The monthly number in a VPN ad is usually the least useful number on the page. The first charge, contract length, renewal bill, and refund exceptions decide what you actually pay.
Editorial rule: keep the original evidence boundaries. Do not turn untested speed, access, pricing, or support claims into facts.
The Brutal Truth: What the sales page leaves out
- A monthly equivalent is not necessarily a month-to-month charge.
- Introductory pricing and renewal pricing are different transactions.
- Refund eligibility can depend on the seller, payment method, and whether this is the first purchase.
Prices at a glance — verified August 11, 2026
| Plan | Advertised monthly | First bill (total) | Covers | Renewal | Devices |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surfshark Starter (24-mo) | $2.49 | $67.23 | 27 months (3 free) | Confirm at checkout | Unlimited |
| NordVPN Basic (24-mo) | $3.49 | $94.23 | 27 months (3 free) | $139.08/yr | 10 |
| Proton VPN Plus (2-yr) | $3.49 | $83.76 | 24 months | $83.88/yr | 10 |
Verified August 11, 2026 · sales tax may apply · re-check the official checkout total and renewal rate before paying.
“$2.49/mo” is math, not a monthly charge
Both headline rates are the long-term total divided by the months you get: $67.23 ÷ 27 = $2.49 for Surfshark, $94.23 ÷ 27 = $3.49 for Nord. Nothing bills monthly at that rate — the full amount charges at once, before tax. If the first bill is what matters, Surfshark is $27 cheaper. That alone doesn’t make it the right pick for everyone; speed, server choice, and security extras split differently (see our three-way trade-off comparison).
Skipping the renewal rate makes any price comparison half a comparison
NordVPN’s official page states the Basic long-term plan renews at $139.08 per year after the first 27 months — a very different number from the intro rate. Proton Plus renews at $83.88 per year after the first 24 months, per the official pricing page read the same day. For Surfshark, we could not pin an equivalent renewal figure in this verification pass, so we left that cell honest instead of guessing. Before you click pay, screenshot three things: today’s total, the next auto-renewal date, and the amount that will bill on that date. If the intro deal is great but the renewal worries you, set a calendar alert 30 days before renewal — takes a minute, saves the “surprise charge” email.
One person vs. a household changes the math
Solo on a laptop and phone? Any paid plan here covers you. A family or team stacking TVs, consoles, and phones is where Surfshark’s unlimited simultaneous connections pull ahead on per-device cost. NordVPN Basic and Proton Plus both cap at 10 devices — plenty for most homes, tight for a heavy household.
Proton Free isn’t a cheaper paid VPN — it’s a different product
At $0, Proton Free dominates the price table, but it’s not the same product minus a fee: the app auto-connects you to the fastest free server among 10 countries (country choice, streaming support, P2P, and NetShield are paid features). In our own test from Seoul on August 11, 2026, the free tier auto-assigned a US server (US-FREE#118, WireGuard) and averaged ~336 Mbps over three runs at ~168 ms ping — genuinely usable. Label that result correctly, though: it’s a Seoul-based test with no VPN-off baseline, run under different conditions than our July NordVPN/Surfshark tests, so it says nothing about US speeds and doesn’t rank Proton against the other two. Full free-tier boundaries: Proton Free vs. Plus.
Pick by what you’re optimizing
- Lowest first bill: Surfshark Starter — $67.23 for 27 months, unlimited devices.
- Visible long-term cost: NordVPN Basic — higher up front, but the $139.08/yr renewal is published, so you can do the multi-year math before paying.
- Not sure you need a VPN yet: Proton Free — $0, no data cap, then re-compare when you need country choice or streaming.
- Privacy stack first: Proton Plus — $83.76 for the first 24 months on the 2-year plan, renewing at $83.88/yr (verified August 11, 2026); re-check the official checkout before paying.
The checkout checklist
- Today’s total — not the amortized monthly
- Actual covered months, including free extras
- Auto-renewal amount and cycle
- Sales tax on the final screen
- Refund window for your payment method
- Devices you actually need covered
Sources (verified 2026-08-11)
- NordVPN official pricing — Basic totals and renewal
- Surfshark official pricing — Starter total
- Proton VPN pricing — USD figures verified August 11, 2026
- Proton VPN plans explained — free-tier terms
Prices, promotions, and renewal terms vary by country and date. Official checkout figures take precedence over anything written here. Affiliate links may earn us a commission at no cost to you, with no effect on ordering.
Published 2026-08-11 · Not verified by us: Surfshark renewal amount, state-specific tax.
Who should NEVER buy this
- Anyone who will not record the renewal date and total charge
- Anyone expecting a refund policy to work like a free trial
- Anyone choosing a VPN on price without testing the actual connection
Who actually needs this
- Buyers who compare first bill, renewal bill, and cancellation path
- Users who will test during the eligible refund window
- People with a clear device and use-case requirement
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