ExpressVPN vs Norton Secure VPN 2024

Doris Muthuri

Former Senior Writer

ExpressVPN and Norton Secure VPN both have strong reputations to live up to. The former is a major player in the VPN space with a premium price tag, while the latter is the product of a well-known security software company. So, do these VPNs live up to user expectations?

I tested and compared both VPN's features and abilities side-by-side to show you what they offer and how they fit different activities. All in all, I found that ExpressVPN met (and exceeded!) my expectations, but Norton Secure VPN left a lot to be desired. Its plans are more affordable, but it’s far less reliable for streaming, works on fewer devices, and isn’t as fast.

Overall, my top recommendation is ExpressVPN. It's fast, reliable, and has an extensive worldwide server network. Plus, it regularly demonstrates a far greater commitment to your privacy and security compared to Norton Secure VPN. You can try it for 30 days risk-free, as it’s backed by a trustworthy money-back guarantee.

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Short on Time? Here Are My Key Findings

Streaming — ExpressVPN Offers Reliable Streaming With Most Platforms

My international team and I tested each VPN with the licensed streaming platforms in our respective regions. We found that ExpressVPN works well for streaming both major platforms and regional services. While Norton Secure VPN’s streaming quality was okay, it struggled to work with some popular platforms.

My colleague in the US tried both services with Hulu and Prime Video and had the best experience with ExpressVPN. They were able to watch Vanderpump Villa in HD with no buffering. Our team members in the UK, Ireland, and Canada reported the same reliable, high-quality streaming with their regional platforms, too.

Videos loaded quickly and played back without any buffering

In comparison, our team members noted that the streaming speeds were more inconsistent with Norton Secure VPN. My US colleague watched The Never Ever Mets on Max, but they occasionally encountered some buffering while streaming.

My teammates in France and Australia could watch their local Netflix with Norton VPN connected

I also like that ExpressVPN has a Smart DNS called MediaStreamer that works with more devices. If you’re in the US or UK, you can use this to stream on smart TVs and gaming consoles that don’t support full VPN apps. Unfortunately, Norton VPN doesn’t offer Smart DNS.

Winner

ExpressVPN is more reliable and offers a more consistent streaming quality than Norton Secure VPN.

Server Network — ExpressVPN Offers a Slightly Broader Global Reach

ExpressVPN has a slightly larger network than Norton Secure VPN. While they both offer roughly the same number of servers worldwide, the former covers more countries. In addition, you can choose city-level servers with ExpressVPN in most locations; you can’t do the same with the latter.

If you're in the US, you can easily find a server near you for faster speeds

ExpressVPN has optimized all of its 3,000 servers for streaming, torrenting, and gaming. Additionally, all ExpressVPN servers are automatically obfuscated, allowing them to easily overcome tough network blocks and firewalls, such as those found in schools and offices. Norton Secure VPN only has one location available for torrenting, which made me concerned about server congestion during peak times.

Winner

ExpressVPN takes the win because its network covers more countries, and each server is P2P-friendly.

Speed — ExpressVPN Is Faster, Particularly on Long-Distance Servers

Our speed tester in the UK frequently tests VPNs using various server locations to gauge their speed over time on local and long-distance connections. For each VPN, they tested its fastest available protocol, which is Lightway for ExpressVPN and WireGuard for Norton Secure VPN. They have a base speed of 227.31 Mbps.

Lightway is ExpressVPN’s proprietary protocol. While WireGuard is the industry standard for a good balance of speed and data privacy, our tests regularly show that Lightway is the fastest VPN protocol currently available.

We found that ExpressVPN consistently had faster speeds than Norton on almost all servers. On nearby UK servers, we found a speed drop of only 1%, and a long-distance connection to the US only caused a 7% drop.

Our tester noticed no difference from their base connection

Norton Secure VPN was a little slower on nearby servers, with a speed drop of 12%. However, speeds dropped considerably more the further away we connected — using a New York server caused a drop of 43%.

A speed drop this size can be frustrating on slower connections

The only exception was when we tested each VPN’s Japan servers. Norton came out slightly ahead here, which I found surprising. However, there wasn’t too much difference, and we expect a large drop on these servers given the distance from Japan to the UK.

Winner

ExpressVPN was consistently faster in our tests on almost all servers thanks to its proprietary protocol, Lightway. While Norton Secure VPN wasn’t bad on local servers, it had a considerable speed drop on long-distance servers.

