The FrankVPN Open Scorecard
Most VPN sites show you a score. Almost none show you the basis for it. This page does. Below are the final scores for six leading budget VPNs, the six weighted criteria that produce them, and the verifiable facts behind each one — audit status, jurisdiction, price, network size, refund window, and connection limits. Download the raw data as a CSV, check our work, or reproduce the table on your own site with attribution. It's released under a CC BY 4.0 license.
A ranking is only as trustworthy as the reasoning behind it. We built this scorecard because the VPN review industry has a credibility problem: scores that move with commission rates, "tests" no one can reproduce, and sub-decimal precision that implies a rigor that isn't there. Our answer is radical transparency — the full data set, the exact weights, and the checkable facts, all on one page.
Every number here comes from our standard six-criterion methodology. Prices were verified on the dates shown; scores are on a 0–10 scale. Three of these providers (Surfshark, NordVPN, PureVPN) are affiliate partners and one (BlancVPN) is; two (CyberGhost, IPVanish) earn us nothing and are included for completeness. The partnerships did not move the ranks — Surfshark held #1 before it was ever a partner.
The Scores
Ranked by weighted score. Each row is a set of facts you can verify against the provider's own site or its published audits.
| Rank | Provider | Score | Price (2‑yr) | Network | No-logs audit | Jurisdiction | Devices | Refund |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Surfshark | 8.4 | ~$2.49 | 4,500+ / 100 | Deloitte | Netherlands | Unlimited | 30 days |
| #2 | NordVPN | 8.3 | ~$3.09 | 6,000+ / 111 | Deloitte (6×) | Panama | 10 | 30 days |
| #3 | PureVPN | 8.1 | $2.15 | 6,000+ / 80+ | KPMG | British Virgin Islands | 10 | 31 days |
| #4 | CyberGhost | 7.8 | ~$2.03 | 11,690+ / 100 | Deloitte | Romania (Kape) | 7 | 45 days |
| #5 | IPVanish | 7.5 | $2.19 | 2,200+ / 75+ loc. | Yes (independent) | United States | Unlimited | 30 days |
| #6 | BlancVPN | 7.2 | €2.99 | 50+ locations | None found | Estonia (EU) | Unlimited | 30 days |
The full scorecard is available as a plain CSV — open it in any spreadsheet, verify it, or build on it. Released under CC BY 4.0: reuse it freely, just credit FrankVPN with a link.
How the Score Is Built
Each VPN receives a 0–100 score (shown here on a 0–10 scale) built from six criteria. The weights reflect where a bad VPN choice actually hurts users — privacy first, then the things people use a VPN for every day. These weights are identical for every provider; they never change to favour a partner.
| Criterion | Weight | What decides it |
|---|---|---|
| Privacy & Security | 25% | Independent no-logs audit, jurisdiction (5/9/14 Eyes), kill switch, DNS-leak protection, protocols |
| Speed & Performance | 20% | Download/upload speed and latency on WireGuard and OpenVPN; speed retention vs. baseline |
| Streaming Capability | 20% | Unblocking rate across Netflix regions, Disney+, Hulu, and BBC iPlayer — re-tested monthly |
| Price & Value | 20% | Long- and short-term monthly cost, features-per-dollar, money-back window |
| Usability & Support | 10% | App quality, platform coverage, simultaneous connections, live-chat response |
| Transparency & Trust | 5% | Audits published, ownership disclosed, refund track record |
What Wins Each Criterion
Here is where the ranking actually gets decided — which provider leads on each criterion, based on our testing and the sourced facts above. This is the "why" behind the scores in plain language.
Privacy & Security (25%) — NordVPN
NordVPN leads the field: a Panama base outside the 5/9/14 Eyes alliances, RAM-only servers, and a no-logs policy independently audited by Deloitte six times. PureVPN (KPMG-audited, British Virgin Islands) and Surfshark (Deloitte-audited) are close behind. BlancVPN sits last on this criterion for one concrete reason — we found no independent no-logs audit, which caps how much its privacy claims can be trusted.
Speed & Performance (20%) — NordVPN
NordVPN's NordLynx (a WireGuard-based protocol) is the strongest speed engineering in this group. Surfshark and IPVanish are solid on WireGuard. Speed is one half of why NordVPN would likely take #1 on an all-round list — it only slips to #2 here because this is a budget ranking and price is weighted at 20%.
Streaming Capability (20%) — Surfshark
Surfshark posts the most consistent unblocking in our monthly tests — Netflix US, UK, and Canada, plus Disney+ and Hulu. CyberGhost is strong too, with dedicated streaming servers. This criterion, paired with app polish, is what carries Surfshark to the top overall.
Price & Value (20%) — CyberGhost & PureVPN
CyberGhost has the lowest sticker price (~$2.03/mo) and the longest refund window (45 days). PureVPN is the cheapest audited partner ($2.15) and pairs its price with the largest network in the group. NordVPN is the most expensive option here, which is exactly why a budget ranking holds it at #2.
Usability & Support (10%) — Surfshark
Surfshark and IPVanish both allow unlimited simultaneous connections, removing a common friction point. Surfshark's apps are the most polished across platforms in this group. NordVPN and PureVPN cap connections at 10, which is generous but not unlimited.
Transparency & Trust (5%) — NordVPN & PureVPN
Providers that publish audits, disclose ownership, and honour refunds without a fight earn the trust points. NordVPN and PureVPN both do. CyberGhost is audited but its ownership sits under Kape Technologies, a group with a mixed reputation among privacy advocates — a fact we disclose rather than hide.
Why We Don't Publish Decimal Sub-Scores
You'll notice we give one overall score per provider, not a precise number for each of the six criteria. That's deliberate. Our category assessments combine measured data (speed retention, streaming pass rates) with binary facts (audit: yes or no) and judgement calls that don't reduce honestly to a single decimal. A competitor telling you a VPN scores exactly "8.7 for privacy" is presenting a level of precision that the underlying evidence can't support. We'd rather show you the evidence and let you weigh it. If you disagree with a weight, the CSV lets you re-run the math yourself.
Use This Data
This scorecard is free to reproduce, in whole or in part, under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. Journalists, bloggers, and researchers are welcome to cite the scores or embed the table. All we ask is a credit and a link. Suggested attribution:
Source: FrankVPN Open VPN Scorecard 2026, frankvpn.com.
If you spot a factual error, tell us on our contact page — we correct mistakes publicly and note the date of the change.
Frequently Asked Questions
How are these VPN scores calculated?
Each VPN is scored on six weighted criteria: Privacy & Security (25%), Speed (20%), Streaming (20%), Price & Value (20%), Usability (10%), and Transparency (5%). The final score is the weighted combination. The full method is on our How We Test page.
Do affiliate commissions change the scores?
No. The weights are identical for every provider and never change to favour a partner. We include two brands we earn nothing from — CyberGhost and IPVanish — ranked exactly where their scores place them. Surfshark held #1 before it became an affiliate partner.
Can I reuse this scorecard on my own site?
Yes. It's published under CC BY 4.0 — reproduce the scores or the table freely, as long as you credit FrankVPN with a link to this page. You can also download the raw data as a CSV.
When was this data last verified?
Scores are current as of July 3, 2026; prices were verified June 29, 2026. Provider reviews are fully re-tested every six months, streaming monthly, and pricing is checked on each update. Renewal prices differ from the introductory rates shown.