hide.me vs Proton VPN

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.

Five straight annual no-logs audits published in full, plus the only free tier here that a privacy-minded reader can honestly be pointed at.

Verdict: Proton VPN

Proton VPN carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 5 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
Proton VPN: 5

hide.me and Proton VPN, 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 Proton VPN compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
Fact	hide.me	Proton VPN
Independent audits	2, latest 2024	5, latest 2026 (favoured on this row)
Real-world tests	0	0
Incidents on record	0	0
Market exits	0	0
Owner	eVenture Limited	Proton AG
Jurisdiction	Malaysia	Switzerland
Eyes alliance	Outside	Outside
Price	Free tier, or from $2.59/mo	Free tier, or paid VPN Plus
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	Unlimited bandwidth, one device, servers in 10 countries, no ads
Servers	Vendor states roughly 2,600 servers across 92 locations, with free users limited to eight of them	Vendor states thousands of servers, with paid plans reaching over 140 countries and the free tier limited to ten
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

Proton VPN

2026Audit by Securitum: fifth consecutive annual no-logs audit of the production server infrastructure, report published in full
2025Audit by Securitum: annual on-site no-logs audit of the server infrastructure
2024Audit by Securitum: annual on-site no-logs audit of the server infrastructure
2023Audit by Securitum: annual on-site no-logs audit of the server infrastructure
2022Audit by Securitum: first annual no-logs audit, conducted on site

Frequently asked questions

Is hide.me or Proton VPN better for privacy?

Proton VPN carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 5 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 Proton VPN with bitcoin?

hide.me takes bitcoin, monero, ethereum, litecoin, dogecoin and solana (processor: In-house). Proton VPN takes bitcoin (processor: In-house). Each review quotes the vendor's own refund sentence for crypto purchases verbatim.

Which is cheaper, hide.me or Proton VPN?

hide.me: Free tier, or from $2.59/mo. Proton VPN: Free tier, or paid VPN Plus. Money-back: hide.me 30 days, Proton VPN 30 days. Prices are from each vendor's own page as of the review date.

Where are hide.me and Proton VPN based?

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

More comparisons

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