ExpressVPN is my top choice for those who need a VPN while traveling. It’s a well-established provider that offers city-level access to servers throughout the US plus some of its plans come with useful bonus tools – including an eSIM with several days of unlimited data.
ExpressVPN launched a separate free VPN service called EventVPN in September 2025. I haven’t tested the free version yet, but it looks promising: users get access to servers in over 35 countries with zero data limits. (Proton Free limits you to servers in 10 randomly selected countries, while TunnelBear’s free tier limits you to 2GB of data per month.) The only problem is that EventVPN lets you watch ads before each session. I’ll update this guide with my thoughts once I try it.
Read Mashable’s full review of ExpressVPN.
ProtonVPN may have a larger global server network, but ExpressVPN has some advantages over its rival when it comes to travel. For one thing, it’s the rare VPN provider with servers in all 50 US states. (ProtonVPN and other premium VPNs are linked to major US cities.) Anyone working or living abroad won’t have trouble accessing content back home. Additionally, ExpressVPN Pro and Advanced customers get access to a Holiday.com e-SIM with a few days of unlimited data along with other additional privacy features that make its plans a good value. An eSim will let your phone connect to a cellular network outside your country without a physical SIM card.
ExpressVPN’s heavy presence in the US also makes it great for unblocking local content – say, regional sports games or adult sites. (For legal reasons, I’m not telling anyone to break the law or violate the terms of use of streaming services.) VPN servers that are closer to your actual, physical location will be faster and more reliable than servers that are farther away.
Broadly speaking, ExpressVPN has over 3,000 servers in 105 countries around the world. It’s a much smaller network overall, but it still has a good amount of global geographic diversity. ProtonVPN’s network is larger and more spread out, while TunnelBear has more servers but much less reach.
ExpressVPN’s privacy and transparency practices are top notch. Its privacy policy is complete and clear about what type of data it collects and what it does not collect. Most importantly, it never logs users’ browsing history and other sensitive data. This policy has been tested in independent audits with ExpressVPN’s apps, server technology, browser extensions, and more. (The company began conducting these audits in 2018, and since 2022, it has undergone about 20 of them.) It has only been releasing biennial transparency reports since 2024, but its no-logs claim is already pending in court before then. Like ProtonVPN, it offers a bug bounty program.
In my testing, browsing while connected to ExpressVPN servers felt no different from insecure browsing. This had no noticeable effect on my connection speed. It was also able to unblock streaming services in the UK, no problem. Depending on your subscription level, you get 10 to 14 simultaneous connections. All plans are backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee and include 24/7 live chat support.
The ExpressVPN app has a clean corporate Memphis look, and is very easy to navigate. As far as features go, you can turn on a kill switch and a split tunneling tool that lets you choose which apps and websites will be sent through your VPN tunnel. ExpressVPN lacks the usual advanced VPN tools like multi-hop and Tor over VPN, which provide additional layers of security. However, it does have a neat built-in “ShuffleIP” feature that changes your IP address every time you visit a new website, making you harder to track.
As a final note, I think it’s important to mention that ExpressVPN’s parent company doesn’t have the best reputation in the cybersecurity field. I believe the severity of its issues depends on your use case. Privacy advocates and users with serious VPN needs will likely use them as reasons to dismiss ExpressVPN entirely, but more casual users may be willing to ignore them. For more details, read my full ExpressVPN review.
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