1. Directory snapshot
There are 29 vpn & security tools in our index right now, grouped into 4 sub-categories.
5 VPN & Security statistics & trends (2026)
This is our 2026 read on vpn & security: how the field is priced, where the tools cluster, and which way buying behaviour is moving.
Every number here is computed from the 29 vpn & security tools we actually track, so you can check it against the underlying pages. Broader market sizing is left to the independent reports we link, not guesswork.
Key vpn & security statistics
2. Free-tier availability
9 of the 29 vpn & security tools here (31%) ship a genuine free plan or tier.
3. Trial availability
0 of 29 tools (0%) lean on a free trial instead of (or alongside) a free plan.
4. Entry pricing range
Entry-level paid plans across these tools span roughly $0.83 to $50 per month, with a typical (median) starting price around $3.33..
5. Category density
By tool count, the busiest corners of vpn & security are VPN (12), Antivirus (8), Password Manager (7), Identity Protection (2).
What the vpn & security tools reveal
The most useful vpn & security data often sits inside individual tools. Here are verifiable facts pulled from the products themselves:
- NordVPN: Based in Panama, outside the 5/9/14 Eyes alliances.
- ExpressVPN: No-logs policy audited by KPMG (2019, 2022, 2023, 2025); Lightway audited by Cure53.
- Surfshark: 15-minute IP-deletion claim independently verified in a 2025 Deloitte audit.
- Proton VPN: Based in Switzerland, outside the 5/9/14 Eyes, no mandatory data retention.
- CyberGhost: Headquartered in Bucharest, Romania, outside the 5/9/14 Eyes alliances.
- Private Internet Access: All apps are 100% open source.
- IPVanish: No-logs policy audited by Leviathan Security (2022) and Schellman (2025).
- PureVPN: Relocated to the British Virgin Islands in 2021 (formerly Hong Kong).
- Mullvad VPN: Has never raised its price since founding in 2009.
- TunnelBear: Based in Toronto, Canada (Five Eyes); owned by McAfee since 2018.
- Hotspot Shield: 1,800+ servers spanning 80+ countries.
- Windscribe: Desktop app audited by Leviathan Security Group in 2021.
Sources
The tool-level facts above are drawn from these independent reviews and vendor pages:
- nordvpn.com
- security.org
- expressvpn.com
- comparitech.com
- security.org
- en.wikipedia.org
- protonvpn.com
- cyberinsider.com
- security.org
- thebestvpn.com
- safetydetectives.com
- vpnmentor.com
- en.wikipedia.org
- vpnmentor.com
- vpntesting.com
- cloudwards.net
- vpnmentor.com
- security.org
- en.wikipedia.org
- cyberinsider.com
- security.org
- comparitech.com
- security.org
- windscribe.com
Qualitative trends to watch in 2026
Buyers in vpn & security face more choice (and more pricing complexity) every year. A few directional patterns we're seeing, framed as trends rather than precise figures (we don't publish numbers we can't source):
- Trials are doing more of the selling: 0 of 29 tools here lean on a free trial rather than a permanent free plan to win buyers.
- Free tiers are increasingly used as an acquisition funnel: 9 of 29 tools here lead with one.
- Pricing is drifting from flat monthly fees toward per-seat and usage-based models, which makes total cost harder to compare at a glance.
- AI features are being folded into existing plans rather than sold as separate add-ons, raising the baseline of what an 'entry' plan includes.
Related buyer's guides
Sources & further reading
For hard market-size and adoption figures, these independent sources publish regularly updated, citable research:
The data-derived figures above are computed from the tools we track and are accurate to this directory; the external reports cover broader market numbers we don't estimate ourselves.