There are many VPNs, and many comparisons rank them by speed tests you cannot repeat. This guide does something else: it gives you five checks you can do yourself, in about half an hour, using public information. We do not rank anything, and this article contains no affiliate links.

1. Decide what you need it for

A VPN does two main things: it encrypts the connection between your device and the VPN’s server, and it makes websites see the server’s address instead of yours. That is useful for:
– Public Wi-Fi in cafés, airports and hotels, where you do not control the network
– Privacy from your internet provider, which otherwise sees which sites you connect to
– Travel, when you want to reach services as you would from home

It does not make you anonymous, it does not stop phishing, and it does not protect an account whose password has been stolen. If none of the uses above applies to you, you may not need one.

2. Find out who owns it

Many VPN brands belong to a handful of companies, and the name on the app does not always tell you who is behind it. Two examples, both public:
– NordVPN and Surfshark have belonged to the same group since their merger in February 2022. The two brands say they still run separate products and infrastructure.
– ExpressVPN was bought in September 2021 by Kape Technologies, the company that also owns CyberGhost and Private Internet Access. Kape was previously called Crossrider, a company with a past in advertising technology.

Ownership is not a verdict by itself. It tells you whose policies, history and incentives stand behind the promise you are buying. Look it up before you pay: search for “who owns [VPN name]” and read more than one source.

3. Check where it is based, and what that means

A VPN’s legal home decides which laws it answers to. Two things to look at:
– The country of the company that runs the service. Some providers state a privacy-friendly jurisdiction for the VPN itself. NordVPN, for example, says it operates under the jurisdiction of Panama, while its parent company, Nord Security, is based in the Netherlands. Proton VPN is run by Proton AG, headquartered near Geneva, in Switzerland.
– Whether those laws change. Laws on data retention and surveillance do change; Switzerland, for instance, has been debating changes to its surveillance rules that Proton has publicly opposed. A jurisdiction is a starting point, and it is worth checking the news.

4. Look for a no-logs audit, and read it

“No logs” is the central promise of a privacy VPN, and you cannot check it yourself. What you can check is whether an independent firm has examined it, and when. Recent examples, all published by the providers or reported by the press:
– NordVPN: a fifth no-logs assurance engagement by Deloitte, with fieldwork from November 18 to December 20, 2024, published in February 2025. The earlier ones were by PwC (2018 and 2020) and Deloitte (2022 and 2023).
– Proton VPN: an audit by Securitum carried out from August 18 to 20, 2025, with the results published on September 24, 2025.
– ExpressVPN: an assessment by KPMG of its TrustedServer system and privacy policy as of February 28, 2025.
– Surfshark: a no-logs assurance report by Deloitte, announced in June 2025.

When you read an audit, look for three things: who did it (a known firm, independent of the provider), when (an audit from years ago says little about today), and what it covered (all servers, or only some; a single day, or a period).

5. Check the real price, including the renewal

VPN prices are among the hardest to compare: the advertised monthly price is often the cost of a long plan paid up front, and the price can change at renewal. Before you pay:
– Find the total you pay today, not the monthly equivalent
– Find the renewal price, which is usually in the checkout page or the terms
– Check the refund window, so you can test the service on your own connection
– Check how many devices one subscription covers

Then test it yourself during the refund window: your connection, your devices and the services you use are the only test that matters for you.

What to avoid

• VPNs that will not say who owns them or where they are based
• Free VPN apps from unknown developers, especially on phones
• Promises of “total anonymity”: no VPN can deliver that
• Reviews that do not show their method, including rankings that cannot be checked

Bottom line

You do not need to trust a ranking. Decide what you need a VPN for, then check who owns it, where it is based, whether its no-logs promise has been audited recently, and what it will really cost you. Thirty minutes of reading will tell you more than any list of the “best” ones.

Sources

• Nord Security, “NordVPN verifies its no-logs assurance assessment for the fifth time”: https://nordsecurity.com/press-area/nordvpn-verifies-its-no-logs-assurance-assessment-for-the-fifth-time
• NordVPN, “Where is NordVPN based”: https://support.nordvpn.com/hc/en-us/articles/19441152966161-Where-is-NordVPN-based
• Securitum, Proton VPN no-logs audit, 2025: https://securitum.com/public-reports/securitum-protonvpn-nologs-2025.pdf
• ExpressVPN, “ExpressVPN’s 3rd KPMG Security Audit of No-Logs Policy”: https://www.expressvpn.com/blog/kpmg-2025-no-logs-policy-audit/
• Surfshark, “Surfshark’s no-logs policy verified by Deloitte again”, press release of June 20, 2025 (GlobeNewswire); see also TechRadar, “Surfshark reaffirms its commitment to user privacy in independent audit”: https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/surfshark-reaffirms-its-commitment-to-user-privacy-in-independent-audit ; and Surfshark’s trust center: https://surfshark.com/trust-center
• Surfshark, on the merger with Nord Security: https://surfshark.com/blog/surfshark-merges-with-nord-security
• The Register, on Kape’s purchase of ExpressVPN, September 14, 2021: https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/14/expressvpn_bought_kape/
• Wikipedia, Kape Technologies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kape_Technologies
• Proton, who owns Proton: https://proton.me/support/who-owns-protonmail
• Tom’s Guide, on Proton and the proposed Swiss surveillance law: https://www.tomsguide.com/computing/vpns/proton-refuses-to-be-held-hostage-by-controversial-swiss-surveillance-law

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a VPN?

It helps if you often use public Wi-Fi you do not control, if you want to hide your browsing from your internet provider, or if you travel to places with restricted internet. On your own home network, for everyday browsing of sites that already use HTTPS, it adds less than VPN advertising suggests.

Is a free VPN a good idea?

Running a VPN costs money, so a free service has to pay for itself somehow: ads, limits that push you to upgrade, or, in the worst cases, your data. If you want a free option, choose one from a company that also sells a paid plan, publishes its no-logs audits and says clearly what the free plan limits.

Does a no-logs audit prove that a VPN keeps no logs?

No audit proves that forever. An audit checks the systems and procedures at a certain moment, or over a certain period. It is still the best evidence you can get from outside, as long as you read who did it, when, and what it covered.