NordVPN vs Surfshark for Canadians (2026)

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Short answer

Pick Surfshark if your household has more than 10 devices or you want the lowest first-term price of the two. Pick NordVPN if you want a server in Calgary, or if you want to see the renewal price before you buy. Keep in mind that the two are related. Surfshark's about page says that in 2022 "Surfshark and Nord Security merged under one holding company", while operating independently. Nord Security is the company behind NordVPN.

This comparison is an editorial assessment from each provider's published pages, checked on October 6, 2026. We did not run our own tests. Our review method explains how we work.

Check Surfshark's price

Check NordVPN's price

Side by side

Price and renewal

Neither provider showed us Canadian dollars. Both pricing pages showed euros when we checked on October 6, 2026 from outside Canada. Providers set prices by location, so your checkout will show the amount in your currency. We have not converted anything.

Surfshark sells three 2-year plans, each with 3 extra months: Starter at EUR 2.49 a month (EUR 67.23 for the first 27 months), One at EUR 2.79 (EUR 75.33) and One+ at EUR 4.49 (EUR 121.23). The page notes "VAT may apply". Its FAQ says you will be "charged the applicable renewal price" without giving the figure.

NordVPN also sells three 2-year plans with 3 extra months: Basic at EUR 3.49 a month (EUR 94.23 for 27 months, renewing at EUR 139.08 a year), Complete at EUR 4.49 (renews EUR 219.48) and Ultra at EUR 6.59 (renews EUR 269.88). It also shows 1-year plans, from EUR 5.49 a month.

So Surfshark is cheaper for the first 27 months. After that we cannot say, because only NordVPN publishes its renewal price on the page. Before you choose Surfshark for price, find its renewal amount at checkout. Our cheapest VPN in Canada page tracks renewals where providers publish them.

Servers in Canada

NordVPN lists Calgary, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. Surfshark's server data lists Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. The difference is Calgary, which matters if you are in Alberta or nearby. Neither lists a city in Atlantic Canada, so readers there will connect through Montreal or Toronto with either provider.

Worldwide, NordVPN states "7,130 ultra-fast servers covering 150 countries". Surfshark's features page says "4500+ servers in 100 countries".

Protocols and apps

• NordVPN: NordLynx (its default, based on WireGuard), NordWhisper, IKEv2/IPSec and OpenVPN over UDP or TCP.
• Surfshark: WireGuard, OpenVPN and IKEv2, plus its own protocol, Dausos.

Both cover the same open standards, and each adds a protocol of its own. If you are unsure which to use, the default in each app is a reasonable start. Surfshark's Trust Center lists a 2026 Cure53 audit that covered its own protocol, Dausos. NordLynx is built on WireGuard, an open protocol. Our WireGuard vs OpenVPN page explains the two open protocols both offer.

Privacy and audits

NordVPN says it "operates out of Panama"; Nord Security is headquartered in Lithuania. Its no-log page says PricewaterhouseCoopers AG Switzerland reviewed its no-logs claims in 2018 and 2020, and Deloitte in later years (2022 to 2025 are mentioned). The page is inconsistent on the total, so we do not give a count.

Surfshark says it is based in the Netherlands, as Surfshark B.V. in Amsterdam. Its Trust Center lists Deloitte no-logs reports in 2023 and 2025, a SecuRing infrastructure audit completed in December 2025, a Cure53 audit of its infrastructure and Dausos in 2026, and earlier Cure53 audits in 2021 and 2018.

Deloitte appears in both lists. Because the two companies share a holding company, you may prefer to treat them as one group when you think about who holds your data.

Before you buy either

• Count your devices. If the household total is above 10, NordVPN will not cover everyone at once.
• Find Surfshark's renewal price. It is not on the pricing page, so look at checkout before paying.
• Check the currency at checkout. Our figures are euros seen from outside Canada.
• Note the 30-day window. Both offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.
• Consider the shared ownership. If you want a provider outside this group, ExpressVPN, Proton VPN and Mullvad are separate businesses.

Both providers do the same core job. The Government of Canada's Get Cyber Safe page on public Wi-Fi says that if you use it often, "using a virtual private network (VPN) can be a safer solution." Either one will encrypt your connection on those networks.

Which to choose

• More than 10 devices: Surfshark.
• Lowest first-term cost: Surfshark Starter.
• A Calgary server: NordVPN.
• A known renewal price before you pay: NordVPN.
• Several 1-year price options shown up front: NordVPN; Surfshark's 12-month prices were not in the page text we read.
• A provider outside this group: see NordVPN vs ExpressVPN.

See Surfshark plans

See NordVPN plans

For the full detail, read our NordVPN review and Surfshark review.

Common questions