hide.me vs Proton VPN
We give hide.me a 3.0 GPA and Proton VPN a 2.8, out of 4.0. hide.me grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
hide.me
Malaysia-based VPN with a no-signup free plan and flat renewal prices
Proton VPN
Open-source Swiss VPN with a free plan that has no data cap
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAhide.meVery good | 2.8GPAProton VPNGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BThe 26-month plan bills $69.99, so two years cost about $2.92 a month, inside the cheaper quarter of VPNs, and it renews at that same $69.99. The 13-month plan is $54.99, and monthly is $11.99. | CVPN Plus bills $83.76 for the first 24 months, about $3.49 a month over two years, just above the cheaper quarter of VPNs, which tops out at $3.33. It then renews at $83.88 a year, above the middle. Monthly is $9.99, and Proton Unlimited adds Mail, Drive and Pass for $119.88 a year. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree for good with no sign-up and no card: one device, 8 locations and restricted speeds. The pricing page says unlimited data, though the FAQ still says 10GB a month. If the pricing page is right, one person could live on it. | BFree for good with no card, no ads and no data limit, which is rare. One person could really live on it. The limits are one device, medium speed, and servers in 10 countries picked for you. |
| Features | B10 devices, 92 locations, the SmartGuard blocker, multihop, port forwarding, split tunneling, a kill switch, WireGuard, IPv6 and an audited no-logs policy. The Bolt speed-up is Windows only, but the core job is covered. | BSecure Core routing through Switzerland, Iceland or Sweden, the Stealth protocol, NetShield blocking, port forwarding, a kill switch and open-source apps with published audits, on 10 devices with Plus. It covers the whole job. |
| Ease of use | B4.53 from about 7,900 App Store ratings. On the free plan there's no account to make, so you install it and connect. | B4.65 from about 120,000 App Store ratings, just under the 4.7 an A needs. On the free plan there's no card and nothing to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, Android, smart TVs, and Chrome, Firefox and Edge extensions. There's no integration list or API on record, so it stops at B. | BMac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android and a browser extension. There's no integration list or API on record, so it stops at B. |
| Best for | a free VPN with no sign-up | a free VPN with no data cap |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: hide.me and Proton VPN. How we grade
Price against what you get
hide.me starts at $2.69 a month and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Proton VPN starts at $6.99 a month when paid by the year and scores 3.0.
They score the same, and hide.me starts $4.30 a month lower. Of the other VPNs on the chart, none scores higher than hide.me for less, and 1 scores higher than Proton VPN for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- hide.me starts at $2.69 per month, billed $69.99 every 26 months at the same price on renewal. Proton VPN starts at $83.88 per year at renewal (VPN Plus), after a first year for $53.88.
- Proton VPN is open source, according to its own site.
At a glance
| hide.me | Proton VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $2.69 per month, billed $69.99 every 26 months at the same price on renewal | $83.88 per year at renewal (VPN Plus), after a first year for $53.88 |
| Free plan | No sign-up needed: one device, 8 locations and restricted speeds. The pricing page lists unlimited data, though the site's FAQ still says 10GB a month. | Proton Free: 1 device, servers in 10 countries chosen at random, medium speed and no data limit. No credit card needed. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | eVenture Ltd. | Proton AG |
| Price read from | hide.me | protonvpn.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
hide.me
- People who want a free VPN without creating an account
- Buyers who want the renewal price to match the first term
- Users who need port forwarding or a fixed IP address
Proton VPN
- Trying a VPN for free without a data cap
- People who want open-source VPN apps
- Proton Mail users who want the VPN on the same bill
Worth knowing
hide.me
- The free plan allows one device and 8 locations at restricted speeds; Premium is needed for 10 devices and all 92 locations.
- The pricing page mentions 3-, 6- and 36-month terms but links to them only through a coupon checkout, with no price shown.
- Bolt, hide.me's speed technology, is described for Windows only.
- Prices are in US dollars and VAT may be added at checkout.
Proton VPN
- The free plan covers one device and picks the server country for you from 10 countries.
