Buying a VPN for a year pays off only if the yearly payment comes with a noticeable discount and the service keeps working for you the whole term. Mayak gives no yearly discount: 12 months cost exactly twelve monthly prices, so there is no gain in price. Below: how to weigh a yearly payment with any service, what you risk, and how a year works with us. As of 4 October 2026.
In short. A year pays off when the discount outweighs the risk: with a 30 % discount, a yearly payment pays back only if the service keeps working for you for more than 8 months (how to work it out). A year with Mayak costs 3,600, 6,000 or 8,400 ₽, exactly twelve months with no discount, so it makes sense to make the first payment for a month. If you do pay for a year, with us you can cancel at any time and get back the money for unused full days.
We make Mayak, a private network, and there is one section about us below. We give no yearly discount, and we say so plainly. You can try us for free: the trial needs no card. The rest is how to decide about a year with anyone.
🍎 On iPhone Mayak works with the subscription link from your account, in Happ or INCY (INCY is in the Russian App Store): where to tap on iPhone.
When a yearly payment pays off, and when it does not
A yearly payment is a trade: the service gives a discount, and you hand over the money in advance and take on the risk that something changes within the year. The trade pays off if the discount pays back sooner than the service might stop suiting you.
It is easy to work out. Divide the yearly price by the monthly price: that is how many months you really pay for. The service has to keep working for you exactly that long for the year to cost no more than paying monthly.
| Yearly discount | A year costs as much as | Pays back if the service works for you longer than |
|---|---|---|
| No discount | 12 months | No gain in price |
| 15 % off | 10.2 months | A little over 10 months |
| 30 % off | 8.4 months | A little over 8 months |
| 50 % off | 6 months | 6 months |
Count the discount from the renewal price, not the first-year price, and compare it with the honest monthly price of the same plan. The numbers in the table are arithmetic, not anyone's plans. How to convert a price to a term and a device is in “How much does a VPN cost”.
What you risk by paying a year ahead
- The service stops working for you. Networks change, and what connected in spring may stop by autumn. Paying monthly, you lose a month; paying yearly, the rest of the year. How to tell whether it is for good, and what to do with money already paid, is in a separate piece.
- No refunds. “The paid period is non-refundable” turns a year into a bet: if it stops suiting you after a month, eleven months stay with the service.
- Renewal for a year. Twelve months later you are charged again, sometimes at the full price without the first-year discount. Where to turn off renewal in a bot, an app store or through your bank is in “How to cancel a subscription”.
- The number of devices changes. You bought for three, and six months later you need five: find out in advance whether you can change plans mid-year and whether the remainder is credited.
What to check before paying for a year
- The trial, then a month. The trial shows whether the service connects on your network; a month of real use shows whether it holds.
- The public offer: refunds. Can you cancel mid-term, and what is refunded: a proportional share or nothing?
- The public offer: renewal. Will they charge you automatically in a year, from your card or not, and how much?
- Where to turn off renewal: find it before paying, not a year later.
- Changing plans. What happens to the remainder if you need more devices.
How a year works at Mayak
The payment term is 1, 3, 6 or 12 months, and the price for a term is a simple multiple. We say it plainly: “better value if you take a year” would be untrue with us.
| Plan | Devices | Month | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start | up to 3 | 300 ₽ | 3,600 ₽ |
| Family | up to 5 | 500 ₽ | 6,000 ₽ |
| Max | up to 10 | 700 ₽ | 8,400 ₽ |
The table shows the plan price; your account shows the final invoice amount before you pay. If you still pay for a year — for example, so as not to come back to payments — here is what is left of the risk with us:
- Refunds for unused days. You can cancel at any time: on a letter to support we refund the cost of the full days left from the day you write — the price of the period is divided by its number of days and multiplied by the days left (terms). Access paid for by that payment is switched off on refund.
- We never charge your card on our own. There are no recurring card charges: you confirm every payment yourself. Auto-renewal is a separate switch and works only from the account balance; you can turn it off there or in our bot (where exactly), and the paid period is kept in full.
- We warn you in advance. Three days before the paid period ends — by email if you gave one, and always in your account. After the term ends, access keeps working for 3 more grace days.
- You can upgrade mid-year. The remainder on the old plan is credited, and you pay only the difference (how).
A wallet instead of a year: think about payment less often
If you want a year not for the price but so as not to remember the payment every month, there is another way. The account balance can be topped up by 50 to 100,000 ₽ at a time, the plan is paid from the balance, and auto-renewal, if you turned it on, takes the plan price from the balance a few days before the period ends (help). Not enough on the balance — nothing is charged, and access simply ends.
Money on the balance does not expire and has no time limit, but it is a prepayment too: it can be spent only on our plans. So put in as much as you are ready to spend with us.
Test first, then choose the term. We ask for no payment details for the trial. A confirmed email opens the access — 3 free days on two devices. An email is optional: without one the trial is 1 day.
What we checked
- Terms, the yearly price, refunds, auto-renewal, the reminder and the grace days: against our public offer and help centre as of 4 October 2026.
- That the price for a term is a simple multiple: in the invoice calculation code, 4 October 2026.
- Prices and device limits: on 4 October 2026, in the same system the account area and the payment page take prices from — 300, 500 and 700 ₽ for 3, 5 and 10 devices.
- The pay-back table: arithmetic, the yearly price divided by the monthly price.
What we do not know
- Whether any service, ours included, will keep working for you all year. Networks change, and nobody can promise that; that is why we refund unused days.
- Whether we will ever offer a discount for a longer term. There is none now; if the terms change, the current price will be shown in your account before you pay.
Short answers
Is it worth buying a VPN for a year? If the discount is noticeable, the service has already worked for you for a month and money is refunded if you cancel, yes. If there is no discount, as with us, the only point is paying less often.
How much does a VPN cost for a year? With Mayak, 3,600, 6,000 or 8,400 ₽ for 3, 5 or 10 devices.
Can I get money back for a year? With us, for unused full days, by writing to support.
How do I turn off renewal? With us, in your account, the “Plan and payment” card, or in the bot with the /balance command. For other services, follow this guide.
Is there a free VPN for a year? Usually it is a free plan with limits or a trial with payment afterwards: how to check a free one.