NordVPN vs PIA: price, privacy, and reach

Three gaps decide this one. Renewal price: with the intro terms over, Private Internet Access charges $79 every three years — about $2.19 a month — while NordVPN’s Basic plan renews at $139.08 a year, about $11.59 a month. Devices: PIA puts no cap on simultaneous connections; NordVPN stops at ten. Reach: NordVPN’s server page lists 149 countries; PIA’s lists 50. Cheap, unlimited, and US-based against pricier, capped, and nearly everywhere — the rest of this page prices that trade-off.

Both run RAM-only fleets and completed Deloitte no-logs engagements in 2025, so the privacy floor is high either way; what separates them is jurisdiction and what you can read before paying. If neither trade-off appeals, our full VPN rankings cover six alternatives. Prices and specs come from the two companies’ own pricing, server, and legal pages as of 23 Jul 2026; speed and streaming calls are attributed to the outlets that made them.

NordVPN vs PIA at a glance

All prices in USD, taken from each provider's own pages, as of 23 Jul 2026

	NordVPN	Private Internet Access
Cheapest monthly plan	$14.99 (Basic)	$11.95, renews at $11.95
Best intro rate	$3.49/mo — $94.23 for 27 months	$2.03/mo — about $79 for 39 months
Renewal after the intro term	$139.08/yr (~$11.59/mo)	$79 every 3 years (~$2.19/mo)
Simultaneous devices	10	Unlimited
Server countries	149	50 on its server list (homepage claims 90)
Servers	9,259	35,000+ (Security.org's count)
Jurisdiction	Panama	United States (Colorado) — a Five Eyes member
Protocols	NordLynx (WireGuard-based), OpenVPN	WireGuard and OpenVPN, both open source
RAM-only servers	Yes	Yes
Latest no-logs audit	Deloitte, Dec 2025 (its sixth verification)	Deloitte Audit Romania, 2025 (its third)
Audit report access	Logged-in Nord Account only	Public PDF download
Money-back window	30 days	30 days (new subscribers only)
Free tier	No — 3-day Android trial only	No

What will 39 months actually cost?

Month to month, PIA charges $11.95 and renews at $11.95 — no jump. NordVPN’s Basic tier costs $14.99 a month. Both figures are for the VPN-only products; NordVPN’s Complete ($19.99) and Prime ($29.99) tiers bundle extras like antivirus and cloud storage that PIA doesn’t sell.

The long plans are where the decision really happens. NordVPN’s cheapest route is the 2-year Basic deal: $94.23 for the first 27 months, or $3.49 a month. PIA’s is the “3 Years + 3 Months” plan: about $79 for 39 months — $2.03 a month, on an 83% summer promotion at the 23 Jul 2026 check. That looks like a $1.46-a-month gap. Renewal widens it to a chasm:

Cost	NordVPN Basic	PIA 3-year plan
First 39 months	$233.31 ($94.23 intro + one $139.08 renewal year)	about $79
Each year after that	$139.08	about $26.33 ($79 every 3 years)
Monthly equivalent at renewal	~$11.59	~$2.19

Over the first 39 months, NordVPN costs roughly three times as much. After that, its yearly bill runs more than five times PIA’s.

Fine print cuts both ways. PIA’s pricing page quotes the 1-year plan’s renewal two ways — $49.99 in one spot, $39.95 in another, on the same page — and its 30-day money-back guarantee covers new subscribers only, with app-store purchases refunded through the store and accounts opened within 3 months of a prior refund ineligible. NordVPN shows a 30-day guarantee on every plan, but every multi-month price it advertises is an intro rate that renews far higher. Neither has a free tier; NordVPN’s only trial is 3 days on Android. If price is the whole decision, our best cheap VPN picks rank the market on renewal rates.

Does the device limit matter?

One PIA subscription, per its homepage, runs on as many compatible devices at once as you like. NordVPN caps you at ten simultaneous connections on ten devices, whatever the tier.

Ten is enough for one or two people. For a household routing phones, laptops, TVs, and a console through one account — or anyone who never wants to count — PIA removes the question entirely, and at its price that combination is hard to argue with.

Country count or server count?

The two networks are big in different directions. Security.org counts more than 35,000 PIA servers against NordVPN’s 9,259 — but NordVPN’s fleet spans 149 countries while PIA’s own server list shows exactly 50 countries and territories. Server count buys capacity; country count buys places you can appear to be. Only the second one is visible to you as a feature.

Two footnotes from the providers’ own pages. PIA’s homepage still advertises 90 countries while its server list and that page’s FAQ say 50 — the list is the number to trust. And both networks include virtual locations: NordVPN describes its 149 countries as a mix of physical and virtual, and some PIA locations are served from elsewhere — its India IPs come from servers in Singapore and the UK. Before paying, check both public server lists for the specific country you need.

Which is faster — and which streams better?

