Mullvad vs Proton VPN (2026): The Privacy Purist Battle
Mullvad vs Proton VPN compared on audits, Swedish vs Swiss jurisdiction, anonymous sign-up, payment, free plans, devices and price in euros and dollars.
Disclosure: Links marked /go/ may earn us a commission in future. Mullvad does not run an affiliate programme as far as we know, and we include it because it’s a top privacy pick. How we judge
On this page
- Verdict: Proton VPN wins 6–3 (1 draw) — but Mullvad wins on anonymity
- Scorecard
- Round 1: Audits — Proton VPN
- Round 2: Jurisdiction — Draw
- Round 3: Account anonymity — Mullvad
- Round 4: Security features — Proton VPN
- Round 5: Network — Proton VPN
- Round 6: Devices — Proton VPN
- Rounds 7–8: Price
- Round 9: Refund & free plan — Proton VPN
- Round 10: Payment privacy — Mullvad
- Who should pick which?
- Related
- FAQ
- Sources (checked 30 October 2026)
Last checked: 30 October 2026 · NetNinjaVPN Research Desk · Research-based comparison (no in-house speed tests)
Verdict: Proton VPN wins 6–3 (1 draw) — but Mullvad wins on anonymity
Proton VPN takes the battle thanks to its free plan, larger network, more devices, Secure Core and a cheaper intro price on long plans. Mullvad wins the rounds that matter most to privacy purists: anonymous accounts, cash payment and honest flat pricing with no renewal jump. If anonymity is your top priority, choose Mullvad. If you want an all-round privacy VPN with a free tier and streaming support, choose Proton.
Scorecard
| Round | Mullvad | Proton VPN | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Privacy & audits | Regular third-party security audits (e.g. Assured web-app pentest 2025: 0 critical/high/medium findings) | Securitum no-logs audit (on-site, Aug 2025), annual since 2022; open-source, audited apps | Proton VPN (no-logs-specific audit) |
| 2. Jurisdiction | Mullvad VPN AB, Gothenburg, Sweden (EU) | Proton AG, Geneva, Switzerland | Draw |
| 3. Account anonymity | Random account number, no email needed | Proton account (email address) | Mullvad |
| 4. Security features | WireGuard, DAITA v2 anti-traffic-analysis, multihop, kill switch | Secure Core multi-hop, Stealth protocol, NetShield, kill switch | Proton VPN |
| 5. Network | Provider-listed server list (smaller) | “20,000+ servers in 140+ countries” (provider claim) | Proton VPN |
| 6. Devices | 5 | 10 (Plus) | Proton VPN |
| 7. Price (intro, long plan) | €5/month flat | VPN Plus $3.49/mo, $83.76 for 24 months | Proton VPN |
| 8. Price (renewal) | €5/month — never changes | Renews at $83.88 per 12 months | Mullvad |
| 9. Refund & free plan | 14-day refund (not for cash payments) | 30-day refund; free plan | Proton VPN |
| 10. Payment privacy | Cash by post, Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Monero (10% crypto discount), bank, cards, PayPal, Swish, iDEAL, P24 and more | Cards, PayPal, Proton credits via cash, bank transfer or Bitcoin | Mullvad |
Tally: Proton VPN 6 (rounds 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9) – 3 Mullvad (3, 8, 10), 1 draw (2).
Round 1: Audits — Proton VPN
Proton commissioned Securitum for an annual no-logs audit. The 2025 report describes an on-site assessment in Zürich (18–20 August 2025) in which auditors inspected live servers and configurations and found no user-activity logging and no user-attributable connection metadata (including DNS queries); only anonymised aggregate statistics were retained. Proton’s apps are open source.
Mullvad publishes many independent audits of its apps, infrastructure and website — for example, Assured’s 2025 web-application penetration test found no critical, high or medium issues, and the one low-severity issue was fixed. Mullvad’s no-logs stance is also backed by a 2023 Swedish police visit that left without data, which Mullvad reported publicly. Because Proton’s is a dedicated no-logs audit with a public report, Proton takes the round.
