Mullvad vs IVPN in 2026: Which Privacy VPN Should You Trust?

Mullvad and IVPN are the two names privacy people recommend when someone asks for a VPN that doesn’t want to know who you are. Both let you sign up without an email. Both accept cash. Both refuse to play the “87% off, today only” game. So which one should you actually pay for?

In our scoring database Mullvad comes out ahead, 4.04/5 against 3.36/5. But the gap isn’t where most people expect it, and IVPN still wins two categories that matter.

The short answer

Pick Mullvad if you want the stronger all-round privacy VPN: it’s faster, it has ten times more servers, and every one of them runs from RAM. Pick IVPN if jurisdiction is your first filter (Gibraltar beats Sweden in our scoring) or if you want the lowest price and don’t mind paying for two years upfront.

If you also want to stream Netflix or BBC iPlayer, pick neither. More on that below.

Mullvad vs IVPN: head-to-head table

All figures come from our comparison database, scored out of 5.

Privacy: closer than the overall score suggests

On pure privacy mechanics these two are nearly twins. Both scored 5/5 on encryption and 5/5 on leak protection in our tests, with IP, DNS and WebRTC leak protection all in place. Both let you create an account as a random number, with no email address and no name. Both take cash by post, crypto and cards, so both get a perfect 5/5 on payments. If anonymous payment is your top priority, we compare more options in best VPN for anonymous payment.

Three things split them.

Jurisdiction. IVPN is registered in Gibraltar, which we score 5/5. Mullvad is a Swedish company, and Sweden is part of the Fourteen Eyes intelligence-sharing group, so it drops to 4/5. In practice, Mullvad has already shown what happens when Swedish authorities come knocking. In April 2023 police arrived at its Gothenburg office with a search warrant, and Mullvad says they left without any customer data because there was none to take. That’s about as strong a real-world no-logs test as you’ll find.

RAM-only servers. Mullvad runs its whole network on RAM-only servers (5/5). IVPN doesn’t in our data (0/5). This is the single biggest privacy gap between the two. A disk-based server can keep something by accident; a RAM-only server loses everything on reboot.

Audits. Both have had their no-logs claims checked by Cure53 and both score 4/5 here. IVPN’s no-logs audit dates from 2019, and the company has said it won’t commission further no-logs audits, preferring yearly security audits of its infrastructure and apps instead. That’s a defensible position, but it means the most recent independent look at IVPN’s logging is now seven years old.

Add it up and Mullvad’s security subtotal is 4.6/5, IVPN’s 3.8/5. Most of that difference is RAM-only servers.

Speed and network: Mullvad pulls away

This is where the overall gap really comes from. Mullvad scores 5/5 on speed in our testing, IVPN 3/5. Mullvad has 769 servers in 37 countries. IVPN has 77 servers in 31 countries, which is enough to cover the main locations but leaves little spare capacity at busy hours.

Protocols tell a similar story: 5/5 for Mullvad, 2/5 for IVPN in our scoring. One thing to know before you buy Mullvad, though: it has gone all-in on WireGuard. The company removed OpenVPN support completely on 15 January 2026. That’s fine on phones and computers, but if you run a VPN on an old router that only speaks OpenVPN, check it supports WireGuard first. IVPN still offers OpenVPN alongside WireGuard and IKEv2.

If you’re curious why the industry is moving that way, our WireGuard vs OpenVPN guide explains the trade-offs.

Streaming: don’t buy either for Netflix

Both score 2/5 on streaming. In our tests neither worked with Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, BBC iPlayer, HBO Max or Peacock. Prime Video was Variable on both. That isn’t really a flaw. Neither service markets itself as a streaming VPN, and neither seems keen to play cat and mouse with streaming platforms’ VPN detection.

If you want one subscription that does privacy well and still unblocks streaming, Proton VPN is the obvious middle ground: Swiss jurisdiction (5/5), a KPMG-audited no-logs policy, RAM-only servers and a Very Good rating on Netflix in our tests. Proton VPN scores 4.24/5 overall, higher than both.

Price: IVPN is cheaper if you commit

Mullvad’s pricing is famously simple: $5.50 a month, every month, whatever you choose. A year costs $66. There’s no 2-year plan and no promotional price that doubles on renewal.

IVPN is $6.00 for a single month, so slightly more than Mullvad. But it rewards longer plans: $60 for a year (about $5.00 a month) and $100 for two years (about $4.17 a month). Over two years IVPN saves you about $32 compared with Mullvad.

Both give you 30 days to get your money back. Prices move, so check the live numbers before buying.

Want to compare all VPNs side by side? Check our full VPN comparison table with scores across 18 criteria.

Apps, extras and support

Both cover Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android, and both score 3/5 on availability. Mullvad has a Firefox extension, IVPN a Chrome one in our data. Neither has a smart TV app.

Both include a DNS-level ad and tracker blocker (5/5 each). Support is email-first on both (3/5 each). Don’t expect a 24/7 chat agent to walk you through a router setup.

For restrictive networks, Mullvad scores 4/5 (Shadowsocks, obfuscation and Tor integration) against 3/5 for IVPN (obfuscation and Tor). If you sometimes connect from hotel or campus networks that block VPNs, Mullvad gets through more often.

Ethics is one more small point for Mullvad: 5/5 against 4/5. Both publish who owns them, and both score 5/5 on ownership transparency.

Three real-world scenarios

You want maximum privacy and you’re on fast fibre. Mullvad. RAM-only servers, a proven police-raid record and 5/5 speed. This is the use case it was built for.

You care most about which country’s courts your provider answers to. IVPN. Gibraltar outside the Fourteen Eyes earns it a better jurisdiction score, and its founder and owner is named publicly. Just accept the smaller network and the older audit.

You want a privacy VPN that your partner can also use for Netflix. Neither. Look at Proton VPN, or read our best VPN for privacy roundup for other options that balance both.

Who should choose which?

Choose Mullvad if you:

• want RAM-only servers and the fastest of the two
• need servers in more locations
• like flat pricing with no renewal surprises

Choose IVPN if you:

• rank jurisdiction above everything else
• want the lowest price over two years
• still need OpenVPN for an older device

Want more detail on Mullvad alone? Our Mullvad review and does Mullvad keep logs? cover it in depth.