ExpressVPN vs NordVPN

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

Courtroom-tested no-logs claim and a bitcoin refund policy that pays back the coins you sent, from a company that also owns two rivals here.

NordVPNTakes bitcoin

Six independent no-logs assurance engagements, more than anyone else here, and crypto refunds that are actually paid out.

Verdict: NordVPN

NordVPN carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 6 against 5 for ExpressVPN. We publish no rating for VPNs, so the audit count is the one criterion that decides.

Criterion: Independent no-logs audits
ExpressVPN: 5
NordVPN: 6

ExpressVPN and NordVPN, 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.

ExpressVPN and NordVPN compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
Fact	ExpressVPN	NordVPN
Independent audits	5, latest 2025	6, latest 2025 (favoured on this row)
Real-world tests	1	0
Incidents on record	0	1
Market exits	1	1
Owner	Kape Technologies	Nord Security
Jurisdiction	British Virgin Islands	Panama
Eyes alliance	Outside	Outside
Price	From $2.99/mo on the 2yr plan	From $3.39/mo on the 2yr plan
Money-back	30 days	30 days
Crypto accepted	bitcoin	bitcoin, ethereum
Anonymous signup	No	No
Free tier	None	None
Servers	Vendor states servers in 113 countries, all running from RAM under its TrustedServer design	Vendor states thousands of RAM-only servers across roughly 125 countries
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.

ExpressVPN

2025Audit by KPMG: third KPMG audit of the no-logs privacy commitments
2024Audit by Cure53: fourth security audit of the Lightway VPN protocol
2023Audit by KPMG: assessment of the privacy policy claims
2022Audit by KPMG: no-logs policy and the TrustedServer architecture
2019Audit by PwC: privacy policy compliance and the TrustedServer technology
2017Turkish investigators seized a physical ExpressVPN server during the inquiry into the killing of the Russian ambassador to Turkey: The server produced no logs tying any customer to the IP addresses under investigation

NordVPN

2025Audit by Deloitte Lithuania: sixth no-logs assurance engagement under ISAE 3000 (Revised), covering standard, Double VPN, obfuscated and Onion Over VPN servers
2024Audit by Deloitte: fifth no-logs assurance engagement
2023Audit by Deloitte: fourth no-logs assurance engagement
2022Audit by Deloitte: third no-logs assurance engagement, the first conducted by Deloitte rather than PwC
2020Audit by PwC Switzerland: second and broader assurance engagement on the no-logs claim, reported 28 May 2020
2018Audit by PwC Switzerland: first independent assurance engagement on the no-logs claim

Frequently asked questions

Is ExpressVPN or NordVPN better for privacy?

NordVPN carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 6 against 5 for ExpressVPN. 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 ExpressVPN or NordVPN with bitcoin?

ExpressVPN takes bitcoin (processor: BitPay). NordVPN takes bitcoin and ethereum (processor: CoinGate). Each review quotes the vendor's own refund sentence for crypto purchases verbatim.

Which is cheaper, ExpressVPN or NordVPN?

ExpressVPN: From $2.99/mo on the 2yr plan. NordVPN: From $3.39/mo on the 2yr plan. Money-back: ExpressVPN 30 days, NordVPN 30 days. Prices are from each vendor's own page as of the review date.

Where are ExpressVPN and NordVPN based?

ExpressVPN: British Virgin Islands (outside the five, nine and fourteen eyes alliances). NordVPN: Panama (outside the five, nine and fourteen eyes alliances). 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: ExpressVPN and NordVPN, each with its sources, and every VPN we review.

More comparisons

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