Proton VPN vs Mullvad 2026: Privacy, Anonymity, Price and Speed Compared

01The verdict at a glance

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02Proton VPN vs Mullvad: privacy and anonymity

This is where Mullvad has an edge few providers can match. It does not ask for a name, password or email address. It generates a random account number, and that number is the only thing you log in with. According to its policy, Mullvad stores just that number and the date your paid time runs out (Mullvad). Security.org confirmed this in testing: Mullvad did not ask for an email, a username or even a country (Security.org).

Proton VPN needs a regular account. You can create a Proton Mail address without handing over personal details, or sign up with your own email, which then becomes your account identifier. To fight spam, Proton may ask you to verify with a Captcha, an email or a text message (Proton). The only way to use Proton VPN without an account is guest mode on the free plan for Android and iPhone (Proton VPN).

Paying with cash or crypto

Both services accept cash by mail, but the details differ. With Mullvad, you mail banknotes in one of nine currencies, euros included, along with a randomly generated payment code (Mullvad). Once the time is credited, the envelope and everything except the money goes through a shredder, so Mullvad has no way of knowing who paid (Mullvad). Proton accepts cash in Swiss francs, US dollars and euros, but you must include your Proton Mail username or it cannot credit the payment (Proton VPN). Neither service refunds cash.

Mullvad accepts Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Monero and Bitcoin Lightning on its own nodes with no middlemen, and gives a 10% discount for crypto (Mullvad, Mullvad). Proton only offers Bitcoin after you create a free account and upgrade it in your settings (Proton VPN). Monero, Litecoin or Ethereum are accepted only through partner services (Proton VPN).

Card payments are not anonymous with either service, because your bank and the payment processor know about them. Mullvad, however, never sends your account number to payment companies, only a one-time code that can no longer be linked to your account after 20 days (Mullvad). Proton keeps your name and the last four digits of your card (Proton). Mullvad records the last four digits, card type and country too, but with no link to your account number (Mullvad). Mullvad also scrapped auto-renewing subscriptions in 2022 to store even less customer data (Mullvad), so you top up your time yourself.

What they don’t log

Both services promise not to log your activity. Mullvad spells out that it does not log traffic, DNS requests, connection times, IP addresses or bandwidth (Mullvad). Proton VPN’s policy says it does not log traffic or the content of communications, and it stores account data encrypted on its own servers in Switzerland, Germany or Norway (Proton VPN). Since September 2023, every Mullvad server runs from RAM only, with no disks, so nothing survives a reboot (Mullvad). Proton runs only bare-metal servers, no virtual ones, all with full disk encryption (Proton VPN).

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03Audits and real-world proof

Since 2022, Proton has hired the Polish firm Securitum every year to audit its no-logs policy, with 2026 marking the fifth audit in a row. According to Proton, the auditors found no evidence that its servers log browsing, DNS queries or metadata that could identify users (Proton VPN). Proton open-sourced all of its apps in 2020, and independent researcher Ruben Santamarta last reviewed their security in November 2025 (Proton VPN).

Mullvad has no audit branded “no-logs,” but it regularly has its infrastructure, apps and payment system examined. In its fourth infrastructure audit in June 2024, Cure53 specifically looked for ways to compromise traffic anonymity and found none. It reported one medium-severity and one low-severity issue, which Mullvad fixed (Mullvad). Around the turn of 2025 and 2026, X41 D-Sec audited the account and payment system, and in 2026 Leviathan Security Group assessed the Android app (Mullvad, Mullvad). The app code is open source under GPL-3 (GitHub).

Both have been tested in the real world too. In April 2023, at least six police officers showed up at Mullvad’s office with a search warrant, looking to seize computers with customer data. They left empty-handed, because no such data existed (Mullvad). Since 2017, Proton has received 458 legally binding orders from Swiss authorities and denied all of them because it does not have the data requested (Proton VPN). Keep in mind that an audit only reflects a single point in time.

