Two new VPN tools, Surfshark and ProtonVPN, offer more features than half of the VPNs. What features are the same, and what’s missing? The blog post explores Surfshark vs. ProtonVPN.
Platforms
| Surfshark | ProtonVPN |
|---|---|
| Windows macOS Linux iOS Android Chrome Firefox Smart TVs Playstation Xbox Router setup | Windows macOS Linux iOS Android Chromebook AndroidTV Router setup (limited) |
Overall, Surfshark supports more platforms than ProtonVPN.
Winner: Surfshark | Score: Surfshark: 1
Servers
Regarding the location and servers, Surfshark gets the win. The tool offers over 3200+ servers in 65 nations as of the 13th of March 2022. ProtonVPN contrarily supports 1759 servers in 63 countries. The full list of Surfshark and ProtonVPN is available on the official website.
Winner: Surfshark | Score: Surfshark: 2
Protocols
The server number is not enough. A VPN must offer strong protocols for a faster and secure connection. After all, the protocol is responsible for speed and security. In this case, both offer the same protocols.
| Surfshark | ProtonVPN |
|---|---|
| OpenVPN (TCP/UDP) IPSec/IKEv2 | OpenVPN (TCP/UDP) IPSec/IKEv2 |
Winner: Tie | Score: Surfshark: 3 and ProtonVPN: 1
Streaming support
Geo-restricted is popular these days, and if not all, most of the premium VPNs offer to access geo-restricted websites. The image above shows the services both support. The names are taken from official and public websites.
Overall, both support quite many streaming services in multiple regions. This round is a tie because we are unsure about the actual number of supported services.
Winner: Tie | Score: Surfshark: 4 and ProtonVPN: 2
Location test
A VPN’s location changes when it changes your IP Address to the desired server. The above video tests both by connecting Surfshark to a server in Finland and ProtonVPN to a server in Germany. I also connected both to servers in other countries, and every time, both were successful.
| Location | Surfshark | ProtonVPN |
|---|---|---|
| Berlin, Germany | ✔ | ✔ |
| Helsinki, Finland | ✔ | ✔ |
| Sydney, Australia | ✔ | ✔ |
| Switzerland | ✔ | ✔ |
Winner: Tie | Score: Surfshark: 5 and ProtonVPN: 3
Related: Sync.com vs. Dropbox
Speed test
How was the speed tested? Both offer an option to connect to the fastest server, but I did not choose that option because one VPN might choose a server in a different city or even a country. Thankfully, both offer servers in Sydney, about 1160 km (721 m) from Adelaide.
The screenshot in the middle shows the speed without the VPN. It’s astonishing to see that the download speed of both VPNs was faster than the normal speed. Surfshark was faster than ProtonVPN regarding downloading, while for upload speed, the opponent was the winner.
Winner: Tie | Score: Surfshark: 6 and ProtonVPN: 4
DNS leak test
While using a VPN, a DNS leak shows a leak in the traffic flowing from your device to the VPN server. If a DNS leak happens, the sources can track your data.
The test was conducted using the DNSLeakTest tool, and it showed no leaks after connecting to a server in Canada. In the results, as you can see that there is only one IP Address on both sides of the image.
Winner: Tie | Score: Surfshark: 7 and ProtonVPN: 5
P2P test
The peer-to-peer (P2P) network is responsible for torrent downloading. As it has already been discussed, all the servers Surfshark offers are P2P friendly, and on the tests, the downloading speed was promising every time.
ProtonVPN also supports P2P. While connecting, the app shows a P2P sign next to the server name. Although ProtonVPN does not offer as many supported servers, even connecting to a regular server allows downloading torrent files (tested in Australia).
Winner: Tie | Score: Surfshark: 7 and ProtonVPN: 5
Surfshark vs. ProtonVPN: Additional features
The last round in Surfshark vs. ProtonVPN explores some additional features of both.
Common features
- No Logs
- AES 256-bit encryption
- Kill switch
- MultiHope / Secure Core
- Ad-blocker
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Load on each server
Surfshark
- Unlimited devices
- Whitelister
- Camouflage Mode
ProtonVPN
- Transparency reports
- Open-source
- Tor over VPN
- 5 devices simultaneously (plus plan)
Winner: ProtonVPN | Score: Surfshark: 7 and ProtonVPN: 6
Also consider reading: Safe Watch for Popcorn Time Review & Tests
Pricing
Surfshark is cost-effective, but ProtonVPN offers a free plan to enjoy the medium speed and connect to a few servers in three countries.
The visionary plan of ProtonVPN is expensive because it also offers the ProtonMail Visionary subscription. The best feature a VPN can offer is unlimited devices, so you and your many family members can enjoy the VPN. The prices are as of the 8th March 2021. Check out the up-to-date price list on Surfshark and ProtonVPN websites.
Which one is for you?
In Surfshark VPN vs. ProtonVPN, most of the rounds were a tie. Server count and platforms are the only features different in both. Surfshark is a clear winner of this comparison. Although, while testing, Surfshark took longer to connect most of the time.
Surfshark VPN does not offer any trial, but its customer service is good. I purchased the service for this article, but I contacted them about a free trial as well, and they offered me a three-month trial to test the service and refunded me the money. Read the response they emailed to me here.
If you don’t use the VPN for P2P and want to change your location and encrypt your data, a ProtonVPN free plan would do the job. Of course, the speed won’t be great. For a user looking for a long-term VPN, Surfshark is cost-effective.
Final score: Surfshark: 7 | ProtonVPN: 6
Website
Summary
Surfshark vs. ProtonVPN covered the essential features. Thanks for reading. I hope the blog post was helpful. What do you think of both? Which VPN do you use? Please share your views in the comments below so everyone can choose the right VPN tool.
Sammy Rude
Tuesday 15th of February 2022
Ruud Samuels is a massive shill - unfortunately the case for most VPN-related content online. Surfshark is of course not selling user data, just as ProtonVPN probably isn't either. If you actually check the T&Cs, you'll see that most, if not all big-name VPNs don't collect any user data apart from email addresses. This is nothing special.
Madhsudhan
Sunday 27th of February 2022
Yes, according to the terms and conditions of both services, those services don't sell the user data.
Ruud Samuels
Monday 29th of November 2021
Surfshark comes nowhere near ProtonVPN when it comes to security and privacy. Surfshark like many such cheap VPN providers collects and sells user data whereas ProtonVPN is one of those service providers who don't log anything. Exception is ProtonVPN records user emails for log-in.
Cheap VPN providers always collect data for marketing purposes. It's in their Terms and Conditions.
Madhsudhan
Sunday 27th of February 2022
I do believe ProtonVPN has one of the strict VPN rules because of its location.