Both are independently owned — ProtonVPN by Proton AG in Switzerland, PrivateVPN by a small Swedish company. The difference is verification depth: ProtonVPN publishes an audit program, open-source clients, and a Secure Core architecture; PrivateVPN publishes none of those.

What you get that PrivateVPN doesn't offer

Swiss jurisdiction — constitutional privacy protections outside all Eyes alliances. PrivateVPN registers in Sweden, a 14-eyes member. Proton AG operates an audited no-logs policy, open-source clients on all platforms, and Secure Core architecture — all published. Streaming is a maintained product commitment. Security and privacy architecture is more developed. Free tier with unlimited bandwidth.

What you give up

PrivateVPN is a smaller independent operation with a simpler ownership structure. Port forwarding included at PrivateVPN; ProtonVPN does not offer it. SOCKS5 proxy available. Ten simultaneous connections — equivalent. For users who prefer smaller providers with less organizational complexity, PrivateVPN's footprint is an intentional characteristic.

What you get that ProtonVPN doesn't offer

Independent Swedish ownership with no parent company. Port forwarding included. SOCKS5 proxy support. Equivalent simultaneous connection limit. Smaller operational footprint — fewer servers, fewer organizational layers.

What you give up

No published independent audit — PrivateVPN's no-logs policy is stated but not third-party verified. Sweden is a 14-eyes member; ProtonVPN's Swiss basis provides cleaner separation from those frameworks. Open-source clients, Secure Core architecture, and free tier access are not available. Security feature scope and streaming access reflect a significantly smaller infrastructure investment.