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vpnMentor was established in 2014 to review VPN services and cover privacy-related stories. Today, our team of hundreds of cybersecurity researchers, writers, and editors continues to help readers fight for their online freedom in partnership with Kape Technologies PLC, which also owns the following products: Holiday.com, ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, and Private Internet Access which may be ranked and reviewed on this website. The reviews published on vpnMentor are believed to be accurate as of the date of each article, and written according to our strict reviewing standards that prioritize professional and honest examination of the reviewer, taking into account the technical capabilities and qualities of the product together with its commercial value for users. The rankings and reviews we publish may also take into consideration the common ownership mentioned above, and affiliate commissions we earn for purchases through links on our website. We do not review all VPN providers and information is believed to be accurate as of the date of each article.
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vpnMentor was established in 2014 to review VPN services and cover privacy-related stories. Today, our team of hundreds of cybersecurity researchers, writers, and editors continues to help readers fight for their online freedom in partnership with Kape Technologies PLC, which also owns the following products: Holiday.com, ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, and Private Internet Access which may be ranked and reviewed on this website. The reviews published on vpnMentor are believed to be accurate as of the date of each article, and written according to our strict reviewing standards that prioritize professional and honest examination of the reviewer, taking into account the technical capabilities and qualities of the product together with its commercial value for users. The rankings and reviews we publish may also take into consideration the common ownership mentioned above, and affiliate commissions we earn for purchases through links on our website. We do not review all VPN providers and information is believed to be accurate as of the date of each article.

NordVPN vs AirVPN: Which VPN Should You Pick in 2025?

Table of Contents
    Our Score: 9.4/10
    %s User Reviews
    More Info
    Our Score: 7.0/10
    %s User Reviews
    More Info

    Is NordVPN or AirVPN better for price, speed, streaming, gaming, and privacy?

    Author Image Nicky Hosek
    Nicky Hosek Cybersecurity Researcher
    Published on October 19, 2017

    Even when the fastest way of sending a secret message from one side of the world to another was by Morse code, it was all about encryption and it is this that NordVPN does better than any of its rivals. In fact, when you start browsing the specifications of NordVPN, you realise why it is one of the giants of the VPN world. Air VPN, by comparison, is a bit of a small fish in a big pond, but that doesn’t stop it from snapping at the shark’s fins. Air VPN offers a decent service although its servers and locations are limited when compared to NordVPN’s. Similarly, while AirVPN has a nice enough interface, it looks like a spreadsheet, while NordVPN’s gives you a feeling of flying over the world, selecting servers as you go.

    Our Score

    Features 9.4/10
    Pricing 7.5/10
    Ease of Use 9.5/10
    Reliability & Support 9.5/10
    Features 7.0/10
    Pricing 7.4/10
    Ease of Use 6.8/10
    Reliability & Support 8.2/10

    Reviews

    Review by our expert
    Author Image Akash Deep
    Akash Deep Cybersecurity Researcher
    Our Score: 9.4/10

    NordVPN is everywhere these days — from YouTube ads to sports sponsorships. Its massive marketing claims it's the most trusted VPN service worldwide. But does this popularity actually translate into superior performance, or is it just clever advertising? The team and I spent several weeks thoroughly testing every aspect of NordVPN. We ran extensive speed tests, tried streaming on multiple pla...

    Read all
    Latest positive user review
    2
    210493Lu
    10.0/10
    The Best of The Best

    I simply tested all VPNs looking for cutting-edge online security, I tested the most expensive and the...  most talked about virtual anonymity, none made me as happy as NordVPN, it stands out for several reasons that the much more expensive ones it doesn't have, its double encryption, dedicated IPs, onion VPN, makes NordVPN unique, with almost 6,000 servers around the world and 12 million customers like me, you can see that NordVPN is not playing games with its customers and their online security , it always innovates to keep you more secure day after day, for a fair price in the long term and without sacrificing the speed of your connection, recently Nord is developing a new VPN protocol, Nordlynx a version still under construction derived from the Wireguard protocol, if you want to have a VPN of last security that think how it will make you more secure in the next month NordVPN is the right choice, I am completely thankful for being a customer and for finding what to me is the perfect VPN.More

    Latest negative user review
    A
    Andrew
    2.0/10
    NordVPN has become garbage!

