If you have ever experienced geo-locked content, you know that it is extremely frustrating and tedious, the solution to your woes is a VPN service. On the other hand, if you are someone who values their online privacy and wants the peace of mind of knowing that privacy is completely secure, then a secure and reliable VPN is necessary to help you in many ways.
Today’s post puts two of the most popular VPNs head to head for the ultimate comparison battle to see which one offers the best services, value for money, and an overall superior package. We will explore some of the VPNs’ key features and evaluate them against each other so you can make an informed choice between the two contenders.
Our two contenders are – NordVPN and CyberGhost.
CyberGhost
CyberGhost is a Romania based VPN service, which is now popularly known as one of the best-selling value VPNs. It is widely trusted and known for its reliable features, including torrenting support and unblocking streaming platforms, and its impressively affordable pricing plans. However, CyberGhost isn’t the best option when it comes to its overall speed and performance.
CyberGhost: Pros
- Automatic kill switch
- Value pricing
- Money-back guarantee available
- DNS and IP leak protection
- OpenVPN, L2TP-IPSec, and PPTP protocols
- Simultaneous Connections
- Efficient live chat support
CyberGhost: Cons
- Unimpressive performance and speed
- Unreliable “no logs” policy
- AdBlocker does not support HTTPS websites
NordVPN
NordVPN is a Panama based VPN service, which is trusted by millions of users across the globe. This feature-rich VPN service is one of the pioneers amongst VPNs. NordVPN is popular for its high-quality, uncompromised VPN service.
It is also well-known for fast connections, exceptional protection features, and its extensive global server coverage. NordVPN is also amongst the popular VPN services for movie lovers because of its consistent access to streaming platforms, including Netflix.
NordVPN: Pros
- Supports torrenting and P2P
- Unblocks Netflix and other streaming sites
- Efficient ad-blocker
- Double data encryption
- Strict and reliable no logs policy
- Live chat support included
NordVPN: Cons
- Refunds take up to a month
- 15-day less money-back guarantee than CyberGhost
- Average pricing plans
Features
Features | CyberGhost | NordVPN |
Ad Blocker | Yes | Yes |
Automatic Kill Switch | Yes | Yes |
DNS Leak Protection | Yes | Yes |
Free Version | Yes | No |
IKEv2/IPsec | Yes | Yes |
Military-Grade Encryption | Yes | Yes |
No Logs Policy | Yes | Yes |
OpenVPN | Yes | Yes |
P2P Sharing | Yes | Yes |
Split Tunneling | Yes | Yes |
Streaming | Yes | Yes |
Multi-logins | 7 Devices | 6 Devices |
What matters more in any app or tech-based resource than its advantages?
We evaluate the two Vpn services based on their characteristics in this section. When it comes to VPNs, users frequently want to understand what they can gain from them—the features of a Virtual private network app or extension.
NordVPN has a plethora of features aimed at improving the user experience. Following are some examples:
- A quick-connect button that uses a clever algorithm to find the user’s most efficient and optimal server.
- Secure encryption to protect user privacy
- Extremely rapid speeds. Because of its numerous servers located in various countries across the world,
- Secure access to all social networking and video streaming websites
- A kill switch that guarantees sensitive information is kept secure.
- Customer service is available 24/7. NordVPN has a large support staff that is both competent and courteous.
CyberGhost’s notable features are:
- The option to “Hide Your IP.”
- Strong encryption ensures privacy.
- Wi-Fi security that also improves user privacy
- No logs policy assures that users’ private information is not recorded.
- Connections that are secure
Features winner – NordVPN
Privacy, Security, and Logging
It’s a draw!
When comparing two VPN services one of the most critical elements to look at is the type of encryption the service uses to keep your sensitive data is protected from prying eyes of hackers looking to infringe on your online identity. After all, keeping your data safe is the entire purpose of a VPN service. So, let’s explore how our two contenders compare?
CyberGhost uses a robust AES-256 bit encryption, which is recognized among experts as one of the best encryption mechanisms. Additionally, CyberGhost maintains highly secure VPN protocols to ensure superior protection of your data against third parties.
