Enterprise VPNs And Network Access

The Top 7 Affordable VPNs

Looking to unblock content and stream on a budget, or secure yourself online? Compare the Top Affordable VPNs that help you to do just that.

The Top 7 Affordable VPNs include:
  • 1. CyberGhostVPN
  • 2. ExpressVPN
  • 3. Ivacy VPN
  • 4. NordVPN
  • 5. Private Internet Access VPN
  • 6. PureVPN
  • 7. Surfshark VPN

VPN – or Virtual Private Network – is a protected network connection that is used to hide your IP addresses. The VPN works by creating a secret encrypted tunnel between your devices and the internet service provider, ensuring no one can see any activity happening inside the tunnel. Your search traffic will be redirected through several specially configured remote servers run by the VPN host. As your traffic is bounced between multiple servers, it is almost impossible to identify where it originated, or where it is destined for.

While surfing the internet on an unsecured Wi-Fi network, there is increased security risk as a malicious user active on that network could use the Wi-Fi network to tap into your device. From here they can identify what you’re doing, discover your browsing habits, and access your personal or sensitive information. In addition to keeping you safe online by securing your online connections, a VPN can make it possible to view content from other geographical regions, avoid online surveillance, and protect your identity from advertisers.

While it might be tempting to go with a free VPN – there are literally hundreds to choose from – the truth is that the free options often just aren’t up to scratch. Many free VPN aren’t as free as they seem – the tradeoff for using them is an endless stream of ads, or having your data sold. You’re much better off – and much safer – paying a little bit of money to use an effective product where you don’t have to sacrifice productivity or data.

For more information on how VPNs work, you can read this article: What Is A VPN And Does Your Business Need One?

We’re put together a list of seven effective VPNs that come at a surprisingly small costs. In this article we’ll explore background information for each vendor, delve into the features like strong encryption, IP address masking, no-logs policies, and expert support. We’ll then look at how these solutions are priced and give our insight into who would be best served by each VPN solution.

cyberghostvpnLogo

CyberGhost, founded in 2011 in Bucharest, strive to develop solutions that support internet anonymity and security. Their highly reliable and affordable VPN is known for providing a thorough package at an affordable price, and creates a carefully encoded tunnel between users’ devices and CyberGhost servers to allow for safe, uninterrupted surfing, messaging, downloading, and streaming.

CyberGhostVPN Features:

  • 256-bit AES encryption on all data
  • Kill switch for protection in the event of a lost connection to the VPN while browsing
  • Choose from more than 8900 VPN servers across 91 countries and be virtually located anywhere, with real addresses kept hidden
  • Provides public Wi-Fi protection
  • 100% no logs policy, confirmed by an independent audit
  • ID guard monitoring provides alerts in the event of an email or password data leak

CyberGhostVPN Pricing: CyberGhost VPN comes with three pricing plans. They offer a one-month plan with a 14-day money-back guarantee, a six-month plan at a reduced price with a 45-day money-back guarantee, and finally, a two years + four months plan with a reduced price (84% saving) and a 45-day money-back guarantee. You can upgrade your VPN to an all-in-one security solution by including CyberGhost Security Suite for Windows for $1.00 per month.

Expert Insights’ Comments: CyberGhost VPN provides a multi-platform, reliable security system to protect privacy and data transmission, allowing for safe correspondence, browsing, and transactions anywhere. The solution is feature rich whilst being highly user friendly. CyberGhost VPN offers a huge quantity of servers whilst making it easy to connect to the right server to suit your purpose. We would recommend this solution to anyone whose main purpose in getting a VPN is for streaming, as CyberGhost will actively help you to reach the ideal server for streaming Netflix, Hulu, etc.

ExpressVPNLogo

Founded in 2009, ExpressVPN is one of the largest VPN providers in the world. This VPN service aims to give users better control and allow them to experience the internet freely, while remaining secure and with their privacy intact.

