CyberGhost vs. ExpressVPN – Which One is Right for You [Comparison]

There are a handful of obvious leaders in the VPN market, and that definitely includes both ExpressVPN and CyberGhost. Both pack an incredible array of privacy features and impressive performance into streamlined software, but ultimately only one can best serve your needs. Read on for our in-depth CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN comparison of the two best VPNs.

When doing a CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN evaluation, you quickly realize how hard it can be to make a choice. Free VPNs cost nothing but can compromise your security, steal your data and even use your process for criminal ends (like botnet attacks). The fastest VPNs often have poor user interfaces or cost a proverbial arm and leg. In other words, virtually every provider and brand comes with its own unique advantages and disadvantages.

Two VPNs that stand out from the rest are ExpressVPN and CyberGhost. If you’ve been researching VPNs (or reading AddictiveTips) for any length of time, you’ve likely heard about both — and may be wondering how the two measure up against each other. In this CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN article, we’ll give you the blow-by-blow and compare the two on speed, server networks, ease of installation, ease of use and more. We’ll also give you some of the best discounts available for both services, right after introducing both of them below.

1. ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN consistently ranks as one of the top VPN services on the market across the board. It has a large server network (3,000+ servers in 105 countries) that covers every continent on earth, except for Antarctica. The servers are high-quality, meaning connections are lightning fast and latencies are low. Speed and bandwidth are both unlimited, meaning you can use the service as much as you want.

ExpressVPN works across every major operating system — including Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Linux, and more — so you can protect all your devices under a single subscription. All these features, combined with an attractive user interface that immediately feels intuitive, make ExpressVPN fun and easy to use.

On the security front, ExpressVPN uses 256-bit encryption protocols that are military-grade and virtually impossible to break. This includes OpenVPN technologies — UDP and TCP — that combine speed and flexibility and have never been cracked with any consistency. Features that supplement the encryption include a kill switch that stops your apps and browsers from leaking data if your connection suddenly stops. There’s also a DNS leak test that helps you make sure your ISP isn’t seeing some or all of your data requests while you’re behind a VPN. Last but not least, ExpressVPN advertises a strong no-logging policy, meaning virtually no records of what you do online are kept, ever.

Read our full ExpressVPN review.

2. CyberGhost

CyberGhost is one of the most user-friendly VPN services on the market. It comes with a large suite of apps that are easy to install on macOS, Windows, Android devices, iOS, modern video game consoles and even routers. Once you’ve installed an app, you get to choose from 1 of 6 configuration profiles, which makes getting started easy — even if you’re a complete beginner with VPNs. Further, there’s a series of toggles that give you extra speed, block ads, and more, letting you customize how CyberGhost works without having to set anything up manually. All these features are presented in a convenient, intuitive interface, making CyberGhost almost fun to use.

At the same time, CyberGhost is also technologically powerful and feature-rich. With over 11,000 servers in 100 countries, it can get you an IP from major countries across 6 continents. Connections are snappy, latencies are low, and with unlimited server switches and up to 7 simultaneous connections, you can enjoy CyberGhost around the clock on all your devices. Security-wise, the encryption standards used are so strong the average key would take a supercomputer quadrillions of years to crack. The no-logging policy is also one of the toughest in the business, to the point that not even your e-mail is stored. All in all, CyberGhost is powerful enough that users often wonder how it measures up against other top VPNs on the market.

Read our full CyberGhost review.

CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN: Head-to-Head Comparison

As you can see from the previous section, each of these services is excellent in their own right. Having said that, they’re not necessarily equally good — and in this section, we’re going to go through some important VPN qualities and see how each service measures up in this CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN breakdown.

CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN Speed Test

Speed is one of the first things to look for in a VPN. The reason is that VPNs route your data through remote servers which are often on the other side of the world. This can slow connections down by as much as 20-25%, and lead to high latencies. Results include laggy gaming, long buffering times when streaming, and slow downloads. All of this is undesirable, especially because the modern internet is so dependent on quick downloads.

