ExpressVPN Review

ExpressVPN collects less data than the vast majority of VPNs. It also offers an anonymous payment method when signing up, and its diskless server network means the service can’t log any activity data.

However, ExpressVPN does collect some anonymous connection logs, such as the date of your last connection and your bandwidth usage. This data is only used for diagnostic purposes and to improve the service.

Importantly, a third party can’t use this information to identify you from your web activity. Real-world tests, like server raids and third-party audits, have confirmed this fact several times.

Although ExpressVPN has proven itself, we’d still much prefer if the VPN adopted a true no-logs privacy policy instead, like Private Internet Access and PrivateVPN.

You can see how ExpressVPN’s logging policy compares to other leading VPN services in the table below:

Based in a Privacy-Friendly Jurisdiction

ExpressVPN is headquartered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), an excellent jurisdiction choice for a VPN service. The BVI doesn’t have any mandatory data retention laws, making it easier for ExpressVPN to maintain the assurances made in its logging policy.

The BVI is not part of any data-sharing alliance like the Five Eyes, meaning other governments and agencies cannot force ExpressVPN to hand over any user information.

ExpressVPN Is Owned by Kape Technologies

In 2021, ExpressVPN was purchased by Kape Technologies. This acquisition was criticized as Kape previously created a software development kit (SDK) used by ad injectors and malware distributors.

Despite the controversy, we found that Kape Technologies wasn’t involved with the ad and malware distribution. Those were created by third parties using Kape’s platform.

This development platform was shut down in 2016, long before it acquired ExpressVPN. In fact, ExpressVPN’s logging and privacy practices have only improved since the acquisition. Kape also now owns two other popular VPN services: CyberGhost and Private Internet Access.

You can read more about ExpressVPN’s streaming performance in the following sections.

Can Access US Netflix & 17 Other Regions

In every test for the past 12 months, ExpressVPN always worked with US Netflix. The videos loaded instantly and streamed in HD without any buffering.

However, we found that ExpressVPN’s default US server doesn’t stream Netflix. Instead, you’ll have to manually connect to the New Jersey - 1 server location.

Other VPNs automatically connect you to a server optimized for streaming, so we’d like to see ExpressVPN do the same.

ExpressVPN unblocks all major streaming sites without issues.

Unlike most other VPN review websites, we also test every VPN with Netflix in every server location. We retest these weekly to ensure this data is accurate.

Here are the results we recorded when testing ExpressVPN with popular Netflix locations. You can see how often ExpressVPN can access each region.

Disappointingly, ExpressVPN doesn’t work at all with some popular Netflix libraries, like South Korea and Mexico. Windscribe is a better choice if you want to unblock international Netflix libraries.

Streams YouTube TV, Hulu & All Other US Streaming Sites

When using ExpressVPN, we could access US streaming services from anywhere. The VPN worked with Disney+, Prime Video, Hulu, HBO Max, and it works to bypass YouTube TV blocks.

Unlike Netflix, every site was accessible with any US ExpressVPN server, including New York and San Francisco.

ExpressVPN streams US streaming sites from anywhere.

In each case, videos loaded within one second. The videos always stayed at the maximum quality of 4K or 1080p and didn’t buffer at any stage.

Unblocks BBC iPlayer & Sky Go

ExpressVPN bypasses BBC iPlayer’s geo-blocks on all five of its UK servers. Using it, we streamed live and on-demand content in HD, including Match of the Day and Top Gear.

All of ExpressVPN’s UK servers work with BBC iPlayer.

Until recently, ExpressVPN was a poor choice for BBC iPlayer. Before, you’d have to use the VPN’s browser extensions or MediaStreamer Smart DNS service. We’re pleased ExpressVPN has focused on improving its streaming performance.

We also found the VPN to be a top choice for accessing other UK streaming platforms. It worked with Sky Go, Now, Channel 4, and ITVX. It’s also the best VPN for France, able to unblock every French streaming service.

Safe Choice for Kodi Streaming

With its excellent app for Firestick and Android TV Kodi boxes, ExpressVPN is a top choice for hiding Kodi activity from your ISP.

Connected to it, we streamed non-copyrighted content from popular Kodi add-ons, including Popcornflix and Crackle.

ExpressVPN works to bypass geo-blocks on legitimate Kodi add-ons.

To test ExpressVPN’s speeds, we connected to ExpressVPN servers in six different continents. We use a 100Mbps internet connection, similar to your baseline speed at home.

Here’s a table showing ExpressVPN’s speed test results:

As the data shows, connecting to a nearby server barely impacted our download speed, with a loss of just 3%. Regardless of your location, you can expect similar high speeds when connecting to nearby servers.

