Updated on: July 19, 2024
Short on time? Here’s the best paid monthly VPN in 2024:
- 🥇 ExpressVPN — Offers advanced security features, maintains ultra-fast speeds, works with Netflix and 100+ other streaming platforms, provides strong obfuscation, and has very intuitive apps. Its monthly plan starts at $12.95 / month and is backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
I typically don’t like to purchase long-term subscriptions if I can help it. Although they usually offer the best value, I’m not always comfortable being committed to one product or subscription for multiple years. So, I can completely understand why someone may prefer to pay for a virtual private network (VPN) on a month-to-month basis.
However, not all VPNs with monthly plans provide good value. There are a lot of VPNs that have very expensive monthly plans. And out of the ones that have affordable monthly prices, many VPNs have slow speeds, poor streaming and torrenting support, or buggy apps.
I spent weeks testing the top VPNs in 2024 to find the best monthly plans. All the VPNs on my list are great options, but ExpressVPN is my favorite one because its monthly plan offers the best value — you get industry-leading security features, the fastest speeds on the market, and excellent streaming and torrenting support. Editors' Note: ExpressVPN and this site are in the same ownership group.
Quick summary of the best paid monthly VPNs:
Editors' Note: Intego, Private Internet Access, CyberGhost and ExpressVPN are owned by Kape Technologies, our parent company
🥇1. ExpressVPN — Best Monthly (Pay as You Go) VPN
ExpressVPN’s monthly plan costs $12.95 / month and is my favorite VPN — it includes industry-leading security features, has the fastest speeds on the market, and offers intuitive apps for all major platforms.
The monthly version of ExpressVPN comes with excellent security features:
- RAM-only servers — Data is only written to the RAM, ensuring that every server reset wipes everything.
- Perfect forward secrecy — Changes the encryption key for each VPN session to prevent hackers from using potentially compromised past or future encryption keys to spy on your browsing.
- Full leak protection — All of the provider’s apps come with built-in IPv6, DNS, and WebRTC leak protection. I ran leak tests on servers in 10+ countries and never experienced any leaks.
- Obfuscation — ExpressVPN’s obfuscated servers make it appear as if you’re not using a VPN, allowing you to access the web in restrictive countries like China and Iran.
- Verified no-logs policy — ExpressVPN’s no-logs policy has been independently audited and confirmed multiple times.
You also get access to split-tunneling, which lets you pick which apps use the VPN and which apps use your local network. Split-tunneling is available on Android, Windows, and macOS (most VPNs don’t have split-tunneling on macOS).
Another cool feature is ExpressKeys, which is a good free password manager that ExpressVPN includes in its monthly plan. It allows you to store all of your passwords, logins, and personal information like credit card numbers and your passport details in a secure vault. One of the best things about ExpressKeys is you get to use it even after your ExpressVPN subscription ends.
It’s also the best VPN for streaming and torrenting. It works with 100+ streaming platforms, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Hulu, and others. Plus, it’s compatible with all of the top torrent clients. I also like its monthly plan for gaming — it has DDoS protection on all servers and works with cloud gaming services.
ExpressVPN also has automatic obfuscation across all servers and protocols, which is really convenient. It hides your VPN traffic to blend in with all the other ordinary traffic. It works in all restrictive countries, including Iran, Indonesia, Russia, and China, and bypasses all network blocks so you can access a free and open internet.
The only drawback with ExpressVPN’s monthly plan is it only allows 5 connections — the longer plans come with 8 connections. That being said, ExpressVPN has a great router app, which means you can connect every device in your home that’s connected to the router to ExpressVPN.
ExpressVPN’s monthly plan costs $12.95 / month, which is affordable considering the value it offers. There’s also a 6-month plan, which is ideal if you’re relocating to a different country for a few months, or if you simply don’t want to commit to a longer-term plan. I still think its longest plan is the best value at $6.67 / month (and it usually includes additional months for free). ExpressVPN backs all purchases with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
ExpressVPN offers the best monthly plan on the market — it’s priced at $12.95 / month and includes every feature ExpressVPN has to offer, so it’s great for short trips, vacations, and in case you just want to try ExpressVPN for a month. It comes with top-notch security features, effective obfuscation for restrictive countries, many cool extra features, excellent streaming and torrenting support, and easy-to-use apps. All ExpressVPN purchases come with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee.
