ExpressVPN vs PIA (Private Internet Access) in 2024

When choosing a VPN provider, you’ll undoubtedly, encounter ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access as two of the best options available. But which one is better, ExpressVPN or PIA?

In this comparison, I will put the two providers side-by-side, taking a closer look at criteria like security, privacy, performance, price, and more. But if you don’t have the time to go through the whole article, check out the table below to see which provider is better for you.

ExpressVPN vs Private Internet Access: specifications

Even though both providers offer excellent services, ExpressVPN is much faster than PIA. It can also unblock many more streaming services, comes with more VPN protocols, and has better security and privacy. On the other hand, PIA is cheaper, offers unlimited connections, and more torrenting perks. Nonetheless, ExpressVPN provides better value and service.

ExpressVPN vs Private Internet Access: specifications

ExpressVPN vs PIA: pricing

Price is the ultimate shortcoming of ExpressVPN. You’ll be surprised to find out that their cheapest plan still costs almost three times more than the cheapest PIA plan. It’s not like ExpressVPN is head and shoulders above PIA – as you’ll see in the rest of this comparison, the VPNs are very close in terms of what they offer.

It should be pretty clear why Private Internet Access is a better choice in terms of pricing. It offers considerably longer plans that become cheaper the lengthier they are.

ExpressVPN pricing

With ExpressVPN, you have the choice between three subscription plans:

• $12.95/month for a monthly plan
• $9.99/month for six months
• $4.99/month for an annual plan

By grabbing the lengthiest plan, you’ll have a 48% discount bestowed upon you. Alternatively, you can utilize an ExpressVPN coupon code for an even greater bargain.

All plans are covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee, allowing you to get a full refund without even providing a reason. Also, the payment options are flexible, and you can even use anonymous methods like Bitcoin to purchase a subscription. And you can test what you’re getting beforehand, thanks to the 7-day free trial available on Android and iOS devices.

Moreover, every subscriptions comes with a built-in password manager aptly called ExpressVPN Keys. It lets you securely generate, store, share, and manage passwords across the web.

PIA pricing

Private Internet Access offers three different subscription plans:

• $11.95/month for one month
• $3.33/month for the annual plan
• $2.03/month for the three year plan

The three-year plan grants you a substantial 83% discount. On the other hand, you can also try your luck by using a Private Internet Access discount code to get a different deal.

Like with ExpressVPN, all PIA plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee. However, the payment options are quite limited in comparison and there’s no trial, either free or paid. At least you can use cryptocurrencies to pay for the subscription without distinguishable tracks.

Speed comparison

Here, we’ve conducted manual speed tests with the fastest tunneling protocols of each provider.

After the trials, it was clear that ExpressVPN was significantly faster than PIA. It’s mostly because the former utilizes its own Lightway protocol, which is much faster than the standard ones that other VPN services employ. Also, ExpressVPN chooses the best protocol for its users automatically, optimizing their speed to the fullest.

On the other hand, PIA uses WireGuard or OpenVPN. Both protocols have larger amounts of code and features in them, making them slower than Lightway. However, you can choose to implement WireGuard instead of OpenVPN, which is a bit faster and more secure.

ExpressVPN vs PIA: which is more secure?

When you look at the table, you might think that both providers are equally secure. And you wouldn’t be wrong. Here are some security features that the two have in common:

• AES 256-bit encryption
• Kill switch
• IP and DNS leak protection
• Audited no-logs policies
• RAM-only servers

Even though PIA isn’t based in the best jurisdiction out there, it manages to counterbalance it with a robust security toolkit, RAM-only servers, and independent audits. ExpressVPN doesn’t need to resort to this, but the service still does all it can to ensure you remain anonymous at all costs.

Privacy

Since PIA is based in the US, it is obligated to disclose some information about users to the government. The US is a member of the 5/9/14-Eyes Alliance, which is an organization that shares data about citizens of member countries. However, PIA has proved it doesn’t log any data, which is a great sign. And it couldn’t be possible to collect any information due to them having RAM-only hardware.

ExpressVPN is based in the British Virgin Islands, which is a great place for security and privacy. The country is not a member of the Alliance and has no data-retention laws. Furthermore, you’re anonymity is a given with the aforementioned RAM servers.

Logging

ExpressVPN and PIA can back up their no-logs claims as they use RAM-only servers. However, both services still go the extra mile.

