Private Internet Access

About Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access (PIA) is a long-running consumer VPN whose central selling point is transparency: it ships open-source client apps on every platform, which means the code handling your traffic can be independently inspected rather than taken on faith. That openness is backed by a no-logs policy that is not only claimed but independently audited, and — more unusually — has been tested in court, where the provider's inability to hand over usage records supported its no-logs position. For a category crowded with unverifiable promises, that combination of a court-proven claim and an independent audit is meaningful documented evidence.

The jurisdiction is the honest trade-off. PIA operates under United States law, which our database rates as Tier 4 — the least favourable tier. The US is a founding member of intelligence-sharing arrangements and has legal mechanisms to compel providers. The mitigating factor here is that a service can only surrender data it actually holds, and the audited, court-tested no-logs record speaks directly to that. Still, privacy-maximalists who rule out US jurisdiction on principle should weigh that before subscribing.

On features, the documented specs include a kill switch and a 30-day money-back guarantee, giving you a window to evaluate the service at low risk. It earns a Scout Score of 88, with a privacy sub-score of 87 and the jurisdiction rating of Tier 4 pulling against it.

Pricing, per the verified official plans: the 1-Year plan is $3.33/mo as an intro rate, billed $39.95 up front, and renews at $3.33/mo. The 1-Month plan is $11.95/mo, billed monthly at $11.95, renewing at the same rate. The aggressive multi-year value is real; the month-to-month option is comparatively expensive, as is typical.

Who it fits: users who prioritise open-source clients, audited and litigation-tested no-logs claims, and low long-term cost. Who should skip it: anyone who considers US jurisdiction a dealbreaker. On speed, we do not run a lab and make no performance claims here — see our score methodology for how the 88 is built from documented evidence rather than in-house benchmarks. Where a dimension isn't covered by the documents above, treat it as unverified.

Profile by Tomas, Scout VPN Team — built from documented evidence.