- The headline $3.49 a month is the first 24 months of VPN Plus; it then renews at $83.88 a year, and the 1-year plan's $53.88 also covers only the first year.
- Ad and malware blocking, streaming and P2P are paid features; VPN Plus covers 10 devices.
Key features
hide.me
- Renewals at the first-term price
- hide.me's pricing guarantee says a plan always renews at the same price and for the same length as the term first bought.
- SmartGuard
- Blocks malware, tracking, ads and phishing sites while connected.
- Multihop and port forwarding
- Pick separate entry and exit servers to route through two locations, and open ports automatically for games and P2P.
- Split tunneling and StealthGuard
- Choose which apps go through the VPN, restrict some apps to VPN-only, and cut the internet if the VPN drops.
- WireGuard, Bolt and IPv6
- WireGuard support, Bolt speed technology on Windows, and native IPv6 so IPv6 traffic does not leak around the tunnel.
- Audited no-logs policy
- The no-logs policy has been independently audited, and hide.me publishes a yearly transparency report.
Proton VPN
- Free plan without a data cap
- Proton Free has no data or artificial speed limits, but connects one device to servers in 10 countries that you cannot choose.
- Secure Core
- Routes traffic through Proton's own servers in hardened data centers in Switzerland, Iceland or Sweden before it leaves the network.
- Stealth protocol
- An obfuscation protocol based on WireGuard tunneled over TLS, meant to get past firewalls and VPN blocking.
- NetShield
- DNS filtering on paid plans that blocks ads, trackers and domains known for malware.
- Open-source, audited apps
- All apps are open source, and Proton publishes the results of the independent audits it commissions.
- Port forwarding and kill switch
- Port forwarding for P2P, plus a kill switch and always-on VPN in every app.
Plans
hide.me
Free$0
One device and 8 server locations at restricted speeds, with the same no-logs policy as paid plans.
1 Month$11.99
per month
Premium on 10 devices with 92 locations, port forwarding and a fixed IP address. Renews monthly at the same price.
12 Months + 1 Month$4.23
per month, billed $54.99 every 13 months
The same Premium plan for 13 months at a time; it renews at $54.99 for another 13 months.
24 Months + 2 Months$2.69
per month, billed $69.99 every 26 months
The same Premium plan for 26 months at a time; it renews at $69.99 for another 26 months.
Proton VPN
Proton Free$0
One device, servers in 10 randomly selected countries, medium speed, no data limit and no ads.
VPN Plus, 1 month$9.99
per month
10 devices, 20,000+ servers in 140+ countries, streaming, P2P and the NetShield blocker, billed monthly.
VPN Plus, 1 year$83.88
per year at renewal, after a first year for $53.88
The same features as monthly. The first year costs $53.88 ($4.49 a month), then it renews at $83.88 a year.
VPN Plus, 2 years$83.88
per year at renewal, after a first term of 24 months
The first 24 months cost $83.76 ($3.49 a month), shown against $9.99 a month, then it renews every 12 months at $83.88.
Proton Unlimited, 1 year$119.88
per year
VPN Plus plus premium Proton Mail, Calendar, Drive (500 GB) and Pass. Also sold monthly at $12.99.
Proton Unlimited, 2 years$119.88
per year at renewal, after a first term of 24 months
The first 24 months cost $191.76 ($7.99 a month), then it renews every 12 months at $119.88.
Ways to pay less
hide.me
- Annual discount
Longer terms cost less per month
The 26-month plan works out to $2.69 a month and the 13-month plan to $4.23, against $11.99 on the monthly plan. Both renew at the same price.
Proton VPN
- Other savings
VPN Plus 2-year plan: first 24 months for $83.76
The 2-year VPN Plus plan bills $83.76 for the first 24 months ($3.49 a month), then renews at $83.88 every 12 months.
- Other savings
VPN Plus 1-year plan: first year for $53.88
The 1-year VPN Plus plan bills $53.88 for the first year ($4.49 a month) before renewing at $83.88.
- Other savings
Proton Unlimited 2-year plan: first 24 months for $191.76
The 2-year Proton Unlimited plan bills $191.76 for the first 24 months ($7.99 a month), then renews at $119.88 every 12 months.