Namely, ExpressVPN’s no-logs policy has been audited three times by KPMG, Cure53, and PwC Switzerland. And Deloitte audited PIA’s no-logs policy as recently as 2022. Furthermore, these VPN providers were asked to provide logs about specific users in court – a thing they couldn’t do because they don’t store any.

Servers location

A VPN’s server infrastructure size can affect your performance. The more servers a provider has, the less likely it is for you to encounter overcrowding and slower speeds. Furthermore, extensive country coverage lets you dip your hands into more foreign content than usual.

What’s interesting is that both services have chosen to hide their server numbers. The exact number was available in the past, but now we can only guess at most. Which isn’t the best business decision. Either way, ExpressVPN covers a significantly larger portion of the globe with servers in 105+ countries. PIA comes in second with just 90+ counties.

Also, both offer RAM-only servers, which are excellent for security and privacy. But only Private Internet Access houses physical servers in all the countries it covers. Which can be dangerous to do in regions with strict censorship laws and privacy-invasive practices. Going all virtual, in such cases, is much better for the user.

As such, ExpressVPN wins this category as it covers more countries than PIA, giving you better and bigger location options.

Features comparison

Both PIA and ExpressVPN offer a wide range of features to their users. So, they’re quite strong in this category and you won’t be missing out on perks no matter which provider you pick. Now, let’s examine some of the features in detail.

Smart DNS

Smart DNS allows you to connect devices that don’t support VPN software to a VPN without needing an app. Thus, you can bypass geo-blocks and secure your connection on platforms that don’t have a native VPN app.

Both providers offer a Smart DNS feature. We have ExpressVPN with its MediaStreamer. The minor caveat here is that have to register your IP address on the provider’s website for it to work. On the other, there’s Private Internet Access with regular old Smart DNS. Just keep in mind that they do not encrypt your internet traffic.

Ad & malware blocker

ExpressVPN and PIA have their own ways of making your browsing experience safer.

ExpressVPN offers a Threat Manager, which can help you avoid user trackers that seemingly every website tends to utilize. As such, you won’t encounter personalized ads. However, this doesn’t really block ads or malicious websites.

PIA has its proprietary PIA MACE, which blocks all ads and adware at the DNS level. PIA MACE is available for both desktop and mobile devices.

Split tunneling

Split tunneling allows you to choose which apps you want to work with a VPN connection and which not. Both PIA and ExpressVPN offer split tunneling, allowing you to customize your VPN connection.

ExpressVPN’s split tunneling feature is compatible with Windows, macOS, Android, and routers. Meanwhile, PIA’s is compatible with Windows, macOS, Android, and Linux and you can even include or exclude IP addresses.

Specialized servers

With PIA and ExpressVPN, you’ll get access to specialized servers suitable for different purposes.

ExpressVPN includes:

• Stealth servers. Stealth servers allow you to hide the fact that you’re using a VPN. They can unblock sites that have VPN-detection measures and even be used in countries that block VPNs, like China.
• TrustedServer. Highly secure RAM-only servers that boost your security and privacy. Every time a server is booted, the entire software stack is reinstalled for even better protection.
• Streaming. These servers boost your connection speeds while streaming, proving better video loading times and preventing lag. They’re also better at circumventing geographical restrictions imposed by streaming platforms.

PIA also includes streaming-optimized servers. Other than that, there’s not much else regarding specialty servers.

Other features

The aspects mentioned above aren’t the only aces up the sleeves of these VPN providers.

ExpressVPN offers:

• Port forwarding, which allows you to access your home network remotely and also gives various benefits to torrenting users
• Parallel connections which speed up VPN connection times

Private Internet Access also offers:

• SOCKS5 proxy. Can be configured with torrent clients to boost P2P file sharing speeds.
• Multi-Hop. Shadowsocks is PIA’s multi-hop feature that routes your Internet traffic through two servers instead of one. Also, it hides the fact that you’re using a VPN to access a site.

Netflix and streaming comparison

Only ExpressVPN is among the best streaming VPNs among the two. And it’s not surprising as it offers reliable 4K streaming, better streams, and supports a wider range of streaming peripherals. At least the both of them have Smart DNS features.

Still, it doesn’t negate the fact that Private Internet Access can unblock Netflix US at most from all the potential libraries. It’s nice that we got access to Hulu and YouTube TV as well, but that’s not much in the grand scheme of things. In comparison, ExpressVPN unblocks every streaming platform you throw at it.

