How Much Does Private Internet Access Cost in 2024?

Let’s get straight to the point: Private Internet Access (PIA) is one of the most affordable VPNs, with prices starting at an average of $2.37 per month. However, the regular monthly price is $11.99. Is it a good buy at either of those price points? Does it have all the essential VPN features?

In this PIA VPN pricing guide, we’ll discuss all the cost-related aspects of Private Internet Access from its subscription options and payment methods to whether it offers a free trial. We’ll also talk about a few ways to save if PIA is your VPN of choice. But of course, it all comes down to one thing: Is Private Internet Access worth it?

>> Learn More: Hands-On Private Internet Access Review

Private Internet Access Subscription Options

Private Internet Access offers several subscription options, but the first thing you should know is that no matter which one you choose, you’ll end up enjoying the same features. The subscriptions differ only in price and length — a longer subscription is cheaper in the long run.

We went with the monthly option when we tested PIA since our testing process lasted for about six weeks. It was the most flexible option, although it was also the most expensive. In fact, PIA’s one-month plan isn’t that much cheaper than NordVPN’s $12.99-per-month subscription. For context, NordVPN is currently our top-pick VPN for 2024, while PIA sits in the third spot.

A VPN typically costs $10 to $15 per month, making PIA just an average option price-wise. If you’re really looking to pay less for a monthly plan, check out our ProtonVPN pricing guide. It’s another top-notch VPN but with a cheaper monthly subscription than PIA — only $9.99 per month!

>> PIA VPN Alternatives: ProtonVPN vs. NordVPN

Private Internet Access’ real price advantage lies in its two-year plan. For only $56.94, you’ll gain access to the VPN for two years. That breaks down to about $2.37 per month. We can name only a few VPNs with offers cheaper than that, like Ivacy’s $1.17-per-month five-year plan and FastestVPN’s $1.66-per-month annual plan. And compared to those, Private Internet Access is a bigger name and has a much better reputation. That’s why we named it one of the best among the most affordable VPNs.

Of course, there’s that one caveat that you have to sign up for two years to enjoy PIA’s best price. That’s a long time, which brings us to our next topic of discussion: Does Private Internet Access have a free trial?

Does Private Internet Access Have a Free Trial?

Private Internet Access does have a free trial if you sign up via the VPN app on your Android or iOS device. The smartphone free trial is good for seven days, but it’s one-time use only. Moreover, you forfeit your eligibility to the 30-day money-back guarantee if you buy a subscription through Google Play or the App Store. More on that later.

In any case, here’s how it works:

1. Download Private Internet Access’ Android or iOS app.
2. Install the VPN app on your iPhone or Android and launch it.
3. Choose the one-year plan and tap ‘Subscribe Now.’
4. Check that the billing date is seven days from the current date.
5. Verify the transaction with two-factor authentication or your Google Play/iCloud password.
6. Enjoy Private Internet Access for free for seven days.

>> Related: The Top iPhone VPNs of 2024

Now, for the catches.

First, if you don’t do anything until the free trial ends, your account will automatically incur the charge for a one-year subscription exclusive to mobile ($39.95 total, or about $3.33 monthly) and not the two-year plan with the best rates. You can prevent that by canceling before the final day of the free trial. In fact, even if you cancel immediately after enrolling, you’d still get to enjoy PIA for seven days.

Second, if you go through with buying a subscription via the app, the money-back guarantee doesn’t apply. Users who buy their PIA subscription from the official website get 30 days to test the VPN, cancel for whatever reason and receive a refund. We’ve used this option before, and we did get our full payment back. But if you buy from the app, you won’t get such a guarantee.

So here’s what we recommend doing: First, sign up for the free trial, but stop its auto-renewal immediately. Use PIA for seven days and start deciding if it’s the right VPN for you. After that, buy a subscription from PIA’s website. Test it further for 30 days and make your final decision — do nothing if you want to keep PIA, or get in touch with customer support if you want to cancel and receive a refund.

In any case, we appreciate PIA providing a free trial and money-back option. Choosing a VPN isn’t a decision to be taken lightly, so we like seeing VPNs that offer free trials.

