Bottom line
- Surfshark lets you connect an unlimited number of devices on one account, which is why I would look at it first for a household with many phones, laptops and TVs.
- It is quick. In published tests download speed fell 7.73%, but latency rose 201.34%, and that matters more for calls and games than for streaming.
- The two-year Starter plan works out at $2.49 a month, against $15.45 a month if you pay month to month, so I would buy a long plan on purpose and set a reminder before it renews.
Surfshark is a VPN that has grown into a small security suite. It is one of the few providers where I would not ask how many devices you have before recommending it, because the answer does not change the price. What does change the price is how long you commit, and most of this review is about that trade.
What works
- Unlimited simultaneous connections on every plan
- Servers in 100 countries, all running from RAM-only hardware
- Independent audits, the latest in January 2026
- A 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee
What doesn’t
- The month-to-month price is high and reviewers warn about renewal fees
- Latency rose 201.34% in one set of published tests
- Its new Dausos protocol was limited to macOS at the time of the review
- It shares an owner with NordVPN, so the two are not independent choices
What you are buying
Surfshark sells three tiers, and the VPN is in all of them. Starter bundles the VPN with an ad blocker and a generator for masked email addresses. One adds an antivirus, alerts when your details appear in a breach, and a private search tool. One+ adds data removal through Incogni, a service I cover in my Incogni review. One detailed review lists the three tiers at $15.45, $17.95 and $20.85 a month on monthly billing.
Most people only need Starter. The extras are useful when you would otherwise pay for them separately, but a bundled antivirus is rarely better than a standalone product, and reviewers say as much. I would pay for One or One+ only if you want the breach alerts or the data removal and have checked that you are not already covered.
Devices, apps and everyday use
Every plan allows an unlimited number of simultaneous connections. TechRadar notes there is a fair usage policy behind that, and that 10 to 15 devices is no problem unless they are all busy downloading at once. That is more than enough for a household, and it removes the arithmetic that other providers make you do.
The apps cover Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS, with browser extensions as well. The Windows app opens with a short question about how familiar you are with VPNs and offers a tutorial to beginners, which experienced users can skip. Settings include a kill switch, split tunneling under the name Bypasser, and multi-hop routes through two servers. Multi-hop slows the connection, so I would switch it on only for a specific job.
One quirk to know about: when a reviewer contacted support, the agent said the macOS app downloaded directly from the Surfshark site did not include OpenVPN and recommended the App Store version. If you care about protocol choice on a Mac, install from the store.
Speed and streaming
In the latest published test batch, download speed fell 7.73% and upload speed fell 7.12%, which puts Surfshark among the faster services. Latency is the weak spot, up 201.34%. A latency rise of that size is easy to ignore while streaming and noticeable in video calls or online games, so I would weigh it differently depending on what you do.
Netflix opened without trouble in the UK, US, Japan, Australia and Canada in that review. The verdict at TechRadar adds a caution, saying there are better streaming VPNs, so if unblocking a particular service is the whole reason you are buying, check that service against a few providers before you commit for two years.
Privacy and ownership
Surfshark says it does not log IP addresses, data usage, session information or browsing history. It does log time stamps, but keeps them for only 15 minutes after a session ends, a common way for providers with unlimited connections to stop abuse of that feature. It also says it earns money from subscriptions and not from selling customer data.
The audit record is solid. Cure53 reviewed its browser extension in 2018 and its infrastructure in 2021, Deloitte confirmed in 2023 that it followed its stated no-activity-logs policy, and SecuRing examined its network in January 2026. It also publishes transparency reports, and as of the review none of the inquiries it lists had led to user data being handed over.
The ownership is the part I would not skip. In 2022 Surfshark combined with Nordsec, which owns NordVPN, and both brands now sit under one holding company. Surfshark says the two run on separate infrastructure, which is reassuring, but it means that choosing between them is a choice between two products from the same group, and I count that against its privacy score.