• ExpressVPN’s calling card is their incredible speed. They use fast encryption protocols and have a vast server network, both of which help. In our comprehensive ExpressVPN review, we ran 3 tests on the service. In the first, we downloaded a series of increasingly large files: 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 MB in size. In the second, we downloaded 100 MB files from the same server every 60 seconds. In the third, we measured speed by connecting to a single server repeatedly. This gave us a balanced idea of what the service can do, speed-wise, with files of all sizes.
• The results for ExpressVPN were impressive: download speed was between 70-90% of our regular Internet connection’s, regardless of the test being conducted. This makes ExpressVPN one of the fastest VPNs available by default.
• With CyberGhost, the tests we ran in our full CyberGhost review were a little different. In the first test, we used the service’s Protect WiFi setting and used speedtest.net. Our latency was a little higher than without a VPN — but download speeds stayed unchanged. In the second test, we kept the same setting but used TestMy.net instead. This website — which uses a more complex protocol that measures upload speed, download speed, and overall speed — ranked speed at about 62.5% of our regular ISP’s (7 Mbps vs 11.2 Mbps).

Overall, it’s hard to name a clear winner in this CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN speed test. CyberGhost’s download speed tests ranged from 62.5% to about 100%, while ExpressVPN’s went from 70% to 90%. The average for both services is around 80% — but ExpressVPN has a slight edge given that it has a significantly higher minimum speed.

Conclusion: ExpressVPN wins at speed.

Server Networks

Server network size is important for several reasons. First, the more servers there are, the less traffic each has to process — which means higher speeds and lower latencies for you. In other words, server numbers are correlated to overall connection quality. Second, a larger number of servers means that it’s easier to find the specific encryption protocol you want to use. Third, a higher number of servers is usually correlated to a bigger international presence, meaning that large networks tend to give you more local IPs.

• CyberGhost and ExpressVPN both have some of the biggest VPN networks in existence today. CyberGhost has grown its network significantly over the years and now boasts over 11,000 servers in 100 countries. This is a vast number of nodes, and the cool thing is that these aren’t all concentrated in a few countries. Albania has servers, as do Cyprus, South Africa and Taiwan. Countries that most users want to get IPs from — Italy, Great Britain, the US, Canada — have hundreds. This means that finding the exact server and IP you want is easy when you’re with CyberGhost.
• ExpressVPN may have fewer servers — just over 3,000 — but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Remember: different servers rank differently in terms of speed, maximum traffic and maximum user numbers. With that in mind, ExpressVPN wins on two fronts. First, it has one of the widest server networks in the business, covering 105 countries. This means fast gaming, streaming and downloading from virtually anywhere (except, maybe, the South Pole). Moreover, ExpressVPN has servers in countries that CyberGhost doesn’t cover — like Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Peru. This may not be important to most users, but is a dealbreaker for anyone who wants IP addresses from countries with more limited coverage elsewhere.

All in all, when comparing server networks in the CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN matchup, CyberGhost has a significantly larger server count (11,000+ vs 3,000+), while ExpressVPN edges ahead on country coverage (105 vs 100). Depending on what matters to you — sheer server volume and load-balancing versus the broadest possible geographic reach — either can be the winner here.

Conclusion: CyberGhost wins on raw server count; ExpressVPN wins on country coverage.

Encryption

By default, all the data you send and receive online is unencrypted, meaning that anyone who holds it can also view it with no restrictions. This can be problematic, because when you’re online, data can pass through dozens and hundreds of computers before reaching its destination. This is an even bigger concern when using VPNs, which route your data through remote servers. The good news is that all VPN services use some form of encryption. The bad news is that not all forms of encryption are created equal — which is why it’s important to know what protocols a provider actually uses before making a purchase.

Both providers anchor their encryption on 256-bit AES, which is effectively unbreakable with current technology. Where they differ meaningfully is in the modern tunneling protocols they offer, and that difference has real consequences for speed, mobile stability, and compatibility.

• ExpressVPN’s standout protocol is Lightway, a proprietary protocol built in-house and independently audited by Cure53. Lightway is designed to be fast, lightweight, and resilient — it reconnects almost instantly when your network drops, which makes it especially strong on mobile. It uses the wolfSSL cryptography library and is open-source for transparency. Alongside Lightway, ExpressVPN supports OpenVPN (UDP and TCP) and IKEv2/IPSec. IKEv2 is well-suited for iOS and automatically re-establishes connections when switching between Wi-Fi and mobile data — a practical advantage for smartphone users.
• CyberGhost’s headline modern protocol is WireGuard, an open-source protocol that has become an industry standard for combining high speed with lean, auditable code. WireGuard is available on all of CyberGhost’s major apps and is generally the fastest option for most users on desktop and Android. CyberGhost also supports OpenVPN (UDP and TCP) and IKEv2, giving users solid fallback options when WireGuard isn’t ideal for a particular network environment.

