ExpressVPN is now one of the most well-known virtual private network services available. How well does it perform in real-world testing, despite the fact that it is endorsed by numerous well-known “review” websites? Your question will be answered in this ExpressVPN review along with the benefits and drawbacks of this VPN.
First of all, it’s important to note that ExpressVPN has undergone a lot of change recently. Below, we’ll go into further depth about these modifications.
The VPN itself has undergone some significant adjustments as well. One example is the official release of the Lightway protocol by ExpressVPN, a revolutionary VPN protocol that promises improved security and quicker performance. In addition, ExpressVPN has developed new features and undertaken significant infrastructure and security enhancements.
In this comprehensive review of ExpressVPN, we tested and analyzed every feature of this VPN service.
– Is ExpressVPN’s new Lightway protocol quick, and how does it stack up against competing VPNs in terms of speed?
– How reliable is ExpressVPN, specifically its leak prevention features?
– Is it safe to use the VPN apps?
– Does ExpressVPN provide access to geoblocked content like Netflix and Hulu?
– Is ExpressVPN truly worth the (above-average) cost?
In order to get the answers to these concerns and more, we subscribed to ExpressVPN and tried both its desktop and mobile VPN programs. Below you’ll find the whole set of test results.
Advantages of Using ExpressVPN 🙂
– Virtual Private Network (VPN) applications that are both safe and easy to use
– Robust encoding protocols and other security aspects
– A virtual private network (VPN) service that does not store user logs and is located in a secure jurisdiction
– A comprehensive and trustworthy VPN server network
– Compatible with streaming services such as Netflix and others
– Add-ons for web browsers
– Split tunneling
– Secure and trustworthy mobile apps
– VPN router app
– Friendly and helpful customer service and a generous return policy
Disadvantages of Using ExpressVPN 😕
– This company is currently controlled by a conglomerate (Kape Technologies)
– expenses that are more expensive than the average
– Sluggish performance when using OpenVPN
– Limited feature set in comparison to other popular VPNs
ExpressVPN Pros 👍
Applications for virtual private networks (VPNs) that are safe and easy to use
ExpressVPN ensures that all of its VPN apps and infrastructure adhere to a high level of safety standards. The user-friendly lineup of applications has been subjected to intensive inspection with the help of security assessments carried out by Cure53 and others. In a nutshell, you will find that this virtual private network (VPN) offers both safety and an intuitive interface.
ExpressVPN has applications for all of the major platforms and operating systems, including:
– Windows (version 10, 8, and 7)
– Mac OS
– Linux
– iOS
– Android
– Routers
– Google Chromebook
– Products sold by Amazon, including the Kindle, Fire, and Nook
Encryption and other security elements of a high standard
This virtual private network (VPN) does not take any shortcuts when it comes to maintaining its users’ online safety, as demonstrated by our testing and the rest of the research we conducted for this ExpressVPN review. And this is a good thing, particularly when all of the security threats and attack vectors that we’ve seen over the course of the past year are taken into consideration. Encryption, virtual private network protocols, security features, and outcomes of leak tests are some of the topics that we looked into.
ExpressVPN encryption
When using ExpressVPN, the encryption, key, and authentication methods are all determined by the VPN protocol that you choose within the ExpressVPN app.
ExpressVPN employs an AES-256 encryption with an RSA-4096 key and a SHA-512 HMAC authentication algorithm when communicating over the OpenVPN and IKEv2 protocols. To encrypt data transmissions, the Lightway protocol makes use of the AES-256-GCM and ChaCha20/Poly1305 ciphers, while also employing D/TLS 1.2 for authenticating servers.
The ciphers known as AES-256 and ChaCha20 provide a very high degree of encryption that is currently thought to be unbreakable. Additionally, they offer exceptional performance, particularly with regard to the Lightway protocol (test results below). In addition, ExpressVPN offers support for Perfect Forward Secrecy, which is achieved by exchanging keys via the Diffie-Hellman protocol.
VPN Protocols
You are able to pick whatever VPN protocols you wish to use straight within the app with ExpressVPN. This is a really convenient feature. The following is a list of the VPN protocols that are accessible with the Windows client:
ExpressVPN will automatically determine the most suitable VPN protocol for your network configuration when the “Automatic” setting is used. In preparation for this evaluation, I used both OpenVPN UDP and Lightway UDP.
In my experiments, the speed of Lightway was significantly better than that of OpenVPN. If you just want the highest possible level of performance, then the Lightway protocol is the greatest option for you to take.
VPN service that does not keep any logs and is located in a secure jurisdiction
ExpressVPN is a VPN service that has been confirmed and keeps no logs. As you’ll see in the next section, it has not only passed traditional verification procedures but also third-party audits. This is significant because we have witnessed at least two instances of virtual private networks (VPNs) that falsely claimed to have “no logs” but were, in fact, keeping logs of their users:
– IPVanish cooperated with the FBI in a criminal investigation by providing logs.
– PureVPN has also supplied logs to the appropriate authorities in order to facilitate a criminal investigation.
Now, let’s take a look at ExpressVPN again. First, we are going to take a comprehensive look at ExpressVPN’s policies, and then we are going to discuss the real-world examples that confirmed these principles.
