In the last few years, Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) have become an invaluable tool for remote workers, travelers, and privacy-conscious internet users. However, while most people grasp the basics about how these services work, some of the more advanced features will usually go over their heads. That’s obviously not ideal for anyone. To help, we’ve put NordVPN and Avast SecureLine VPN through a series of head-to-head tests.

You’ll find the results in a series of easily comparable tables below. What’s more, we’ve highlighted any differences between these two services, explained what each feature does, and discussed how specific tools will impact your-day to-day browsing. In other words, this guide is perfect for those looking to better understand VPNs without spending hours on research.

Highlights

NordVPN vs Avast SecureLine pricing

If you’re just looking for a few months of coverage, NordVPN is the better choice. That’s because Avast SecureLine has recently gotten rid of its monthly subscription plan in favor of three long-term options (which is why its highest price per month is so low). While NordVPN is on the pricier side at $11.99 (GBP £9.11) per month, it at least gives you the option to subscribe one month at a time.

NordVPN

  • One of the fastest VPNs on the market
  • Industry-leading security offering
  • Great for streaming
  • More than 5,000 servers worldwide

Avast SecureLine

  • Solid security and a no-logs policy
  • Affordable protection from a well-known company
  • Connect 10 devices at once
  • Very easy to use

Both services offer significant discounts if you pay for a long period of coverage upfront. NordVPN’s one-year plan drastically narrows the price gap, at just $4.68 (GBP £3.56) more expensive than Avast. If you sign up for two years, NordVPN throws in a 70 percent discount that actually makes it cheaper than Avast, effectively costing just $3.29 (£2.50) per month. Avast SecureLine, meanwhile, cuts the cost of its three-year plan to $135 (£102.55), which is half off. This works out at just $3.75 (£2.85) per month on average.

Whichever service you choose, you can try it out risk free. That’s because each includes a money-back guarantee. NordVPN’s lasts for 30 days, which is the industry standard, while Avast’s will let you test the service for an unparalleled 60 days. Avast SecureLine also offers a seven-day free trial, although while you can install the app without providing payment info, this is required before you’re actually allowed to connect.

BEST DEAL FOR NORDVPN:NordVPN’s two-year plan comes with a 70 percent discount.

BEST DEAL FOR AVAST SECURELINE:Get 50 percent off with Avast SecureLine’s three-year plan

NordVPN vs Avast SecureLine features

Both NordVPN and Avast SecureLine are capable of protecting multiple devices at once. NordVPN has a six-connection limit, which is fairly standard, whereas Avast allows up to 10 simultaneous connections. However, it supports a slightly more limited range of platforms, with no Linux app and no way to install the VPN onto a router. Customers are normally able to manually install a VPN on these devices, so having no support at all is somewhat unusual.

These VPNs each come with their own browser extensions. Avast SecureLine can secure traffic from Chrome and Firefox browsers, while NordVPN also works with Microsoft Edge. However, it’s worth noting that while these extensions may be convenient, they only secure traffic from your browser, not any of your other apps. As such, they’re unsuitable for torrenting, gaming, and using standalone messaging clients.

Avast SecureLine has a couple of other tools designed to keep your online activities private. It can, for instance, connect automatically when you use an unsecured network. You can even use its Smart VPN mode to create rules determining what to do in specific situations. It’s even possible to let certain websites bypass the VPN entirely (a feature known as split tunneling).

NordVPN offers split tunneling and automatic wi-fi protection too. Not only that, but it blocks ads, trackers, and malware using a Threat Protection tool. Further, it can even alert you if your password is leaked on the dark web, a problem that is unfortunately, more common than ever. Finally, NordVPN offers a Smart DNS feature that lets you beat regional restrictions on devices that don’t support traditional VPN apps, like Smart TVs and PlayStations. This has to be manually set up, though, and only works with US services.

Avast SecureLine worked with a few major services, most notably Hulu and HBO Max. However, not every server worked, and there was a little trial and error involved. Additionally, it was unable to access most other platforms we tried, including Netflix.

Which of these VPNs work in China?

The Chinese government restricts access to all kinds of content, from messaging apps to search engines. Of course, since a VPN can help you access the wider internet, most of these are blocked in China too, along with most pro-privacy websites. That said, there are a few providers that have found ways to hide the fact that you’re using a VPN, and that still work on the mainland.

NordVPN is one such service. You should be able to browse freely with any server but it also operates special obfuscated servers designed to help you beat country-wide censorship in case the Great Firewall is updated during your trip. Note that you will have to install this VPN before you arrive, since the website is inaccessible. It’s a good idea to save a copy of the manual setup instructions too, just in case. Unfortunately, Avast SecureLine does not work at all in China.

Setup and interface

NordVPN offers user-friendly apps for mobile and desktop, with everything you need to get started right there on the main screen. You can search for servers in a specific country, scroll across the map, or just click the quick connect button to use the best-available server. The desktop apps also have a security score page that shows you a few quick ways you can improve your overall privacy (such as by enabling the kill switch). Settings are neatly organized into tabs and each gives the user a brief description of what it does, which is fantastic.