In practice, the real-world tradeoff comes down to this: Lightway gives ExpressVPN a meaningful edge on mobile connection stability and reconnection speed, since it was purpose-built to handle network switching. WireGuard gives CyberGhost an edge in raw throughput on stable connections, and benefits from a larger community of independent security researchers reviewing its code. Both providers support OpenVPN for users who prioritize a well-established, highly configurable protocol. Neither provider officially promotes legacy protocols like PPTP as recommended options, and you should avoid those if they surface as choices — they are not considered secure by modern standards.

Conclusion: ExpressVPN wins on mobile stability via Lightway; CyberGhost’s WireGuard support is excellent for desktop speed. Slight edge to ExpressVPN overall for protocol innovation and audit transparency.

Software Installation

Quality VPN services come with apps that make installation easy. Ideally, you want to go through as few steps as possible and start using the service you want quickly. This is a benefit for advanced users, and an absolute necessity for beginners and intermediates, which makes it pretty important. Here’s how our 2 services measure up.

Installing ExpressVPN is easy. You don’t have to scour their website for download links; instead, their web page detects the device you’re using, and gives you a convenient Download button. If you want to install the software on another device — say, a router — this is also easy using the “Set up on more devices” button. Moreover, you don’t have to login once you’ve downloaded the necessary file and installed it. Instead, you just use your unique activation code, presented on the download page, and paste it into the client. Put simply, ExpressVPN is very easy and convenient to install.

CyberGhost is quite easy to install too. You simply have to create an account and follow the on-screen instructions. Once you select a screen name and password, you’ll be given a unique PUK number to input into your app once it loads. Then, you get to choose the specific device you’re going to be using — and follow on-screen instructions to download CyberGhost and start running it. This is a very simple process, but it’s a little tougher than with ExpressVPN because you have to remember your PUK or write it down, as well as choose your device type yourself.

All in all, this is a very close round in the CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN installation comparison — but ExpressVPN is, once again, victorious.

Conclusion: ExpressVPN wins.

Software Usage

Both ExpressVPN and CyberGhost come with a suite of applications. ExpressVPN’s 2 main ones are the Windows and macOS versions. Both are intuitive and easy to use, showing you your current server, on/off, choose location and menu buttons. If you don’t want to choose your locations, there’s a Smart Location feature that picks the closest one — and a list of recently used nodes that makes it easier to re-open previous connections. The Search box makes finding locations easy, too.

The main auxiliary app versions are for Android and iOS. In both cases, logging into your account once you’ve installed the app is easy; you can just go to the ExpressVPN website, go to Setup > Device, and scan the QR code. Voila: you are now connected to your ExpressVPN. Once you’re inside your account, you’re given most of the same settings you get with the desktop versions.

You can still pick servers manually or let the app handle this step automatically. You can still choose your encryption standards, although you’re limited to OpenVPN’s TCP and UDP. You can switch servers while running a connection, letting the app disconnect and reconnect automatically.

CyberGhost’s apps are, in some ways, even better. The Windows and Mac OS versions have a small pop-up window with the brand logo, an on/off button, and a “best location” setting that automatically picks servers for you. There’s a gear button that takes you to settings, and a server selection sub-menu that’s easy to find in the bottom left corner. The apps can take a second or two to load, but they look beautiful and work quickly. The server you’re connected to is presented inside an attractive little window in the center of the pop-up. An important advantage is that you can use one of 6 configuration profiles without having to set much (if anything) up manually.

The mobile app versions are, very surprisingly, virtually similar to the desktop ones. There are fewer settings because they have to fit on one screen — and as with ExpressVPN, there’s less choice in terms of encryption. Despite this, you can enjoy most of the same features and servers.

All in all, the two services’ apps are very similar, to the point of being virtually identical in terms of overall quality and convenience. Each has some unique features, like CyberGhost’s configuration profiles and ExpressVPN’s speed test — but that’s neither here nor there. This round of the CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN software comparison, once again, is a tie.

Conclusion: tie between CyberGhost and ExpressVPN.

Streaming and Unblocking Restricted Websites

The ability to unblock restricted websites and streaming services is one of the primary reasons people shop for a VPN in the first place. Whether you want to access a foreign Netflix library, catch up on BBC iPlayer from abroad, or bypass government censorship, your VPN needs to reliably do the job. Streaming platforms in particular have become aggressive about detecting and blocking VPN IP addresses — so it matters how each provider approaches the problem.

