NordVPN vs Surfshark: Which VPN Is Better, and Where Is Cashback Paid?
NordVPN vs Surfshark: Which VPN Is Better? The honest short answer: both are full VPN packages with a 30-day money-back guarantee, and they differ on device count and extras. We recommend NordVPN if your devices fit the ten slots on one account, because its three plans are clearly tiered and from Complete upwards a password manager and cloud storage come with it. With a very large number of devices Surfshark is the better fit. Prices move, status October 2026.
Where cashback is paid
Both providers have their own page with us: NordVPN at daily cashback and Surfshark at daily cashback. The rate you get is the one on the shop page, and it moves with the provider's campaigns. Cashback collects in your free account and is paid out through PayPal.
Available here with cashback
How you start matters: open the shop page, switch your ad blocker off for that session and order without a detour through other comparison or voucher sites. A foreign click shortly before checkout can overwrite the tracking.
Plans and devices at a glance
NordVPN lists three plans on its pricing page: Basic, Complete and Ultra. All protect up to 10 devices at once. Basic is the plain VPN package with scam protection and dark web monitoring for up to 5 email addresses. Complete adds antivirus, a password manager and 1 TB of encrypted cloud storage, Ultra also adds Incogni, the service that removes personal data.
Surfshark calls its plans Starter, One and One+. The pricing page marks the device count as unlimited. For the network Surfshark names over 4500 servers in 100 countries. The packages include Alternative ID, scam protection, antivirus and data leak alerts; the pricing page also lists data removal through Incogni.
NordVPN states 225+ locations. Those are locations, not countries, so the two figures cannot be laid side by side one to one. What counts for you: is the country you want in the server list of the app?
Guarantee, refund and cashback are linked
Both give a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you claim your money back in that window, the cashback goes too, because the purchase counts as cancelled. If you just want to try the service and keep it, nothing changes.
The small print differs. Under NordVPN's terms of service the guarantee covers the first purchase; a renewed contract can no longer be returned that way. Surfshark's refund policy says something similar: the guarantee applies to the initial purchase and is limited to one refund per service. Surfshark excludes, among others, purchases through certain resellers, with a prepaid or gift card, and the add-ons Alternative Number and anonymous Dedicated IP.
Renewal and voucher codes
Both subscriptions continue automatically after the first term. NordVPN shows the renewal price right beside the starting offer, with Surfshark it sits in the subscription notes. Write down the date and decide before it runs out whether you want to keep the plan.
If you also redeem a voucher code from another source, the link to us can be lost and the cashback with it. The shop page lists the rules; read them before you order.
What is in the package
On features it pays to look at the details. NordVPN's features page names, among other things, Double VPN, where traffic runs through two servers, and a split that decides which apps go through the tunnel and which do not. From Complete, protection against scam calls and suspicious messages is added, although message protection applies to Android only at first, per the pricing page.
Surfshark lists the Bypasser, meaning separate paths for individual apps, just as it lists Dynamic MultiHop as a double VPN, rotating IP addresses and an ad blocker. A dedicated IP is available in 20 locations according to the pricing page. If you use banking apps that dislike a VPN, that split of the connection is a practical lever.
Whether all of this helps depends on your daily use. If you mainly want safe browsing on cafe wifi, the basic package does well; the higher tiers pay off only when you will really use the password manager and cloud storage.
Comparison table
| Question | NordVPN | Surfshark |
|---|---|---|
| Plans | Basic, Complete, Ultra | Starter, One, One+ |
| Devices per account | up to 10 | unlimited |
| Network | 225+ locations | 4500+ servers in 100 countries |
| Guarantee | 30 days, first purchase only | 30 days, first purchase only |
| Password manager | from Complete | no information |
| Cashback with us | yes, shop page | yes, shop page |
| If you get a refund | cashback falls away | cashback falls away |
Who suits what
One person or a couple with few devices: NordVPN. Ten slots cover laptop, phone, tablet and TV, and you pick the tier you need.
A household with many devices: Surfshark. When the phones, consoles, routers and TVs of several people add up, the unlimited device count is the clear advantage.
Anyone who wants VPN and a security bundle in one subscription: both offer it, NordVPN from Complete, Surfshark in the packages on its pricing page. Compare what the tier contains, not just the monthly price.
Quick takeaways
- You find both providers with us as shops with their own cashback rate.
- Our recommendation: NordVPN up to 10 devices, Surfshark for very many.
- The 30-day guarantee applies to the first purchase, not to the renewal.
- A refund means the cashback is dropped.
More on subscriptions and timing is in our guide to VPN and software subscriptions, and on Surfshark in particular in Subscribing to Surfshark: renewal and the money-back guarantee.
Available here with cashback