Best VPN for Australia: 5 Picks, From Perth to Brisbane
Top picks at a glance
Swipe for all 5 →
01
NordVPN
Most Australian servers
- 237 servers in 5 cities
- 91 in Sydney alone
- 10 devices, 30-day refund
02
ExpressVPN
Most AU locations
- 7 Australian locations
- From $4.99 (≈A$7.10) a month
- KPMG audit, Feb 2025
03
Surfshark
Families and share houses
- Unlimited devices
- All 5 mainland capitals
- Deloitte audit, June 2025
04
Proton VPN
Free start, Swiss law
- Free plan, no data cap
- All 5 mainland capitals
- Securitum audit, 2026
05
PIA
Lowest monthly cost
- From $2.03 (≈A$2.88) a month
- Flat $79 renewal
- US company
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Australia is a long way from most of the internet, so a VPN server close to home makes a real difference. The good news: all five providers here run servers in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.
What separates them is depth, audits, where the company is based and the true price after the first term. We read each of those from the providers' own pages on 28 October 2026, along with what Australian law actually requires of your ISP.
Best VPN for Australia: the five compared
| Provider | Australian locations | Based in | No-logs audit | First term (approx. A$) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NordVPN | Sydney 91, Brisbane 52, Melbourne 46, Perth 30, Adelaide 18 | Panama | Deloitte, Dec 2025 report | Not shown to us |
| ExpressVPN | Sydney (2), Woolloomooloo, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide | British Virgin Islands | KPMG, as of 28 Feb 2025 | $74.85 for 15 months (≈A$106) |
| Surfshark | Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide | Netherlands | Deloitte, June 2025 | Not shown in A$ |
| Proton VPN | Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide | Switzerland | Securitum, 2026 | $83.76 for 24 months (≈A$119) |
| PIA | Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide | United States | Deloitte, 2025 | $79 for 39 months (≈A$112) |
1. NordVPN: the most Australian servers
01
Best for Most people in Australia
On 28 October 2026 NordVPN's own server list counted 237 Australian servers: 91 in Sydney, 52 in Brisbane, 46 in Melbourne, 30 in Perth and 18 in Adelaide. That's real depth in every mainland capital, backed by six independent no-logs checks, the latest a Deloitte report dated 12 December 2025.
Why it’s here
- The deepest Australian network of the five
- Six no-logs assessments on record
- Up to 10 devices at once
Watch out for
- We couldn't read its price: the pricing page sits behind a bot check
- Refund is for a first purchase within 30 days
- Australian servers
- 237 across 5 cities
- Worldwide
- 7,239 servers listed in 150 countries
- Based in
- Panama
- Refund window
- 30 days
2. ExpressVPN: seven Australian locations
02
Best for Choice of Sydney exit points
ExpressVPN lists seven Australian locations: two in Sydney, one in Woolloomooloo, and one each in Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. KPMG assessed its no-logs claims as of 28 February 2025. Basic covers 10 devices for $74.85 over the first 15 months, about A$106.
Why it’s here
- The most Australian locations of our five
- KPMG no-logs assessment, February 2025
- 30-day guarantee for new users
Watch out for
- Billed in US dollars
- Renews at $99.95 a year, about A$142
- First term
- $4.99 a month (about A$7.10)
- After renewal
- $99.95 a year (about A$11.84 a month)
- Based in
- British Virgin Islands
- Devices
- 10 on Basic
3. Surfshark: one plan for every device in the house
03
Best for Families and share houses
Surfshark covers all five mainland capitals and sets no limit on connected devices, so one account can protect a whole share house. Deloitte reviewed its no-logs statement in January 2023 and again in June 2025.
Why it’s here
- Unlimited devices
- Servers in all five mainland capitals
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Watch out for
- Its page set prices in our location's currency, so no A$ figure here
- Renewal prices aren't printed on the pricing page
- Australian cities
- Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide
- Worldwide
- 100 countries
- Registered
- Surfshark B.V., Amsterdam
- Devices
- Unlimited
4. Proton VPN: a free plan that doesn't cap your data
04
Best for Trying before paying
Proton's free plan has no data cap and no ads, on one device, with server countries chosen for you. Paid VPN Plus adds all five Australian capitals and 10 devices. Proton is Swiss, and Securitum has audited its no-logs policy every year from 2022 to 2026.
Why it’s here
- Free plan with no data limit
- Swiss jurisdiction
- Yearly independent audits
Watch out for
- No Australian-dollar billing
- Renewal doubles the monthly price
- Paid plan
- $83.76 for the first 24 months (about A$119)
- Renews at
- $83.88 a year (about A$119)
- Australian cities
- Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney
- Devices
- 10 on VPN Plus
5. PIA: lowest monthly cost, US jurisdiction
05
Best for Spending as little as possible
PIA's three-years-plus-three-months plan works out at $2.03 a month, about A$2.88, and renews at the same $79. It has all five capitals and no device cap. The trade-off: it's a US company, and the US is one of Australia's Five Eyes partners.
Why it’s here
- Lowest monthly cost, flat renewal
- Unlimited devices
- Deloitte audited three times
Watch out for
- US jurisdiction
- Long commitment for the best price
- Long plan
- $79 for 39 months (about A$112)
- Monthly
- $11.95 (about A$16.99)
- Australian cities
- Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide
- Based in
- Denver, United States
Are VPNs legal in Australia?
Yes. Using a VPN is legal in Australia, and the Australian Signals Directorate's cyber.gov.au advises people who use public hotspots often to install and use a reputable VPN service. It also warns that VPN providers can access a lot of their users' data, so research the company first.
As everywhere, a VPN doesn't make an unlawful act lawful. Compare Australia with countries that block or ban VPNs in our list of countries that restrict VPNs, and see our best VPN for travel picks before a trip overseas. Australia shares the Five Eyes with Canada, which our Canada guide explains.
Australia's metadata retention law, in plain English
Australia's carriers and internet providers have to keep a defined set of metadata. The Home Affairs data retention guideline says section 187C of the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 requires it to be kept for at least two years.
The data covers who the subscriber is, the source and destination of a communication, its date, time and duration, its type and the equipment's location. The guideline says providers are not required to keep the content of communications or, for internet access, your web browsing history.
With a VPN on, the connection your ISP handles runs to the VPN server, so that's what its records reflect. The VPN company then handles your traffic instead, which is why the audits in the table above matter.
ABC iview, SBS On Demand and streaming at home
Australian free-to-air streaming is licensed for viewers in Australia. SBS's help centre says SBS On Demand is limited to Australia under its licensing agreements, and that a VPN can trigger its 'only available in Australia' message even when you're at home, because it can route your traffic somewhere else.
The fix is simple: connect to an Australian server, or pause the VPN for that app. A server in Sydney or Melbourne also keeps your connection short.
What an Australian VPN costs in Australian dollars
Prices on the pages we read weren't in Australian dollars. ExpressVPN prints US dollars only, Proton offers francs, euros or dollars, and PIA's US-dollar page was the one we could read cleanly. We converted those 28 October 2026 prices at the European Central Bank's 27 October reference rate.
The point of the chart is the second bar. Introductory prices are deep discounts, and the renewal price is what you'll pay from year two or three.
Australia VPN questions
Which VPN is best for Australia?
Is it legal to use a VPN in Australia?
Does a VPN stop Australia's metadata retention?
Why does SBS On Demand say it's only available in Australia when I'm at home?
Is there a good free VPN in Australia?
Which VPN has servers in Perth?
Can I pay for a VPN in Australian dollars?
Planning a trip or a move? Start with the VPN legality-by-country guide, or read up on using a VPN behind the Great Firewall.