One thing I need to make clear right from the start: this is a review of Norton VPN (formerly Norton Secure VPN, and briefly Norton Ultra VPN) as a standalone app, not of the VPN feature in the Norton 360 package. They're similar, but Norton VPN has a few more features, including the ability to choose cities as server locations in countries with more than one option.
I'll state my opinion up front. Norton VPN isn't a bad service, but it's not good enough to get ahead of its direct competitors. ExpressVPN, Surfshark, Proton VPN and NordVPN are all either faster, more feature-rich, more secure, more affordable or some combination of the four. There's no reason to go with Norton as your VPN unless you're getting it as part of another Norton 360 bundle.
For this review, I ran rigorous tests that highlighted Norton VPN's strengths (well-designed user interfaces, a verified privacy policy) along with its weaknesses (holes in its security, renewals that double the price, weak customer support). Norton's history of focusing on Windows means that app is by far the most complete; if you're on any other platform, expect to miss out on the best VPN protocols and the complete feature set.
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Editors' note: We're in the process of rebooting all of our VPN reviews from scratch. Once we do a fresh pass on the top services, we'll be updating each review with a rating and additional comparative information.
Gen Digital Norton VPN A VPN that doesn't quite live up to the Norton legacy. Pros Apps are easy to use
IP rotation and double-hop connections
Verified privacy policy Cons Exposes IP address while switching servers
Poor customer support
Not all servers unblock Netflix $3 at Norton VPN
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