To put this into context, you can see how ExpressVPN’s local speed performance compares to other leading VPNs in the chart below:

As you can see, ExpressVPN is 16Mbps faster than PureVPN when connected to a nearby server. It’s also slightly faster than CyberGhost and NordVPN, with an average of approximately 2%.

However, we’ve observed a decline in ExpressVPN’s international speeds recently, and it’s no longer the fastest VPN for far-away servers. Compared to our previous tests, its speeds have decreased by 27% in South Africa and 7% in Germany.

Fast Ping for Lag-Free Gaming

ExpressVPN’s strong speed performance makes it a top choice for gaming. We recorded a ping time of 8ms on a nearby server, which is faster than almost every other VPN we’ve reviewed.

Using ExpressVPN on Xbox, our connection was quick enough for fast-paced games, like Warzone and CS:GO. The VPN was always fast enough for competitive gaming on every local server we tested.

ExpressVPN is the best VPN we’ve used for gaming.

The VPN also has servers in countries like Egypt and Argentina, where you’ll encounter easier gaming lobbies. But as is typical, ExpressVPN’s ping time increases significantly on further-away servers. Unless you’re playing a slower-paced game, we recommend you stick to servers in your country.

ExpressVPN Uses a Proprietary VPN Protocol

ExpressVPN uses a different VPN tunneling protocol than other VPN services. We’d prefer if the VPN used more established technologies, as these have been tested for longer and by more people.

ExpressVPN’s default protocol is Lightway, which was developed by ExpressVPN and is exclusive to it. Thankfully, Lightway encrypts traffic using the AES-256 cipher, a very secure encryption method you can trust to conceal your most sensitive data.

Lightway is open-source, meaning anyone can inspect its code base. Although this is an excellent way to build trust in a proprietary tunneling protocol, it’s still not as trustworthy as a widely-used open-source protocol like WireGuard.

Lightway has performed well in our security tests, but we’d like to see ExpressVPN at least add WireGuard as an option.

Like most other VPN services, ExpressVPN uses Perfect Forward Secrecy, a 4096-bit RSA key, and SHA-512 HMAC authentication. Put simply, this conceals your web activity and ensures an attacker can’t alter your internet data in real time.

Kill Switch Stops IP Address Leaks

All of ExpressVPN’s apps include its ‘Network Lock’ kill switch. We rarely see kill switches available on every platform, especially Fire TV and iOS, so we’re pleased ExpressVPN has maintained functionality across all devices.

To verify ExpressVPN’s kill switch works as expected, we tested it using our in-house kill switch testing tool. This checks for IP address leaks after an unexpected connection drop.

As you can see in the screenshot below, ExpressVPN’s kill switch successfully prevented our true IP address from leaking outside of the VPN tunnel.

ExpressVPN’s kill switch isn’t fully secure on macOS.

That said, we did discover that ExpressVPN’s macOS app leaks IP addresses when changing to a different server location. The app shows you a warning message before you do this, but it’s disappointing that ExpressVPN has not fixed this vulnerability altogether.

Passed Our IPv6, DNS & WebRTC Leak Tests

We ran ExpressVPN through our IP, DNS, and WebRTC leak tests. The VPN passed all tests, meaning we recorded no network traffic leaks and all our personal information was hidden.

As shown in the screenshot below, ExpressVPN masked our real UK network details.

ExpressVPN passed all of our leak tests.

ExpressVPN also uses first-party DNS servers. In other words, ExpressVPN handles and encrypts your DNS requests, not your ISP. Very few VPN services have these servers.

For added security, we’d like to see ExpressVPN support IPv6 addresses in the future. Currently, ExpressVPN simply blocks your true IPv6 address and doesn’t replace it with one from the VPN server. This risks leaking your IPv6 address if the blocking functionality fails.

Browser Extensions Securely Encrypt Traffic

Many other VPN browser extensions we’ve tested are basic web proxies that don’t encrypt network traffic.

ExpressVPN’s apps and browser extensions successfully encrypted all our traffic, including internet activity outside of the web browser. We checked for this using Wireshark, a tool that allows you to analyze individual packets.

We found that the VPN successfully concealed the websites we visited, and obfuscated data on insecure HTTP websites.

Head of Research, Simon Migliano, tested ExpressVPN’s encryption with Wireshark.

Diskless Servers Prevent Logging

Unlike most other VPNs that store server information on hard drives, ExpressVPN’s servers are diskless. Named TrustServer, this feature prevents the VPN from logging any of your usage data and it makes it impossible for a hacker to extract data from the server.

