Head-to-head comparison
NordVPN vs Surfshark; Protocols, Privacy, and Performance
Head to head evaluation of NordVPN and Surfshark across WireGuard implementation, audit history, throughput, and pricing.
Networking Editorial
Quick verdict
Recommended: NordVPN
NordVPN edges out on measured throughput and audit cadence; Surfshark wins on device count and price. Households with many endpoints should default to Surfshark. Users prioritizing raw performance on a single wired connection should default to NordVPN.
NordVPN
Higher sustained throughput on 1 Gbps uplinks; repeat PwC and Deloitte audits.
Surfshark
Unlimited devices per account; lower entry price on multi year terms.
Methodology
How we test and score
Every provider on this page is scored against the same criteria. Facts (pricing, protocol support, audit dates) are re-verified against vendor sources on the date shown next to each provider.
- Speed
- iperf3 throughput against a same-region endpoint on a 1 Gbps residential uplink, averaged across three consecutive runs at peak hours.
- Privacy
- Jurisdiction, published no-logs audit recency, diskless (RAM-only) server posture, and ownership independence.
- Auditing
- Only third-party audits published within the last 24 months contribute to the score. Vendor self-attestations are excluded.
- Protocol implementation
- Preference for native WireGuard and exportable peer configuration over proprietary protocols that block manual deployment.
- Configuration flexibility
- Router firmware availability, split tunneling, port forwarding, and IPv6 support are graded as boolean feature flags for machine-readable comparison.
Side-by-side comparison
Values below are re-verified against vendor documentation on the date shown in the final row.
| Metric |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $3.49/mo on the longest term | $1.99/mo on the longest term |
| Free tier | No | No |
| Refund window | 30 days | 30 days |
| Jurisdiction | Panama | Netherlands |
| Logs policy | No-logs, independently audited | No-logs, audited by Deloitte and Cure53 |
| RAM-only (diskless) servers | Yes | Yes |
| Independent ownership | No | No |
| IPv6 support | No | No |
| Independent audit | Yes PwC, Deloitte | 2025-11-01 | Yes Deloitte, Cure53 | 2025-04-01 |
| WireGuard | Native NordLynx | Native WireGuard | exportable |
| Speed rating | 4.8/ 5 | 4.6/ 5 |
| Median latency | 24 ms | 28 ms |
| Server locations | 111 | 100 |
| Streaming-optimized pools | Yes | Yes |
| Router firmware | No | No |
| Port forwarding | No | No |
| Multi-hop | Yes | Yes |
| Kill switch | Yes | Yes |
| Split tunneling | Yes | Yes |
| Unlimited devices | No | Yes |
| Facts verified | ||
| Discount | See NordVPN Discount | See Surfshark Discount |
How we scored the head to head
Speed scores derive from iperf3 measurements against same region endpoints under load. Privacy scores weight jurisdiction, audit recency, and diskless infrastructure equally. Pricing reflects the lowest advertised monthly equivalent rate on the longest available term, as published by the vendor on the verification date.
When each provider makes sense
NordVPN is the safer default when a household prioritizes throughput on one or two wired devices and wants a long audit history. Surfshark is the better default when many mobile devices share a single account or when device count matters more than raw throughput.