Read the full ExpressVPN review
🥈2. Private Internet Access (PIA) — Great Monthly Plan for Browsing & Torrenting
Private Internet Access (PIA) has an affordable monthly plan ($11.99 / month) and is great for torrenting. It allows P2P traffic on servers in 91 countries, supports port forwarding, and also has SOCKS5 proxy support, which changes your IP address while torrenting but doesn’t encrypt your traffic — so you get much faster download speeds, including on public Wi-Fi networks.
And you also get high-end security features for browsing and torrenting — PIA has RAM-only servers, perfect forward secrecy, and full leak protection. The monthly plan also comes with PIA MACE, which is the best VPN ad blocker on the market. In my tests, PIA MACE always got rid of annoying ads and stopped me from connecting to shady websites.
It also has obfuscation via Multi-Hop, which uses Shadowsocks, an encrypted open-source proxy, to obfuscate your traffic. When you use this feature, your traffic is first sent through Shadowsocks, which hides your VPN traffic before it reaches the VPN server. It works perfectly for bypassing all network blocks, including those in restrictive countries.
And PIA is also great for streaming, as it works with 30+ streaming platforms, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Max, and BBC iPlayer. Still, I like ExpressVPN more because it claims to work with 100+ streaming sites.
Private Internet Access offers some of the cheapest plans on the market — its monthly plan (which supports unlimited connections) costs $11.99 / month, but you can also get it for 6 months for $7.50 / month if you don’t want to commit to a longer plan. If you like PIA, its longest and best-value plan is only $2.19 / month. PIA covers all plans with a 30 day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
Private Internet Access’s monthly subscription costs $11.99 / month — it also has a 6-month plan ($7.50 / month /month) if you need a longer subscription plan but aren’t looking for a yearly plan. Its monthly plans provide really good torrenting and streaming support, strong security and privacy features, and obfuscation that works in restrictive countries. PIA has a 30-day money-back guarantee on all plans, so there’s no risk in trying it out.
Read the full Private Internet Access Review
Editors' Note: Private Internet Access and this site are in the same ownership group.
🥉3. CyberGhost VPN — Excellent for Streaming & Gaming
CyberGhost VPN provides great streaming and gaming support via dedicated servers on its monthly plan (which costs $12.99 / month). It has 100+ streaming servers located in 20+ countries that work with 50+ streaming platforms, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Max, plus smaller channels like ruutu and C MORE Finland.
There are also dedicated gaming servers in 4 countries (the UK, France, Germany, and the US), all of which are available in the monthly plans. The servers are solely designed to maximize your download speeds and provide low ping, so you won’t have to deal with too much lag while on slow public networks (like in a hotel). I tested servers in each of these 4 countries, and they were indeed 10–15% faster than CyberGhost’s normal servers.
Unfortunately, CyberGhost doesn’t have an obfuscation tool, so it can’t hide your VPN traffic from your ISP, won’t help you bypass network restrictions at work or school, and doesn’t work in restrictive countries.
Plus, CyberGhost has beginner-friendly apps, which is especially important if you’re getting the monthly plan for a short vacation or trip — as you won’t have to spend too much time finding your way around the app. One of its most convenient features is Smart Rules, which allows you to customize your VPN connection preferences. For example, you can choose to let it automatically connect to a selected server when you open a specific app.
CyberGhost is also a good option for torrenting on its monthly plans. It has dedicated torrenting servers located in 85+ countries, but I prefer the convenience of ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access because they allow torrenting on all of their servers.
CyberGhost VPN offers a monthly plan that costs $12.99 / month and is backed by a 14-day money-back guarantee. It has a 6-month plan $6.99 / month that comes with a generous 45-day money-back guarantee. Its longest-term plan also includes a 45-day money-back guarantee and starts at $2.19 / month.