ExpressVPN is one of the only VPN services to have had its diskless server network audited by a third party. Cure53, the auditor, confirmed that all of ExpressVPN’s servers are diskless and that “No IP addresses or PII [personally identifiable information] can be written to physical disk”.

All of its servers are owned and operated by ExpressVPN, too, meaning they aren’t rented from a third party. We prefer this as it minimizes the possibility of a server being interfered with by a hacker or other bad actors.

As you can see, ExpressVPN has servers in many locations. In each continent, the VPN allows you to get an IP address from many more countries than other top VPNs, including 15 more than PIA VPN.

That said, some popular regions are still missing. We’d like to see ExpressVPN add virtual locations in the UAE and Russia in a future update.

ExpressVPN server list on iOS (left) and Android (right)

Fewer City-Based Server Locations Than Other VPNs

ExpressVPN lets you connect to servers in specific cities in 14 countries. This feature is useful for connecting to the closest possible server to you, or for accessing localized content like avoiding MLB blackouts or watching out-of-market NFL games.

However, ExpressVPN provides fewer city-based servers than some other VPN services. In the US for example, ExpressVPN has servers in 12 states. Private Internet Access allows you to get an IP address from 50 states and HMA from 48.

We found it extremely easy to install, set up, and use ExpressVPN. We chose our subscription plan, created an account, and entered our payment details.

After we subscribed, we received a confirmation email with an activation code and a link to the installation guide for our device.

Thankfully, ExpressVPN updated its design in 2021. Before then, we criticized it for looking outdated and for being difficult to use on some platforms. The new update looks a lot better and keeps the design consistent across devices.

Here’s a more detailed look at the interface of each ExpressVPN application:

Desktop & Laptop (Windows & Mac)

Although many VPNs release subpar Mac apps compared to the Windows versions, both ExpressVPN desktop apps are practically identical. This is a good thing, as ExpressVPN’s desktop apps are the most intuitive VPN apps we’ve used.

You can customize the home screen to include shortcuts to your most frequently visited websites. We prefer the app’s design without them, though, so we’re glad you can disable this feature in the settings.

80% of the time we were using ExpressVPN, we simply had to open the app and click the large ‘on’ button in the center of the home screen. We only had to leave the home screen when changing to an international server location, like when accessing geo-blocked websites.

The VPN’s server list is easy to navigate, too. ‘Recommended’ servers are selected by default, but it doesn’t reveal the whole server list. We had to click ‘All Locations’ to see the full list, or we used the search bar to find a specific location.
That said, we would like to see some information about each server, like ping and server load. Without it, it’s impossible to determine which server will provide the best connection.

Mobile (iPhone & Android)

ExpressVPN’s mobile apps look and feel very similar to the desktop versions. The interface is taken up by the large connect button and you change servers by using the same server list.

The main difference is that the Android app includes Protection Summary in the bottom half of the home screen. This tells you how long you’ve been connected to an ExpressVPN server over the past week, as well as the IP address of the VPN server.

Frankly, we don’t find the Protection Summary feature useful at all and it makes the app worse to use. The information it provides isn’t practical and is intimidating to beginners. Thankfully, Protection Summary can be disabled in the app’s settings.

We’d much prefer if the VPN used this space to provide more functional buttons, like PIA’s mobile apps, where you can connect to up to six server locations right from the home screen.

The one downside is the lack of dark mode on the mobile apps, though.

Linux App

Disappointingly, ExpressVPN doesn’t provide an app for Linux with a GUI (graphical user interface). Instead, you’ll have to run the app using the command line.

Unless you’re an advanced user, ExpressVPN is very difficult to install and use on Linux. We much prefer VPNs with true Linux apps, like Private Internet Access and Proton VPN. With these, you can use the app just like on every other platform.

Operating ExpressVPN is difficult on Linux.

Router App

Unlike every other service, ExpressVPN has a browser-based app for routers. This makes ExpressVPN by far the best router VPN.

Setting up ExpressVPN’s router app requires no technical knowledge and is just as intuitive once installed. You use it the same way as any other ExpressVPN app, with a GUI for changing servers and adjusting any VPN settings.

To avoid set up altogether, you can purchase ExpressVPN’s Aircove router. This comes with ExpressVPN pre-installed, but it’s expensive.

ExpressVPN’s router app is simple to set up and use.

With VPNs that don’t provide a router app, you’ll have to download a new server file and reboot the router every time you want to change your IP address. This took as long as 15 minutes in our tests, while ExpressVPN’s router app can do it in only five seconds.