04Sweden or Switzerland

Mullvad is a Swedish company, so EU law and the GDPR apply. Its own legal analysis says Sweden’s Electronic Communications Act does not cover it, which means authorities cannot use that law to demand user data from it (Mullvad). Police can still order a search or seizure, as 2023 showed. And since April 2025, a law has been permanently in force that lets police, with a court permit, secretly install software on a suspect’s device and read data before a VPN encrypts it (Mullvad). Mullvad processes customer personal data only within the EU and EEA (Mullvad). If a government ever forced it to spy on users, Mullvad says it would shut down the service in that jurisdiction (Mullvad).

Switzerland is not in the EU. According to Proton, Swiss law does not require it to keep user connection logs and cannot force it to log specific users (Proton VPN). Proton only complies with foreign requests approved by a Swiss court (Proton VPN). In July 2025, however, it announced that legal uncertainty around government proposals to expand surveillance was pushing it to move most of its physical infrastructure out of Switzerland (Proton). We see no clear winner here: both countries offer strong privacy protection. Proton is already moving most of its infrastructure, and Mullvad says it keeps track of how it could move critical parts of its business to other jurisdictions if needed (Mullvad).

05Proton VPN vs Mullvad: price

Mullvad’s pricing is about as simple as it gets: €5 a month including VAT, whether you pay for a month, a year or a decade. There are no long-term discounts or sales, and the price has not changed since launch in 2009 (Mullvad). That works out to €60 a year (about 1,460 CZK). Pay with crypto and it drops to €4.50 a month.

Proton VPN Plus costs €9.99 month to month, and the two-year plan lists at €83.76, or €3.49 a month (Proton VPN). Our partner link opens a special offer: two years for €71.76, or €2.99 a month (about 1,747 CZK in total). That is 70% off the €9.99 monthly plan. After 24 months, VPN Plus auto-renews at €83.88 a year, or €6.99 a month. Proton’s checkout, opened from Czechia, showed both prices with 21% Czech VAT already included. The discount can only be used once per user. Every plan and condition is covered in our Proton VPN price guide.

Which one is cheaper depends on how long you keep it. For the first two years, Proton’s partner offer saves you €48.24. From year three, Mullvad costs €23.88 a year less, but it only wipes out Proton’s head start after four years. Over four years it comes out even: Proton’s partner offer at €239.52, Mullvad at €240, Proton at list price €251.52. Month to month, Mullvad costs half as much as Proton.

Renewal matters too. Proton renews automatically after the first term, and its checkout warns that renewal prices may change. Mullvad offers no auto-renewal at all, so nothing gets charged behind your back, but your VPN stops working if you forget to top up (Mullvad). Watch the device limit as well: Proton VPN Plus covers 10 devices, Mullvad 5, and Mullvad will not sell you more (Mullvad).

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06Is Mullvad free? Proton VPN Free vs Mullvad

Mullvad has no free plan, arguing that free services usually cost you in data or limitations (Mullvad). Proton Free has no data cap, but it covers just 1 device, the app assigns you a server in one of 10 countries, streaming is not guaranteed and P2P is not available (Proton VPN). Our Proton VPN Free guide covers everything the free plan can and cannot do.

07Proton VPN vs Mullvad: speed

On a nearby server, Mullvad is faster. In the Future lab that tests for both TechRadar and Tom’s Guide, it hit 2,308 Mbps over WireGuard in April 2026, compared with 1,475 Mbps for Proton. Over the long US to UK route, the order flipped: Proton reached 1,548 Mbps, Mullvad 938 Mbps (TechRadar, Tom’s Guide).

In its June 2026 report, Artifact Security measured a higher average download speed for Mullvad on Windows, 192.0 Mbps versus 165.2 Mbps. Overall, though, it gave Proton 83 points and a Gold award and Mullvad 70 points and Silver, citing Mullvad’s inconsistent throughput. Proton had by far the most stable connection of the five VPNs tested, with 5.93 ms of jitter versus 9.15 ms for Mullvad (Artifact Security). CNET measured an average speed loss of 24% for Mullvad in 2025 and 15.8% for Proton (CNET, CNET).

