Mullvad VPN vs NordVPN 2023
We put these VPNs to the test to find out which is the best!
However, before we get to the essential details, there are a few things which you’ll need to remember. First, Mullvad is a privacy-based VPN from Sweden. Its primary aim is to provide its clients with solid encryptions and a safe online environment with no connection logs.
Second, NordVPN is one of the best overall VPN services that we’ve reviewed. They excel in security, anonymity, speed, bypassing geo blocks and just about every other important feature you might want in a VPN. More Info
How do these VPNs Compare?
Speed
After testing Mullvad using different servers, we noticed a few things. For instance, the European locations gave us excellent rates, and at some point, we forgot we were using a VPN. However, when it came to transatlantic servers, it was quite slow. Despite this, we were still able to download and stream content reasonably fast.
Do you love gaming? If you do, then NordVPN is our recommended service. Its low level of latency is something which many gamers love. The only challenge with this VPN is that you’ll have to wait for maybe 13 seconds for it to connect to a decent server.
| VPN vendor |
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|---|---|---|
| Download speed reduction | 58% (UK) | 10% (UK) |
| Upload speed reduction | 0.3% (FRA) | 14% (FRA) |
| Ping time to google.com | 47.42ms | 2ms |
| Average time to connect (sec.) | 5ms | 9ms |
| Unblock successful for |
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| Visit Site | Visit Site |
Why Most Speed Tests are Pointless & How We Correctly Test VPN Speeds
Speed determines how fast content uploads, so if you’re torrenting or streaming, you want the speed to be somewhat identical to your regular internet speed. Since a VPN encrypts your data, it usually takes a bit longer to send your data back and forth, which can slow down your connection. However, if your ISP deliberately slows down your connection (also known as throttling) a VPN might increase your internet speed. Testing a VPN is somewhat pointless because new servers pop up and affect speed. Your speed can also differ according to your location, so your speed test might not match ours. Having said that, we tested the speed in numerous locations to provide you with the average.
Servers
NordVPN offers a range of servers optimized for torrent downloads, along with unlimited bandwidth. It has over 4,600 servers in 60+ countries, unlike Mullvad which is not clear on the number of servers it provides its customers.
| VPN vendor |
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|---|---|---|
| Server Locations | 800 | 60 |
| Server Countries | 70 | 60 |
| IP Addresses | 328 | 5,201+ |
| Dynamic Server Switching | ||
| Visit Site | Visit Site |
The Big Mistake When Comparing Number of Servers and What to Really Look For
The ratio of servers to countries is an important factor to look at when choosing a VPN. Only paying attention to location or number of servers can get you in trouble. More servers generally means faster speeds, but if VPN X has a few more servers than VPN Y but twice as many users, VPN X will typically have slower speeds. Ideally, you want a VPN that has a lot of servers in every location. This way you won’t have to worry that server/country that you want will be overburdened and running slow
Support
Here is another area in which Mullvad struggles a lot. It has no live chat system, no official website, and the only way you can reach out to their support staff is through email. Furthermore, their reaction time is quite slow. As for Nord, you have a lot of communication services to choose from. You can talk to their staff either by email or through their 24/7 live chat system. You can even go through their FAQ, and hopefully, you’ll find a suitable solution to your problem.
| VPN vendor |
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|---|---|---|
| Email Response Time | 9 | 3 |
| 24/7 Support | ||
| Live Chat | ||
| Knowledge Base | ||
| Video Tutorials | ||
| Visit Site | Visit Site |
How We Test Customer Support and Why Should You Care
We personally test the customer support team of every VPN we review. This means asking technical question through the live chat feature (where applicable) and measuring the response time for email questions. Whether you need to connect to a specific server, change your security protocol, or configure a VPN on your router, finding a VPN with quality customer support should be important to you.
Ease of Use
Nord is a reliable VPN as it doesn’t store your browsing history. It also has an attractive design and unique website layout. With it, you can unblock Geo-restricted streaming sites like Netflix at no additional costs.
It also works perfectly on different operating systems whether you’re using a laptop, tablet, desktop or smartphone to access any content. We should also highlight the fact that it uses strong ciphers and security protocols such as OpenVPN, and the 256-bit AES double encryption.
Just like Nord, this VPN neither keeps your connection logs nor does it track your online activity. It also uses the OpenVPN protocol which is the quickest security service available today. Its value for privacy means that it has some of the best security features as compared to Nord.
The service secures your connection with the RSA-4096 handshake, HMAC SHA-1 hash authentication, and AES-256-GCM. It even has a Hellman DNE-4096 key exchange for better secrecy and is re-sett within intervals of 60-minutes. Sadly though, despite such impressive security protocols, it can’t access content from a popular site like Netflix.
Pricing
Which VPN Will You Choose?
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