Score Breakdown
Pros & Cons
What We Liked
- Fastest speeds tested
- Very polished Windows app
- MediaStreamer for Smart TVs
- Trusted server (RAM-only)
Room for Improvement
- Most expensive option
- Only 8 devices
Speed Performance
ExpressVPN reached 950 Mbps download and 700 Mbps upload on our 1 Gbps test line in London. Latency to the nearest server measured 6ms — excellent for gaming and real-time applications. We test each provider across four server locations at both peak (6–9 PM local) and off-peak (2–4 AM) hours and average the results.
| Server Location | Download | Upload | Latency |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK (nearest) | 948 Mbps | 698 Mbps | 6 ms |
| US East | 870 Mbps | 640 Mbps | 75 ms |
| Germany | 910 Mbps | 665 Mbps | 19 ms |
| Japan | 620 Mbps | 440 Mbps | 210 ms |
ExpressVPN's proprietary Lightway protocol (built on WolfSSL) delivered the absolute fastest speeds of any VPN we tested. The UK server hit 948 Mbps — effectively saturating a 1 Gbps line. Lightway UDP performed better than TCP in all our tests; switching to OpenVPN dropped throughput to approximately 410 Mbps. Peak-hour sessions showed negligible degradation, suggesting strong server provisioning.
Streaming Performance
ExpressVPN offers the broadest streaming compatibility of any VPN we tested. MediaStreamer (a Smart DNS feature included at no extra cost) extends coverage to Smart TVs, gaming consoles, and Apple TV devices that cannot install VPN apps. Netflix worked across every region we tested — 15 countries including Japan and South Korea. BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, DAZN, and Amazon Prime Video US all passed without issue. The only platform we found consistently blocked is China-specific OTT services, which is expected.
Unblocked
- ✓ Netflix (15+ regions)
- ✓ BBC iPlayer
- ✓ Disney+
- ✓ Hulu
- ✓ DAZN
Unreliable / Blocked
- None found during testing
Security
ExpressVPN's Lightway protocol uses the WolfSSL cryptographic library, independently audited by Cure53. Data is encrypted with AES-256-GCM in Lightway-TCP mode and ChaCha20 in Lightway-UDP mode. TrustedServer technology runs all servers entirely in RAM — nothing persists to disk across reboots, eliminating forensic data recovery risk. Kill switch, DNS leak protection, and IPv6 leak protection all passed our tests. We ran the full browserleaks.com battery — DNS, WebRTC, IPv6, and canvas fingerprint tests all passed cleanly.
Privacy & Logging Policy
ExpressVPN is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands. The British Virgin Islands (BVI) is a British Overseas Territory but operates its own legal system, separate from UK surveillance legislation. It participates in neither the 5-Eyes nor 14-Eyes alliances and has no mandatory data-retention law for VPN providers. The no-logs policy is verified by KPMG — a Big Four auditor — and the TrustedServer infrastructure provides an additional technical guarantee: because servers run entirely in RAM, a physical server seizure yields no persistent user data. ExpressVPN was acquired by Kape Technologies; Kape's ownership history has been scrutinised, though ExpressVPN's operational independence and audit programme have continued without interruption.
Windows App Experience
ExpressVPN's Windows app is the most polished of all 13 we tested. The home screen shows your current location, a speed indicator, and a single large 'Connect' button. The 'Choose Location' screen provides a searchable list with a 'Recently Used' shortcut. Lightway protocol is selected automatically — users can override this in Preferences > Protocol. Split tunneling is available under Preferences > Split Tunneling but requires a reboot to take effect on the first configuration. The app correctly detected our Windows 11 Secure Boot environment without requiring driver workarounds.
Additional platforms include macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, and select router firmware. The Windows client is the primary focus of this review, tested on both Windows 10 22H2 and Windows 11 23H2.
Limitations
No VPN is perfect. Here are the specific weaknesses we identified during our 2026 testing period:
- The most expensive VPN in our ranking at $12.95/mo on monthly plans — long-term plans max out at 15 months, with no 2-year option.
- Device limit is 8 simultaneous connections — other top-ranked VPNs offer 10 or unlimited at comparable or lower prices.
- Advanced settings (split tunneling configuration, protocol selection) are buried several menus deep on Windows, less accessible than rivals.
Pricing
All plans include the same features — the difference is billing cycle. Longer commitments offer a lower effective monthly rate; shorter plans offer flexibility without a multi-year commitment. Prices shown are approximate and may vary by region and promotion.
| Plan | Price/Month | Devices | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $12.95/mo | 8 | Most flexible |
| 1-Year | $6.67/mo | 8 | Good value |
| 2-Year | Not available | — | — |
Verdict
ExpressVPN ranks #4 for its proprietary Lightway protocol, RAM-only server infrastructure, and widest streaming library access — held back only by price.
