ExpressVPN has launched a steeply discounted offer on its Basic plan, cutting the price to £1.99 a month when customers sign up for a two-year term before 11.59pm on April 21, 2026. The promotion also adds four free months, bringing the total subscription length to 28 months and pushing one of the sector’s premium brands below the current entry prices advertised by NordVPN and Proton VPN.
That matters because price has long been one of the main reasons some buyers looked elsewhere. ExpressVPN has built its reputation on speed, broad device support and strong privacy protections, but it has usually charged more than many rivals. This deal changes that calculation, at least for customers willing to commit to a longer contract.
Why this offer stands out
The headline saving is large: 80% off the standard monthly rate for ExpressVPN Basic, which ordinarily costs £9.99 on a rolling one-month plan. At checkout, the two-year plan costs £55.78, and the added four months mean subscribers would not need to renew until August 2028. On the company’s own figures, that works out to roughly 6p a day.
The pricing is especially notable because VPN buyers often compare services on monthly cost first, then on server coverage, speed and device limits. Here, ExpressVPN says Basic covers up to 10 devices at once, putting it in line with major rivals on simultaneous connections while now undercutting NordVPN’s £2.29 entry plan and Proton VPN’s £2.39 two-year equivalent, based on the prices provided in the offer details.
What the Basic plan includes — and what it does not
At its core, the plan offers what most people buy a VPN for: encrypted internet traffic, IP masking and apps across major platforms including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, Linux and Fire TV. ExpressVPN says it uses AES-256 encryption and its Lightway protocol, with recent updates focused on stronger long-term security protections. For users, the practical effect is straightforward: internet providers, advertisers and hostile actors on public Wi-Fi have a harder time monitoring browsing activity.
Basic also includes Lite Protection, which the company says can block adverts and malicious sites. But this is still the stripped-back tier. It does not include extras such as the ExpressVPN Keys password manager, identity monitoring features or some broader threat-protection tools available on higher-priced plans. That distinction matters for buyers who want an all-in-one security bundle rather than a pure VPN service.
What readers should weigh before signing up
The main trade-off is the contract length. The lowest price only applies if you pay upfront for two years, which is standard in the VPN market but still a commitment. ExpressVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee reduces some of that risk, particularly for first-time VPN users who want to test performance on their own devices and networks.
There is also a broader point about what VPNs can and cannot do. They are useful privacy tools and can help protect data in transit, especially on public networks, but they are not a substitute for good account security, software updates or care with phishing attempts. Nor do they make a user anonymous in every context. A VPN can reduce exposure; it does not remove digital risk altogether.
A sign of fiercer competition in the VPN market
This promotion also reflects a more competitive VPN market, where established brands are under pressure to justify pricing with clearer feature differences. ExpressVPN has often been positioned as a premium option. By moving Basic to £1.99 a month, it is signalling that price-sensitive customers are now central to the fight for subscribers, not an afterthought.
For consumers, that is the clearest takeaway. If you already wanted a VPN and were put off by ExpressVPN’s usual premium, this is one of the rare moments when the brand’s entry price becomes part of its appeal rather than a drawback. Whether that makes it the right choice depends less on the size of the discount than on whether you want a fast, established VPN service without the extras bundled into pricier security tiers.