AirVPN vs Private Internet Access

Comparing: two VPNs
Decided by: Independent no-logs audits
Last reviewed: 2026-08-26

AirVPNTakes bitcoin

Activist-run since 2010, taking bitcoin straight to its own wallet, with a three-day plan for two euros and no audit to its name.

Private Internet AccessTakes bitcoin

The only service here whose no-logs claim has been tested in open court twice, sold cheaply from inside the Five Eyes.

Verdict: Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 3 against 0 for AirVPN. We publish no rating for VPNs, so the audit count is the one criterion that decides.

Criterion: Independent no-logs audits
AirVPN: 0
Private Internet Access: 3

AirVPN and Private Internet Access, fact by fact

Every row is from the two reviews as of their review dates, with sources on each. A check marks the side a decidable criterion favours; rows without one are information, not a score.

AirVPN and Private Internet Access compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
Fact	AirVPN	Private Internet Access
Independent audits	None	3, latest 2025 (favoured on this row)
Real-world tests	0	2
Incidents on record	0	0
Market exits	0	1
Owner	AirVPN di Paolo Brini	Kape Technologies
Jurisdiction	Italy	United States
Eyes alliance	Fourteen Eyes	Five Eyes
Price	EUR 2 for 3 days, EUR 99/3yr	From $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan
Money-back	30 days	30 days
Crypto accepted	bitcoin, monero	bitcoin
Anonymous signup	Yes	No
Free tier	None	None
Servers	Vendor runs a modest network of owned and rented servers across roughly twenty countries	Vendor states RAM-only servers across 91 countries, including all 50 US states
Last reviewed	2026-08-26	2026-08-26

No-logs evidence, side by side

Dated audits and real-world tests from each review. An empty column is a finding: the claim has not been independently checked.

AirVPN

No independent audit or real-world test on record.

Private Internet Access

2025Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: third no-logs assurance engagement
2024Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: second no-logs assurance engagement on the server network
2022Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: no-logs policy and server configuration as of 30 June 2022, under ISAE 3000 (Revised)
2018A federal hacking trial in San Jose examined PIA IP addresses used to reach Embarcadero Media email accounts: PIA testified in open court that it keeps no logs of customer activity and could not tie any IP address to a person
2016An FBI subpoena in a bomb-threat investigation demanded usage logs identifying a Private Internet Access user: PIA reported it held no identifying usage logs and could say only that the traffic came from a server cluster

Frequently asked questions

Is AirVPN or Private Internet Access better for privacy?

Private Internet Access carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 3 against 0 for AirVPN. We publish no rating for VPNs, so the audit count is the one criterion that decides. Audits, court and seizure records and incidents are dated on each review with their sources.

Can I pay AirVPN or Private Internet Access with bitcoin?

AirVPN takes bitcoin and monero (processor: In-house). Private Internet Access takes bitcoin (processor: BitPay). Each review quotes the vendor's own refund sentence for crypto purchases verbatim.

Which is cheaper, AirVPN or Private Internet Access?

AirVPN: EUR 2 for 3 days, EUR 99/3yr. Private Internet Access: From $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan. Money-back: AirVPN 30 days, Private Internet Access 30 days. Prices are from each vendor's own page as of the review date.

Where are AirVPN and Private Internet Access based?

AirVPN: Italy (fourteen eyes member). Private Internet Access: United States (five eyes member). A jurisdiction matters less than a court record showing what the provider could hand over; the reviews carry those where they exist.

The full reviews: AirVPN and Private Internet Access, each with its sources, and every VPN we review.

More comparisons

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