The headline rates sit a few cents apart, so the real difference is what each subscription carries once the promotion ends and what it carries while the promotion runs.
TL;DR
ExpressVPN sells three VPN-only tiers: Basic at €2.49 a month on a two-year term billed €69.72 for the first 28 months, Advanced at €3.99 and Express Pro at €6.49, with servers in 113 countries and up to 14 devices. NordVPN sells a security bundle: Basic at $3.49 a month billed $94.23 for the first 27 months, Complete at $4.49 adding antivirus, ad blocking, a password manager and 1 TB of storage, and Prime at $7.49 adding identity and credit monitoring, across 10 devices and 225+ locations. Both rates jump at renewal, so the renewal line is the number to compare.
ExpressVPN's pricing page currently shows a two-year-plus-four-month structure priced in euros: Basic at €2.49 a month, billed €69.72 for the first 28 months and then renewing at €79.95 a year; Advanced at €3.99 a month, billed €111.72 and renewing at €109.95 a year; Express Pro at €6.49 a month, billed €181.72 and renewing at €179.95 a year. The company lists servers in 113 countries, TrustedServer hardware, a no-activity-logs statement, 24-hour live chat and use on up to 14 devices, with a 30-day money-back guarantee for new users. Its own homepage quotes a different headline figure of $2.99 a month, so the currency and the promotion depend on where the page is served from.
NordVPN's pricing page sells 27-month terms in US dollars: Basic at $3.49 a month with $94.23 collected up front and renewal at $139.08 a year against a list price of $312.93; Complete at $4.49 a month with $121.23 up front and renewal at $219.48 a year (list $493.83); Prime at $7.49 a month with $202.23 up front and renewal at $296.28 a year (list $666.63). Each step buys security software rather than more VPN: Complete carries the antivirus, ad and tracker blocking, a password manager and 1 TB of encrypted storage, while Prime adds credit freeze assistance, identity theft insurance and cyber extortion insurance. Every plan covers 10 devices, includes scam and phishing protection with Dark Web Monitor, and carries a 30-day money-back guarantee.
| Feature | ExpressVPN | NordVPN |
|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | Basic €2.49/month on a 2-year + 4-month term, billed €69.72 | Basic $3.49/month on a 2-year + 3-month term, billed $94.23 |
| Mid tier | Advanced €3.99/month, billed €111.72 for 28 months | Complete $4.49/month, billed $121.23 for 27 months |
| Top tier | Express Pro €6.49/month, billed €181.72 for 28 months | Prime $7.49/month, billed $202.23 for 27 months |
| Renewal after the intro term | €79.95/year (Basic), €109.95 (Advanced), €179.95 (Express Pro) | $139.08/year (Basic), $219.48 (Complete), $296.28 (Prime) |
| Free tier | No free plan; 30-day money-back guarantee for new users | No free plan; 30-day money-back guarantee on every plan |
| Devices | Up to 14 devices | 10 devices secured at once |
| Server reach | Servers in 113 countries | 225+ server locations |
| Security bundle | VPN only; identity and email tools on the upper plans | Antivirus, ad blocking, password manager and 1 TB from Complete upward |
| Account extras | Email relay, authenticator and a 3 GB eSIM bundle listed on upper plans | Dark Web Monitor on all tiers; credit and identity cover on Prime |
| Platform | Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, router, smart TV, game console | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Android TV, Apple TV |
Pick ExpressVPN if
Fourteen devices hang off one subscription at €2.49 a month across the first 28 months, and no tier bills for antivirus software or cloud storage. NordVPN only pulls ahead at Complete, where $4.49 already carries that software.
Pick NordVPN if
Complete at $4.49 a month folds antivirus, ad blocking, a password manager and 1 TB of storage into the payment that already covers the connection, and Prime goes further with identity cover. ExpressVPN stays the leaner structure for anyone who will not run that software.
We collected no independent reviews, ratings or user quotations for ExpressVPN or NordVPN in this run; figures such as the 412K+ ratings badge on expressvpn.com and the PCMag quotation on nordvpn.com are the vendors' own. Prices were read from expressvpn.com/pricing (euros) and nordvpn.com/pricing (US dollars) on the date shown above.
ExpressVPN collects €69.72 for the first 28 months, which spreads to about €29.88 over twelve months. NordVPN collects $94.23 for the first 27 months, about $41.88 over twelve months. The currencies differ because the ExpressVPN page served euros and the NordVPN page served dollars, so renewals are the fairer comparison.
NordVPN: Complete and Prime bundle its next-gen antivirus with ad and tracker blocking, phishing detection and malware defence. ExpressVPN sells no antivirus in any tier; its upper plans list an email relay, an authenticator and a 3 GB eSIM bundle instead.
ExpressVPN states use on up to 14 devices. NordVPN lists 10 devices secured at once on every plan, from Basic through Prime.
ExpressVPN Basic renews at €79.95 a year after 28 months, Advanced at €109.95 and Express Pro at €179.95. NordVPN Basic renews at $139.08 a year after 27 months, Complete at $219.48 and Prime at $296.28. Both renewals run several times the intro rate.
Neither does. Both attach a 30-day money-back guarantee — ExpressVPN for new users, NordVPN on all plans — which is the trial route each offers.
NordVPN lists 225+ server locations while ExpressVPN states servers in 113 countries. The two counts are stated in different units, locations against countries, so they are not a like-for-like measurement.
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