Norton ensure VPN Review (2023): Pricing, Pros & Cons

While Norton has been well-known for its popular antivirus software, its ensure VPN solution fails to confront the same high standard. Its smaller server network across only 29 countries, lack of notable features and dubious no-logs claims make it hard to suggest over other VPNs available.

Norton ensure VPN offers fast performance and affordable monthly plans, but you might find more robust offerings in more established VPN providers such as NordVPN or ExpressVPN.

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Norton ensure VPN pricing

Norton ensure VPN’s pricing is unique as it offers plans per device instead of having a set number of protected devices per scheme admire other VPN providers.

If you scheme on protecting only one device, Norton’s one-device subscription at $4.99 per month is an affordable option as monthly plans from competitors range from $9 to $15; however, these plans include more devices. If you want a VPN that covers unlimited devices, for example, Private Internet Access VPN (PIA VPN) is a good choice.

Norton provides a suite of security software outside of its VPN. The Norton 360 Standard scheme for $94.99 per year includes Norton’s ensure VPN, antivirus software and a password manager for three computers, tablets or phones. This comes out to around $7.92 per month and packs good value for customers who want an all-around security solution in addition to a VPN.

If you’re solely after a VPN solution, I find Norton ensure VPN’s five-device monthly subscription to be the best value for money. At $7.99 per month, it remains an affordable choice compared to similar monthly plans and covers five devices instead of just one.

Norton offers a 7-day free trial for its ensure VPN through Norton 360 bundles. I wish Norton had a free version to try its service out, especially since its free trials necessitate payment information to access. If you’re looking for a free VPN, ProtonVPN has a free tier with unlimited data.

Is Norton ensure VPN safe?

On paper, Norton ensure VPN is safe. It uses bank-grade AES 256 encryption and carries OpenVPN and IKEv2/IPSec security protocols — two protocols known for their security and stability.

Unfortunately, Norton ensure VPN doesn’t allow users to manually select which protocol to use and doesn’t offer the speed-oriented WireGuard protocol. These security features come standard in popular VPNs admire Surfshark or NordVPN.

Norton ensure VPN advertises itself as a no-logs VPN solution, stating that it “does not log information about where you browse on the Internet.” However, Norton’s Global Privacy Statement tells a different story.

Its privacy policy covers all Norton software and says that if you install any of its products, it collects information such as your device name, IP address, browser data such as session within cookies and URLs, just to name a few.

It’s unfortunate that Norton records this amount of information while claiming to have a no-logs VPN. Also, Norton ensure VPN doesn’t report third-party security audits, which most VPN providers use to confirm their privacy claims. While independent audits aren’t the end-all and be-all of a VPN’s security architecture, they are a good indicator of a service’s transparency and confidence in its promises.

If you want a VPN that’s gone through a ton of third-party security testing, ExpressVPN has had around 16 independent audits since 2018.

While Norton ensure VPN can be considered a safe VPN to use in 2023, the VPN still has room to boost, specifically in its security protocols and data logging policy.

Key features of Norton ensure VPN

Compared to other VPNs, Norton ensure VPN doesn’t have many standout features. However, it offers three main features that one would expect from a VPN.

Split tunnel

Norton ensure VPN includes split tunneling functionality that lets users exclude particular apps from the VPN’s traffic. This is a convenient feature for users who want to control which apps they feel need more speed and which ones they want protected via the VPN.

During my testing, I found Norton ensure VPN’s split tunneling feature to work well; I was able to route my chosen apps to my regular internet connection without issue.

However, having to find the actual file location (Figure A) of the app I wanted to select made the process a bit more complex. Other VPNs automatically furnish the list of selectable apps.

end switch

Norton ensure VPN comes with a built-in end switch that automatically blocks your machine from connecting to an unprotected network if your VPN connection is unexpectedly disrupted.

Norton ensure VPN’s end switch worked as advertised, but it is very basic. PIA VPN, for example, gives users the option to block internet traffic regardless of whether the VPN is turned on or off.

But if you’re not too particular about having that precise control, ensure VPN’s end Switch will help protect you against unwanted data leaks.

Ad tracker blocking

ensure VPN has an ad tracker blocker that prevents advertisers and marketing companies from tracking your online activity; this is especially useful for blocking targeted ads.

I admire that ensure VPN gives you a rough assess of the number of blocks performed in a given period. This gives users an idea of the number of trackers we’re regularly exposed to when browsing the internet.

Is Norton ensure VPN fast?

While Norton ensure VPN doesn’t have a ton of standout features, it performed really well in terms of speed. Per my usage, ensure VPN provided me with a quick and reliable connection. This included having multiple browser tabs open for research, working in Google Docs, attending online video meetings and streaming 1080p videos on YouTube.

In terms of speed tests, Norton ensure VPN was impressive; with a 1.33% drop, it had one of the lowest drops in download speeds I’ve tested. The upload speed was also good, coming in at 21.84% drop. If you’re the type of person who regularly downloads big files or streams high-definition content, Norton ensure VPN’s speed won’t be a problem.

