Quick Answer
Last verified:
High confidence

Proton VPN costs Free to $12.99 per month as of September 2026, with 7 plans available including a free tier. Plans: Free (free), VPN Plus (Monthly) at $9.99/month, VPN Plus (1-Year) at $4.99/month, VPN Plus (2-Year) at $2.99/month, Proton Unlimited (Monthly) at $12.99/month, Proton Unlimited (1-Year) at $9.99/month, and Proton Unlimited (2-Year) at $7.99/month. Pricing depends on your chosen tier, contract length, and negotiated discounts.

Use the interactive pricing calculator to estimate your exact cost based on team size and requirements.

  • Free tier: Yes

Proton VPN offers 7 pricing tiers: Free, VPN Plus (Monthly), VPN Plus (1-Year), VPN Plus (2-Year), Proton Unlimited (Monthly), Proton Unlimited (1-Year), Proton Unlimited (2-Year). A free plan is available. Paid plans include VPN Plus (Monthly) at $9.99/month, VPN Plus (1-Year) at $4.99/month, VPN Plus (2-Year) at $2.99/month. The VPN Plus (Monthly) plan is users who want premium vpn features without a long commitment.

Last verified: | Sources: 3 pricing pages and reviews
Know Before You Buy — Try Proton VPN Free

Proton VPN lists $0-$12.99/month, but hidden costs like implementation and support add to the total as of September 2026. Key hidden costs: free plan speed throttling, auto-renewal without clear notice, free plan server limitations. Verified from 3 sources by CostBench.

Hidden Costs Breakdown

1

Free Plan Speed Throttling

medium addon

The free tier servers are significantly slower than paid servers due to limited capacity and load balancing. Free servers are designed for basic browsing from restricted countries, not heavy usage.

reddit

In general, free servers are simply slower than paid servers, because the capacity is limited and the free servers have load balancers that constantly optimize to ensure that all users can have enough bandwidth to maintain a stable connection and not get inadvertently disconnected.

2

Auto-Renewal Without Clear Notice

medium compliance

Users report being automatically subscribed to paid plans after free trials end, sometimes without adequate notification.

trustpilot

Tried the app with a trial and automatically subscribed to a paid version without any notice...

3

Free Plan Server Limitations

medium addon

Free tier only provides access to 3 countries (not user's choice), significantly limiting flexibility and use cases.

trustpilot

The main drawback is the very limited choice of servers, with only three countries available.

4

Streaming services require Proton Unlimited upgrade

medium addon

Accessing popular streaming platforms like BBC iPlayer requires the Proton Unlimited plan — the most expensive tier — rather than the VPN Plus plan. Users who subscribe to VPN Plus expecting full streaming access may find they need to upgrade at additional cost.

trustpilot

I subscribed with the hope of connecting into BBC.IPLAYER but to do so I have to upgrade to the most expensive option. I feel that I subscribed under am illusion.

5

Renewal pricing may nearly double introductory rate

high overage

Long-term customers report that renewal prices are significantly higher than the introductory promotional rate used to acquire them — with some reporting renewal costs at nearly double the original price. Customer support reportedly provides only generic responses pointing to terms and conditions rather than offering loyalty pricing or price-matching.

trustpilot

Like so many other subscription services, Proton now appears to focus on attracting new customers with heavily discounted introductory offers, only to charge existing customers almost double when it comes time to renew.

6

Auto-renewal continues without explicit user confirmation

high addon

Multiple users report being auto-renewed for additional billing periods without adequate advance notification. Monthly subscribers report plans renewing indefinitely. One user reports being immediately charged after clicking a promotional email offer without completing a deliberate purchase flow.

trustpilot

signed up for one month and they renewed my subscription for another month! i dont understand. on the subscription page, you get the choice of annual subscripton or monthly. i chose monthly and they continue renewing it!!

trustpilot

i took only 1 month to test it, guess what, its automatically postponed forever..... 1 star for these scammers is 2 much

7

Refund and cancellation process is slow and friction-heavy

high support

Proton VPN's only cancellation channel is email support, creating significant delays. Multiple users report being denied refunds despite falling within the advertised 30-day money-back guarantee window. Purchases through Apple are particularly problematic — Proton deflects refund responsibility to Apple, which also refuses. Several users had to initiate credit card chargebacks to recover funds.

trustpilot

I cancelled during the 30 day money back guarantee satisfaction. Unfortunately the only way to contact customer service is through email. I wrote to customer service multiple times without any success to get my money back. I had to call my credit card company to file a dispute.

trustpilot

Proton makes it VERY difficult to cancel with many obstacles and long delays to their 'money back guarantee.

8

Long-term prepayment locks users into degraded service

medium migration

Users who pay upfront for annual or 2-year plans to access lower monthly rates report being financially locked in even when service quality deteriorates. Multiple reviewers report speeds that were acceptable in month one but degraded over time, with no practical recourse given they've paid in full.

trustpilot

I'm locked in for another 18 months un,es I want to lose the money I paid but I won't be buying it again.

trustpilot

I definitely will not be returning, and I regret buying the full twelve month package.

Frequently Asked Questions

01 What hidden costs should I budget for with Proton VPN?

Beyond the license fee, budget for: Free Plan Speed Throttling (50-70% speed reduction vs paid); Auto-Renewal Without Clear Notice ($9.99/month unexpected charge); Free Plan Server Limitations (Requires $4.99-$9.99/month upgrade for server choice); Streaming services require Proton Unlimited upgrade ($3-$5/user/month); Renewal pricing may nearly double introductory rate (50-100% of license costs); Auto-renewal continues without explicit user confirmation ($9.99-$12.99/user/month); Refund and cancellation process is slow and friction-heavy ($9.99-$191.76); Long-term prepayment locks users into degraded service ($59.88-$191.76). Exact totals depend on your deployment size and negotiated terms.

02 Does Proton VPN charge for implementation?

Implementation costs for Proton VPN vary by deployment size and customization. Contact the vendor or check our sourced hidden-cost breakdown above for verified figures.

03 How much does Proton VPN support cost?

Proton VPN's only cancellation channel is email support, creating significant delays. Multiple users report being denied refunds despite falling within the advertised 30-day money-back guarantee window. Estimated impact: $9.99-$191.76.

04 Are there overage or storage costs with Proton VPN?

Long-term customers report that renewal prices are significantly higher than the introductory promotional rate used to acquire them — with some reporting renewal costs at nearly double the original price. Customer support reportedly provides only generic responses pointing to terms and conditions rather than offering loyalty pricing or price-matching. Estimated impact: 50-100% of license costs.

05 What add-ons cost extra with Proton VPN?

Add-on pricing for Proton VPN varies by feature. The sourced cost breakdown above lists any verified add-on costs we have.

Now You Know the Real Cost — Try Proton VPN Free

Check current Proton VPN pricing

Prices and terms change; verify against the live pricing page.

See Proton VPN Pricing