Norton VPN assessment: Easy, speedy, and higher than ever

Norton VPN in short

• P2P allowed: Sure
• Simultaneous system connections: 5 or 10, relying upon the plan
• Enterprise location: United States
• Variety of servers: Undisclosed
• Variety of nation areas: 65+
• Price: $39.99 for one 12 months for Customary, $49.99 for Plus, and $59.99 for Final

Norton has joined the rising listing of safety giants providing standalone VPN merchandise. What was as soon as a reasonably fundamental add-on to its antivirus service, although, has advanced into one thing much more severe. Current updates have introduced significant efficiency good points, tighter privateness practices, and a gradual rollout of recent options.

The corporate’s safety software program has at all times been a few of the finest in the marketplace, however simply how good is it? Will it maintain your shopping protected and safe, or do you have to look elsewhere for privateness safety? I took it for an additional spin to search out out simply how a lot it’s improved and if it could possibly problem the most effective.

Learn on to study extra, then see our roundup of the most effective VPNs for comparability.

What are Norton VPN’s options and providers?

Norton VPN’s final 12 months wasn’t incremental—it was structural. Simply within the final 12 months or so it’s proven improvement in practically each side. WireGuard assist, 25Gbps servers in main hubs, and a shift in information retention insurance policies all level to a product making an attempt to shed its “antivirus add-on” previous.

The service launched Double VPN and IP Rotation options and upgraded its OpenVPN protocol on Home windows to OpenVPN DCO (Information Channel Offload) to spice up efficiency.

Norton VPN additionally handed one other no-logs safety audit and a further unbiased audit of its proprietary Mimic protocol.

Whereas 2025 was a giant 12 months for Norton, 2026 seems set to proceed the pattern. Upcoming updates to the service this 12 months are set to incorporate WireGuard post-quantum encryption, a guide IP-rotation function, and extra international locations and server areas.

Norton VPN hands-on

Over the previous few years Norton VPN has been within the strategy of upgrading itself from antivirus add-on to standalone VPN with lots of the identical options as different prime providers. As such, Norton VPN has seen large year-on-year progress and Norton clearly goals to make it a top-tier VPN. It’s already a really completely different service from what was supplied in my final assessment.

Beginning with the fundamentals: Norton VPN provides as much as 5 or 10 simultaneous system connections relying in your plan tier and a a lot improved server community — 100 server areas throughout greater than 65 international locations. Simply within the final 12 months, it has added 40 or so new nation areas and 16 new city-level areas throughout all platforms, with extra to comply with this 12 months. 

Regardless of these enhancements, Norton VPN’s server community remains to be an space that lags behind different rivals. Providers corresponding to NordVPN (209 areas throughout 167 international locations) and ExpressVPN (170 areas throughout 105 international locations) nonetheless function a lot bigger networks. Bigger networks normally translate into much less server congestion and a better probability of bypassing geo-blocks.

For what it’s value, Norton VPN’s servers are nearly completely bodily servers. In truth, the service solely not too long ago started providing digital servers in locations corresponding to India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and some others the place it’s practically inconceivable to function safe, unbiased, and personal servers.

Bodily servers are typically really useful as they’re usually safer, and have a tendency to supply superior efficiency. Since some rivals overemploy digital servers, the truth that Norton provides largely bodily servers must be seen as a win for privacy-conscious customers.

The Norton VPN app is pleasantly minimalistic. It has a Join button beneath a drop-down menu with server areas. All of that is overlaid throughout a easy world map that highlights your present IP location with a pinpoint purple dot. Alongside the left rail you’ll discover a connection standing icon together with menu choices for Retailer, Assist & Assist, and Settings. 

Kudos to the design group over at Norton as a result of this must be one of the intuitive VPN interfaces I’ve ever encountered. No sophisticated menu methods or over-engineered methods in sight.

When linked, the map will zoom in to the geographic location of the chosen server marked with a inexperienced dot. Your new IP deal with can be displayed in the midst of the display screen and the VPN standing icon on the left will say “Linked.”

Sam Singleton

Beneath the Settings menu you’ll discover choices for auto-connect, the split-tunneling function, a kill change, and you’ll change your protocol right here as effectively. Norton VPN’s Customary plan—which I used for this assessment—doesn’t overwhelm with options and customization choices, but it surely does present all the fundamentals customers are in search of.

The small gripe I’ve with Norton’s cut up tunneling is that it doesn’t provide reverse performance. You’ll be able to choose and select which apps to exclude, however different providers present a reverse perform that excludes all the pieces and you’ll then choose which apps so as to add to the VPN connection as an alternative. It’s a slight omission, however one which different prime VPNs carried out years in the past.

Sam Singleton

Norton additionally has Double VPN and IP rotation connections. Each of those options are actually accessible for all tiers and could be discovered on the house display screen beneath the server drop-down menu. As of proper now, every function has restricted accessible server choices to select from, with extra possible coming sooner or later. The continued rollout of superior options like these are commendable, and consultant of how severe Norton is taking the event of its VPN service.  

That’s about it so far as options included within the Customary plan. In case you go for the Plus plan you’ll get entry to anti-malware and anti-scam detection, a password supervisor, darkish internet monitoring, and 10GB of cloud storage. The Final plan goes even additional by offering 10 complete system connections, customizable parental management options, extra safety providers for teenagers, and boosts cloud storage as much as 50GB.

Norton VPN is out there for Home windows, MacOS, Android, iOS, good TVs, some browsers. It notably isn’t accessible for Linux although.

How a lot does Norton VPN price?

