encryption NordWhisper obfuscated protocol recently implemented on Windows, Android and Linux No DNS, WebRTC or IPv6 leaks on five test servers Pricing Best plan is the 2-year Basic for $81.36, or $3.39 per month Basic gives you the complete VPN If you get a multi-year plan, be sure to manually renew in order to keep the promotional rates Bundles Plus tier adds advanced malware protection and NordPass password manager Complete plan adds NordLocker cloud storage Prime tier adds ID theft protection and insurance features Privacy policy NordVPN does not log user activity on the VPN, a policy backed up by several third-party audits However, it does log potentially identifiable device information unless you opt out in settings Some concerning liberties taken in the overall Nord policy, but no documented malfeasance Virtual location change Four out of five test servers unblocked Netflix three times running, including virtual India location Location in Nigeria got into Netflix, but didn't change available titles Server network 153 server locations in 117 countries and territories Server network is about 40 percent virtual, including all locations in Africa Features Extra servers grant additional privacy (double VPN, Onion over VPN, obfuscation) or specific optimizations (P2P, dedicated IP) Meshnet directly connects two devices without a NordVPN server mediating Threat Protection blocks dangerous domains and the Pro upgrade has some antivirus capability Dark Web Monitor reports to you when any sensitive information has appeared on clandestine leak sites Presets let you activate several settings with one clickPost-quantum encryption is nice, but not necessary yet Kill switch is a useful safety feature on all appsSplit tunneling by app on Windows and Android, and by URL on browser extensions Customer support Written FAQs, live chat and email support Live chat connected to an expert human within a minute FAQs are poorly organized and contain some conflicts, but well-written on average Background check NordVPN is headquartered in Panama, while its parent company Nord Security is based in the Netherlands 2018 theft of public keys was a mistake, but NordVPN did almost everything right in response Claims of law enforcement collaboration are overblown — NordVPN will comply with requests, but that doesn't mean they'll have information to provide
Installing, configuring and using NordVPN
NordVPN's biggest strengths are its speeds and the range of options it puts at your fingertips. User experience is important, but it's not quite as front-and-center as it is with ExpressVPN and Proton VPN. Here's how the apps run on all the major platforms.
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