The legal side is easy to misread. The terms on Surfshark’s own site name Surfshark B.V., which they describe as established in the Netherlands, as the party you sign the contract with. The same terms keep British Virgin Islands law in charge of that contract, as it was before the company moved, so the Dutch base and the BVI governing law now sit side by side.
Extras worth using
Alternative ID is the extra I would actually use. It generates a name, an email address and, in the US, a phone number to hand to sites that ask for details they do not need, and one review calls it superb. An ad blocker is included from the Starter plan up, and the VPN adds free static servers and an optional dedicated IP address for $3.75 a month.
Everlink, added in June 2025, is a different kind of extra: when a connection drops it moves you to a working server without a manual reconnect. The reviewer had no test for it yet, so treat it as a promising feature rather than a proven one.
Support
Support starts with a chat bot and hands you to a person if it cannot answer. A reviewer reports a wait of only a few seconds, and the agent walked through reinstalling the app and troubleshooting a connection problem. Another review rates the support site and the live chat and email channels highly. I give it a good score and not a great one only because the weight on support is small and nothing here is unusual.
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Billed | What it adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $2.49/mo | $67.23 for the first 27 months | The VPN, an ad blocker and masked email addresses |
| One | $2.79/mo | $75.33 for the first 27 months | An antivirus, breach alerts and a private search tool |
| One+ | $4.49/mo | $121.23 for the first 27 months | Everything in One, plus data removal by Incogni |
Prices from Surfshark’s pricing page, checked August 2026.
The long plans run 24 months plus 3 extra months, so the 27 months in the table are the real billing term, and the arithmetic holds: $2.49 × 27 = $67.23. Month to month, reviewers list the Starter plan at $15.45 and $16.45, which is why the long plan is the one to look at. One reviewer advises using the free trial for a week and then picking a one or two-year plan, and I agree with it. The 30-day money-back guarantee gives you a second safety net after that.
The pricing page does not state what these plans renew at, and one review lists high auto-renewal fees among its reasons to avoid the service. That unknown is the main reason I hold the value score at 8.0. Check the renewal terms at checkout, note the date, and cancel or move to a new offer before the term ends.
How it scored
Core features, 8.5. Unlimited devices, a large server network, kill switch, split tunneling, multi-hop and a useful set of extras. I held it back from a higher score because the new protocol is limited to one platform and latency rose sharply in the published speed tests.
Ease of use, 8.5. The apps are consistent across platforms, and the beginner tutorial and quick connect button make the first connection simple.
Privacy and data, 8.0. A clear no-logs policy, regular audits and transparency reports are strong points. Shared ownership with NordVPN and a base in the Netherlands, which one review says may put off privacy-critical users, keep it below the top privacy scores.
Value, 8.0. The long plans are cheap for what you get, but the monthly price is steep and the renewal price is not published on the page I checked.
Support, 7.5. Chat and email work, and an agent can be reached quickly. It is solid and not remarkable.
Weighted as set out on the How I test page, the total is 8.2.
Alternatives worth a look
Proton VPN
Pick it if you want a long privacy record and a free plan to try first. I cover it in my Proton VPN review.
NordVPN
Pick it for speed and a long list of extras, as long as you check the renewal price. Details are in my NordVPN review.
Mullvad
Pick it if you want one simple price and the least account data. My Mullvad review has the details.
FAQ
How many devices can I use with Surfshark?
There is no fixed limit on simultaneous connections. A fair usage policy applies, and a household of 10 to 15 devices is fine.
Does Surfshark have a free trial?
Yes, a 7-day free trial that needs payment details, and you are charged when it ends unless you cancel. A trial that needs no card would be better, but this one does not. Every plan also has a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Who owns Surfshark?
Surfshark combined with Nordsec, the parent of NordVPN, in 2022. A holding company called Cyberspace owns both, and Surfshark says the two products run on separate infrastructure.
Is Surfshark good for streaming?
It opened Netflix in five countries in the checks of one review, but another review says there are better streaming VPNs, so test the services you care about during the trial.