ExpressVPN has been successful in passing independent audits
ExpressVPN is also one of the few VPN services that has undergone third-party testing and verification.
ExpressVPN had a third-party audit conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers in order to validate and demonstrate the veracity of their claims that they keep no logs. The audit confirmed that the TrustedServer feature (which will be covered in further detail below), the no logs policy, and other privacy measures are being observed in the appropriate manner.
Very few virtual private networks (VPNs) have been subjected to audits by third parties to validate their logging procedures. In addition, there is more evidence demonstrating that ExpressVPN adheres to a genuine no-logs policy. As you can see from the comparison of ProtonVPN vs ExpressVPN, this is one of the advantages that ExpressVPN has over other prominent VPNs. ProtonVPN.
In addition, in April 2022, ExpressVPN made the announcement that all of its Windows applications have successfully completed an examination carried out by F-Secure. In order to determine whether or whether the ExpressVPN Windows client has any potential vulnerabilities, the audit employed several kinds of penetration testing. The findings were encouraging, and the auditors were unable to point to any significant vulnerabilities in the system’s security.
A comprehensive and trustworthy VPN server network
ExpressVPN provides users with a wide variety of server locations all over the world and a highly encrypted network infrastructure.
When this review was written, ExpressVPN had over 160 VPN server locations spread across 94 different countries. This encompasses more than 3,000 virtual private network (VPN) servers in total. The coverage is strongest in Europe and North America, but they also have a wide range of servers in other regions such as South America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific.
ExpressVPN’s network size is comparable to that of other major virtual private networks (VPNs), such as NordVPN and CyberGhost. ExpressVPN operates a larger number of virtual server locations, which is the primary distinction between the two services.
TrustedServer: all servers operating in RAM
ExpressVPN is one of a select few virtual private networks (VPNs) that now operates all of its servers in RAM-disk mode. To put it another way, ExpressVPN’s server network does not make use of any hard drives of any kind; rather, it relies solely on RAM memory. The TrustedServer feature refers to this network security configuration that has been put up.
Users of ExpressVPN have access to a higher level of security thanks to the TrustedServer feature. Our comparison of NordVPN vs IPVanish includes a discussion of RAM servers as well.
Does ExpressVPN provide users with their own dedicated IP address?
ExpressVPN does not provide users with dedicated IP addresses at this time.
Helpful policies regarding refunds and interactions with customers
ExpressVPN appears to be doing fairly well with its live chat help, in contrast to the support that is occasionally provided by larger VPN services, which may be hit or miss at times.
For the purpose of this ExpressVPN review, I conducted many tests of the assistance. I’ve had many contacts with the support team, and each time I’ve found them to be timely, educated, and kind.
Direct access to live chat assistance that is available around the clock may be obtained through the bottom-right corner of their website. In each and every one of my chat sessions, I was linked up with a representative in fewer than sixty seconds (no long delays).
If you need assistance configuring the VPN on your devices or have particular issues that are not answered on the website, live chat support is undoubtedly a benefit to look for in a VPN provider.
Every subscription package comes with a money-back guarantee good for the first month
ExpressVPN has one of the longest refund windows in the business, which is another outstanding advantage of using this VPN service. You are provided with a full thirty-day money-back guarantee with each VPN service you purchase, even if you just subscribe for one month. If you aren’t completely content with your VPN service, you have until the 30th day of your subscription to cancel and receive a full refund, no questions asked.
In general, ExpressVPN provides excellent assistance for its customers.
ExpressVPN Cons 👎
Prices
ExpressVPN is more costly than the majority of its contemporaries in the VPN industry (but also not the most expensive VPN). In a nutshell, this virtual private network (VPN) service does not come cheap.
ExpressVPN is available for a monthly rate of $8.32 or for a yearly rate of $99.95, with the annual rate being the least expensive option. On the other hand, you may get three months of service for free if you use the coupon that is provided below to get the discounted coupon cost.
Although ExpressVPN is more expensive than some of its competitors, such as NordVPN and Surfshark, the thing that really matters is value, or what you get in exchange for the money you spend. As you can see from the aforementioned list of advantages, ExpressVPN provides a great deal of value to its customers. According to the findings and observations made in this analysis, the following are the characteristics that set ExpressVPN apart from the other available choices:
– Increased throughput thanks to the Lightway protocol
– Apps that are trustworthy and safe to use, with robust encryption and leak prevention built right in
– Access to Netflix and a wide variety of other streaming services around the clock
– Assistance via real-time chat
The history of the virtual private network (VPN) itself is another essential aspect that should be taken into consideration. ExpressVPN has maintained a spotless reputation during the many years it has been in business. In addition to this, it is a tried and tested no-logs VPN service that operates on a server network that is extremely safe.
OpenVPN’s protocol results in slow connection speeds
Another noticeable negative with ExpressVPN is the performance difficulties we noticed with the OpenVPN protocol. OpenVPN continues to be the most popular protocol for use with virtual private network (VPN) services because it provides both security and (usually) acceptable speed. OpenVPN, like other open-source VPNs, has the confidence of a large number of customers and businesses.