Avast SecureLine has a nice, simple design. You’ll find your current IP address and a one-click connection button on the main screen, and its server list is divided up by continent. Helpfully, there are separate categories for P2P and streaming-optimized servers, which helps remove trial and error from the equation. The settings menu is easy to navigate but doesn’t always tell you what you need to know upfront; for instance, the Smart VPN mode prevents you from choosing your own servers and doesn’t make this known until you try.

Servers and performance

NordVPN is known for its large network. With around 5,400 servers worldwide, it has almost eight times as many as Avast SecureLine. What’s more, NordVPN covers nearly twice as many countries. To its credit, Avast caters to all of the most in-demand locations. That said, paid VPNs usually support at least 40 locations, so this seems a little underwhelming.

Avast SecureLine can’t compete with NordVPN on speed. In our latest speed testing, it delivered an average speed of 34 Mbps, which is suitable for 4K streaming but perhaps a little low for multiple users sharing a connection. NordVPN, on the other hand, averaged 369 Mbps on a gigabit connection. That’s fast enough for just about any job you can think of.

Take a look below for a full list of these VPNs’ supported locations:

NordVPN has servers in every country that Avast does, plus 26 more. Notably, it has a real presence in Asia, with often-overlooked locations like Indonesia, Singapore, and Taiwan included. It could do with having a few more supported locations in Africa, but this is an issue across the whole industry and not a shortcoming exclusive to NordVPN.

Security

These services both use 256-bit AES encryption and 4096-bit RSA keys. These are the cryptographic algorithms that your VPN uses to communicate securely with your device and vice-versa. Suffice it to say that this pairing is currently considered uncrackable. Both providers include a kill switch that stops sending data if you lose connection suddenly. Additionally, they each use their own DNS servers to process your requests, which helps limit the risk of third-party interference.

Both VPNs have their own proprietary protocols. NordVPN’s is named NordLynx and was based on the speedy and lightweight WireGuard protocol. Avast, meanwhile, has Avast Mimic. There isn’t a huge amount of information about this, though the service’s website claims it “provides fake information about your identity and location”. It’s fairly unusual to see a provider introduce a custom protocol and then not explain why it’s worth using. Needless to say, these VPNs both support OpenVPN connections too.

Privacy

NordVPN is a no-logs provider, which means it can’t reveal what you do online under any circumstances. It’s based in Panama, a privacy-friendly location with no mandatory logging laws. Now, NordVPN does collect some information including the timestamp of your last connection and your username, but this is deleted 15 minutes after your session ends. Additionally, NordVPN’s mobile app collects device identifiers that could, over time, be used to identify you, but you can (and should) clear these regularly. Better still, NordVPN’s privacy policy actually walks you through how to reset your advertising ID.

Avast SecureLine also refuses to log any personally identifiable data. That said, it does collect quite a bit of analytical information. This includes your total bandwidth usage, the times and dates you’ve connected, and which of the VPN’s features you’re using. This isn’t exactly ideal for a privacy-focused tool like a VPN. To be fair, Avast deletes most data after 35 days. However, logs of application events (such as attempts to connect or uninstall the app) are kept for up to two years.

Configuration

Both of these VPNs use shared address allocation. This essentially provides an additional layer of anonymity by ensuring that everyone on a specific server shares a single IP address. As you might expect, this makes it extremely difficult to tell which user accessed what. Of course, neither NordVPN nor Avast SecureLine keeps traffic logs in the first place. Still, this additional redundancy provides even greater assurance that what you do online will stay private.

NordVPN gives users the option of purchasing an IP address that only they have access to. These are called dedicated IP addresses and they cost an extra $79 (GBP £60.23) per year. While these can be helpful in accessing services that are overly cautious about foreign login attempts (such as some online banking platforms), they do make it much easier to track you across the web, since you give up the plausible deniability that a shared IP address offers.

Customer service

Ideally, you’d never have to use them, but if something goes wrong, good customer support systems can make a huge difference. NordVPN and Avast SecureLine both offer 24/7 live chat, which is the quickest and easiest way to get help with any issues you might have. It’s also possible to get in touch via their support email addresses, or to submit a ticket for more complex problems.

Each provider has a large selection of searchable articles too. These cover everything from installing the service on mobile devices to properly configuring it on a home router. NordVPN and Avast both have video guides on their respective YouTube channels too. However, as Avast’s contains guides for all of its other software too, you may have to dig to find them.

The winner

NordVPN

Avast could have created a just-functional-enough VPN and relied on its brand name to bring in customers. Instead, it built a versatile, reliable service that holds up pretty well against much more popular VPNs. However, there are a few significant reasons that NordVPN is better for most people, and we’ll list these below.

First off, NordVPN is much faster, which immediately makes it the better choice for sharing. It also has a far larger network, meaning you’re less likely to have to use distant servers when traveling. This service even works with Linux systems and routers, which Avast doesn’t support at all. Finally, with an ever-improving set of security and privacy features, you’ll be able to securely stream, torrent anonymously, or bypass country-wide censorship wherever you go.