Not like different VPN providers, Norton VPN solely provides a yearly subscription plan for the service. There is no such thing as a month-to-month plan accessible nor are there longer-term plans corresponding to two or three years. It is a little bit of an odd selection because it breaks the usual mildew of what practically each different VPN service provides. 

Norton VPN provides three plan tiers: Customary, Plus, and Final. Customary will set you again $39.99 for the primary 12 months or $3.33 per 30 days with an auto-renewal fee of $79.99 per 12 months. The Plus tier is $49.99 for the primary 12 months, or $4.17 per 30 days and auto-renews on the increased fee of $109.99 for subsequent years. The Final tier is $59.99 for the primary 12 months or $5.00 per 30 days and auto-renews at $129.99 after that.

Despite the fact that the plans are solely supplied in 1-year increments, you possibly can’t actually argue with the worth. The Plus plan particularly is an impressive deal for the primary 12 months contemplating all the additional options included.

Norton VPN could be paid for both by bank card, PayPal, or Google Pay

How is Norton VPN’s efficiency?

In my testing I measured connection speeds a number of instances throughout Norton VPN’s servers in six completely different international locations all around the globe after which in contrast them to my baseline web velocity. Norton’s speeds had been fairly spectacular. Throughout all areas examined, the typical obtain velocity was 66 p.c of the bottom and the typical add velocity was 69 p.c of the bottom.

These averages are a bit higher than the final time I examined Norton VPN and sufficient to place it inside placing distance of the quickest VPNs I’ve ever examined. Due to the adoption of OpenVPN DCO I additionally seen modest efficiency good points on OpenVPN connections — speeds remained the identical for me, however latency noticeably dropped in comparison with final time.

For many who have ultra-fast web connections, the brand new 25Gbps servers ought to theoretically result in huge efficiency will increase. Nonetheless, the connection I used to check with was not quick sufficient to even attain these speeds to start with so I wasn’t in a position to confirm these claims.

Relating to Norton’s capacity to unblock geo-restricted content material on streaming providers, it as soon as once more got here by way of with flying colours. I used to be in a position to entry all U.S.-based streaming content material together with Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO Max, and BBC iPlayer. 

Nonetheless, I as soon as once more encountered some points with servers in Asia being blocked. As Norton doesn’t have the most important server community to select from, I wasn’t at all times in a position to attempt to hook up with different areas inside blocked international locations to see if they’d work as an alternative. Fortuitously, Norton is prioritizing server community enlargement so hopefully this challenge can be resolved quickly.

General although, Norton is a lot quick sufficient and its capacity to unblock streaming providers makes it a sensible choice if that’s a precedence.

How is Norton VPN’s safety and privateness?

Sam Singleton

Norton VPN’s Home windows app and Android app provide a selection between WireGuard, OpenVPN, and its personal proprietary Mimic protocol. Mac and iOS units can select from WireGuard, IPSec, or Mimic protocols.

Norton’s Mimic protocol is designed to be ultra-effective at getting round geo-blocked content material corresponding to streaming providers. And whereas in my testing it did simply that, it did decelerate my connection fairly a bit. I’d nonetheless suggest sticking with WireGuard more often than not because it provides you the most effective combination of velocity and safety.

Norton VPN has a no-logs coverage which was confirmed by way of unbiased audit by safety agency Versprite most not too long ago in late 2025. That is the second such audit the VPN has undergone and it’s good to see the service is sticking with common audits. Moreover, Norton VPN underwent an unbiased audit — additionally by Versprite — on its proprietary Mimic protocol which decided its use poses no privateness danger to customers.

In response to the corporate’s Product Privateness Discover, Norton VPN collects a number of layers of non-browsing information that customers ought to pay attention to. This contains account data like your e mail and nation, system and app telemetry corresponding to OS, diagnostics, and crash studies, and IP-related information used to function the service. Whereas this isn’t tied to your shopping exercise, it might nonetheless paint a partial image of how and whenever you use the VPN.

When it comes to retention, connection occasions to the VPN are saved for as much as 12 months, utility occasions (corresponding to set up, updates, and system title/sort) are saved for as much as 18 months, and the cumulative sum of information transmitted — however crucially, not the contents — are saved for as much as 18 months as effectively. The important thing takeaway is that whereas your on-line exercise isn’t logged, supporting information about your utilization persists for longer than privacy-conscious customers could like.

The VPN service and father or mother firm Norton are all based mostly within the U.S. which is an energetic member of the 5 Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance and infamous for having intrusive information privateness legal guidelines.

If privateness is your fundamental concern, it’s value taking a tough have a look at Norton’s privateness coverage for your self. Norton VPN is stable for on a regular basis use — like defending your site visitors on public Wi-Fi or hiding exercise out of your ISP — but it surely falls in need of the strictest privateness requirements. General, it’s fairly non-public for informal customers, however might not be superb for these in search of most anonymity.

Is Norton VPN value it?

Norton VPN has come a great distance from its origins as a fundamental antivirus additional. At this time, it delivers robust speeds, a clear interface, and all the performance customers count on from a severe VPN.

However the nearer you look, the extra it nonetheless appears like a safety product sporting a VPN’s clothes. Information retention insurance policies, U.S. jurisdiction, and a smaller server community maintain it a step behind the privacy-first heavyweights.

Nonetheless, it’s a great match for on a regular basis customers who need comfort and reliability. Its simple design and constant efficiency make it particularly interesting for customers who need a VPN that doesn’t require a lot setup or tweaking.

Editor’s be aware: As a result of on-line providers are sometimes iterative, gaining new options and efficiency enhancements over time, this assessment is topic to vary with the intention to precisely replicate the present state of the service. Any adjustments to textual content or our last assessment verdict can be famous on the prime of this text.