NordVPN → Mullvad VPN
What it saves, what actually moves, what you rebuild — and the thing that catches people.
What it costs, and what it saves
NordVPN, as listed on nordvpn.com/pricing on 2026-10-03 (US prices, sales tax extra): Basic is $14.99 billed monthly, $65.88 for the first 12 months, or $94.23 for the first 27 months on the 2-year offer ($3.49/month), and Basic renews at $139.08/year whichever term you start on. Complete renews at $219.48/year and Prime at $296.28/year. Mullvad, as listed on mullvad.net/en/pricing the same day: one flat EUR 5 per month including VAT (shown as $5.63), the same rate for a month, a year or a decade, so a year is EUR 60 (about $67.56 at Mullvad's displayed conversion); cryptocurrency payments get 10% off. Inside a NordVPN intro term, Nord's $3.49-$5.49/month is cheaper than Mullvad; at Basic's $139.08 renewal, Mullvad costs about $71.52/year less.
Moves cleanly
Very little needs moving, because a VPN holds no user content: no files, mail or history live in the NordVPN account. What carries over is your setup: which devices run the VPN, always-on and kill-switch preferences, and router use. Mullvad publishes WireGuard configuration files for any device that supports them (mullvad.net/account/wireguard-config), so a router or device with a WireGuard client can be pointed at Mullvad without installing its app.
You rebuild
Each device is set up again: install the Mullvad app, log in with the 16-digit account number, and re-create kill switch, split tunneling and server choices. NordVPN extras have no Mullvad counterpart to rebuild into: a dedicated IP (Mullvad's FAQ says it does not offer one), Meshnet, and the antivirus, password manager and 1 TB cloud storage bundled into Complete and Prime. Port forwarding is also unavailable; Mullvad removed it on 2023-07-01.
What NordVPN costs you today
No free tier. Billed by subscription — roughly $13/month month-to-month, dropping to about $3–5/month on 1–2 year plans; introductory prices typically rise at renewal.
What actually holds you in
A subscription service — your account and any prepaid term live on Nord's platform, but there's no data to migrate and no technical lock-in. The only real cost of leaving is re-subscribing (or self-hosting) elsewhere.
What you are moving to
Mullvad is the privacy purist's VPN. There's no email or personal detail at signup — you get a random account number — and the price is a flat €5/month with no tiers or upsells (unchanged since 2009). Its apps are open-source, its no-logs policy has been independently audited many times (Cure53 and Assured), and it accepts cash and Monero for genuinely anonymous payment. It isn't built for streaming gymnastics; it's built so that no one, including Mullvad, can tie your traffic to you. Notably, Mullvad refuses to run an affiliate program — so no site earns a commission recommending it, including us. We still rank it first.
Flat €5/month, no tiers; anonymous 16-digit account number, no email
Mullvad VPN strengths
- No email or personal info — just a random account number
- Open-source apps, repeatedly audited (Cure53, Assured)
- Flat €5/month, no price games or renewal hikes
- Anonymous payment options including cash and Monero
What you give up
- Not focused on streaming unblocking
- A VPN service you don't self-host (you trust the no-logs audits)
- Fewer flashy extras than the big commercial VPNs
The migration, step by step
- 1Find how and when NordVPN bills you: in Nord Account open the Billing tab and note the renewal date. If you bought through the Apple App Store, Google Play or Amazon Appstore, renewal is cancelled in that store, not in Nord Account.
- 2Generate a Mullvad account on mullvad.net (no email is asked for), save the 16-digit account number in a password manager, and add one month of time (EUR 5) by card, PayPal, bank transfer, cryptocurrency or cash.
- 3Install the Mullvad app on up to 5 devices; when the limit is reached the app lists your devices so you can remove one. Cover anything beyond 5 with a router running a WireGuard config downloaded from mullvad.net/account/wireguard-config.
- 4Overlap for one to two weeks (estimate): as each device moves to Mullvad, sign out of NordVPN on it so only one VPN connects at a time, and check the sites, games, banking and work tools you rely on.
- 5Cutover: once every device runs Mullvad, open Nord Account > Billing and choose Cancel next to auto-renewal. NordVPN's 30-day money-back guarantee covers only the first purchase, not renewed periods, so do this before the renewal date.
- 6After cutover, top up Mullvad monthly or yearly at the same EUR 5/month rate and check remaining time on its Account page; if you depended on port forwarding or a fixed IP, put a separate arrangement in place before the NordVPN term runs out.
The gotcha
Mullvad has no email, username or password: its own blog describes the account number as 'both the username and the password'. Store the 16-digit number in a password manager before you pay; there is no email-based reset. Second, the 5-device cap is fixed - Mullvad's FAQ says it cannot add more devices to an account - so a household using 6 to 10 NordVPN connections needs a second Mullvad account or a WireGuard router covering the home network. Third, Mullvad removed port forwarding on 2023-07-01 and offers no dedicated IP, so torrent seeding through an open port, self-hosting behind the VPN, or services that allow-list a fixed IP address will stop working after the switch.
When to stay on NordVPN
Stay with NordVPN if you need more than 5 devices on one account (NordVPN covers 10), a dedicated IP for allow-listed work or banking logins, Meshnet to reach your own devices remotely, or the antivirus, password manager and 1 TB storage that come with Complete and Prime. Stay too while you are inside a prepaid intro term at $3.49-$5.49/month, which is below Mullvad's EUR 5. Mullvad's FAQ makes no promise about streaming services, so if the VPN is mainly for a particular streaming catalogue, test before committing.
More Layer 5 migrations
Figures verified 2026-07-14 against vendor pricing pages. Prices change and migrations differ by estate — treat the cost delta as a starting model, not a quote. Rankings and recommendations here are merit-only; affiliate income never changes a verdict. See our methodology.