    I've had NordVPN for over a decade, and past couple of years, but more so past 6 months it has become ... complete garbage! Contact them, oh try different servers, try different protocols. I have done all and long before they said to! Issue, Connections often just time out though still says connected, can't access any page. Chose different server, works 5 minutes or all day, but eventually it will time out. Best luck I've had was with open UDP but past month even it's been junk! Obfuscated has worked somewhat better, again until recently and crap! Seems they are more about featuritis and getting more users than having a solid product and keeping past/existing customers. Spend your money elsewhere and avoid hack sites giving their glowing review they are just paid shills!More

    Read the full review
    Review by our expert
    Author Image Lawrence Wachira
    Lawrence Wachira Editor
    Our Score: 7.0/10

    AirVPN is a budget-friendly option that claims to provide robust protection against online threats. Plus, it says it offers high-performance servers. But can it really rival the top VPNs, or is the price so low because it’s not that good? After testing all its features, I found that AirVPN is secure, but it can't match the best VPNs. It has many great security features, solid speeds, and work...

    Read all
    Latest positive user review
    M
    Marco
    8.0/10
    I am AirVpn cusomers since 2015, and on my gear works remarkably well

    I am working in the biggest country in Asia since 2006. I constantly use AirVpn on my MacBook Pro sinc... e 2015, and on my iPhone - iPad. I never had an issue, of any kind, with it, and I was quite amazed to read the article above. Lately, it is very difficult to get it properly run on iPhone and iPad, but this is more the result of this country where I live in restrictions than the vpn in itself. While in Hong Kong was still working fine, but as soon as I crossed the border troubles started. I will tweak that as soon as I will be out again. In the rest of the world, I never had issues. So I do not give the 5th star just because of my at present troubles using it on my iPhone and iPad. For the rest, I will stick with it.More

    Latest negative user review
    A
    Ari
    2.0/10
    14 Eyes country

    Italy is a 14 Eyes country and that is enough reason to not buy AirVPN. No servers in Russia, so you c... ant bypass the Western censorship of Russian media. VPN should be about bypassing censorship, but this is not the case with AirVPN.More

    Read the full review

    Pricing

    Starting price $3.39/month
    Money Back Guarantee (Days) 30 Days
    Number of devices per license 10 devices
    Starting price $3.11/month
    Money Back Guarantee (Days) 30 Days
    Number of devices per license 5 devices

    Best VPN by Category

    Best VPN Overall

    AirVPN is a reliable VPN that gets the job done when it comes to securing your connection and ensuring your privacy, especially if you are a tech savvy user. The provider uses advanced encryption and has a decent network of servers. However, compared to a big name like NordVPN, AirVPN offers a small and limited VPN service. NordVPN not only secures its network with military-grade encryption, but also adds an additional encryption layer (Double VPN). NordVPN also operates one of the largest server networks in the VPN industry and offers countless features in apps for all major platforms.

    Best VPN for Torrents

    AirVPN supports torrenting on all its servers. Meanwhile, NordVPN only supports torrenting on specific servers, but these servers are optimized exclusively for P2P file sharing. This means that when you use a NordVPN P2P server, you’ll get a secure, private, and fast connection for a smooth torrenting experience. And remember, NordVPN has far more servers than AirVPN overall.

    Best VPN for Windows

    Both NordVPN and AirVPN have dedicated apps for Windows, but NordVPN has a far more user-friendly interface than AirVPN. In addition, NordVPN’s Windows app comes packed with far more features than AirVPN, including the unique SmartPlay feature. With SmartPlay, you can choose the specific purpose you want to use the VPN for (e.g. securely stream your region’s Netflix), and the app automatically configures itself to fit your purpose.

    Best VPN for Android

    NordVPN and AirVPN both offer Android apps, but the AirVPN Android app is limited in features and capabilities compared to that of NordVPN. NordVPN’s Android app has a more user-friendly interface that includes the option to select the server you want to use from a map display. With AirVPN’s Android app, the process of connecting to server is similar to manual configuration using a third party OpenVPN app. Therefore, AirVPN is not ideal for inexperienced VPN users.