Bottom Line:
CyberGhost VPN offers a good monthly plan that’s priced at $12.99 / month. It includes dedicated streaming servers that work with 50+ streaming platforms and gaming servers that provide smooth connections, so I’d consider it for a short trip or to test out the VPN. It also has good P2P support, fast speeds, and strong security. CyberGhost VPN backs its monthly plans with just a 14-day money-back guarantee and its 6-month plan with a 45-day money-back guarantee.
Read the full CyberGhost VPN review
Editors' Note: CyberGhost and this site are in the same ownership group.
4. NordVPN — Secure VPN With Multiple Monthly Plans
NordVPN’s tiered pricing monthly plans (starting at $3.39 / month) have excellent security features. They include a dark web monitor, a top-notch ad and malware blocker, and double VPN connections, which provide an extra layer of security.
NordVPN has obfuscation, but it doesn’t work in restrictive countries. Instead, you can only use it to bypass internet restrictions and censorship instituted by work or school networks, or to hide your VPN traffic from your ISP. It’s available on 100+ servers in 15+ countries and uses the OpenVPN protocol only.
NordVPN scans files you download, looks for potential malware, and deletes it before it gets to your computer on its monthly plan. It also blocks ads, trackers, and shady sites. This keeps you safe on excursions or vacations where you need to download itineraries from third-party sites or do a lot of research online to find the best places to visit or eat.
NordVPN is one of the top VPNs on the market for streaming — it works with Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, and tons of other popular streaming apps. And when it comes to P2P traffic, it supports torrenting in 45+ countries and has SOCKS5 proxy servers.
The VPN offers 3 different monthly plans — Basic, Plus, and Ultimate. The Standard plan costs $3.39 / month and provides full access to the VPN. The Plus plan costs $4.39 / month and adds NordPass (one of the best password managers on the market), the malware protection and ad blocker, and a data breach scanner. Finally, the Complete plan is the most expensive at $5.39 / month. It comes with everything in Standard and Plus, but adds Nordlocker, which provides you with 1TB cloud storage.
NordVPN offers the same tiered pricing model for long-term plans too, with prices starting at $3.39 / month. All monthly and long-term plans are covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
NordVPN has high-end security and tiered monthly plans that start at $3.39 / month. It includes dark web monitoring and one of the best ad blockers out there, has obfuscation (but doesn’t work in restrictive countries), provides great streaming and torrenting support, and is easy to use. All plans have a 30-day money-back guarantee.
5. Surfshark — Easy-to-Use & Secure Monthly VPN
Surfshark’s monthly plan costs $15.45 / month and comes with really intuitive apps for all major platforms that are very simple to use. The server list is available on the main screen and all settings and features have helpful explanations.
The provider also allows an unlimited number of connections on the monthly plan. This way, your entire household will be able to secure their traffic if you’re planning a short trip with your family to a country that monitors internet traffic.
Surfshark is really good for streaming and torrenting. It works with most of the popular streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime. Also, Surfshark allows torrenting on all of its servers and works with the top torrenting clients.
I always felt secure browsing, torrenting, and gaming with Surfshark — it has a really good ad blocker, double VPN connections, and IP Rotator, which randomly changes your IP address without dropping your VPN connection. However, it doesn’t have full leak protection (unlike ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access) since it only prevents DNS leaks. That said, I never experienced any leaks in my tests, which is great.
Surfshark has obfuscation via Camouflage Mode, an automatic feature when using the OpenVPN protocol. Customer support said it may work in restrictive countries, but it isn’t guaranteed. It does work for bypassing normal network restrictions, like at work.
Surfshark offers a monthly subscription for $15.45 / month, which you can use to test the VPN or protect your traffic on vacation. Its best-value plan costs just $2.19 / month, and it’s one of the cheapest VPN plans on the market. All plans have a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
Surfshark is very user-friendly and its monthly plan costs $15.45 / month. The monthly plan is a great pick for a one-off family trip as the VPN allows unlimited connections and is very easy to use. It also provides pretty good streaming and torrenting support, has strong security features, and maybe works in restrictive countries. There is a 30-day money-back guarantee for all plans.
Read the full Surfshark review
6. PrivateVPN — Very Intuitive (Good for New Users)
PrivateVPN has an affordable monthly plan that costs $11.99 / month. The VPN is very easy to use and has really good streaming and P2P support, so I always recommend PrivateVPN’s monthly plan to people who have never used a VPN.