Gaming — Norton VPN Had Slightly Lower Ping on Most Servers

Ping rate measures the response time between your input and the on-screen reactions. Ideally, you need a ping below 100 ms for responsive gaming, and I recommend lower than this for fast-paced games.

As with our speed section, our UK-based speed tester gathered this data with a base ping of 28 ms.

With Norton VPN, I could play games without lag on most servers. However, when I tested the servers in Japan and Australia, I experienced significant lag, and my character would freeze randomly. But this wasn’t surprising since these countries are more than 10,000 km away from my location in Nairobi.

I never experienced delays on any of the games I played

Although ExpressVPN had a higher ping than Norton on many servers, I didn’t struggle at all playing games. Even on some long-distance servers that had a ping of over 100 ms, I could play Roblox without noticeable lag.

As with most VPNs we’ve tested, both ExpressVPN and Norton VPN have high ping rates on long-distance servers. So, I recommend connecting to a server as close to you as possible when securing your gaming sessions.

Winner

Norton wins for gaming — it had a slightly lower ping on most servers.

Torrenting — ExpressVPN Supports Torrenting on All Servers

ExpressVPN allows P2P file sharing on all its servers, so you can torrent from a server close to you, no matter your location. On the other hand, Norton only supports torrenting on one server in the Netherlands. This might not be ideal if you're far away.

Both VPNs take your privacy while torrenting very seriously. They have a kill switch to halt your connection if the VPN disconnects accidentally, and an IP and DNS leak protection so that people in the same torrent can’t see your data.

I also like that ExpressVPN supports port forwarding to improve your torrenting speeds. Norton Secure VPN lacks this feature.

Winner

ExpressVPN allows torrenting on nearly all its servers and supports port forwarding, both of which will provide faster torrenting speeds than Norton Secure VPN.

Security — ExpressVPN Wins With More Security Features

ExpressVPN has advanced security features that you won’t find with Norton Secure VPN. I found this particularly surprising given that Norton Secure VPN is owned by a well-known cybersecurity company.

ExpressVPN stands out with its proprietary Lightway protocol, which is designed for faster speeds without sacrificing security. I particularly like that Lightway’s code is open-source, which means anyone can inspect it for bugs and vulnerabilities. On the other hand, Norton Secure VPN primarily uses WireGuard, which is the industry standard but is known to contain several security flaws.

The Automatic option lets the app pick the best protocol based on your network

Norton Secure VPN doesn’t even offer obfuscation, which surprised me, given that most VPNs I test and review at least offer this as an option in your settings. Meanwhile, ExpressVPN’s obfuscation is automatic, and it kicks in as soon as it detects network filters or blocks. So, this VPN is more useful if you regularly use your school or work’s internet to go online, as these networks usually block VPNs.

ExpressVPN also uses RAM-based servers that erase your personal data upon rebooting. In contrast, Norton Secure VPN employs traditional hard disks that retain your data.

The only area in which these two match up is that they both offer built-in ad-blockers. However, ExpressVPN is considerably more transparent about which blocklists it uses to stop ads.

Winner

ExpressVPN offers several more advanced security features that make it the overall winner.

Privacy — ExpressVPN Is in a Privacy-Friendly Jurisdiction

Both ExpressVPN and Norton Secure VPN have strict no-logs policies, and each claims that they retain no personal data. However, ExpressVPN's commitment is reinforced by an independent audit of its privacy policy, which adds a layer of trustworthiness. In addition, various other aspects of its service (like Lightway and its mobile apps) have been audited and verified over the years.

It only stores your email and billing information

ExpressVPN also responds quickly to privacy breaches. In February 2024, it was alerted to a bug in its apps that caused DNS leaks with its split tunneling feature. This was immediately disabled, and a patch was issued in April that fixed the leak. ExpressVPN then followed this with a white paper detailing the issue for the wider cybersecurity community and commissioned an audit to verify that the issue had been fixed.

Plus, it’s headquartered in the British Virgin Islands, a jurisdiction without stringent data retention laws and outside the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliance.

On the other hand, Norton Secure VPN has not been independently audited and is headquartered in the US, a country with strict data surveillance laws and a core member of the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliance. This may raise concerns about privacy and data retention.

Norton Secure VPN’s privacy policy is a little concerning, too. I appreciate that it’s clear about why it collects certain types of data, but it doesn’t change the fact that it gathers a lot of information.

It also collects VPN service data "if suspicious patterns are detected"

Winner

ExpressVPN’s privacy policy has been proven by independent audits. Plus, it is based in the British Virgin Islands, a more privacy-friendly jurisdiction.

