When comparing BTGuard vs Mullvad, the Slant community recommends Mullvad for most people. In the question“What is the best VPN provider? ” Mullvad is ranked 1st while BTGuard is ranked 21st. The most important reason people chose Mullvad is:
When signing up, a sufficiently long random number is assigned and given to you which serves as both username and password, without any need to provide a name or e-mail address or any other identifying information.
Specs
Question Ranking
Pros
Pro No logs are kept
Pro No traffic or protocol restrictions
You can use any and all protocols at your disposal, no traffic is restricted.
Pro Accepts PayPal and Bitcoin
Pro Comes with a pre-configured client.
If you just need a quick setup to get basic VPN features, BTGuard features an easy to use client, that just requires installation.
But, for those who need more security, BTGuard offers more features such as Socks V5 proxies and encryption tunnel software.
Pro Cheaper than most VPNs
At only 6.95 USD per month for torrent protection and 9.95 USD per month for the full VPN, BTGuard is one of the cheapest VPNs out there.
Pro Token-based account system
When signing up, a sufficiently long random number is assigned and given to you which serves as both username and password, without any need to provide a name or e-mail address or any other identifying information.
Pro No logs are kept
According to Mullvad, they retain no traffic information or metadata. Here is their statement in 2014 when inquired by TorrentFreak if they store any logs that would enable linking an IP address and a timestamp to a user:
No. This would make both us and our users more vulnerable so we
certainly don’t. To make it harder to watch the activities of an IP address from the outside we also have many users share each address, both for IPv4 and our upcoming IPv6 support.
Pro Multiple payment methods
Bitcoin, cash, bank transfers, PayPal, credit cards are accepted.
Pro No traffic or protocol restrictions
Mullvad allows using any and all protocols that the user wishes, no traffic is restricted.
Pro DNS leak protection
In the event of a DNS leak, not all traffic is routed through a secure network. Mullvad helps solve this issue by offering DNS leak protection.
Pro Offers a free trial
One of the things that makes Mullvad's free trial attractive is the lack of personal information asked to sign up. Once downloaded, the free trial lasts three hours.
Pro Has native applications for all popular platforms
The platforms that Mullvad can run on include: Windows, OSX, Linux, Android, and iOS. Additionally, Mullvad offers a source code that allows the program to be run on virtually any system.
Pro Includes a kill switch
It's possible to set up the software to disconnect from Internet in case the connection to the VPN service is lost to not expose traffic in case of service failures.
Pro Multi-hop
Allows hopping from one location to another for additional security. This is great because everything "hops" through multiple locations effectively providing an additional mask and making it harder to trace the route back to the source.
Pro Supports WireGuard
WireGuard is an extremely simple yet fast and modern open-source VPN program built using the latest cryptography. It's faster, simpler, leaner, and more useful than both IPSec and OpenVPN.
Pro Based outside of the Five Eyes
Mullvad operates out of Sweden, and so is not exposed to the same privacy-corresive laws as it would be if it were in the US or another “Five Eyes” country.
Pro Not expensive
Only 5 € by month with a 3 hours trial period.
Pro Easy to set up
Easy to set up Windows client.
Cons
Con Poor customer service
Con Slow connection speeds
Con Passwords are stored in plain text
Con Seemingly permanent kill-switch
Client, if shut down, often seemed to keep the kill-switch enabled, with no way to reset besides a rest of the hardware.
Con French Mullvad Windows Client
Sometime for a reason of french language, the window client does not connect to the chosen server. It can be bypassed by installing their beta client (the choice I made).
Con Not reliable
Multiple people have reported occasional connection issues as well as slow speeds. In one test, the users could only connect to servers within their own country.