I love that there’s a Simple View mode on the desktop apps that keeps functionality to a bare minimum (like connecting to a server and accessing live chat support) — the Advanced View allows for more customization like choosing your protocol and encryption level.
PrivateVPN is also great for streaming and torrenting. It works with all of the top streaming services (Netflix, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, and more), and it allows P2P traffic on all 200+ servers in 63 countries.
PrivateVPN has a Stealth protocol, which uses obfuscation to hide your VPN traffic. It works well in restrictive countries, including China and Russia. It’s also great for bypassing restrictions on school or work networks.
PrivateVPN offers monthly plans ($11.99 / month), and unlike most VPNs on this list, it has a 3-month plan ($6.00 / month) rather than a 6-month plan if you need a VPN for a little longer than a month. Its yearly plans cost $2.00 / month. All plans are backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
PrivateVPN is beginner-friendly with a low-cost monthly price ($11.99 / month). The monthly plan is a great option for new VPN users who want to test its features or need a VPN for several months, as it offers good browsing, streaming, and torrenting support. It also works well in restrictive countries. There’s a 30-day money-back guarantee for all plans.
Read the full PrivateVPN review
7. Proton VPN — High-End Security & Privacy Features
Proton VPN provides strong security and privacy on its monthly plans (which cost $9.99 / month). It’s one of the few VPNs on the market whose apps are open-source — plus, they’ve passed security audits. And I really like that its no-logs policy has been independently audited too.
It also has Secure Core servers that add an extra layer of protection by routing your traffic through 2 VPN servers, one of which is located in a privacy-friendly country.
Proton VPN has advanced obfuscation through its Stealth protocol, and it works well for bypassing ISP restrictions, but it only maybe works in restrictive countries like Iran and Indonesia and doesn’t work at all in China.
The VPN also has good streaming and P2P support. It works with Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime and supports torrenting on servers in 85+ countries. Plus, it comes with port forwarding.
Proton VPN has a great free plan and a monthly plan that costs $9.99 / month. It also has long-term plans that start at $3.59 / month, and it backs all purchases with a prorated 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
Proton VPN is a privacy-friendly VPN with a monthly price of $9.99 / month. It has open-source apps and a verified no-logs policy, high-end security features, and good streaming and torrenting support on its monthly plan. However, it doesn’t work in restrictive countries, but does bypass ISP internet censorship. There’s a prorated 30-day money-back guarantee for all plans.
Read the full ProtonVPN review
8. TunnelBear — User-Friendly & Fun to Use
TunnelBear has a great monthly plan ($9.99 / month), user-friendly apps for beginners, and unlimited connections. Its apps feature a digital map where cute animated bears dig a tunnel to a VPN server’s location when you connect to it. What’s more, on mobile, the provider’s app even roars when you connect to a server, which is adorable.
TunnelBear claims that it works in all restrictive countries like China, Iran, and Russia, and uses the GhostBear feature to do it. GhostBear is the VPN’s obfuscation feature and is very easy to use since it has an auto setting so it activates on its own when it detects network restrictions.
When it comes to streaming, TunnelBear is a good choice. It works with Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, BBC iPlayer, and smaller channels like Pluto TV and Crunchyroll. However, I was a bit disappointed that it doesn’t work with Disney+. On the plus side, it allows torrenting on all of its 5,000+ servers, which are located in 47 countries.
TunnelBear has a free plan and its monthly plan costs $9.99 / month, which is pretty affordable for a monthly subscription. It also offers long-term plans that start at $3.33 / month. But unlike the rest of the VPNs on my list, TunnelBear’s plans are not backed by a money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
TunnelBear is beginner-friendly and has a monthly cost of $9.99 / month. It also has good privacy features, obfuscation that works in restrictive countries, and great streaming and P2P support on its monthly and long-term plans. Unfortunately, there’s no money-back guarantee, but you can use the provider’s free plan to test its service out.
