hide.me vs ExpressVPN
hide.me and ExpressVPN are both established VPN services, but they're built for slightly different priorities. ExpressVPN is priced at the premium end of the market and built its own Lightway protocol, with a strong reputation specifically for staying connected inside China. Here's how they actually compare on price, devices, and the streaming/torrenting performance this review focuses on.
Side-by-side comparison
Head-to-head comparisons, with our own measurements where we have them.
| Factor | ExpressVPN |
|---|---|
| Price (best long-term plan) | $6.67–$12.95/mo |
| Simultaneous devices | 8 |
| Free plan | ✗ No |
| Streaming unlock | ✓ |
| Torrenting/P2P support | ✓ |
| Money-back guarantee | 30 days |
Where ExpressVPN has the edge
ExpressVPN is priced at the premium end of the market and built its own Lightway protocol, with a strong reputation specifically for staying connected inside China. If that specific strength matters more to you than price, ExpressVPN may be worth the extra cost. Where it falls short compared to hide.me: no free plan at all, and a review-verified track record that's less openly self-critical about its own limitations than the mixed 3.0/5 picture we found for hide.me.
Who is each VPN actually for?
Anyone who wants a real free plan to test before paying, a lower price on the longest plan (€2.69/mo vs ExpressVPN's $6.67–$12.95/mo), and a purpose-built P2P feature in Dynamic Port Forwarding – while accepting that reliability complaints show up more often in hide.me's review data than the marketing suggests.
Anyone who values proven China performance more than saving a few dollars a month, and doesn't need a free tier to test the service first.
Choose hide.me if price-to-value, a genuine free plan, and a purpose-built P2P feature matter most to you. Choose ExpressVPN if proven China performance is your top priority and you don't mind paying more for it.