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Mullvad vs Proton VPN

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

No email, no username, no password: a random account number, cash or Monero in an envelope, and a police raid that came away with nothing.

Proton VPNTakes bitcoin

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 4 for Mullvad. We publish no rating for VPNs, so the audit count is the one criterion that decides.

Criterion
Independent no-logs audits
Mullvad
4
Proton VPN
5

Mullvad 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.

Mullvad and Proton VPN compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
FactMullvadProton VPN
Independent audits4, latest 20245, latest 2026 (favoured on this row)
Real-world tests10
Incidents on record00
Market exits00
OwnerMullvad VPN ABProton AG
JurisdictionSwedenSwitzerland
Eyes allianceFourteen EyesOutside
PriceFlat EUR 5/mo, any termFree tier, or paid VPN Plus
Money-back14 days30 days
Crypto acceptedbitcoin, bitcoin cash, monerobitcoin
Anonymous signupYesNo
Free tierNoneUnlimited bandwidth, one device, servers in 10 countries, no ads
ServersVendor publishes a live server list, running to roughly 550 servers, and marks which are owned rather than rentedVendor states thousands of servers, with paid plans reaching over 140 countries and the free tier limited to ten
Last reviewed2026-08-262026-08-26

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.

Mullvad

  • 2024Audit by Cure53: fourth infrastructure audit, covering one OpenVPN and one WireGuard server plus the Ansible deployment code
  • 2023At least six officers from the Swedish police National Operations Department searched Mullvad's Gothenburg office with a warrant seeking customer data: Mullvad showed the data did not exist and the officers left without seizing equipment or obtaining any customer information
  • 2021Audit by Cure53: infrastructure audit that found no personally identifiable information or privacy leaks
  • 2020Audit by Cure53: penetration test and source code audit of the apps across Windows, Android and iOS
  • 2018Audit by Cure53: penetration test and source code audit of the VPN client app

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 Mullvad or Proton VPN better for privacy?

Proton VPN carries more independent audits of its no-logs claim: 5 against 4 for Mullvad. 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 Mullvad or Proton VPN with bitcoin?

Mullvad takes bitcoin, bitcoin cash and monero (processor: In-house, on self-hosted full nodes). Proton VPN takes bitcoin (processor: In-house). Each review quotes the vendor's own refund sentence for crypto purchases verbatim.

Which is cheaper, Mullvad or Proton VPN?

Mullvad: Flat EUR 5/mo, any term. Proton VPN: Free tier, or paid VPN Plus. Money-back: Mullvad 14 days, Proton VPN 30 days. Prices are from each vendor's own page as of the review date.

Where are Mullvad and Proton VPN based?

Mullvad: Sweden (fourteen eyes member). 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: Mullvad and Proton VPN, each with its sources, and every VPN we review.

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