    Best VPN for Mac

    While NordVPN’s MacOS app is well suited for both beginners and advanced VPN users, AirVPN’s Mac app requires some technical background to navigate. The NordVPN Mac client puts most, if not all, of NordVPN’s unique features and capabilities within easy reach. AirVPN’s MacOS client is quite limited by comparison.

    Best VPN for iOS

    Currently, AirVPN doesn’t have a client for iOS devices, so you need to install the VPN manually using an OpenVPN app. This makes AirVPN a very limited service for iOS, with few advanced features. On the other hand, NordVPN has a very easy-to-install native app for iOS devices. The app's many advanced features include a kill switch to ensure that your privacy is protected even if your VPN server connection drops.

    Best VPN for USA

    When comparing the size of the US server network and the capability to securely and reliably view American content, AirVPN and NordVPN are worlds apart. NordVPN boasts over 1,900 servers in the US, dwarfing AirVPN's modest count of 37 US servers. Additionally, NordVPN's enhanced connection speeds and SmartPlay feature guarantee uninterrupted streaming of services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Max from within the US.

    The Bottom Line

    See Offers & Pricing

    AirVPN certainly takes its customers’ privacy seriously, offering a “breath of fresh air” to those stagnating under adverts and virus threats. Run by activists committed to creating a neutral virtual space, AirVPN has always maintained a no-log policy but, due to being in Italy, it is subject to stricter laws than rival NordVPN. The result of this duel is self-evident.

    Time to decide which one is best for you

    Go with NordVPN
    Go with AirVPN
    Or click here to check best VPNs, rated by {{review_count}} users

    FAQ

    Is NordVPN better than AirVPN?

    Yes, NordVPN is better overall than AirVPN. It has 7900 servers in 126 countries, fast speeds, and impressive security features.

    Best of all, you can take advantage of its latest discount and get it for only $3.39 a month.

    What should I keep in mind when choosing between NordVPN and AirVPN?

    When choosing a VPN, you want to pay close attention to its number of servers, overall speed score, pricing, and the number of simultaneous device connections it offers. While some VPNs provide a flawless online experience, others will really slow you down.

    If you’re ready to commit, then NordVPN may be perfect for you due to its performance during the tests .

    Is NordVPN faster than AirVPN?

    Yes, NordVPN is faster than AirVPN. Since your VPN is your computer’s main connection to the internet, you need to use a service that won’t slow you down by more than 20%.

    If speeds are important to you, then I recommend you take a look at ExpressVPN. It’s the fastest service out there, provides unlimited bandwidth, and you won’t experience any slowdowns even when you connect to the other side of the planet. You can try it out risk-free. It’s backed by a 30*-day money-back guarantee*, so you can get a full refund if you don’t like it.

    Do NordVPN or AirVPN offer any deals?

    Both NordVPN and AirVPN offer deals on occasion. You can check out the current coupons and discounts here. However, ExpressVPN has the best deals. Right now, you can get a 61% discount and up to 3 months for free with a new subscription.

    [*] Please note that ExpressVPN's generous money-back guarantee applies to first-time customers only.
    We review vendors based on rigorous testing and research but also take into account your feedback and our affiliate commission with providers. Some providers are owned by our parent company.
    Learn more
    vpnMentor was established in 2014 to review VPN services and cover privacy-related stories. Today, our team of hundreds of cybersecurity researchers, writers, and editors continues to help readers fight for their online freedom in partnership with Kape Technologies PLC, which also owns the following products: Holiday.com, ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, and Private Internet Access which may be ranked and reviewed on this website. The reviews published on vpnMentor are believed to be accurate as of the date of each article, and written according to our strict reviewing standards that prioritize professional and honest examination of the reviewer, taking into account the technical capabilities and qualities of the product together with its commercial value for users. The rankings and reviews we publish may also take into consideration the common ownership mentioned above, and affiliate commissions we earn for purchases through links on our website. We do not review all VPN providers and information is believed to be accurate as of the date of each article.

    About the Author

    A previous London-based journalist, Nicky is a freelance writer based on a farm in South Africa. When she's not training horses, she writes fluent, intelligent cybersecurity articles with creativity and flair.