ExpressVPN Review: One of the fastest VPNs adds lower tiered pricing

At the time we reviewed VPNs, we found that ExpressVPN was also held back by the community. As one of the biggest names in the game, alongside NordVPN, we were always going to check it out, but could it really be that much more impressive than so many of its rivals to earn such a glowing reputation?

As it happens, the answer is yes. While ExpressVPN isn’t without its quirks, like many VPNs, it’s remarkably easy to use, stripped of extra Mac features to reduce it to the simplest way to connect to servers in over a hundred countries.

But to take it back, why would you want a virtual private network? The reasons for using a VPN are at the bottom three. First, you can bypass geoblocking, allowing you to watch what’s on Netflix in the UK from the comfort of your sofa in, say, California.

It’s also a great way to protect your data when browsing the web from a network that’s public or unknown. Are you going to the cafe? A VPN can encrypt your connection to minimize the risk of prying eyes.

Finally, even if you’re browsing at home, they can minimize the chances of your ISP or anyone else seeing what you’re doing. What I love about ExpressVPN is that you can do all of this in two or three clicks at most.

It’s even good for mitigating some of the speed lost when pinging your data to distant countries, with less than a 13% drop in download speed in our testing. Combine that with the relatively decent price for an annual membership and you have the perfect first stop for VPN newbies.

ExpressVPN features in our roundup of the best VPNs for Mac. It is also featured in our Best VPN for iPhone and Best VPN for iPad articles.

Functions and applications

As you’d expect from a household name, ExpressVPN has native VPN apps for iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac, Android, Windows, and pretty much anything else.

If you have a smart device, there’s a good chance ExpressVPN will work on it, and this is handled with an account-specific activation code that’s easy to set up. You can use it on eight devices at once, which is a step up from the five it used to offer – though unfortunately you won’t be able to get unlimited devices like something like Surfshark.

It’s worth noting that in addition to encrypting your connection to minimize the presence of “bad actors”, you get advanced protection on the Advanced plan and above.

Both ExpressVPN and its password manager also support browser plugins, so you can use any of your browsers.

Beyond that, however, ExpressVPN is refreshingly simple. There are no third-party subscriptions, no complicated add-ons, and you can open the app or use the menu bar item on your Mac to browse safely and securely in seconds.

With that said, if you want such a malware safety net, something like NordVPN might be worth looking at instead. Or check out our roundup of the best antivirus for Mac.

Opening ExpressVPN is much faster than some of the competitors we’ve tested (I found SurfShark messed up my Mac system somewhat when I tried to uninstall it), with a neat animation when you press the “on” button to connect to the selected server.

It adds a number of shortcuts to the apps and websites you use frequently, allowing you to quickly jump to them while you’re connected, and there are advanced protection features too – more on those in a moment.

I also have a great experience with the 24 hour live chat. Within minutes I can connect to a real person (no chatbots, hooray!) to discuss any issues.

Performance

Foundry

To set expectations – NordVPN remains faster than ExpressVPN. Its download speed loss of around 12% is pretty hard to beat, but ExpressVPN’s 13% is still better than many others.

ExpressVPN offers no less than six different protocol options (including an automatic option). Lightway, the company’s own choice, is fast. This will give you the best speeds, but you can switch to a different version of Lightway or OpenVPN for compatibility – although we lost 24% in speed when using the latter.

It’s worth noting that the advanced protection features disable OpenVPN and IKEv2. The trade-off is that these features can block trackers, malicious sites, ads, and adult sites. This is great for families who use the Express for all their browsing activities, bringing added peace of mind.

I haven’t found much in my testing that Lightway can’t handle as well, so it may end up being a lot easier to just leave the automatic settings on.

You can also run in-app speed tests on multiple server locations to get an idea of ​​what to expect when connecting, and this is useful for countries with multiple server locations.

On the iPhone and iPad, things are much more baked into the operating systems. In recent months, Siri voice control, a home screen widget, and even shortcut integration have been added.

Privacy and security

Foundry

Bypassing geoblocks is great, but it means little if your VPN doesn’t offer some level of privacy.

The company is headquartered in the British Virgin Islands, which means it is exempt from most intelligence-sharing agency jurisdictions, while also enforcing a no-log policy. It doesn’t have anything like PureVPN’s “always on” audit process, but it does go through regular audits every year.

There is a significant section of the ExpressVPN website focused on security, transparency, audits and more called the Trust Center. The company also runs a “bug bounty” program that rewards anyone who is able to find vulnerabilities in its apps, servers, websites, or anything else.

It’s worth noting, though, that using something like an IP address checker or DNS leak test within the app will take you to a separate web page, which is a shame — but maybe that’s the price you pay for a faster native macOS experience.

Prices and plans

In a previous version of this review, we noted that ExpressVPN offered great deals to users who didn’t want to commit to a two-year plan — but that’s no longer the case.

Instead, you can still pay monthly, but ExpressVPN now has a tiered system. The basic plan is just $3.49 per month (for two years) and you get what the company calls its “core features” – the Lightway protocol, no logs, and plenty of server locations on 10 devices.

Next up is Advanced, which adds additional protection and a password manager, along with identity tracking and even credit monitoring. It costs $4.49 (again on a two-year plan) and covers 12 devices.

Finally, the Pro plan gives you unlimited eSIM data for 5 days, monthly credit reports, data removal services and covers 14 devices for $7.49 per month.

This feature flexibility is great, and you get dedicated IP options in the Pro package or as a paid add-on for other tiers, but it’s still significantly more expensive than some rivals – especially if you choose to pay monthly.

Statement

ExpressVPN is an easy-to-use and fast VPN service with plenty of protection from prying eyes and dodgy coffee shop Wi-Fi, as well as almost unlimited potential for streaming services on any of its servers in 105 countries.

It’s very easy to recommend ExpressVPN for its no-nonsense VPN approach.