Neither vendor publishes a controlled head-to-head, so the available evidence is third-party. It leans one way: CyberInsider and Cloudwards both report NordVPN as the faster service in their testing, and Top10VPN and Cloudwards describe it as the more reliable choice for unblocking streaming platforms. The same comparisons point to PIA for torrenting, where its unlimited connections and RAM-only network fit the use case — the best VPNs for torrenting cover that scenario in full.

A caution on all of these calls: the comparisons rarely publish their test conditions — ISP, distance, protocol, repeat runs — so treat the direction as more dependable than any single percentage.

Who makes the stronger privacy case?

The floor is the same: RAM-only fleets on both sides, wiped at every reboot, and both no-logs setups were examined under the ISAE 3000 assurance standard in 2025 — NordVPN by Deloitte in an engagement concluded in December 2025, its sixth verification since 2018 (PwC Switzerland in 2018 and 2020, Deloitte from 2022 on), and PIA by Deloitte Audit Romania, its third after 2022 and 2024, spanning management systems, VPN configurations, and the token system behind dedicated IPs.

Above that floor, each holds a different card. NordVPN’s is jurisdiction: it operates from Panama, home — it notes — to no data-retention law that would touch a VPN provider. PIA is a US company — Colorado law, Denver venue — and the United States is a founding Five Eyes member, which is exactly the address many privacy-first buyers screen out.

PIA’s card is openness. Its Deloitte report is a public PDF download; NordVPN’s is readable only from a logged-in Nord Account, so you cannot read the findings before paying. PIA also states that court subpoenas have produced no user data — the company’s own claim, but consistent with its audit record. What an engagement like this does and does not establish is covered in how no-log VPN audits work.

Do the protocols separate them?

No. NordVPN’s default is NordLynx — WireGuard rebuilt around a custom double-NAT system, post-quantum since 2025 — with OpenVPN kept as the alternative. PIA’s apps toggle between standard WireGuard and OpenVPN — both open source — and list IKEv2/IPsec in a server-list column for iOS-style setups. Both stacks are modern; buy on price, reach, or jurisdiction instead.

Which one should you buy?

Our NordVPN review and Private Internet Access review weigh each service on its own. Head to head, the split is clean.

Choose PIA if

• Total cost decides it: about $79 buys 39 months, then about $26.33 a year — a fraction of NordVPN’s $139.08 renewal
• One plan must cover every device you own: unlimited connections against ten
• You want to read the audit report before paying: PIA’s Deloitte PDF is a public download
• Torrenting is the main use, the case Top10VPN and Cloudwards make for it

Check current terms at PIA.

Choose NordVPN if

• You need an IP address in a country PIA’s 50-entry list lacks: 149 countries is triple the spread
• A US-based provider is a dealbreaker: NordVPN operates from Panama, outside the Five Eyes alliance
• Speed and streaming reliability lead your list — the direction CyberInsider, Cloudwards, and Top10VPN all report
• Audit history matters: six no-logs verifications since 2018 against PIA’s three

Check current terms at NordVPN.

Frequently asked questions

Is NordVPN better than PIA?

Only when the extra money buys something you use. NordVPN offers 149 countries to PIA's 50, Panama jurisdiction, and six no-logs verifications, and comparison outlets report it faster. PIA renews at about $2.19 a month to NordVPN's $11.59 and covers unlimited devices. Pick PIA for cost, NordVPN for coverage and speed.

Which is cheaper, NordVPN or PIA?

PIA, at every term length. Month to month it charges $11.95 to NordVPN's $14.99. On long plans, about $79 buys 39 months of PIA while $94.23 buys 27 months of NordVPN — and after the intro terms, PIA renews at $79 every three years while NordVPN Basic renews at $139.08 every year.

Which is faster, NordVPN or PIA?

Neither provider publishes a controlled head-to-head, but the independent comparisons agree on direction: CyberInsider and Cloudwards both report NordVPN as the faster service in their testing. Speed loss varies with your ISP, distance, and protocol, so the direction is more dependable than any single number.

Does PIA really allow unlimited devices?

Yes — unlimited simultaneous connections on compatible devices with a single subscription, per PIA's homepage. NordVPN allows ten simultaneous connections on ten devices across all of its tiers.

Which is better for privacy, NordVPN or PIA?

Both run RAM-only servers and completed Deloitte no-logs engagements in 2025. NordVPN's case is jurisdiction: Panama, with no data-retention laws that apply to VPN providers. PIA's case is openness despite its US address: its audit report is a public download, and the company states court subpoenas have produced no user data.

Is PIA or NordVPN better for torrenting?

Comparison outlets, including Top10VPN and Cloudwards, point to PIA for torrenting; unlimited connections and a RAM-only network fit that use, and its long-plan price is far lower. The same comparisons recommend NordVPN for streaming and raw speed instead.