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Government · head to head

Bonfire vs ExpressVPN

Bonfire logo

Bonfire

Government

Public sector sourcing and bid evaluation software with scored, auditable award decisions

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite
ExpressVPN logo

ExpressVPN

Cybersecurity

Consumer VPN registered in the British Virgin Islands, owned by Kape Technologies since 2021, with repeated third-party audits.

From
$6.67/month
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Bonfire it is a sourcing and evaluation tool rather than full procure to pay, so requisitions, purchase orders and invoicing stay in the finance system and the join between them is the agency's problem.; ExpressVPN ownership passed in 2021 to Kape Technologies, formerly Crossrider, whose earlier browser extension platform was widely used to distribute adware, and Kape also owns VPN review publications, so nominally independent rankings a buyer consults may originate inside the same corporate group.
  • They diverge on capability: Bonfire covers Solicitation posting, ExpressVPN covers TrustedServer.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Bonfire and ExpressVPN actually diverge.

Attributes where Bonfire and ExpressVPN differ
AttributeBonfireExpressVPN
Starting priceOn request$6.67/month
Pricing modelquotesubscription
PlatformsWebWeb, Desktop, Mobile, Api
CategoryGovernmentCybersecurity
FoundedUnknown2009

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Bonfire

  • Solicitation posting
  • Sealed submission intake
  • Scored evaluation workspace
  • Audit trail
  • Supplier portal
  • Requirement matrices

Only in ExpressVPN

  • TrustedServer
  • Lightway protocol
  • Repeated external audits
  • Network Lock
  • Split tunnelling
  • Aircove router
  • Threat Manager
  • Private DNS

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Bonfire

  • An agency that has lost or nearly lost a bid protest and needs a defensible evaluation recordnot ExpressVPN
  • A procurement team running scoring committees currently held together by spreadsheets and emailnot ExpressVPN
  • A university or health system applying public procurement rules without a public procurement systemnot ExpressVPN
  • An agency wanting suppliers to self register and receive addenda automatically rather than by mailing listnot ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN

  • A buyer who wants the largest available body of published third-party audit evidence behind a no-logging claimnot Bonfire
  • Households wanting whole-network coverage through a router without configuring firmware by handnot Bonfire
  • Frequent travellers who need connections that survive switching between mobile data and hotel Wi-Fi without droppingnot Bonfire
  • Non-technical users who want the kill switch and DNS handled correctly by default rather than configurednot Bonfire

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Bonfire

  • It is a sourcing and evaluation tool rather than full procure to pay, so requisitions, purchase orders and invoicing stay in the finance system and the join between them is the agency's problem.
  • Since the acquisition path from GTY to GI Partners to Euna Solutions, Bonfire sits in a portfolio alongside products it once competed with, which narrows a shortlist that appears independent.
  • Suppliers must register on the portal to bid, and small local vendors reliably complain about the extra account, which can reduce responses on low value solicitations.
  • Pricing is quoted rather than published and scales with solicitation volume, so an agency with a few very large procurements pays a model designed around throughput.
  • Contract management after award is thin compared with dedicated contract lifecycle products, so agencies often buy a second system for the obligations the award created.

ExpressVPN

  • Ownership passed in 2021 to Kape Technologies, formerly Crossrider, whose earlier browser extension platform was widely used to distribute adware, and Kape also owns VPN review publications, so nominally independent rankings a buyer consults may originate inside the same corporate group.
  • In 2021 the company's then chief information officer was named in a United States Department of Justice deferred prosecution agreement over work for a foreign government's offensive cyber programme and remained in post, which is a governance fact that sits uncomfortably alongside a product sold entirely on trust.
  • Audits are point-in-time engagements against an agreed scope, so they establish that specified servers and code matched the stated policy when examined, not that the infrastructure behaves the same way today or under different ownership.
  • Several country locations are virtual, meaning the hardware physically sits elsewhere, and after India's 2022 directive requiring VPN providers to retain subscriber data ExpressVPN withdrew its Indian servers, so an Indian connection is routed through hardware in another country, which matters if you need genuine in-country routing.
  • There is no port forwarding and no dedicated IP option, so seeding torrents, hosting a service behind the tunnel and any inbound connection do not work, and users who need those capabilities have to use a different provider.

