hide.me vs Private Internet Access

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

hide.meTakes bitcoin

One of the first VPNs ever audited, re-audited a decade later, with a free tier that does not cap your data at all.

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 2 for hide.me. We publish no rating for VPNs, so the audit count is the one criterion that decides.

Criterion: Independent no-logs audits
hide.me: 2
Private Internet Access: 3

hide.me 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.

hide.me and Private Internet Access compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
Fact	hide.me	Private Internet Access
Independent audits	2, latest 2024	3, latest 2025 (favoured on this row)
Real-world tests	0	2
Incidents on record	0	0
Market exits	0	1
Owner	eVenture Limited	Kape Technologies
Jurisdiction	Malaysia	United States
Eyes alliance	Outside	Five Eyes
Price	Free tier, or from $2.59/mo	From $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan
Money-back	30 days	30 days
Crypto accepted	bitcoin, monero, ethereum, litecoin, dogecoin, solana	bitcoin
Anonymous signup	No	No
Free tier	No data cap, 8 locations, one device, reduced speeds, no card needed	None
Servers	Vendor states roughly 2,600 servers across 92 locations, with free users limited to eight of them	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.

hide.me

2024Audit by Securitum: no-logs policy and the RAM-only server infrastructure, with a published summary report
2015Audit by DefenseCode: one of the first independent examinations of a VPN provider's logging claims

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 hide.me or Private Internet Access better for privacy?

Private Internet Access carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 3 against 2 for hide.me. 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 hide.me or Private Internet Access with bitcoin?

hide.me takes bitcoin, monero, ethereum, litecoin, dogecoin and solana (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, hide.me or Private Internet Access?

hide.me: Free tier, or from $2.59/mo. Private Internet Access: From $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan. Money-back: hide.me 30 days, Private Internet Access 30 days. Prices are from each vendor's own page as of the review date.

Where are hide.me and Private Internet Access based?

hide.me: Malaysia (outside the five, nine and fourteen eyes alliances). 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: hide.me and Private Internet Access, each with its sources, and every VPN we review.

More comparisons

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