Finding the turning points: one seat versus ten
When you move from one person to ten, the arithmetic of a subscription changes more than most buyers expect. A per-seat plan charges for each named user; the bill rises in a straight line. A flat-rate plan charges one price for an account whether one person or ten use it. Tiered pricing sits between those: you pay for a band ("up to 5 users", "up to 10 users") so the effective per-seat cost falls in steps but can jump if you cross into the next band.
What our catalogue numbers represent
The prices shown below come from the prices we hold in our catalogue for 2026. Where a product is marked "seat_based" the entry price is a per-seat price; where a product is marked "flat_rate" the entry price in our catalogue is the plan price at the entry tier. We do not claim to have used any of these services; vendor documentation is linked where we looked up non-catalogue details.
Quick examples using our catalogue
- TunnelBear (seat_based): entry monthly = $3.33 per seat.
- NordVPN (flat_rate): entry monthly = $3.09 (account price at the entry tier in our catalogue).
- PrivadoVPN (flat_rate): entry monthly = $1.11.
- Proton VPN (tiered, has free plan): entry monthly = $2.99.
- Mullvad VPN (flat_rate): entry monthly = $5.50.
Arithmetic: cost at one user and at ten users
We use simple monthly arithmetic. For per-seat products you multiply the per-seat price by the number of seats. For flat-rate products, the entry price stays the same (until a vendor explicitly restricts users or introduces a business tier). For tiered products you must examine the vendor banding; where a band covers 1–10 users the account price divided by the number of users gives the effective per-seat cost.
Concrete comparisons
Per-seat (TunnelBear):
- 1 user: $3.33 × 1 = $3.33/month.
- 10 users: $3.33 × 10 = $33.30/month.
- Per-seat pricing scales linearly: doubling seats doubles cost.
Flat-rate (PrivadoVPN and NordVPN as catalogue examples):
- PrivadoVPN entry: $1.11/month. That is the account-level entry price in our catalogue; if the vendor allows multiple simultaneous devices under one account, ten users paying through one account still pay $1.11/month total (not $11.10), subject to the vendor’s actual terms. See the vendor pricing page for device and concurrent-connection limits. privadovpn.com
- NordVPN entry: $3.09/month in our catalogue. If that is an account price with unlimited users on a single shared account, ten users could pay $3.09 total; if it is a per-user consumer price the arithmetic changes—check the vendor’s plan wording. We looked up NordVPN’s published pricing. nordvpn.com
Tiered (Proton VPN and many others):
- Proton VPN entry: $2.99/month in our catalogue. Proton also publishes a free plan; their paid tiers and the number of devices or account-sharing rules determine whether that $2.99 is per seat or per account. Always read the vendor’s plan page for the banding and device limits. protonvpn.com
Effective per-seat cost at 10 users (illustrative)
Using the catalogue figures as plan prices where appropriate, the effective monthly per-seat cost of the examples above looks like this:
- TunnelBear (seat_based): $33.30 total → $3.33 per seat.
- PrivadoVPN (flat_rate): $1.11 total → $0.11 per seat if ten distinct people share one account (but vendor rules often forbid account sharing for business use). privadovpn.com
- NordVPN (flat_rate entry price in catalogue): $3.09 total → $0.31 per seat for ten users sharing one account, subject to vendor terms. nordvpn.com
- Proton VPN (tiered): $2.99 published entry → whether that divides across ten users depends on the band limits; Proton’s free plan and paid tiers are documented on their pricing pages. protonvpn.com
These numbers illustrate a point: a flat-fee account price can look absurdly cheap on a per-person basis if you spread it across many users. The catch is vendor rules — most consumer VPN subscriptions are intended for personal/family use and limit concurrent connections or forbid commercial sharing. Business or team plans typically have explicit per-user billing or team bands.
When the maths breaks your budget
Tiered pricing reduces per-seat cost as you move up bands but creates cliff effects. If a tier covers "up to 5 users" then five users might cost $X and six users jump to $Y — your monthly bill can spike if you add a single person and cross a band. That behaviour has been written up in recent pricing guides: tiered models give stepped per-seat economics, and the trap is landing one seat over a band. softwaresift.com
Usage-based and hidden unit costs
VPNs are less commonly sold on pure usage metrics than other cloud services, but there are hidden usage costs to watch for: connections per device, concurrent streams, server-class restrictions (some business tiers reserve dedicated gateways), and added fees for team management, SSO or dedicated IPs. When vendor publications do not publish team-band details clearly, you must assume the safest (most expensive) interpretation or contact sales.
Rules of thumb for choosing model by team size
- If you are one person: a simple consumer per-seat or single-user plan is normally cheapest. Use the per-seat catalogue figures for seat-based products.
- If you are a small team (2–5): compare tiered team-bands to per-seat maths. Tiered plans often win at this size because they are designed to cover small groups without per-seat billing.
- If you are 6–10 people: flat-rate or generous tier bands can become much cheaper on a per-person basis, but only if the vendor permits that usage pattern. If the vendor requires per-seat billing for business use, the per-seat total will likely be higher. Use the vendor’s team or business pricing page rather than the consumer entry price. tunnelbear.com
Practical checklist before you commit
- Check whether the vendor’s entry price is per seat or per account (our catalogue notes the pricing model where available).
- Check concurrent connection and device limits on the vendor page — a cheap flat fee might only permit a small number of simultaneous devices. privadovpn.com
- For teams, look for an explicit Teams/Business plan page; consumer prices can be misleading for commercial use. TunnelBear, for example, publishes a dedicated Teams page with centralised billing and team management. tunnelbear.com
- Calculate your break-even: multiply per-seat price by your expected number of users and compare to account-level flat or tiered pricing.
Conclusion: the maths is simple; the rules matter
Moving from one to ten users turns per-seat into a significant recurring cost, and flat-rate or tiered pricing can be a dramatic saving — but only if the vendor permits that usage under its terms. Use our catalogue to get entry numbers, then verify the vendor’s pricing and device/concurrent‑connection rules before buying. For vendor team pages and device limits consult the vendor pricing pages we linked above. nordvpn.com