Pricing, plan by plan

Bonfire

On request
  • Bonfire$undefined/year
    • Quoted by agency size and annual solicitation volume
    • Supplier side registration is free, which is how the vendor network grows
    • Implementation and training quoted separately from subscription

ExpressVPN

$6.67/month
  • 1 Month$12.95/month
    • 8 devices
    • 94 countries
    • Unlimited bandwidth
  • 12 Months$6.67/month
    • All features
    • 3 months free
    • Best value
  • 6 Months$9.99/month
    • All features
    • 30-day guarantee

Which should you pick?

Choose Bonfire if

  • You need solicitation posting.
  • You also want sealed submission intake.
Bonfire review

Choose ExpressVPN if

  • You need trustedserver.
  • You work on Web, Desktop, Mobile, Api.
  • You also want lightway protocol.
ExpressVPN review

Questions people ask

Is Bonfire or ExpressVPN better?
Neither clearly leads. Bonfire starts at On request and ExpressVPN at $6.67/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Bonfire or ExpressVPN?
Bonfire starts at On request and ExpressVPN at $6.67/month.
Does Bonfire or ExpressVPN run on more platforms?
Bonfire runs on Web. ExpressVPN runs on Web, Desktop, Mobile, Api.
What is Bonfire best used for?
Bonfire is most often used for an agency that has lost or nearly lost a bid protest and needs a defensible evaluation record, a procurement team running scoring committees currently held together by spreadsheets and email, a university or health system applying public procurement rules without a public procurement system, an agency wanting suppliers to self register and receive addenda automatically rather than by mailing list. Of those, an agency that has lost or nearly lost a bid protest and needs a defensible evaluation record and a procurement team running scoring committees currently held together by spreadsheets and email are not what ExpressVPN is typically brought in for.
What can Bonfire do that ExpressVPN cannot?
Bonfire covers Solicitation posting, Sealed submission intake, Scored evaluation workspace, Audit trail. ExpressVPN covers TrustedServer, Lightway protocol, Repeated external audits, Network Lock.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Bonfire: Who owns Bonfire?

Euna Solutions. Bonfire was acquired by GTY Technology in 2019, GTY was taken private by GI Partners in 2022, and the portfolio was rebranded Euna Solutions in 2023.

ExpressVPN: Who owns ExpressVPN?

Kape Technologies, which acquired it in 2021. Kape was previously named Crossrider and also owns CyberGhost, Private Internet Access and Zenmate, along with the review sites vpnMentor and Wizcase.

Bonfire: Is it full procure to pay?

No. It covers sourcing and evaluation through award. Purchase orders and invoicing remain in the finance system.

ExpressVPN: Is the British Virgin Islands jurisdiction actually useful?

It has no mandatory data retention law and is outside the Five, Nine and Fourteen Eyes arrangements, which is the reason it was chosen. It also means limited practical legal recourse for a subscriber, so the jurisdiction protects the company's ability to hold no data rather than protecting you against the company.

Bonfire: What is the real value?

A defensible, time stamped evaluation record when an award is protested, which is the expensive failure mode in public procurement.

ExpressVPN: Has the no-logs claim been audited?

Yes, repeatedly. PwC and KPMG have examined the no-logging claims and the TrustedServer architecture, and Cure53 has reviewed the applications, extension and protocol. The reports are published.

Bonfire: Can we see what other agencies pay?

Yes. These contracts are public records. Read several comparable awards before negotiating.

ExpressVPN: Can I torrent with it?

Yes, peer-to-peer traffic is permitted on the network, but there is no port forwarding, so you can download but you cannot accept inbound connections and seeding performance suffers as a result.

ExpressVPN: Does it work in China or similar networks?

Sometimes, using obfuscated connection modes, but no provider can guarantee this and availability changes without warning. Treat it as best effort and have a fallback.

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