ExpressVPN Features:

  • Easy-to-use apps for Android, Windows, Mac, iOS, routers, game consoles, and smart TVs
  • VPN split tunneling allows users to route device traffic through a VPN whilst also accessing the internet directly
  • Data is never stored on a hard drive, giving you an additional level of security
  • If your connection to the VPN drops, the Network Lock Kill Switch will block online traffic until a secure connection can be reestablished
  • No logs policy and no traffic data DNS queries are stored
  • Threat Manager blocks sites and apps from communicating with trackers and other malicious third parties

ExpressVPN Pricing: All ExpressVPN plans include apps for all devices, a built-in password manager, and a 30-day money-back guarantee. They offer three plans including a one-month plan, a six-month plan with a reduced cost, and a 12-month plan which includes three months for free and a saving of 49%. This plan also includes one year of free unlimited cloud backup from Backblaze.

Expert Insights’ Comments: Overall ExpressVPN receives positive reviews from past users who compliment the solutions for being highly secure, easy to use and trustworthy. ExpressVPN is also one of the fastest VPNs on the market and, with over 3,000 servers in more than 94 countries, is unlikely to encounter any geo-restrictions. We would recommend this solution to anyone prioritizing speed and flexibility.

Ivacy VPN Logo

Ivacy has been in the industry since 2007 and has, since their founding, promoted the idea that the internet should remain private, safe, anonymous, and accessible to everyone. For their modest price, Ivacy is a VPN that manages to tick a lot of boxes, while still being a user-friendly option that is well suited to those who have never used a VPN before.

Ivacy VPN Features:

  • Offers up to 256-Bit Encryption to protect users’ security
  • Has a strict No Logs policy, ensuring your data is never shared with any third parties
  • Internet Kill Switch halts internet access as soon as it recognizes the VPN connection has dropped
  • Dedicated IP lets you whitelist IP addresses
  • Split tunnelling lets you access both local and foreign content
  • State-of-the-art real-time threat detection technology scans for and removes suspicious malware and viruses in any data being downloaded

Ivacy VPN Pricing: The three plans offered by Ivacy VPN are their one-month plan at $9.95 per month, their one year plan at $3.99 per month (saving $71.40), and their five year plan at $1.00 per month (saving $537). Access to advanced features – like encrypted 2TB Cloud Storage and a Premium Password Manager – is available.

Expert Insights’ Comments: Ivacy VPN is an affordable VPN option that works to unlock a range of streaming services for users and goes to great lengths to preserve the security and privacy of users. Ivacy VPN has fast reliable servers in over 69 countries, making it a strong option for anymore whose goal is to bypass restrictions and geo-blocks.

NordVPNLogo

Nord Security is a leading digital security and privacy solutions provider, serving businesses and individuals around the world. They offer a VPN service, NordVPN, and are a popular name in the VPN space as one of the most secure and feature-rich VPNs on the market. NordVPN’s no-logs policy was subjected to an audit by PWC, and received a favorable report, being praised for its impressive level of accountability.

NordVPN Features:

  • Next-generation encryption protects all of your data, on any device
  • One account lets you connect and secure up to 6 devices
  • Use Threat Protection to avoid trackers, viruses, and infected websites
  • A Dark Web Monitor notifies users if their credentials are leaked to the dark web
  • NordVPN is among the fasted VPNs on the market according to tests run by an independent IT security institute
  • No tracking, collecting, or sharing users’ private data
  • Provides a Kill Switch to prevent accidental exposure if connection to the VPN drops
  • Solutions offers lightweight extensions for Edge, Firefox, and Chrome
  • A team of expert provide 24/7 support

NordVPN Pricing: NordVPN offers three plans at different price points and corresponding levels of capabilities. These plans are Standard, Plus, and Complete – a detailed breakdown of each is listed on the NordVPN website. Each of these plans can be purchased monthly or yearly with discounts for longer term contracts, and introductory offers like the first three months being free.

Expert Insights’ Comments: NordVPN receives overall positive reviews from past users who praise the solution’s ease of use, ease of  navigation, and comprehensive features set. We would recommend NordVPN to users looking for a reliable VPN, especially those looking for advanced features like robust double VPN encryption at a price that’s very competitive in the market.