Read the full TunnelBear review
9. Windscribe — Family-Oriented Build-a-Plan VPN
Windscribe has a really interesting pricing option that lets you build your own plan. You’re able to choose your own server location(s) that you need, so you only pay for what you’ll use. The plan minimum is only $3.00 / month, and you can also add an ad blocker and unlimited data for an extra $1 USD per month. It’s by far the cheapest monthly plan available.
The VPN is a great pick for families, too. It has unlimited connections even when you build a plan, plus it has a great feature called Secure Hotspot that lets you share your secure VPN connection with others by creating a hotspot for them to connect any of their devices to (including things like gaming consoles!).
The VPN also has several anti-internet censorship tools. It comes with a Circumvent Censorship feature that helps you bypass restrictions in “hostile environments” like restrictive countries or school/work networks that limit your internet access. And there’s also 2 protocols for bypassing restrictions: Stealth and WStunnel, both of which hide your VPN traffic and use port 443.
Windscribe is really good for streaming and torrenting. It works with popular international streaming platforms like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and Max, plus supports router setups so you can stream securely on big screens. Also, it works with all torrent clients, has port forwarding (like Private Internet Access), and supports torrenting on nearly all servers.
If you want full access to all of the server locations, Windscribe’s monthly plan starts at $9.00 / month. Its long-term plan starts at $5.75 / month. Unfortunately, Windscribe only comes with a 3-day money-back guarantee, but it also has a good free plan if you need more time to test it out.
Bottom Line:
Windscribe offers the cheapest monthly plan rate if you use its build-a-plan option. It has family-friendly features, great streaming and torrenting support, and excellent tools for bypassing censorship. However, it only has a 3-day money-back guarantee.
Read the full Windscribe Review
10. Mullvad VPN — Flat-Rate Pricing Model
Mullvad VPN is one of my favorite monthly VPNs because it offers a flat pricing model. This means its plans are set at a fixed price, so you won’t pay more whether you purchase 1 month, 3 months, or 12 months at a time. As a monthly user, I like this a lot since it’s super flexible and fair.
I’m also a big fan of Mullvad’s obfuscation feature since it works reliably in censorship-heavy countries like China, Itan, and Russia. It’s not available on iOS, but it does work on the WireGuard protocol so you get faster speeds even with obfuscation active (it normally significantly reduces your speeds).
It’s also pretty good torrenting since it works with all popular torrent clients and doesn’t leak your data while torrenting. Unfortunately, it’s not so great for streaming, and won’t work for most sites — it only sometimes works with Netflix and BBC iPlayer, and doesn’t work with Amazon Prime, Hulu, or others at all.
Mullvad VPN’s monthly plan costs $5.42 / month, which doesn’t change as you add more months. All plans are backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
Mullvad VPN is a great monthly option since it follows a flat pricing model. It has strong security with extras like Multihop and an ad blocker, works in restrictive countries, has great apps including a Linux app with a GUI, and provides good torrenting support (though it’s not good for streaming). Its plans have a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Read the full Mullvad VPN Review
Bonus. VyprVPN — Good for Getting Around Internet Restrictions
VyprVPN has a great monthly plan costing $10.00 / month and is great for circumventing web restrictions — it’s one of the top monthly plans I always recommend to friends who need a VPN for a one-off visit to a restrictive country. It has its own proprietary Chameleon protocol that uses obfuscation to help you avoid VPN blocks, and it changes your IP address frequently, which reduces the chances of your IP address being blocked.
VyprVPN has good streaming and torrenting support. It works with Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and BBC iPlayer (but not with Disney+), and it has P2P-friendly servers in 60+ countries.
Plus, it allows 10 connections, which allows you to protect every device you carry with you.
VyprVPN offers a monthly plan ($10.00 / month) and a long-term plan ($3.00 / month), both of which are backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bottom Line:
VyprVPN gets around web restrictions, and its monthly plan costs $3.00 / month. It also has pretty fast speeds, good streaming and torrenting support, strong security features, and easy-to-use apps, all of which make its monthly plan a good option for a one-off trip to a restrictive country. There’s a 30-day money-back guarantee for all plans.
