Network & VPN

ProtonVPN review — Swiss VPN with free tier and Secure Core

Who is this for? Anyone who wants a reliable VPN with a free tier, or who is comparing Mullvad with ProtonVPN. New to VPN? Read [VPN: what it does and doesn’t do](/en/guides/vpn-what-it-does-and-doesnt-do/) first.

Price: Free / paid from about €3–10 per month
Updated: March 2026

ProtonVPN review

Who is this for? Anyone who wants a reliable VPN with a free tier, or who is comparing Mullvad with ProtonVPN. New to VPN? Read VPN: what it does and doesn’t do first.

ProtonVPN comes from the same team as Proton Mail. Based in Switzerland, open-source, independently audited and the only serious VPN with a completely free tier. Explained: who ProtonVPN is the right choice for — and when Mullvad fits better.

What sets ProtonVPN apart

Free tier without data limits: Proton Free is still one of the few free VPN plans worth taking seriously. No data limits, no ads, no data sales. It is still limited to one device at a time and to servers in 10 countries that the app chooses automatically.

Secure Core: Paid subscribers can route traffic through an extra server in Iceland, Switzerland or Sweden before it reaches the regular VPN server. If the endpoint server is compromised, an attacker can only see the Secure Core server — not your IP. Comparable to multi-hop at Mullvad and IVPN.

Tor-over-VPN: Connecting via an Onion server automatically routes traffic through the Tor network after the VPN hop. No separate Tor Browser needed — useful for specific situations.

NetShield: Built-in DNS blocking for ads, trackers and malware domains at VPN level. Works for all connected devices.

Specifications

Property	Value
Jurisdiction	Switzerland
Protocol	WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2
Open-source client	Yes — all platforms
Audits	Regular independent audits (apps and no-logs policy)
Free tier	Yes — unlimited data, 10 countries, 1 device
Proton VPN Plus	€9.99/month, €47.88/year or €71.76/2 years
Servers	15,000+ in 120+ countries
Secure Core	Yes (paid)
Tor-over-VPN	Yes (paid)
Anonymous payment	Bitcoin

Speed

On WireGuard, measured on Dutch servers:

Download: 350–500 Mbps
Upload: 300–450 Mbps

Comparable to Mullvad. Secure Core reduces speed by ~30–50% due to the extra hop — expected with that feature.

ProtonVPN vs Mullvad

	ProtonVPN	Mullvad
Free tier	Yes (strong)	No
Account system	Email address required	Account number, no email
Anonymous payment	Bitcoin (via account)	Cash, Bitcoin
Secure Core / multi-hop	Yes	Yes
Tor-over-VPN	Yes	No
NetShield / DNS blocking	Yes	No (configure separately)
Paid price	€4–10/month	€5/month (fixed)
Organisational structure	Commercial (non-profit holding)	Simpler

Choose ProtonVPN if:

You also use Proton Mail (one account, combined subscriptions)
You want to test for free before paying
You want Tor-over-VPN or Secure Core
You want NetShield for DNS blocking

Choose Mullvad if:

Maximum anonymity is the priority (no email address when signing up)
You want to pay with cash or Bitcoin without account linking
You want a simple, fixed price without different tiers

Caveats

Email address required: ProtonVPN requires a Proton account to sign up. That links your VPN usage to an account linked to an email address. Less anonymous than Mullvad’s account number system.

More complex organisational structure: Proton AG is more commercial than Mullvad — sales tactics with discount banner countdowns are visible. Has not damaged trust, but is different in character.

Proton Mail case in 2021: In 2021 Proton Mail had to provide account metadata in a Swiss legal case. That did not concern Proton VPN traffic logs. For Proton VPN, the more relevant point is that its no-logs claims have since been audited multiple times.

Pros and cons

Pros

Very strong free tier with no data limits or ads
Secure Core routes traffic through Iceland, Switzerland, or Sweden before the endpoint — comparable to Mullvad multi-hop
Tor-over-VPN available — routes through Tor network without a separate Tor Browser
NetShield blocks ads, trackers, and malware domains at VPN level for all connected devices
Open-source clients on all major platforms and recurring independent audits

Cons

Email address required at signup — less anonymous than Mullvad’s account number system
More complex pricing structure with tiers and discount countdowns — different character from Mullvad’s flat €5/month

Conclusion

ProtonVPN is the best choice if you already use or want to explore the Proton suite, and if you want a free option for testing. The combination of Secure Core, Tor-over-VPN and NetShield offers more features than Mullvad. Those wanting maximum anonymity at sign-up choose Mullvad.