Works in China — ExpressVPN Is More Reliable in China

China runs the Great Firewall (GFW), the most stringent internet security system globally. It constantly updates its VPN-blocking technology, which means the status of these tools within the country is tricky. Even the best VPNs stop working in China occasionally, and it takes a lot of resources to keep up with this constantly evolving technological landscape.

That said, ExpressVPN is the most reliable VPN for China. While customer support doesn’t guarantee that it works 100% of the time, it does work more consistently than most VPNs on the market. It also offers servers in Macau and Hong Kong, both of which are exempt from mainland China’s data tracking and storage requirements for VPNs.

On the other hand, Norton Secure VPN’s customer support confirmed that it doesn’t work in China at all. And, unlike ExpressVPN, it doesn’t work in other restrictive countries like Cuba and Russia.

Winner

ExpressVPN is still a reliable choice for China, even if it may not work all of the time.

Installation & Ease of Use — ExpressVPN Is More Intuitive

Both VPNs are easy to set up and install. It took me less than 5 minutes to install each, and their apps are simple to navigate.

Although both VPNs have intuitive interfaces, ExpressVPN’s interface feels cleaner and less cluttered. It also has essential security features that come pre-configured (like DNS leak protection), so you don’t have to adjust anything.

ExpressVPN's Smart Location feature is a winner for me. It suggests the optimal server, considering factors like distance, speed, and latency. Every time I tried it, the speed drop was hardly noticeable. Norton Secure VPN offers a similar feature (Fastest Location), but this didn’t work as smoothly — I often found a speedier connection on other servers that it didn’t suggest.

Besides Smart Location, ExpressVPN also shows Recent and Recommended locations

ExpressVPN is the only one of the two that works on routers, too. This lets you encrypt all of the internet-connected devices in your home, including Plex streaming devices and Internet of Things (IoT) devices like smart doorbells. These devices can be insecure, so it’s a good extra safety net to have. Plus, unlike other VPNs, ExpressVPN’s router app doesn’t require manual installation, so it’s really user-friendly.

Winner

Both VPNs are quick to set up and intuitive, but ExpressVPN is more user-friendly with its easy-to-install router app.

Reliability & Support — ExpressVPN Wins With Faster Response Times

Both VPNs provide 24/7 support through live chat. ExpressVPN's support agents are friendly and knowledgeable, and they respond promptly. However, I found Norton Secure VPN's live chat system frustrating because it requires interacting with an AI chatbot and providing personal details upfront. It’s also difficult to find this option on the website.

On a positive note, Norton Secure VPN is the only one that offers 24/7 phone support, which is uncommon among VPN services. It also offers a community forum.

Winner

ExpressVPN’s support is easier to access and has more informative agents.

Tips on Choosing Between ExpressVPN vs Norton Secure VPN

There are several factors you must consider when deciding between ExpressVPN and Norton Secure VPN. Here are a few that I considered to determine which VPN is better:

• Smooth streaming — My team and I tried out both VPNs to ensure they provide reliable connections to our respective regions’ licensed streaming services. Theoretically, you could use a VPN to access content from another area, but this might violate copyright laws and the platform's terms and conditions.
• Fast speeds — Using a VPN typically slows down your internet speed due to added encryption and the longer distance to VPN servers. I tested both VPNs to find out how they perform across both short and long distances.
• Server networks — I evaluated their server network because more servers mean less trouble finding one nearby for faster speeds. Also, with more servers, there's less overcrowding to deal with.
• Robust security features — I investigated whether they offer strong encryption, a kill switch, and protection against IP/DNS leaks. Extra features like obfuscation and a RAM-based network are a bonus.
• Respectable privacy practices — I verified if the VPNs keep logs, ideally with an independent audit for confirmation. It's even better if it's located in a privacy-friendly jurisdiction that’s not part of the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliance.
• Easy to use —I confirmed that both VPNs offer user-friendly apps for various devices, with straightforward installation and usage processes. I also checked how accessible the security settings are.
• Trustworthy money-back guarantee — I checked that they both offered a money-back guarantee, so you can try out a VPN without any financial risk. If it’s not for you, it’s easy to claim a full refund.

ExpressVPN vs Norton Secure VPN — Reddit Opinions

ExpressVPN is praised for being reliable and fast, with many Redditors switching to it for better speeds and commending its live support. On the other hand, Norton gets criticized for not working well for activities like streaming and torrenting.