Editorial Policy

See the standards VPN Cost Guide uses for accuracy, fairness, updates, and commercial independence.

VPN Cost Guide prioritizes clarity, factual accuracy, independent judgment, and transparent updates. Commercial considerations do not override user value, and pages are revised when pricing structures, privacy claims, or consumer risk factors materially change.

Sourcing hierarchy. Our research follows a four-tier sourcing hierarchy: (1) official VPN provider documentation including NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark, ProtonVPN, and similar published materials; (2) independent privacy and security audits from recognized firms such as Cure53, Deloitte, and PwC; (3) NIST and ENISA cybersecurity guidelines for baseline threat-model and best-practice references; (4) public industry reports, regulatory filings, and provider press releases.

Review cycle. Content is reviewed quarterly against the latest provider pricing pages, terms of service, and refund policies. Each guide displays a 'Last reviewed' timestamp visible at the top of the page so readers can verify freshness.

FTC affiliate disclosure. VPN Cost Guide receives compensation through affiliate partnerships, including NordVPN and related Nord Security products. Compensation does not affect editorial recommendations, comparison rankings, or scoring methodology — paid placement is never sold, and provider-supplied copy is not republished as editorial content.

Independence statement. All recommendations are based on publicly available data, provider documentation, audit summaries, and the editor's hands-on testing where applicable. We do not accept gifts, sponsored reviews, or undisclosed product seeding from VPN vendors.

Corrections policy. Errors are corrected within 24 hours of notification. Significant updates are flagged with an updated 'Last reviewed' timestamp and, where material, a brief change note. Readers can submit corrections to [email protected].

We avoid exaggerated security claims, unsupported rankings, fake urgency, or dummy ad-slot language that weakens trust. Content is structured to support both real readers and sustainable ad-quality standards.