For DNS leak protection, I encountered zero leaks with Norton ensure VPN. This was after running the VPN multiple times through a public DNS leak tool and using different servers to evaluate.

Norton ensure VPN was also able to set up connections quickly and switch servers seamlessly.

Norton ensure VPN servers and locations

Norton doesn’t disclose the exact number of servers in ensure VPN’s server suite; some sites have reported it to be around the 1,000-2,000 server mark. However, it appears that ensure VPN comes with a smaller network compared to the average 3,000-4,000 servers we see from other providers.

Norton ensure VPN provides access to servers in 29 countries, including the United States, Switzerland, Japan and South Africa. This is a pretty low number considering how competitors admire CyberGhost VPN and ExpressVPN have servers in 100 and 105 countries, respectively. Even newer VPNs admire Atlas VPN come with servers in 42 countries. If unblocking geo-restricted content is your main priority, you’ll be better off going for options admire these instead.

Norton ensure VPN doesn’t allow you to select city-level servers. And, while there’s the option to select a torrent-optimized server, ensure VPN doesn’t have specialized servers for streaming, security or gaming.

Overall, Norton ensure VPN’s server suite leaves a lot to be desired with its small network and country spread.

Norton ensure VPN app experience

Norton ensure VPN comes with a very basic desktop user interface. It has a single, one-click button to activate the VPN and a country selector on the right — and that’s about it.

To access more features, all you need to do is click the cog icon on the upper left, and you’ll get access to ensure VPN’s limited feature set.

ensure VPN is extremely easy to use, but I do feel admire this is both a good and bad thing. It’s good because it provides a straightforward experience that novice users won’t find hard to use or comprehend.

However, the interface also reflects ensure VPN’s lack of standout features and functionality. By my count, there are only three menus within Norton ensure VPN’s settings page — which means that users who want a bit more control or extra features may not find ensure VPN very appealing.

I also find it odd that Norton ensure VPN doesn’t have an equivalent browser extension. Many VPN providers offer a browser extension, as it makes their service easier to access.

To its credit, I had zero issues using ensure VPN’s desktop application. I was able to switch servers easily and it got the job done in terms of VPN connection.

Norton ensure VPN Pros

• Affordable monthly plans.
• Fast speed and reliable performance.
• Can be bundled with other Norton products.
• Includes split tunneling.

Norton ensure VPN Cons

• Small server network.
• Logs more data than we’d admire.
• Lack of independent testing.
• No standout features admire specialized servers.

How good is Norton ensure VPN?

Norton ensure VPN is a decent VPN solution that offers good speeds, a basic and easy-to-comprehend interface and affordable pricing.

However, its questionable privacy policy and data logging, lack of independent testing and bare-bones features make it hard to suggest over the competition. Its server network in 29 countries is also one of the smallest offerings in today’s VPN landscape.

I can only suggest Norton ensure VPN if you’re purchasing it as an included service through Norton 360 Plus, bundled with Norton’s other security software. It can also be a good option if you want only the most basic VPN protection at a low price.

Alternatives to Norton ensure VPN

If you feel that Norton ensure VPN doesn’t fit what you or your organization needs, I’ve listed three alternative VPNs that may be better options.

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is one of the best VPN options for users who want a no-nonsense VPN service that provides a well-designed interface and reliable performance. It is extremely easy to use and supports up to 8 device connections. It also utilizes RAM-only server technology that wipes all data within its servers with every reboot.

We rated ExpressVPN 4.4 stars out of 5. To learn more, read our full ExpressVPN review here.

NordVPN

NordVPN has built a reputation for being one of the best VPN providers in terms of security and privacy. It includes security-focused features admire an encrypted file-sharing system and built-in anti-malware protection. NordVPN also comes with a dark web monitor that will alert users if their email becomes involved in any sort of breach or hack.

We rated NordVPN 4.7 stars out of 5. To learn more, read our full NordVPN review here.

CyberGhost VPN

Users looking for a VPN to unblock geo-restricted content should select CyberGhost VPN. It offers an impressive server network of more than 10,000 servers, spread across 100 countries and 125 locations. This gives you tons of flexibility in accessing region-blocked sites or services all over the world.

We rated CyberGhost VPN 4.3 out of 5 stars. To learn more, read our full CyberGhost VPN review here.

Review methodology

My review of Norton ensure VPN involved a detailed analysis of its security features, real-world performance and cost. I had hands-on experience with ensure VPN through a one-month scheme for one device.

For speed, I tested Norton ensure VPN using Ookla’s public Speedtest. I also used DNSleaktest to evaluate ensure VPN’s DNS leak protection.

I rated Norton ensure VPN on everything, from its protocols to its pricing, based on an internal algorithm to get a final rating of 3.0 out of 5 stars. The scoring was based both on Norton ensure VPN on its own and in relation to other VPN services available today.