NordVPN vs Surfshark (2024): Which Virtual Private Network Should You Select?

If you search for the top VPNs currently available, chances are both NordVPN and Surfshark will stand out. As two well-known providers, both services offer high-quality VPN performance with their unique features.

Surfshark provides great value with its cost-effective pricing across its subscription plans and the capability to connect an infinite number of devices concurrently. Conversely, NordVPN delivers consistently rapid VPN speeds and an extensive server network spanning 111 countries.

In this piece, we assist you in determining the optimal choice between the two VPN services for yourself and your organization.

• Surfshark: Ideal for users on a budget seeking a top-quality VPN that can support an unlimited number of devices
• NordVPN: Perfect for most enterprises looking for a comprehensive VPN solution, with high performance, extra security features, and a refined user interface

Comparison table of Surfshark vs NordVPN

While both NordVPN and Surfshark offer broad support across various platforms, they differ significantly in their pricing and server network.

Surfshark and NordVPN: Pricing

Both Surfshark and NordVPN present three tiers of subscriptions, each plan coming with various features. Also, they both provide options for monthly, yearly, and biennial plans for every subscription tier.

VIEW: How to Conduct a Cybersecurity Risk Assessment in 5 Steps (TechRepublic Premium)

Surfshark VPN costs

Surfshark offers three subscription levels: Surfshark Starter, Surfshark One, and Surfshark One+. Starter comprises the main VPN service, while One+ bundles in the maximum amount of additional features.

Below is a synopsis of the pricing and feature distinctions in each level:

In my opinion, I believe that the Surfshark One subscription for one year provides the best balance of value and feature set. At $3.39 per month, it is significantly more economical than the comparable plan of NordVPN but still offers useful extras like antivirus and breach alert capabilities.

VIEW: Surfshark vs CyberGhost (2024): Which VPN Is Superior? (TechRepublic)

While a complimentary version from Surfshark would have been preferred, the service fortunately offers a seven-day trial on iOS, Android, and macOS. Additionally, a 30-day refund policy is available for all subscription plans, giving users the option to request a refund of their initial payment if they are not satisfied.

To find out more, check out our comprehensive Surfshark VPN review.

NordVPN costs

NordVPN’s paid plans consist of three subscription levels, specifically NordVPN Basic, Plus, and Complete. Similar to Surfshark, all three NordVPN plans offer monthly, yearly, and biennial options.

Here is a summary of the pricing and feature distinctions in each level:

For NordVPN, the one-year Plus subscription is the most appealing to me. Even though it is not as cost-effective as Surfshark’s One plan, I believe that NordVPN Plus at $5.99 per month still delivers good value as it includes the full VPN along with a robust password manager. This could be ideal for individuals seeking a range of security tools from a single software provider.

VIEW: Private Internet Access (PIA) vs NordVPN: Which VPN Is Superior? (TechRepublic)

Thankfully, NordVPN also offers a seven-day trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee for all its plans, allowing customers to request a refund after their initial purchase. Unfortunately, the trial is only accessible via Android. Ideally, I believe that it would be fairer for the free trial to be available to both iOS and Android users, ensuring equal access regardless of the smartphone ecosystem being used.

Fortunately, testing NordVPN on desktop after using the trial on Android is relatively straightforward — this is how I tested one of NordVPN’s premium subscriptions.

To learn more, read our detailed NordVPN review.

Surfshark vs NordVPN: Feature comparison

Here is a comparison of NordVPN and Surfshark, focusing on seven key features:

Security protocols and encryption

Champion: Draw

Both NordVPN and Surfshark offer a solid selection of VPN protocols that encompass security and speed. In my view, a quality VPN must include at least the security-focused OpenVPN protocol and the speed-focused WireGuard protocol. Anything beyond this is a bonus.

Fortunately, NordVPN provides OpenVPN and its proprietary NordLynx protocol based on WireGuard. On the other hand, Surfshark incorporates OpenVPN, WireGuard, and IKEv2 VPN protocols.

VIEW: Surfshark vs IPVanish (2024): Which VPN Should You Opt for? (TechRepublic)

In terms of encryption, both services employ the industry-standard AES-256 encryption algorithm. This is critical as AES 256 is widely acknowledged as one of the most secure encryption algorithms today, to the extent that certain United States government entities use it to protect sensitive data from unauthorized access.

With this, our first round ends in a clear tie, with both NordVPN and Surfshark excelling when it comes to security protocols and encryption.

VPN servernetwork and places

Champion: NordVPN

Emerging victorious in the realm of server networks and VPN locations is NordVPN. By August 2024, NordVPN boasts a vast expanse of 6,400+ servers scattered across 111 countries. On the other hand, Surfshark VPN currently houses 3,200+ servers across 100 nations within its network.

Despite NordVPN’s substantial lead in terms of actual server quantity, my emphasis leans towards Nord holding a more sizable array of server/country locations compared to Surfshark. Though an additional 11 countries may not appear substantial, it signifies NordVPN offers slightly more country alternatives to its clientele than Surfshark.

This isn’t to downplay the solidity of Surfshark’s 100-country server fleet. It is commendable—just that NordVPN presently enjoys a slight edge in terms of countries. Considering that one of the primary functions of a VPN is to unlock geo-restricted content through IP location alterations, NordVPN’s 111-country server collection stands as a clear advantage.

SEE: PureVPN vs NordVPN (2024): Which VPN Should You Choose? (TechRepublic)

For enterprises prioritizing unblocking with a VPN, NordVPN emerges as the superior pick.

External audits and historical background

Champion: Surfshark

Regarding third-party assessments and overall historical reputation, the crown goes to Surfshark. While NordVPN technically undergoes more independent audits than Surfshark—with four as opposed to three—I admire Surfshark’s public disclosure of a concise summary of their audit outcomes and provision of the complete report.

