Softwr

Cybersecurity · head to head

ExpressVPN vs Prettier

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
Prettier logo

Prettier

Developer Tools

Opinionated code formatter

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Prettier has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Prettier inflexible style rules that cannot be customized significantly, forcing teams to accept opinionated defaults
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ExpressVPN and Prettier actually diverge.

Attributes where ExpressVPN and Prettier differ
AttributeExpressVPNPrettier
Starting price$6.67/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfree
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Desktop, Mobile, ApiCLI, Editor Plugins, Build Tools
CategoryCybersecurityDeveloper Tools
Founded20092016

Identical on both: 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 ExpressVPN

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

Only in Prettier

Nothing recorded that ExpressVPN does not also cover.

What people use each for

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

ExpressVPN

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

Prettier

  • Automatically formatting TypeScript files to project style standardsnot ExpressVPN
  • Enforcing consistent HTML indentation across component filesnot ExpressVPN
  • Removing style-related comments from pull request reviewsnot ExpressVPN
  • Formatting GraphQL queries with consistent indentationnot ExpressVPN

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Prettier

  • Inflexible style rules that cannot be customized significantly, forcing teams to accept opinionated defaults
  • Developers must format entire files rather than selective line ranges in some contexts
  • Limited language support compared to some alternatives, though it covers major languages

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Prettier

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Prettier review.

Which should you pick?

Choose ExpressVPN if

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

Choose Prettier if

  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on CLI, Editor Plugins, Build Tools.
Prettier review

Questions people ask

Is ExpressVPN or Prettier better?
Neither clearly leads. ExpressVPN starts at $6.67/month and Prettier at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ExpressVPN or Prettier?
Prettier has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $6.67/month for ExpressVPN and Free for Prettier.
Does ExpressVPN or Prettier run on more platforms?
ExpressVPN runs on Web, Desktop, Mobile, Api. Prettier runs on CLI, Editor Plugins, Build Tools.
Can I use Prettier for free?
Yes. Prettier has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. ExpressVPN starts at $6.67/month.
What is ExpressVPN best used for?
ExpressVPN is most often used for a buyer who wants the largest available body of published third-party audit evidence behind a no-logging claim, households wanting whole-network coverage through a router without configuring firmware by hand, frequent travellers who need connections that survive switching between mobile data and hotel wi-fi without dropping, non-technical users who want the kill switch and dns handled correctly by default rather than configured. Of those, a buyer who wants the largest available body of published third-party audit evidence behind a no-logging claim and households wanting whole-network coverage through a router without configuring firmware by hand are not what Prettier is typically brought in for.
What can ExpressVPN do that Prettier cannot?
ExpressVPN covers TrustedServer, Lightway protocol, Repeated external audits, Network Lock.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Prettier: Is Prettier free and open source?

Yes, Prettier is completely free and open source, available as an npm package with no licensing costs or subscriptions.

Source
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.

Prettier: Can Prettier be integrated with ESLint?

Yes, Prettier integrates with ESLint by disabling ESLint formatting rules via eslint-config-prettier, allowing both tools to work together with Prettier handling formatting and ESLint handling code quality.

Source
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.

Prettier: Does Prettier support configuration customization?

Prettier is intentionally opinionated with limited configuration options to enforce consistency. You can create a .prettierrc file for basic customization, but Prettier does not support extensive rule customization like ESLint.

Source
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.

Share

Related pages

More on ExpressVPN

More on Prettier

Keep looking

Other head to heads