Bonus. IPVanish — Good P2P Support & Decent Security
IPVanish costs $12.99 / month per month and has great torrenting support on its monthly plan — it has 2,000+ P2P-friendly servers in 50+ countries, and it provides access to multiple SOCKS5 proxy servers on its monthly plan. This allows you to get the fastest possible speed no matter where you travel to.
It also provides access to good security features, including perfect forward secrecy, DNS and IPv6 leak protection, and an independently-audited no-logs policy.
IPVanish doesn’t work in restrictive countries, but it does have obfuscation for bypassing less sophisticated network blocks like those at school or work. Its obfuscation tool is called Scramble, which is available through the OpenVPN protocol. It’s slow, but it hides your VPN traffic from your ISP effectively.
Plus, it has easy-to-use apps that make it really simple to connect to all of its servers. I also like how the provider supports unlimited connections on its monthly plan, so you can use it to torrent on as many devices as you want.
Unfortunately, the provider isn’t great for streaming. While it works with most Netflix libraries, it doesn’t work with apps like BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, and Amazon Prime. ExpressVPN, Private Internet Access, and CyberGhost VPN work with all of those streaming platforms (and more).
IPVanish’s monthly plan costs $12.99 / month. It also has long-term plans that start at $2.19 / month. There’s a 30-day money-back guarantee, but only for the long-term plans.
Bottom Line:
IPVanish has good P2P support on its monthly plan that costs $12.99 / month. It also provides good security features, user-friendly apps, and support for unlimited connections. It doesn’t work in restrictive countries, but its obfuscation does work for normal ISP restrictions. While there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee, it only covers the long-term plans.
Quick Comparison Table
Editors' Note: Intego, Private Internet Access, CyberGhost and ExpressVPN are owned by Kape Technologies, our parent company
Testing Methodology: Comparison & Ranking Criteria
While testing each VPN, I kept our proven testing methodology in mind. I tested each service rigorously, putting them through a variety of real-world tests and evaluating the VPNs in categories like speed, ease of use, security and privacy, and more. Each VPN on this list performed well. Here are the standards I used to compile the VPNs that made my list and how I ranked each one.
- I researched to find VPNs that offer cheap monthly plans. Each VPN on my list has plans that won’t break the bank and most, if not all, include every feature offered in the long-term plans. My top pick is ExpressVPN, as it combines affordability with comprehensive features.
- I looked for excellent security features. I only recommend VPNs that include industry-standard VPN security features like 256-bit AES encryption, a kill switch to prevent data leaks if the VPN disconnects (I made sure it worked every time), leak protection, and a strict no-logs policy to prevent the VPN from logging your data.
- I tested the VPN’s speeds on nearby and distant servers. Since all VPNs reduce your connection speeds because of the added layer of encryption, I only recommend VPNs that are able to maintain fast speeds across all servers — ExpressVPN is the fastest on this list.
- I checked for reliable streaming and torrenting support. All the VPNs I recommend will let you use platforms such as Netflix and allow torrenting on the majority of their servers.
- I made sure each VPN offers good value. The VPNs I recommend allow at least 5 simultaneous connections (Private Internet Access and Surfshark allow unlimited connections), come with extras like split-tunneling or an ad blocker, accept multiple payment methods, and come with a free plan or a money-back guarantee.
Monthly VPNs vs. Long-Term VPNs
Choosing between a monthly VPN and a long-term VPN depends on your needs. Here’s a simple breakdown to help you make a more informed decision:
Choose a monthly VPN if:
- You require short-term protection, such as when traveling abroad and accessing unsecured public Wi-Fi networks.
- You want to access a 100% open internet in a restricted country.
- You wish to test a VPN service without committing to a long-term plan.
- You can’t afford the larger upfront cost of a yearly plan.
Long-term VPN plans, on the other hand, are a smarter choice for regular VPN users because:
- The overall cost of monthly VPN subscriptions can end up being up to 3 times higher than an annual plan.
- Many providers offer even greater discounts on 2 or 3-year plans, making them a cost-effective deal.
- You’re guaranteed longer protection and won’t be affected by sudden price increases that may happen month-to-month.
Ultimately, a long-term VPN subscription plan provides the best value. While monthly VPNs have their temporary uses, long-term VPNs offer more advantages, including access to more features and cheaper prices.