Streaming performance

CyberGhost takes a structured approach to streaming by offering dedicated streaming servers — servers specifically optimized and labeled for individual platforms. In our testing, this made it noticeably easier to find a working connection for Netflix, and the same dedicated-server approach extends to platforms like BBC iPlayer, Disney+, Hulu, and Max. If you know exactly which service you want to unblock, CyberGhost’s interface makes that a fast, low-friction process. The tradeoff is that if a dedicated server’s IP gets blocked by a platform, you may need to switch to another server in the same category and try again.

ExpressVPN takes a different approach: it relies on a general-purpose, high-quality server network rather than labeled streaming servers. In practice, this still works well for most major platforms. In our tests, ExpressVPN reliably unblocked Netflix (including the US library), BBC iPlayer, Disney+, Hulu, and Prime Video. Because ExpressVPN rotates and maintains its IPs aggressively, connections tend to be stable once you find a working server. The experience is slightly less guided than CyberGhost’s dedicated-server approach, but the underlying reliability is comparable.

For pure streaming convenience, CyberGhost’s dedicated servers give it a practical edge — especially for users who want to jump straight to a specific platform without trial and error.

Anti-censorship and general website unblocking

ExpressVPN has a stronger track record for bypassing deep censorship filters, including China’s Great Firewall. Its Lightway protocol and obfuscation capabilities make it better suited for users in heavily restricted regions. Facebook, WhatsApp, and other restricted services all work reliably, although it can occasionally take a couple of server attempts for smooth HD video calls.

CyberGhost’s “Unblock Common Websites” profile works well for popular platforms but can be less reliable for niche sites — lesser-known streaming services, online poker rooms, and foreign news sources sometimes require manual server selection. For users in countries with aggressive internet censorship, ExpressVPN is the stronger choice.

Conclusion: CyberGhost wins for streaming ease thanks to dedicated servers. ExpressVPN wins for bypassing censorship and general website access.

Jurisdictions and Privacy

Jurisdiction matters in VPN privacy because it determines which laws a provider must comply with and whether authorities can compel the company to hand over user data. But jurisdiction alone is only part of the privacy picture — logging policies, independent audits, server infrastructure, corporate ownership, and what diagnostic data each service admits to collecting all play an equally important role.

Jurisdiction

ExpressVPN is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). Despite the name, the BVI operates as a legally separate territory from the UK and is not subject to the Five, Nine, or Fourteen Eyes surveillance agreements. There is no mandatory data-retention law in the BVI, which means ExpressVPN faces no legal obligation to log or retain user activity.

CyberGhost is incorporated in Romania, an EU member state. Romania has a strong track record on data privacy — it has actively resisted EU-level data-retention directives in the past and has never been reported to pressure VPN providers into surrendering user data. Like the BVI, Romania falls outside the Five Eyes and broader intelligence-sharing alliances.

Both jurisdictions are genuinely favorable for VPN privacy, and neither gives a meaningful edge over the other on this metric alone.

No-logs policies and independent audits

ExpressVPN has published a no-logs policy and had it independently verified by auditors including KPMG and Cure53 (the latter also audited its Lightway protocol). In 2017, Turkish authorities seized an ExpressVPN server following a high-profile investigation and found no useful data — a real-world validation of its no-logs claims. ExpressVPN does collect some minimal diagnostic data (app version, connection success or failure, and the date — not time — of connection) but does not log your IP address, traffic, or DNS queries.

CyberGhost has also published a no-logs policy and releases a quarterly transparency report disclosing the number of legal requests it receives and how many it can fulfill (which is typically zero for user activity, since the data does not exist). CyberGhost has been audited by QSCert. The company collects anonymous analytics data to improve the service but states it does not link any data to individual users.

Server infrastructure

ExpressVPN uses RAM-only (diskless) servers under its TrustedServer technology. Because RAM is wiped every time a server restarts, there is no persistent storage of any data on the physical hardware — even if a server were seized, it would yield nothing. This is one of the strongest technical privacy measures available in consumer VPNs today.

CyberGhost does not operate on a fully RAM-only infrastructure in the same way. It uses a mix of owned and rented servers, and while it takes steps to protect server data, it has not made RAM-only architecture a headline feature of its offering.

