Proton VPN
Windmill
| Feature | Proton VPN | Windmill |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $9.99/mo | Free / from $10/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | privacy-advocates, journalists, remote-workers, travelers | developers, devops-teams, internal-tools, data-pipelines |
| Founded | 2017 | 2022 |
| No Logs Vpn | ✓ | ✗ |
| Kill Switch | ✓ | ✗ |
| Split Tunneling | ✓ | ✗ |
| Secure Core | ✓ | ✗ |
| Tor Over Vpn | ✓ | ✗ |
| Netshield | ✓ | ✗ |
| Workflow Editor | ✗ | ✓ |
| Script To Ui | ✗ | ✓ |
| Scheduling | ✗ | ✓ |
| Approval Flows | ✗ | ✓ |
| Multi Language | ✗ | ✓ |
| Self Hostable | ✗ | ✓ |
| Audit Logs | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Proton VPN Pros
- Strong no-logs policy
- Swiss jurisdiction
- Open-source apps
- Free tier available
✗ Proton VPN Cons
- Free plan limited servers
- Slower than some competitors
- Fewer server locations
✓ Windmill Pros
- Open-source and self-hostable
- Supports Python, TypeScript, Go, Bash, SQL natively
- Auto-generates UI from script parameters
- Excellent scheduling and workflow orchestration
✗ Windmill Cons
- Smaller community than Zapier/n8n
- Self-hosting requires infrastructure knowledge
- Less polished documentation for beginners
The Verdict
Proton VPN is built for privacy advocates and journalists, with a focus on no-logs-vpn and kill-switch. Windmill targets developers and devops teams and leads with workflow-editor and script-to-ui.
Both tools come in at similar price points ($9.99/mo for Proton VPN, $10/mo for Windmill), so pricing won't make the decision for you.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Feature-wise, Windmill offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Proton VPN takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.