Mullvad supports WireGuard only and according to its own announcement, completely removed OpenVPN on January 15, 2026 (Mullvad). Quantum-resistant tunnels are on by default in all its apps (Mullvad), while Proton is still laying the groundwork (Proton VPN). On a typical home connection in Czechia or Slovakia, both are fast enough that you will not notice the difference. The results depend more on who measures and how.

08Proton VPN vs Mullvad: Netflix and streaming

Proton is the better pick for streaming. In its August 2026 review, Tom’s Guide says Mullvad has improved a lot, unblocking Netflix in every country it tried plus the free UK streamers, but it had some failures with Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video and is still not up to par with Proton VPN (Tom’s Guide). CNET could only reach Netflix and HBO Max with Mullvad in 2025 (CNET), and Security.org calls the results a coin toss (Security.org). Mullvad itself suggests watching Netflix outside the VPN by using split tunneling (Mullvad).

In Tom’s Guide testing, Proton unblocked every Netflix library it tried and struggled with Amazon Prime Video in Australia, Canada and Japan, and needed a couple of server switches for Disney+ in the UK (Tom’s Guide). Streaming is guaranteed only on paid plans. Slovakia is on its list of supported Netflix countries, Czechia is not (Proton VPN). Netflix also has its own rules: over a VPN you only see titles licensed worldwide, and the ad-supported plan does not work with a VPN at all (Netflix).

09Servers, features and apps

Proton’s network is far bigger. It has 85 servers in Prague and 62 in Bratislava (Proton VPN), while Mullvad’s list shows 4 and 2, all rented. Mullvad owns 124 of its 566 servers (Mullvad). On the other hand, Mullvad offers DAITA, which adds random background traffic and pads packets to a constant size, making it much harder to work out which sites you visit from your traffic patterns (Mullvad). Multihop sends your traffic through two or more servers in different countries (Mullvad); Proton’s Secure Core works in a similar way (Proton VPN).

Torrenting and port forwarding

For torrenting, Proton is the more practical choice, with P2P servers and port forwarding on paid plans (Proton VPN). Mullvad dropped port forwarding in 2023 because of abuse (Mullvad).

Languages and apps

Mullvad’s apps are more basic and are not available in Czech or Slovak (GitHub). Proton has localized apps and extensions for Chrome and Firefox, covered in our Proton VPN browser extension guide. Mullvad offers no VPN extension, saying it is too easy to leak traffic outside the tunnel that way (Mullvad). To install a VPN on your computer, follow how to set up a VPN on Windows and Mac.

Proton VPN vs Mullvad in China

Do not count on either one in China. Mullvad says the Great Firewall blocks all of its servers in Asia and suggests trying US servers with obfuscation (Mullvad). Tom’s Guide says Proton does not work in China (Tom’s Guide), and Proton itself makes no guarantee (Proton VPN).

10What reviewers say

All four sources rate Proton higher (Security.org, Tom’s Guide, CNET, Artifact Security; Mullvad: Security.org, Tom’s Guide, CNET). Reviewers credit it for streaming, a bigger network and more features. Mullvad, in turn, gets praise for anonymity: Security.org calls it the strongest of the three it compared, Mullvad, Proton VPN and ExpressVPN, if anonymity matters most, and recommends Proton or ExpressVPN for streaming (Security.org).

11Money-back guarantee

Proton refunds the full amount within 30 days of your first purchase, once per user, only for purchases made directly with Proton (not through the App Store or Google Play), and not for cash or bank transfer payments (Proton). Our guide on how to cancel Proton VPN and get a refund walks you through it. In January 2025, Mullvad cut its refund window from 30 to 14 days so it would not have to keep payment data as long (Mullvad). It refunds card, PayPal, Google Play and SEPA bank transfer payments, but not cash, crypto or vouchers. App Store refunds are handled by Apple (Mullvad).