CAPTCHA Issue

When using ExpressVPN to browse the web, we encounter CAPTCHAs more often than with any other VPN service. This significantly worsens the experience of using it as these CAPTCHAs often take over 10 seconds to finish.

ExpressVPN triggers CAPCTHAs more often than any other VPN.

To fix this, we’d like to see ExpressVPN refresh the IP addresses on its servers more often or limit the number of people who can connect to a single server IP address. A dedicated IP feature would also be useful for users who are happy to pay extra.

Streaming Devices (Fire TV, Apple TV & Android TV)

ExpressVPN’s apps for Fire TV, Apple TV, and Android TV are well-designed and user-friendly, featuring a dark mode interface that made it easier to read text on our TV screen.

That said, the addition of a light mode option would be beneficial for user preference. The apps organize server locations by continent and use an intuitive visual design, simplifying the process of selecting the desired server location.

The app’s general UI is consistent with the other apps, too, so you won’t have an issue connecting to a server or changing any settings.

MediaStreamer

MediaStreamer is ExpressVPN’s Smart DNS tool. It allows you to bypass geo-blocks on devices that don’t support VPN software, like Smart TVs and game consoles.

In our research, we configured MediaStreamer with Apple TV by manually changing the device’s DNS settings.

Setting up MediaStreamer on Apple TV.

Though the set-up is simple, you’ll have to update your IP address on the ExpressVPN website every time it changes. If you don’t, your connection will stop working.

We want ExpressVPN to add some secure DNS options, like DNS-over-HTTPS. That way, your IP address isn’t required for authentication, so you won’t have to update your IP address each time.

Disappointingly, ExpressVPN also doesn’t say which streaming services MediaStreamer works with. Currently, to find out, you’ll have to contact its customer support team. It often took over five minutes for us to get an answer.

Most other VPNs with a Smart DNS feature provide a full list of compatible streaming apps on their website.

Browser Extensions

ExpressVPN’s browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge are essentially remote controls for the desktop app. As a result, they’re just as easy to use as the desktop apps.

All of the browser-specific features, like WebRTC blocking and HTTPS everywhere, are enabled by default. You don’t need to configure any advanced settings to benefit from all of the extension’s features.

Oddly, unlike its desktop apps, ExpressVPN’s browser extensions have a dark mode interface. We’d like this as an option on the VPN’s mobile and desktop applications.

With its strong AES-256 encryption and private logging policy, ExpressVPN is one of the safest VPNs for torrenting. Unlike some other VPN services, there’s no record of ExpressVPN ever forwarding DMCA requests to users.

We tested ExpressVPN with torrent clients like qBittorrent, uTorrent, and Deluge. In every instance, the VPN concealed our IP address and all other personal information. All of our activity was masked from our ISP and other third parties.

ExpressVPN is a top VPN for downloading torrent files.

Fast P2P File Transfers, but No Port Forwarding

We also measured ExpressVPN’s torrenting speeds when running it through our in-house P2P speed test process.

Even though it doesn’t support port forwarding, we found that ExpressVPN is one of the fastest VPNs for torrenting. ExpressVPN’s average speed was 9.4MiB/s, meaning we could download any sized torrent file almost as quickly as without a VPN.

Here’s how quickly we could download a 20GB torrent file with ExpressVPN compared to other top VPNs:

It’s not the very fastest P2P VPN we’ve tested, but ExpressVPN’s impact on torrent download times is almost unnoticeable.

ExpressVPN works similarly across every platform, but some features aren’t available everywhere. For example, you won’t be able to use split tunnelling on its iOS or Linux apps.

Using MediaStreamer, you can’t select an IP address location manually. Instead, it’ll only work with a set list of compatible streaming services, such as US Netflix, HBO Max, and BBC iPlayer.

You’ll have to use ExpressVPN’s router app to change location, like for streaming Japanese Netflix.

The VPN’s browser extensions are unique in encrypting all web traffic, not just your browser activity. You can read more about this in our security analysis of ExpressVPN’s Chrome extension.

ExpressVPN’s apps include an ad and tracker blocker, named Threat Manager.

According to our data, Threat Manager only blocked 60% of ads and trackers. Private Internet Access and Atlas VPN prevented over 80%.

As it stands, Threat Manager is a useful feature that’ll enhance protection of your web activity from data profiling. But there are better alternatives available.

Technical Features We’d Like to See

ExpressVPN has fewer advanced features than other top premium VPNs. Here are some technical features we’d like ExpressVPN to add:

Although ExpressVPN is missing some common VPN features, like those above, the app’s simplicity is one of the VPN’s most significant advantages. If it adds the requested features, we hope it implements these in the background to avoid overloading users with confusing options.