Private Internet Access alternatives: who should switch, and what they give up

PIA scores 5.13 out of 10 and ranks 9th of 377 on VPNRadarLab. Switch if you face censorship (its bypass sub-score is zero) or want out of US jurisdiction; stay if you value the flat renewal price and unlimited devices. Three of the twelve alternatives beat it overall: CitadelVPN at 8.74 (rank 1), PureVPN and Surfshark at 5.30 each.

A zero for blocked networks, and the quieter gaps in PIA's score

Bypass is where PIA loses everything: no stealth or obfuscation mode is published, and neither are Shadowsocks, VLESS Reality, Trojan or Hysteria2. Only WireGuard and OpenVPN are documented. The network sub-score of 4.0 suffers from what is not said: no server count, no claims for Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Disney+ or Prime Video. The US registration and Five Eyes membership wipe out all alliance points in privacy, where PIA holds 6.3 on the strength of a Deloitte no-logs audit and a proven-in-court policy (per PIA's own claim). Security at 5.7 misses credit for items not published, such as leak protection, outside audits and 2FA, while the kill switch, RAM-only servers and open-source apps do earn points. Strengths worth naming: unlimited devices, 24/7 live chat, wide platform coverage and extras like split tunnelling, MACE ad blocking and crypto payments via BitPay.

What each higher or cheaper candidate trades with PIA

Getting past VPN blocks and DPI

Eight of the twelve alternatives outscore PIA's zero here, though most offer a single stealth mode: PureVPN has obfuscated servers, Surfshark has NoBorders, ExpressVPN an obfuscated Lightway, and Namecheap FastVPN and FastVPN (Namecheap) run OpenVPN Scramble, while IPVanish and CopVPN add one obfuscation mode each. Only CitadelVPN publishes several protocols (VLESS, Hysteria2, Shadowsocks, Trojan). FastestVPN and CyberGhost VPN score 0 on bypass too, so they change nothing on a blocked network. The full breakdown of every stealth mode sits in VPNRadarLab's obfuscated VPN ranking.

Out of the US and the Five Eyes, and what that does to privacy

Five services operate from countries with no alliance membership: CitadelVPN (Panama), PureVPN and ExpressVPN (BVI), FastestVPN (Cayman), CyberGhost VPN (Romania). Surfshark sits in the Netherlands, a 9 Eyes member. The catch: moving abroad does not raise the privacy sub-score by itself. Only CitadelVPN, at 9.3, beats PIA's 6.3; the others publish less proof and land at 5.7 or below. Five alternatives (IPVanish, CopVPN, both Namecheap listings and Intego) share the American, Five Eyes registration, making them a sideways move on this front.

The renewal bill you would be trading

PIA's renewal ratio of 1.08 is the lowest published on this page, and unlike PureVPN, Surfshark, ExpressVPN and FastestVPN, which refund only the initial purchase, PIA refunds a renewal too. ExpressVPN, CyberGhost VPN, IPVanish and Namecheap FastVPN renew at two to three and a half times their opening price.

ExpressVPN, CyberGhost VPN and Intego answer to the same parent

All three belong to Kape Technologies, the same parent as PIA (Private Internet Access, Inc., Denver): ExpressVPN's legal entity is Express Technologies Ltd. (parent Kape Technologies PLC), CyberGhost VPN's is CyberGhost S.R.L. (parent Kape Technologies PLC), and Intego's is Intego, Inc., which its privacy policy places in the Kape Technologies corporate group. Each scores below PIA's 5.13, so switching to one of them keeps the same parent company. ExpressVPN still brings an offshore registration and an obfuscation mode; CyberGhost VPN brings a 45-day refund on longer plans; Intego is a Mac and iPhone security-suite VPN, a narrower product.

Private Internet Access alternatives: questions before you switch

Is there a free alternative or a trial?

CitadelVPN is the only one of the twelve with a free plan, plus a 5-day trial. PureVPN and Surfshark offer 7-day trials, Namecheap FastVPN 30 days. PIA has neither a free plan nor a trial.

Can I get my money back from PIA after switching?

Yes, within 30 days of the initial purchase or of a renewal, after identity verification. A new account within 3 months of a refund does not qualify, and store or gift-card purchases go through the store or processor.

Which alternatives keep unlimited devices?

Surfshark (fair usage), IPVanish, CopVPN and CitadelVPN publish unlimited devices. PureVPN, ExpressVPN Basic and FastestVPN cap at 10, CyberGhost VPN at 7.

Stay or switch, by how you use PIA

Censored networks: pick a rival with a stealth mode from the bypass section above, most of them one obfuscation mode deep. Jurisdiction concerns: the five alliance-free services, but check the privacy sub-score first, since most of them publish less proof than PIA. Streaming: FastestVPN advertises a Netflix USA server and the two Namecheap listings dedicated streaming servers for Netflix and Disney+ (providers' claims, not test results), while PIA makes no such claim. Tight budget long-term: PIA renews at the same $73.71 every 3 years, whereas ExpressVPN, CyberGhost VPN, IPVanish and Namecheap FastVPN renew at two to three and a half times their first price. Many devices: PIA, Surfshark (fair usage), IPVanish, CopVPN and CitadelVPN publish unlimited devices, as noted in the questions above. If you want to see every sub-score behind these numbers, the full PIA review has the breakdown, and the Terms of Service cover the refund rules and how to turn off auto-renewal before you decide.