Buying a Private Internet Access Subscription

Now that you know how much Private Internet Access costs and what its free trial and refund policies entail, let’s talk about our actual experience buying a PIA subscription. And again, we highly encourage buying directly from PIA’s website rather than the app to enjoy the money-back guarantee. The ‘View Plans’ button to the right (or top-right corner of the page if you’re on mobile) will take you to the VPN’s official website.

We started by choosing a plan and then selecting a payment method: credit or debit card, PayPal, or crypto. We paid using a credit card, but the next steps will depend on your preferred payment method.

Pay Via Credit/Debit Card

1. Enter your email address.
2. Enter your credit/debit card details.
3. Click ‘Subscribe Now’ and complete the payment process.
4. Check your email for the login credentials (username and password).
5. Log in to your account and change the password. Make sure to create a strong password with uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.
6. Download and install the VPN app to your devices.
7. Log in using your username and new password.

Pay Via PayPal

1. Click ‘Subscribe via PayPal’ and wait for the PayPal login page to load.
2. Log in. Make sure that the email address associated with your PayPal account is active. It’s where PIA will send your login credentials.
3. Complete the payment process.
4. Follow steps four through seven above to start using PIA.

Pay Via Crypto

1. Enter your email address.
2. Wait for the BitPay page to load. BitPay will act as the payment processor, but you can use any cryptocurrency wallet you might have.
3. Select or search your cryptocurrency wallet from the list.
4. Connect your wallet to BitPay by logging in.
5. Confirm which cryptocurrency you’d use for the transaction and complete the payment.
6. Once paid, check your email for your PIA account credentials.
7. Log in, change the password and download the app to your devices.

Are There Discounts?

Private Internet Access is already one of the most affordable VPNs. It’s hard to imagine its price going even lower, but that happens from time to time. All you have to do is time your purchase. Occasionally, PIA offers extra months if you sign up for the longest subscription.

To give you an example, PIA’s Summer Sale is ongoing at the time of this writing. The deal includes four extra months if you choose the two-year plan. That’s a total of 28 months for $56.94 or about $2.03 per month (compared to $2.37 without the deal). The savings add up over the course of two years.

We particularly recommend checking out PIA around special sale events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. In fact, we created a page specifically for VPN Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. Check it around October for updates.

Private Internet Access Features to Test

You have your VPN, now what? Well, it’s time to put it to the test. There’s no rush because, again, you have 30 days to decide whether to keep it. But to help you out, here are Private Internet Access’ features you should definitely check out.

• Unlimited simultaneous connections: Private Internet Access is among the growing number of VPNs that allows users as many simultaneous devices as they have, unlike options like ExpressVPN that allows only up to eight connections at a time. Start by downloading PIA to all your devices and see if you can connect them all. (The most number of devices we’ve connected to PIA simultaneously was 14.)
• Servers: Private Internet Access has servers in 91 countries, but their availability depends on the device you’re using and which VPN protocol is active. For example, on Android, we counted only 88 countries. Check that the locations you’re most likely going to use are accessible to your devices. If not, you might want to consider a different option, like NordVPN (with servers in 111 countries). See our NordVPN review for more details.

• VPN protocol: The VPN protocol dictates how the VPN handles your traffic, and PIA uses OpenVPN and WireGuard. While those two are the most widely used protocols right now, you should check how they perform on your devices. For computers, we found that PIA’s OpenVPN implementation tends to offer more customization. For phones and tablets, its WireGuard connections typically provide better speed.
• Encryption: Speaking of protocols, check which VPN encryption protocol best suits your VPN usage. Exclusively for OpenVPN connections, PIA lets users choose between 128-bit and 256-bit AES. That’s one of its unique features. In our experience, 128-bit is faster — making it better for bandwidth-heavy activities like streaming and online gaming. On the other hand, 256-bit AES is stronger. The default sets to the former.
• Kill switch: Another one of PIA’s unique features is the customizable kill switch. The kill switch is a must-have feature that protects your privacy by turning off your device’s network connection when the VPN drops unexpectedly. But with PIA, you can choose whether to make the kill switch activate only when the connection drops unexpectedly (regular kill switch) or even when you turn off the VPN on purpose (advanced kill switch). The latter is for those who want an always-on VPN.
• Split tunneling: PIA was full of customizable features when we tested it, and one of our favorites was the split tunneling. It’s a common feature that lets you select apps that can bypass the VPN, but in PIA’s case, you can also enter IP addresses. That means you can also force websites, locally-connected devices (e.g., wireless printers) and servers to bypass the encryption.
• RAM-based servers: You can’t exactly test it out, but it’s good to know that PIA has RAM-based servers. It’s a new type of technology that better protects users’ privacy because servers running on random access memory (RAM) get all their data wiped after every reboot. It’s one reason why PIA is one of our favorite VPNs with a ‘no-logs’ policy.
• Logging options: We saved the best for last; Private Internet Access is one of the very few VPNs that lets users opt in or out of data collection. While it doesn’t record IP addresses and websites visited, PIA does log statistical metrics, such as protocols used or how a connection was established to help improve its services. But unlike most VPNs, that’s not mandatory. In fact, you’re opted out by default; PIA only logs those if you purposely allow it. Check the Settings page of the app to see your options.