The latest independent audit by Surfshark was released in 2023, where Deloitte affirmed that Surfshark’s “IT systems and management of the supporting IT operations are suitably prepared, in all material respects, as per Surfshark’s description of its no-logs policy.”

In comparison, NordVPN has successfully undergone an impressive fourthird-party verifications of its zero-logs policy starting January 2024. Nevertheless, when examining its latest audit, which was also conducted by Deloitte, the findings are only accessible to individuals holding a NordVPN account.

NordVPN states that this decision was made due to the extensive scope of the audit, making it impossible to share direct excerpts from the report. This precaution is in place to prevent any misinterpretation or distortion of the audit results.

While I acknowledge the potential pitfalls of releasing a complete audit report and the risk of misinterpretation, I admire Surfshark’s more transparent approach in sharing its audit outcomes. This is especially beneficial for potential users without prior accounts in either service.

SEE: The 5 Best VPNs with Free Trials in 2024 (TechRepublic)

Although Surfshark emerges as the preferred choice, I applaud both VPN providers for demonstrating unwavering commitment to subjecting their services to external scrutiny and assessment.

Noteworthy attributes

Champion: NordVPN

Upon examining the standout features, the crown goes to NordVPN. In addition to its VPN offering, Nord has a plethora of security and privacy functionalities that present a robust package. These include a dedicated malware and ad blocker, a dark web monitor, and even an encrypted cloud storage option.

Moreover, it boasts an innovative Meshnet feature that empowers users to establish their private encrypted networks for safer file sharing and device access.

My personal favorite aspect is that a NordVPN Plus subscription not only includes a VPN service but also a NordPass account — Nord Security’s proprietary password manager. This offers users both VPN security and a password management solution under one subscription. For further insights, read our comprehensive NordPass review here.

Meanwhile, Surfshark possesses remarkable attributes of its own. It comes with an integrated antivirus service in the Surfshark One plan, a concealed email generator, and its CleanWeb ad blocker for a more purified online browsing experience.

We receive dual VPN and split tunneling capabilities from both NordVPN and Surfshark, along with RAM-exclusive servers in their respective server arrays.

Altogether, I believe NordVPN offers a slightly more comprehensive feature collection, with the incorporation of the NordPass password manager standing out to me.

Performance and velocity

Victor: NordVPN

Regarding VPN speed and performance, NordVPN emerges as the top choice. In my testing, both Surfshark VPN and NordVPN delivered consistent and swift speeds for day-to-day activities.

Throughout the evaluation, I utilized both VPN services for my regular writer tasks. This entailed browsing multiple websites for research, participating in online video conferences, and streaming occasional 1080p videos on YouTube. Subjectively, I encountered no issues in terms of speed with either VPN and can confidently endorse both for high-speed VPN usage.

Nevertheless, in speed assessments, NordVPN gains the upper hand over Surfshark. Since VPNs add an extra layer to your traffic, it is expected to see a decline in speed compared to your internet service provider.

Based on my assessments, NordVPN displayed impressive speeds — experiencing only a 5.8% reduction in download speed and a 16.2% decrease in upload speed compared to my ISP. In contrast, Surfshark displayed a 3.34% drop in download speed but a more substantial 72.1% decline in upload speeds.

Hence, if your primary focus is strictly on business,Seeking the swifter VPN service, my evaluation revealed that NordVPN emerges as the superior option.

Ease of use and design

Winner: Draw

In terms of user-friendly interface, user experience, and design, it was evident to me that both Surfshark and NordVPN boasted refined and user-intuitive applications.

Breaking down each app individually, it becomes apparent that NordVPN presents a simplistic user interface that I found enjoyable to use and navigate. Despite its extensive range of features, everything was meticulously arranged, and I encountered no difficulties utilizing its features and setting up a VPN connection.

The same can be said for Surfshark’s desktop application. It boasts a comparable, visually appealing UI that is well-structured and easy on the eyes. I particularly admire how Surfshark presents users with a concise panel of statistics on the right side of its primary interface, showcasing connection durations, connection statuses, and the VPN protocol in use. (Refer below).

Simultaneous device connections

Winner: Surfshark

Surfshark pros and cons

Advantages

• Unlimited simultaneous device connections.
• User-friendly and well-crafted interface.
• CleanWeb feature that blocks ads, trackers, and malware.
• Affordable subscription choices.
• Accessible third-party audit outcomes.

Disadvantages

• Smaller server fleet compared to NordVPN.
• Inconsistent speed test results.

NordVPN pros and cons

Advantages

• Server fleet spanning 111 countries; 6,400+ servers.
• Premium desktop application.
• Swift and steady VPN speeds.
• Meshnet encrypted file sharing feature.
• NordVPN Plus subscription incorporates NordPass password manager.

Disadvantages

• Slightly more costly compared to Surfshark.
• Allows only 10 simultaneous device connections.
• Third-party audit outcomes necessitate a NordVPN account.

Should your organization choose Surfshark or NordVPN?

Methodology

• Pricing (20%).
• Core VPN features (30%).
• Usability (15%).
• Customer assistance (30%).
• Expert input (5%).

Speedtest. Finally, I contemplated which types of businesses or individual users would derive the greatest advantages from either Surfshark or NordVPN.

About Author

AndyC

Andy Curtis is an award-winning security consultant, researcher and public speaker. He has been working in the computer security industry since the early 1990s, having been employed by state and federal government, leading healthcare and banking providers across three continents. He has given talks about computer security for some of the world’s largest companies, worked with law enforcement agencies on investigations into hacking groups, and is a regular voice on TV and radio explaining IT security threats.

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