Corporate ownership

One important factor that often goes unmentioned: both ExpressVPN and CyberGhost are now owned by the same parent company, Kape Technologies. Kape acquired CyberGhost in 2017 and ExpressVPN in 2021. This shared ownership does not automatically undermine either service’s privacy protections — both operate as separate brands with independent infrastructure and audit programs — but it is worth knowing if the appearance of competing, entirely independent providers matters to you.

Which is better for privacy-sensitive users?

ExpressVPN holds a meaningful technical advantage thanks to its RAM-only TrustedServer infrastructure and a longer history of independent audits. If you are in a high-risk environment — a journalist, activist, or someone living under authoritarian surveillance — ExpressVPN’s combination of BVI jurisdiction, RAM-only servers, and multiple third-party audits makes it the stronger choice. CyberGhost is a solid, trustworthy option for everyday privacy needs, and its transparency reporting is a genuine positive, but its server architecture does not match ExpressVPN’s at the infrastructure level.

Conclusion: ExpressVPN wins on technical privacy infrastructure. Both are trustworthy for everyday use.

Price, Plans, and Money-Back Guarantee

Price is a genuine decision factor when choosing between two paid VPN services — and ExpressVPN and CyberGhost sit at notably different points on the value spectrum. Here is a straightforward breakdown of what each service costs and what you get for the money.

ExpressVPN is positioned as a premium product, and its pricing reflects that. Monthly plans run at the higher end of the market. Its best value comes from the annual plan, which typically includes a discount and bonus months (commonly advertised as three months free). Even on the annual plan, ExpressVPN is one of the pricier mainstream VPNs. The refund window is 30 days, which is the industry standard and gives you a full month to test the service risk-free.

CyberGhost is meaningfully more affordable, particularly on longer-term plans. Its two-year and longer plans drop the monthly cost to some of the lowest among top-tier VPN providers — often under $3 per month. The monthly plan is comparably priced to competitors, so the value case for CyberGhost is strongest when you commit to a multi-year subscription. CyberGhost also offers a notably longer money-back guarantee: 45 days on annual and longer plans (and 14 days on monthly plans). That extra two weeks of refund window is a genuine advantage if you want extended time to test the service on your real-world use cases before committing.

Simultaneous connections are another practical cost consideration. CyberGhost allows up to 7 simultaneous connections per subscription, which comfortably covers a household of devices. ExpressVPN’s simultaneous connection limit has evolved over time — verify the current allowance on its official site before subscribing, as it has changed from what older reviews report.

Which is the better value?

For budget-conscious buyers, CyberGhost is the clear winner. The lower long-term price combined with a 45-day money-back guarantee and a higher device limit makes it the more practical choice for users who want solid VPN protection without paying a premium. For users who prioritize performance, server reach across 105 countries, and the most advanced privacy infrastructure (RAM-only servers, Lightway protocol, multiple audits), ExpressVPN’s higher price is justifiable — but you are paying a noticeable premium for those advantages.

Conclusion: CyberGhost wins on price and refund window. ExpressVPN is the pick for premium-performance buyers willing to pay more.

CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN: Final Verdict

ExpressVPN wins on speed, encryption, ease of installation, anti-censorship, and technical privacy infrastructure. CyberGhost wins at streaming unblocking (thanks to dedicated servers), price, and refund policy. The other categories — software, server networks, ease of use — are all ties.

Does this mean that ExpressVPN is the better service? Not necessarily. It is faster, overall, but only by a little bit. This can make a difference to live streamers and casual gamers, but not most other user categories. Moreover, the privacy advantage comes primarily in the form of RAM-only TrustedServer infrastructure and the Lightway protocol — genuinely meaningful for high-risk users, but less critical for everyday browsing. The service may trump CyberGhost in a few departments, but whether it’s overall better or not depends on your individual needs.

The same goes for CyberGhost. It is generally better at unblocking streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, BBC iPlayer, Disney+, and Max through dedicated servers — and it costs significantly less over a multi-year plan. Remember that the categories in which the services tied — like server networks and ease of use — can easily go CyberGhost’s way, considering the higher total node count (11,000+ servers) and more beginner-friendly apps. In other words, as the old motivational adage goes, “everyone’s a winner” in this specific CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN review.

After reading this CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN guide and/or trying out the services for yourself, which one do you think is better? Leave a comment below and let us know; we love readers’ feedback!

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