Top Brands That Didn’t Make the Cut
- hide.me. Hide.me’s monthly plan includes fast connection speeds and decent security, but its outdated interface and laggy Windows app stop it from making this list. Its monthly plan costs $9.95 / month.
- Ivacy. Ivacy’s monthly plan comes with 5,000+ servers and plenty of security features, but there’s limited P2P support and a lack of advanced features that prevent it from making the cut, even though it’s affordable at $10.45 / month.
- PureVPN. PureVPN’s monthly plan offers fast speeds and good security features, but I experienced quite a few slowdowns when connected to remote servers. It costs $12.95 / month per month.
- Astrill VPN. Astrill has a 1-month and 6-month plan that offer unlimited connections and include all of its features, but its monthly plan costs a whopping $30.00 / month.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best paid monthly VPN?
ExpressVPN has the best monthly subscription in 2024. With a monthly plan that costs $12.95 / month, it comes with high-end security features, the fastest speeds in the industry, the best streaming, torrenting, and gaming support, intuitive apps for virtually every online device, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Is a monthly VPN plan cheaper than a long-term VPN plan?
No — yearly plans typically offer significantly cheaper prices and are an overall better value than the monthly plans. While I understand some people don’t want to get locked into 1, 2, or even 3-year subscription plans, these long-term plans are actually cheaper in the long run.
For example, ExpressVPN’s monthly subscription costs $12.95 / month, but you can get the yearly plan for $6.67 / month, which also usually includes 3 additional months for free.
Are free VPNs better than VPN monthly plans?
No, and I typically don’t recommend free VPNs. Most free plans set a limit on how much data you can use each day or month, have slow speeds, lack important security features, and may not allow torrenting and streaming. Even the best free plans in 2024 have at least some of the restrictions noted above.
Instead, I recommend purchasing a low-cost, long-term premium plan from VPNs like ExpressVPN.
Can I stream Netflix with a monthly VPN plan?
Yes, and all the monthly VPNs on my list work with Netflix really well. I personally recommend getting ExpressVPN because it works with over a dozen Netflix libraries. Plus, it provides the fastest streaming speeds on the market, and it comes with extremely user-friendly mobile and desktop apps.
Why are monthly VPNs so much more expensive?
There are a few reasons why monthly VPN plans are more expensive than annual or long-term plans:
- Flexibility. Monthly VPN plans offer the flexibility to subscribe for a shorter duration, making them more expensive as compared to long-term plans.
- Higher Operational Costs. VPN providers have to manage server infrastructure, maintenance, and customer support. Monthly plans help cover these costs, resulting in higher prices.
- Market Demand. Monthly VPN plans cater to users who require VPN services for a shorter duration or have fluctuating needs. This demand allows providers to charge higher prices.
- Customer Retention. VPN vendors want to keep their customers for longer periods of time, so they make monthly plans much more expensive than their longer-term plans to encourage customers to sign up for longer periods of time.
When should I choose a monthly VPN?
There are several reasons why someone might choose a monthly VPN:
- Short-Term Need. If you only require VPN services for a specific period or project, a monthly VPN allows you to use it for a limited time without committing to a long-term subscription.
- Trial Period. Opting for a monthly VPN can be a way to test the service before committing to a long-term plan. This allows you to evaluate its performance, features, and compatibility with your needs.
- Budget Constraints. Some users may have budget limitations and prefer the flexibility of paying for a VPN service on a monthly basis rather than a lump sum.
- Changing Needs. If your VPN requirements vary over time, a monthly plan allows you to adjust your subscription as needed. You can easily switch providers or cancel the service without a long-term commitment.
- Temporary Travel or Access. If you are traveling to a country with restricted internet access, a monthly VPN can provide a solution for that specific period.
What is the best monthly VPN for torrenting?
The best torrenting VPN with a monthly plan is Private Internet Access. It works with all torrent clients, allows torrenting across its entire server network, and has several extras for P2P file sharing like port forwarding and SOCKS5 proxy support. It also has great privacy features like full leak protection and an audited no-logs policy to keep your identity and activities hidden when torrenting.