Device compatibility

ExpressVPN and PIA both offer easy-to-use apps. However, PIA allows you to customize your settings more, making it better for more advanced users. On the other hand, ExpressVPN comes with more dedicated apps, making it better for beginners.

Desktop applications

With PIA and ExpressVPN, you’ll get optimized apps for Windows, Mac, and Linux. Both providers’ apps are easy to use and offer intuitive designs. Also, the desktop apps are similar, with both providers displaying huge connection buttons in a small window that you need to click on to start your VPN connection.

It’s great that ExpressVPN users of either operating system aren’t missing out both security and feature-wise. And the same goes for Private Internet Access. This isn’t always the case in the VPN industry, so it’s commendable that these services keep the clients identical.

You can install ExpressVPN and PIA on Linux OS. Currently, the former supports Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, Raspberry Pi OS, Linux Mint, and Arch, while the latter is available on Ubuntu, Mint, Debian, Fedora, and Arch.

Mobile applications

PIA’s mobile apps are designed in a similar way as the desktop ones. You’ll get a huge button to start your connection and a similar menu. Furthermore, the Android and iOS clients are identical regarding features.

The same thing goes for ExpressVPN. This provider’s mobile apps are also similar to the desktop ones, with a difference in the menu. However, the Android app is slightly better than the iOS one as it comes with split tunneling, while the latter doesn’t.

Torrenting

ExpressVPN and PIA might not be among the best VPNs for torrenting, but both are still suitable for P2P. You can use whichever server from these two for torrenting and do it safely, too.

However, PIA wins this category because it comes with a free SOCKS5 proxy and port forwarding. It should be enough to mitigate the slower speeds of this provider. But if your main priority is fast download rates without all the torrenting-oriented perks, then ExpressVPN might just be the better choice.

China

Both VPNs work in China, so you’ll have no issues circumventing The Great Firewall of China or other restrictions put in place by censorship-heavy countries. And you won’t be suffering from slower connection speeds as these VPN providers have plenty of servers in the Asian region.

ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access can hide that you’re using a VPN to browse the Internet in China, which is an essential feature. ExpressVPN does so via its Stealth Servers, while PIA utilizes Multi-Hop + Obfuscation, along with Shadowsocks.

Customer support

ExpressVPN is the clear winner in the customer support category, as it’s available 24/7 for its users via live chat. Also, the chat agents are super-fast, providing responses within minutes. In addition, you can contact the provider via email and get a quick response there, too. And those looking for more in depth know-how are free to browse the extensive knowledgebase.

On the other hand, PIA doesn’t come with 24/7 live chat support or a phone line. So, if you have any problems with the service, you’ll have to submit a ticket and wait for a response for who knows how long.

ExpressVPN vs PIA – which is better?

No matter how similar the two VPNs are, ExpressVPN wins the PIA vs. ExpressVPN comparison. It comes with faster speeds and performance, a better-organized server fleet that covers more countries, and it’s safer. Furthermore, it unblocks a wider range of streaming platforms and is compatible with a large number of devices.

PIA trails close behind ExpressVPN, so it could be just as good with a few improvements. it is more affordable and it’s great for torrenting, but if you want a VPN that seemingly does it all, ExpressVPN is the better of the two.

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You may also like to read:
PIA vs CyberGhost
PIA vs NordVPN
ExpressVPN vs NordVPN
ExpressVPN vs Surfshark

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FAQ

Is ExpressVPN better than Private Internet Access?

Yes, ExpressVPN is superior to Private Internet Access. It offers much better performance and speeds, covers more countries worldwide, has better customer support, and allows 4K streaming. Still, PIA is a close second.

Which is faster – ExpressVPN or PIA?

ExpressVPN is faster than PIA. It uses the faster and lighter Lightway protocol that offers better speeds than the protocols that PIA uses – WireGuard and OpenVPN.

Is ExpressVPN safe?

Yes, ExpressVPN is exceptionally safe. The service had a server seized by authorities and no personal information could be gleaned from it. Furthermore, it's based in a privacy-respecting jurisdiction and has been independently audited multiple times.

Does PIA work with Netflix?

Yes, Private Internet Access can unblock Netflix US. However, that's the only library that PIA can unblock. If you want to access other regional content, you'll be better off with ExpressVPN.