Finally, since CyberGhost VPN services are based in Romania, it means that the company isn’t obligated to keep logs and use Bitcoin transactions.
Similarly, NordVPN’s encryption protocol is also AES-256 bit based, along with OpenVPN, that guarantee robust security features. Being based in Panama means that NordVPN isn’t also obligated by the country’s law to maintain user logs because user rights to online privacy are fully respected. You can pay for NordVPN services using Bitcoin.
The countries these VPN services are based in are also beyond the jurisdictions of 5 Eyes Alliance.
Performance and Speed
NordVPN is the WINNER!
When you buy a VPN, you do not get it for slow browsing speeds and broken downloads. Every VPN service will affect your network speeds. However, it’s not the case with all VPN providers. VPN speeds may differ due to many reasons. In most cases, the following are the variables that can affect VPN performance:
- Computer Location
- Server (VPN) Location
- Time of the day
Now that we have quickly discussed the factors behind VPN speed, we come to the most important question of this article.
How do CyberGhost and NordVPN compare when it comes to speed and performance?
Again, the answer is not simple. However, over the years, CyberGhost has not optimized its infrastructure for modern broadband speeds. The VPN provider was once a market leader for fast VPN services. Now, it’s known for laggy speeds, especially if connected on a long-distance server location.
NordVPN, on the other hand, is currently the crowd’s favorite for high-speed network connectivity. This provider knows the needs of modern internet users. You can have a blazing fast connection anywhere anytime. There can be a few hiccups, but you can circumvent that by picking a nearby server location. The overall loss in baseline speeds is never significant.
When it comes to NordVPN vs. CyberGhost speed fight, Nord kills it with its reliable infrastructure and amazing connectivity.
Multiple-factor Authentication
MFA or Multi-factor authentication stands for the distinct method of synchronizing your data. One frequent method is to use your cellphone to verify one-time passwords (OTPs) after inputting the VPN account password on the official site.
MFA offers a new degree of protection, minimizing the likelihood of your account getting compromised or misused by a third party.
Server Locations
It’s a draw!
Even though both CyberGhost and NordVPN offer near about the same network size – approximately 5000 location servers of each VPN service. However, when it comes to the distribution, Cyber takes the lead with 80 countries, while NordVPN only provides server locations in 62 countries.
However, if you are located in Asia or Africa as CyberGhost provides a very limited number of location servers in African and Asian countries, on the other hand, NordVPN has a more widespread location server network as compared to CyberGhost.
If you want a VPN provider with an impressively widespread server location network, make sure that you read our ExpressVPN review.
Simultaneous Connections
CyberGhost is the WINNER!
When it comes to the simultaneous connection between a number of devices, CyberGhost is the winner. However, CyberGhost wins by a very small – 1 device margin. NordVPN supports up to 6 device connections at the same time, whereas CyberGhost supports seven devices.
CyberGhost also supports all major operating systems, including Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux. Whereas NordVPN only supports Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems.
Unblocking Netflix And Other Streaming Platforms
It’s a draw!
NordVPN does not claim to unblock any of the popular streaming services. However, we tested it, and we were able to unblock several popular streaming services.
NordVPN unblocked Netflix without any issues. You can easily unblock all major Netflix regions in the world, including the US, UK, Germany, Canada, Australia, Korea, Italy, and many other regions. We had issues when we tried to access BBC iPlayer and Amazon Prime Video via the desktop client, so we used the browser extension to gain access.
CyberGhost is one of the best VPNs for streaming services because CyberGhost filters services based on their support for various locations and services. Therefore, you can successfully unblock geo-restricted streaming sites without any issues. With CyberGhost, we were able to gain easy access to all major streaming services, including Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, YouTube, and several others.
NordVPN vs. CyberGhost: Which Proves To Be The Best For China?
To put it bluntly, NordVPN is the best choice for a VPN for China. Although you might have some success with CyberGhost, and it’s not a complete failure, it simply lacks the necessary tools to overcome the Chinese government’s infamous Deep Packet Inspection (DPI). Without complex features, you will be unable to reliably establish a secure VPN connection to circumvent China’s Great Firewall.