Round 2: Jurisdiction — Draw
Sweden is an EU member with GDPR and strong constitutional protections, but also part of intelligence-sharing arrangements; Switzerland is outside the EU with its own strict data-protection law (revFADP) and a robust legal process for data requests. Both are respected privacy homes. Draw.
Round 3: Account anonymity — Mullvad
Mullvad’s sign-up is a single click that generates a random account number. No email, no name. Proton requires a Proton account (an email address, which can itself be a Proton Mail address).
Round 4: Security features — Proton VPN
Proton’s Secure Core routes traffic through hardened servers in privacy-friendly countries before exiting, and its Stealth protocol helps on networks that block VPNs. Mullvad’s DAITA v2 (released 2025) adds cover traffic and randomised per-connection configurations to resist AI-guided traffic analysis — a genuinely unusual feature. Proton’s broader toolkit wins narrowly.
Round 5: Network — Proton VPN
Proton lists 20,000+ servers in 140+ countries on its pricing page. Mullvad runs a smaller, published server list. Provider claims; Proton’s larger footprint wins.
Round 6: Devices — Proton VPN
Proton VPN Plus: 10 devices. Mullvad: 5.
Rounds 7–8: Price
| Plan | Price | Paid | Renews at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mullvad | €5/month (≈ $5.60) | Any period, same rate, VAT included | €5/month |
| Proton VPN Plus, 2-year | $3.49/month | $83.76 for 24 months | $83.88 per 12 months |
| Proton VPN Plus, monthly | $9.99/month | monthly | — |
On a two-year view, Proton Plus ($83.76) is cheaper than Mullvad (€120, about $134). After year two, Proton renews at $83.88/year (about $6.99/month), while Mullvad stays €60/year. Proton wins the intro round; Mullvad’s never-changing price wins renewal.
Note: some third-party sites report a lower Proton VPN Black Friday price ($2.49/month). The official pricing page we checked on 30 October 2026 showed $3.49/month; we’ll update when the official page changes.
Round 9: Refund & free plan — Proton VPN
Proton offers a 30-day money-back guarantee and a permanent free plan (1 device, servers in 10 random countries, no data cap). Mullvad offers 14 days, excluding cash payments.
Round 10: Payment privacy — Mullvad
Mullvad accepts cash in an envelope (EUR, USD, GBP, SEK, NOK, CHF, CAD, AUD, NZD), Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash and Monero with a 10% discount, plus bank wire, cards, PayPal, Swish, EPS, Bancontact, iDEAL | Wero and Przelewy24. Proton accepts cards and PayPal, and its credits can be bought with cash, bank transfer or Bitcoin.
Who should pick which?
| You want… | Pick |
|---|---|
| Maximum account anonymity (no email, cash) | Mullvad |
| A free plan | Proton VPN |
| Predictable price forever | Mullvad |
| Streaming support and more devices | Proton VPN |
| Multi-hop through privacy-friendly countries | Proton VPN (Secure Core) |
| Resistance to traffic analysis | Mullvad (DAITA) |
Get Mullvad → · Get Proton VPN →
Related
FAQ
Which is more private? Mullvad for account anonymity; Proton for audited no-logs plus Secure Core.
How much is Mullvad? €5/month flat.
Does Proton have a free plan? Yes, 1 device, 10 countries.
Sources (checked 30 October 2026)
- Mullvad pricing & payment FAQ: https://mullvad.net/en/pricing
- Mullvad audits: https://mullvad.net/en/blog/tag/audits
- Assured – Mullvad web app pentest 2025: https://www.assured.se/publications/Assured_Mullvad_Web_App_Pentest_2025.pdf
- Mullvad – DAITA v2: https://mullvad.net/en/blog/daita-version-2-now-available-on-all-platforms
- Mullvad – Swedish police visit (2023): https://mullvad.net/en/blog/mullvad-vpn-was-subject-to-a-search-warrant-customer-data-not-compromised
- Proton VPN pricing: https://protonvpn.com/pricing
- Securitum – Proton VPN no-logs report 2025: https://securitum.com/public-reports/securitum-protonvpn-nologs-2025.pdf