PIALogo

Private Internet Access (PIA) is a personal VPN service that provides privacy-centric, multilayered security with advanced privacy protection using VPN tunneling. PIA delivers high-speed connections with unlimited bandwidth, protecting online activity and connections with powerful encryption, and advanced privacy and security features.

Private Internet Access VPN Features:

  • Allows you to hide your IP address and alter your virtual locations, preventing advertisers from tracking you, and allowing for access to blocked content on restricted networks
  • World-class protocols like OpenVPN and WireGuard keep data secured
  • Set app-level VPN split tunneling on Android and desktop (desktop also features IP bypassing)
  • Configure automation rules to auto-connect and auto-disconnect on specific networks or network types or in the case of a VPN connection loss
  • Use the default settings or configure custom DNS settlings, port forwarding, remote ports, and proxies
  • “MACE” feature works to block ads, malicious sites, and trackers at the DNS level on desktop and android

Private Internet Access VPN Pricing: All plans are covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee. PIA offers a monthly plan, a one-year plan at a lower cost, and a three-year (+three months free) plan at a further reduced cost. The three-year plan provides the best savings at 83% off the cost of the monthly service.

Expert Insights’ Comments: Private Internet Access boasts excellent security features and is highly intuitive and user friendly. It is one of the only top VPN providers currently offering 100% open-source VPN apps, meaning anyone can scrutinize and verify the code. We would recommend PIA for anyone who is looking for a high level of transparency from their VPN provider.

PureVPNLogo

Founded in 2007, PureVPN is a commercial VPN service with access to over 6,500 VPN servers across more than 96 locations worldwide. This service allows users to select from four categories –  security/privacy, streaming, internet freedom and file sharing – to determined which servers their traffic will be routed through. PureVPN provides seamless access to content while preserving users’ privacy and online anonymity.

PureVPN Features:

  • Supports strong security protocols like WireGuard
  • Smart server selections use an algorithm to connect you to the fasted available server for you
  • Unblocks locations so you can stream content from anywhere
  • Portable privacy for up to 10 of your devices
  • Prevent ISP throttling and protect against DDoS attacks
  • Manage and control your private network via secure ports

PureVPN Pricing: PureVPN offers two plans, each one with apps for all devices, 10 multi-logins, and a 31-day money-back guarantee. Their one-month plan is $10.95 per month, the twelve-month plan is $3.24 per months (a 70% discount). In addition to the three plans on offer, there are optional add-on such as the dedicated IP ($0.75 per month), dedicated IP with port throttling ($0.99 per month), DDoS protection ($1.19 per month), and port forwarding ($0.49 per month).

Expert Insights’ Comments: PureVPN’s beginner friendly interface and multiple simultaneous connections make them a solid VPN option. We would recommend PureVPN to users whose goal is to access content from around the world for streaming services and similar services.

Surfshark Logo

Surfshark is a VPN service focused on developing humanized privacy and security protection. Founded in 2018, Surfshark is a subsidiary of Nord Security (merged in 2022), while operating independently. Surfshark is a torrent-friendly VPN that works to provide optimized servers for peer-to-peer file sharking.

Surfshark VPN Features:

  • Blocks ads and malware with CleanWeb
  • Connect to and use all of your family devices simultaneously, fully protected
  • Use Split Tunnelling to permit certain websites and apps to bypass the VPN
  • A no-logs policy that prevents any monitoring, tracking or storing of your online activities
  • Camouflage Mode ensures that even your internet provider can’t tell you’re using a VPN
  • Guards your personal data with industry leading AES-256-GCM encryption

Surfshark VPN Pricing: Surfshark’s pricing plans include a one month plan for $12.95 per month, a 12 month plan at $3.99 per month (billed every 12 months at $59.76), and a 24 month plan (+two free months) at $2.05 per month (billed at $53.28 upfront and annually after the first 26 months). This solution also has a 30-day money back guarantee.

Expert Insights’ Comments: For a relatively low cost, Surfshark delivers on all of the features and capabilities you would expect from a VPN. Their strong security protocols and extensive feature set result in typically highly customer reviews, with many praising its affordability. We would recommend Surfshark to security conscious people interested in unblocking content and streaming on a budget.

Top 7 Affordable VPNs