Aside from those features, we highly recommend testing Private Internet Access’ speed on your devices. We do VPN speed tests as part of our standard review process, but your results may vary depending on a number of factors, such as your location, type of internet connection, platform or device in use, protocol and encryption selection, and so on. Performing your own speed tests will help you identify PIA’s performance. But if you want to hear our experience, here are the key takeaways from our own tests:

1. Private Internet Access is capable of fast download speed, accessing more than 90 percent of our network speed. We’ve tested VPNs that could only provide about 60 percent of our original speed.
2. PIA proved particularly fast on Windows, as both the download and upload speeds remained high when tested on a Windows 11 laptop.
3. On macOS, Android and iOS, the upload speed dropped considerably higher than the download speed. PIA was able to give us only around 70 percent of our network’s original upload speed.

>> Related: The Fastest VPNs of 2024

Canceling Private Internet Access

To cap off this pricing guide, let’s talk about canceling Private Internet Access. Now, we’re not saying you’re going to need to cancel PIA. It’s a great VPN. But buying a VPN is a personal choice, and if you choose to, you should have the option and know how to cancel.

After we finished testing PIA, we canceled our VPN subscription to see how easy it is to do so. And as it turned out, it wasn’t the easiest. There were two ways, each with a different result:

• Stop auto-renewal: Use this option if you wish not to be charged again once your current subscription ends. You will continue to have access to the VPN, but you will not get a refund if you’re still within the 30-day money-back period.
• Cancel/delete your account: Use this option if you want to totally disable your VPN access. If you’re within the 30-day refund period, you may request a refund. If not, you’d lose your account and the money you paid.

How to Stop Auto-Renewal

The first option is easier because it only turns off auto-renewal. You can do it right on your dashboard.

1. Log in to your Private Internet Access client dashboard. You can also open your VPN app, go to the settings and choose Account.
2. In the Subscriptions Overview tab, click the ‘Turn Off Auto-Renewal’ button under ‘Next Billing.’
3. Click ‘Continue Cancellation’ and answer the one-question survey that follows.
4. Select ‘Turn Off Auto-Renewal’ to finalize.

How to Cancel and Request a Refund

You’d have to go through more hoops if you want to cancel and request a refund. It’s not impossible. It’s just that it’s more complicated compared to Surfshark, which lets users request a refund using an automated chatbot. With PIA, you’d have to send an email to support@privateinternetaccess.com or submit a ticket. You’d also need to use or provide the email address you used to sign up and your complete order number (found in the welcome email from Private Internet Access). Note that the turnaround time is usually two to three business days, and there’s an additional five- to 10-day wait time for the refund to reflect on your bank account.

Is Private Internet Access Worth It? The Final Verdict

We’ve covered all the important factors to consider, so now it’s time to decide — is Private Internet Access worth the money?

It’s not perfect, but given its fast download speed, customizable kill switch and split tunneling, strong encryption, unlimited simultaneous connections, and better-than-most logging practices, Private Internet Access more than meets industry standards. And because it’s one of the most affordable VPNs around, PIA gives great value on the dollar. We’d recommend it in a heartbeat.

Of course, there are also downsides to consider, like the fact that the best price requires a three-year commitment, the subpar upload speeds and the inconsistent streaming capability. If those things are deal-breakers to you, read our Surfshark review and UltraVPN review for other top-rated affordable options.