We wrote this comparison and still came second.
Every VPN comparison written by a VPN company has the same winner. This one doesn’t: on a straight average of five axes, Proton VPN scores higher than we do. Rather than adjust the arithmetic until we won, we left it — and built a board that re-sorts by whatever you actually care about, because that is the only ranking that matters.
Scores are LunoVPN’s own read of each provider on each axis, from 0 to 10, using publicly reported information as of 2026. They are a structured starting point, not a measurement — the verifiable part is the spec matrix further down. No affiliate links appear anywhere on this page, and we earn nothing if you choose another provider.
Six categories. We win two.
If a comparison page hands every award to the company that wrote it, the page is an advertisement with a table in it. Here is where each provider genuinely leads.
No email, a random account number, Monero and cash sent by post. We match most of that, but not the cash.
Fully open-source apps with years of published audits behind them. We publish ours too; they have the longer record.
Roughly 8,000 servers and consistently top independent speed results. Nothing here beats it on raw scale.
The only genuinely usable free plan in this comparison, funded by paying subscribers rather than by ads.
About $2.50 a month on a yearly plan, with no email address collected and every device covered.
Anonymous signup that still handles streaming and family devices without turning it into a project.
Every line, four providers
Unlike the scores above, everything in this table is a checkable fact rather than a judgement. Highlighted cells mark the strongest option on that row — and several rows are ties.
| LunoVPN | NordVPN | Proton VPN | Mullvad | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Signup identity | No email · 16-digit number | Email required | Proton account (email) | No email · account number |
| Open-source apps | Yes | Partial | Yes · longest record | Yes |
| Independent audit | 131 controls (2026) | 6 audits (Deloitte) | Years of public audits | Years (Cure53, Assured) |
| Anonymous payment | Monero | Crypto via processor | Crypto, cash | Monero, cash by post |
| Servers | 600+ | 8,000+ | 14,000+ | 700+ |
| Countries | 65+ | 110+ | 110+ | 45+ |
| Lowest price / month | ≈ $2.50 | ≈ $3.09 | Free, or ≈ $2.99 | Flat €5 |
| Month-to-month price | $3.99 | $12.99 | $9.99 | Flat €5 |
| Devices | All your devices | 10 | 10 | 5 |
| Free tier | No | No | Yes | No |
| Money-back guarantee | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days |
| Headquarters | United States | Panama | Switzerland | Sweden |
| Data-retention mandate for VPNs | None | None | None | None |
Competitor figures reflect publicly reported details as of 2026 and change without notice; check each provider’s own site before relying on a number. If something here is wrong, tell our press contact and we will correct it with a note rather than a silent edit.
Does headquarters actually matter?
Jurisdiction is the first thing raised in every VPN comparison, and it carries less weight than the argument implies. None of the four countries in this table — the United States, Panama, Switzerland or Sweden — requires a VPN operator to retain records of what its users do. And none of them prevents a company from being compelled to act within that country’s own laws, which is the part usually left out when a location is presented as a shield.
What actually governs what can be handed over is what exists in the first place. A provider holding your email address, your payment identity and connection records is exposed wherever it is incorporated. A provider that never collected them has very little to produce regardless of the flag on the building, and the way to check that claim is an independent audit rather than a map.
That is why we treat this row as informational rather than as a score. If you have a specific reason to prefer a particular legal system — and some people genuinely do — it belongs in your decision. If you are picking on vibes, the audit report and the signup form will tell you far more.
The one-on-one comparisons
Each of these goes considerably deeper: a radar chart across seven axes, a weighted verdict you control, and a full spec sheet for that specific matchup.
Which one should you actually pick?
Pick Mullvad if anonymity outranks everything else and you want the option of paying in cash sent by post. Pick Proton VPN if you want the longest open-source and audit record, Swiss jurisdiction, or a genuinely usable free tier before committing money. Pick NordVPN if you want the largest network, the fastest speeds and the biggest bundle of extra features. Pick us if you want no-email signup at the lowest price, every device covered, and an app that still handles ordinary things like streaming.
If none of that resolves it, the problem is usually that the question is missing a threat model rather than a table. Our five-question assessment works out what you are actually protecting against, and it will happily tell you that a competitor — or no VPN at all — is the better answer.
Comparison questions
Why does your own comparison not put LunoVPN first?
How were these scores calculated?
Which VPN is genuinely the best?
Do you get paid to recommend competitors here?
Is a US-based VPN worse than one in Panama or Switzerland?
How often is this comparison updated?
If we’re not your answer, we hope this helped anyway.
No email at signup, no logs to search, and a comparison we did not rig.