NordVPN offers Obfuscated servers that are dedicated for use in China and other countries that restrict internet access. This technology makes your traffic appear to come from somewhere other than a VPN. As a result, the government has more difficulty blocking such connections.
As we said, CyberGhost VPN is not the worst option for China. Through its servers, you will be able to connect via a random port number, which is helpful, mainly when traffic is limited to HTTP and HTTPS. Finally, CyberGhost offers a Tor over VPN tool that provides users additional privacy, even though it slows down the connection, which is a huge tradeoff.
NordVPN vs. CyberGhost: Best Value For Money
Finally, we will consider the issue of value. Is NordVPN or CyberGhost a better value for money?
Remember that CyberGhost’s lowest monthly price was around $2.75, while NordVPN’s was $3.29. Although CyberGhost is less expensive than NordVPN, the essential aspect to consider is value and how well the VPN performs.
Based on the results of all of the tests in our independent CyberGhost vs. NordVPN comparison, NordVPN has a clear winner overall. Except for the price, NordVPN was the clear winner in every category. NordVPN outshines CyberGhost because it has more features that perform well. If you want to get the most bang for your buck, NordVPN is the way to go, even if you have to pay slightly more.
Pricing
CyberGhost is the WINNER!
NordVPN | CyberGhost | |
Monthly Plan | $11.95 per month | $12.99 per month |
Yearly Plan | $4.92 per month Billed $59.00 for the first yearbilled per 6 months | $3.99 per month Billed $47.88 every year |
2-Year Plan | $3.67 per monthBilled $99.00 for the first 2 years | £ 2.15 per month Billed $83.76 for the first 2 yearsand then yearly billing. |
3-Year Plan | Not Available | $2.25 per month Billed $87.75 for the first 3 yearsand then yearly billing. |
Although NordVPN vs CyberGhost offers a somewhat similar pricing structure, however, when it comes to affordable long-term pricing plans and money-back guarantee – CyberGhost is definitely taking the lead.
Money-Back Guarantee
NordVPN provides a 30-day money-back guarantee with all of its plans. CyberGhost provides 14-day money-back guarantee with its monthly plan and a 45-day money-back guarantee with its Yearly, 2-Year, and 3-Year plans.
NordVPN vs CyberGhost offers a somewhat similar pricing structure (CyberGhost is less pricey). But when it comes to affordable long-term pricing plans and money-back guarantee – CyberGhost is definitely taking the lead.
User Interface
NordVPN is the WINNER!
Although at first look, CyberGhost seems simple, compact, and easy to use with its minimalist user interface. However, if you will use the app in detail, you will find it quite complex as most features are difficult to find in the dropdown menu.
On the other hand, NordVPN has a smarter, more efficient user interface. The interface looks like an easy-to-read map with blue markers to help you browse the options more efficiently.
Customer Support
NordVPN is the winner! (This was a close one)
When it comes to customer service, both NordVPN and CyberGhost gave each other tough competition. Both VPNs offer a live chat service that connects you with a real person rather than a robot that gives automated responses.
We tested both the services and got appropriate answers/solutions. The only drawback of the live chat is that the service is only available in English.
For additional information, you can easily find an ample knowledge base, including several guides, articles, Q&As, and more. We found both this knowledge base very helpful. However, if you compare the knowledge base of the two, CyberGhost is outdated, whereas NordVPN’s website is packed with an increasing number of latest articles and guides.
Verdict
Suppose you read the CyberGhost vs NordVPN article in its entirety, then you must have noticed that both VPNs have their strengths and weaknesses. In some aspects, they were also on par with each other, which proves why these two are considered as the top-performing services.
However, after all our tests and demonstrations, NordVPN came out on top as the better service. NordVPN took the lead in two key areas, which are performance and user interface, that have the biggest impact on user experience. Nonetheless, CyberGhost gives NordVPN a run for their money by giving stiff competition in other areas.
Ultimately, the ease of use of NordVPN’s service gives it the competitive edge that new users look for when choosing a VPN. However, we are interested in hearing about your experiences with two services; share both the good and the bad aspects below.
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