On an ExpressVPN connection with a speed of 500 Mbps, we conducted speed tests using the OpenVPN protocol. The findings were not very excellent.
ExpressVPN server located in Seattle, using OpenVPN protocol; 32 Mbps download and upload speeds.
When compared to my baseline speed of 500 Mbps and the knowledge that OpenVPN speeds can often attain between 200 and 300 Mbps, this is a very disappointingly modest speed.
The next server we tested was an ExpressVPN one located in Los Angeles, which offered 41 Mbps.
Although this server in Seattle is a modest improvement over the one that came before it, it is still quite a bit slower than it ought to be. If the OpenVPN protocol is working correctly, we should be able to get rates of well over 100 Mbps.
It is quite evident that ExpressVPN is having issues with the speeds of OpenVPN. People that use OpenVPN as their primary VPN protocol can run into issues as a result of this.
Nevertheless, there is yet another option available, and that is to just make use of the Lightway protocol. As you can see from the post comparing ExpressVPN and CyberGhost, Lightway helps put ExpressVPN ahead of several other virtual private network (VPN) providers.
Does ExpressVPN support downloading via torrents?
Torrenting is prohibited or severely restricted on many virtual private network (VPN) networks. Torrenting is permitted completely unrestrictedly and without any constraints when using ExpressVPN.
ExpressVPN is an excellent choice for downloading torrents due to the following four reasons :
– Extremely high-performance (premium) server network featuring incredibly quick transfer rates and excellent dependability.
– A territory located outside of the United States that is exempt from copyright violation demands and DMCA takedown notices.
– Applications of the highest quality that not only protect you from data breaches and vulnerabilities but also keep your data safe. You won’t have to worry about copyright trolls or DMCA notices if you do this, of course.
– There are no restrictions placed on the amount of traffic or the bandwidth.
Is it possible to use ExpressVPN in China?
ExpressVPN is still able to operate successfully in China the majority of the time, in spite of the existing VPN blocks and censorship efforts. After speaking with a few individuals based in China, we discovered that there are sporadic periods of time during which all VPNs are rendered inaccessible. However, ExpressVPN is able to quickly implement solutions and bypass any restrictions, much like a few other VPN providers.
Connecting to one of ExpressVPN’s China-specific servers is all you need to do to utilize the service within the country (check with support to see these). These servers will automatically use an obfuscation mechanism in conjunction with the VPN program, which will disguise VPN traffic by disguising it as standard HTTPS encryption. This is able to circumvent both the Great Firewall and any other censorship measures.
How many simultaneous connections does ExpressVPN provide its customers?
You will be able to maintain five different connections at the same time with your membership to ExpressVPN.
Note that while you may use ExpressVPN on an infinite number of devices, your membership only allows for a maximum of five simultaneous connections at any given time.
There is a simple option available for those who wish to utilize the VPN on more than five devices simultaneously. As we went over above, all you need to do to enable an unlimited number of connections is install ExpressVPN on your router. You will only be counted as having one connection when using the router, but you are free to connect as many devices as you like to it.
Is it possible to game while using ExpressVPN?
The use of a virtual private network (VPN) for gaming offers a number of significant benefits; nevertheless, it is essential that you use the appropriate VPN. You should make sure to keep an eye out for the following important aspects:
– A vast server network with nodes located in the geographic regions that you want
– Quick speeds to ensure that your game play is kept up with that of others.
– A low ping (latency), which may be enhanced by having fast servers located near to where you are
Despite the fact that ExpressVPN is not the greatest virtual private network (VPN) for gaming, it is still a fine pick that delivers solid performance.
Finally; Are you getting your money’s value out of ExpressVPN? 👈
We live in a world where the risks are always increasing and our personal information is frequently a target for attacks by a variety of third parties and hackers. This can ultimately lead to identity theft, having our devices hacked, or even just being inundated with advertisements that are specifically relevant to us. You can regain control of your data with the use of a reliable VPN service like ExpressVPN.
The results of the tests that were conducted for this ExpressVPN review make it clear that this is a first-rate service. In general, we believe that ExpressVPN is an excellent VPN service that is deserving of attention. In a nutshell, the following are the most important takeaways from this evaluation of ExpressVPN:
– A secure offshore jurisdiction and firm policies to protect the personal information of users and customer data.
– Support for Netflix and the vast majority of other streaming providers is maintained.
– A large number of applications that are all of the following: well-designed; safe; dependable; and user-friendly.
– Safe and secure networking environment with all servers operating in RAM-disk mode.
– Friendly and helpful customer service with live chat assistance available around the clock and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Despite the fact that there are a few downsides, we believe that ExpressVPN is an excellent solution for all different kinds of customers.
ExpressVPN alternatives 🔎
To read our comprehensive assessment of a particular VPN service, click on the service’s name in the table below. Both of these VPNs have a money-back guarantee of at least 30 days, and both support the WireGuard VPN protocol.
1 – NordVPN review
2 – Surfshark review
3 – VyprVPN review
If you have experience with ExpressVPN, you are welcome to leave a review in the comments area below, regardless of whether it is positive or negative.