12Is Mullvad better than Proton VPN? Which to choose

Choose Mullvad if you

• do not want to give a VPN your email or any other personal detail
• want to pay with cash or crypto with no link to your identity
• prefer topping up by hand with no auto-renewal
• plan to keep a VPN for more than four years and 5 devices are enough
• do not need Czech or Slovak, streaming or port forwarding

Choose Proton VPN if you

• want the lowest price for the first two years or a free plan
• stream a lot
• want apps in Czech or Slovak, more local servers and 10 devices
• download torrents and could use port forwarding
• also use Proton Mail or Proton Drive

Try Proton VPN: 70% off for 2 years

We have also compared Proton VPN with NordVPN, Surfshark and ExpressVPN. For a wider overview, see our roundup of the best VPNs for 2026.

13FAQ

14Conclusion

Mullvad is the better choice if you want to leave as few traces as possible: no email, cash in an envelope, no auto-renewal and one simple price that never changes. In exchange, you accept a smaller network, weaker streaming, five devices and apps without Czech or Slovak. For most people in Czechia and Slovakia, Proton VPN is the more practical option. It is cheaper for the first two years, has a free plan, more local servers, localized apps and handles Netflix more reliably. Over four years, you pay almost the same for either.

Data protection matters for business websites and apps too. If you are planning a project that handles customer data, see how we build custom websites, what it costs and how we work.

15Sources

• Mullvad: pricing
• Mullvad: no-logging policy
• Mullvad: privacy policy
• Mullvad: terms of service
• Mullvad: refunds
• Mullvad: refund window cut from 30 to 14 days (2025)
• Mullvad: remaining PayPal subscriptions canceled (2024)
• Mullvad: Swedish legislation
• Mullvad: government requests for user data
• Mullvad: 2023 search warrant
• Mullvad: public server list (API)
• Mullvad: about us
• Mullvad: app features
• Mullvad: Cure53 infrastructure audit (2024)
• Mullvad: X41 account and payment audit (2026)
• Mullvad: Android app assessment (2026)
• Mullvad: RAM-only infrastructure (2023)
• Mullvad: removing OpenVPN
• Mullvad: removing port forwarding (2023)
• Mullvad: Netflix with split tunneling
• Mullvad: restrictive locations
• Mullvad: FAQ
• Mullvad: DAITA
• Mullvad: review of 2025
• Mullvad: reviews, ads and affiliates
• GitHub: Mullvad VPN app
• GitHub: Mullvad app languages
• Proton VPN: pricing
• Proton VPN: free vs paid
• Proton VPN: about us

• Proton: privacy policy
• Proton VPN: privacy policy
• Proton VPN: features
• Proton: moving infrastructure (blog, 2025)
• Proton VPN: transparency report
• Proton VPN: no-logs audits
• Proton VPN: open source and app audit
• Proton VPN: server list
• Proton VPN: Secure Core
• Proton VPN: split tunneling
• Proton VPN: port forwarding
• Proton VPN: spring and summer 2026 roadmap
• Proton VPN: downloads
• Proton VPN: app languages
• Proton VPN: streaming guide
• Proton VPN: China
• Proton VPN: 2025 year in review
• Proton: terms of service
• Proton VPN: payment options
• TechRadar: fastest VPN
• Tom’s Guide: Mullvad review
• Tom’s Guide: Proton VPN review
• CNET: Mullvad review
• CNET: Proton VPN review
• Security.org: Mullvad review
• Security.org: Proton VPN review
• Artifact Security: VPN Performance World Tour 2026 (PDF)
• Netflix: VPNs and proxies
• Czech National Bank: exchange rates

Prices, server counts and Mullvad details as of October 19, 2026; Proton details as of October 18 and 19, 2026. Both services quote prices including VAT. Per-month figures, multi-year totals and koruna amounts are our own calculations.