Best VPN for Streaming: Comparing 27 Providers

Netflix was just the beginning; video streaming is growing in popularity, and the number of services offering it seems to increase from year to year. To keep up with all the series and movies that everyone is talking about, as well as pop culture, you'll need more and more accounts.

However, because streaming services' content libraries vary from country to country, this can be complicated. For example, a movie that's available on Netflix in the US might only be available on Acorn TV in the UK or limited to a local media library. You can forget about these regional differences if using a VPN, since they make it possible to access otherwise geo-blocked content from anywhere.

Streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and others don't acquire global rights for movies and series. Rather, licensing agreements are made country by country, explaining why the content that is available varies based on the viewers' location. So, for example, if you're reading about an interesting Netflix series on an American site, you may not find it in the UK's Netflix catalog. Connecting with a VPN changes that, making it possible to watch that show or movie as if you were in the US.

A VPN doesn't just mask your identity on the internet; thanks to its globally-distributed servers, it also provides users with an IP address from a country of their choosing. Therefore, if you (physically in the UK) connect to a VPN server in the US and then access Netflix, the US catalog will be displayed.

However, not every VPN service is suitable for streaming. The truth is, using a VPN to stream otherwise geo-blocked content from abroad is something of a legal gray area (more on this later), and streaming services do exert some effort in preventing users from bypassing region restrictions.

We assessed 27 VPN providers, comparing how they fared in terms of accessing streaming content from abroad. Due to the massive list of available streaming services, we limited our review to Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and the BBC's iPlayer.

Below, we'll briefly introduce you to our Top 5 VPN providers for video streaming:

NordVPN secured first place in our review. The Panama-based VPN delivers a well-rounded package at a fair price. Their elegant, user-friendly app comes with all the most important VPN features, including split tunneling and specialized servers. When streaming, it's also important that VPNs offer fast connections, and with NordVPN, you won't have anything to worry about, since it came out on top in our speed ranking.

During our review, we were able to effortlessly stream content from abroad with NordVPN. And thanks to its top-notch performance, the service didn't stall once—even when accessing servers in the US.

Surfshark is one of the most affordable and most reliable VPN services on the market. Their 3-year contract costs less per month than NordVPN's lowest-priced monthly rate (and is around 1/3 the cost of ExpressVPN's most competitive monthly fees). When it comes to speed and features, Surfshark is almost on par with the competition.

Fast connections help when streaming video content from abroad, as does being able to access all streaming platforms. Surfshark excelled in both of these areas, making it a practical choice for anyone interested in watching geo-blocked programming on Netflix and the like.

ExpressVPN is one of the best VPN services on the market. To see how exactly it measures up to our overall best-in-show, NordVPN, be sure to check out our head-to-head comparison of the two providers. Although the two services are similar in many respects, in terms of price, they differ greatly: ExpressVPN's most affordable monthly rate is more than twice as expensive as that of NordVPN.

That being said, ExpressVPN did score points for fast speeds and its expansive network of servers. They also didn't disappoint in terms of video streaming; we were able to access content from abroad with every service we tried it on.

When it comes to free VPN services, our first choice is ProtonVPN. You won't need to worry about any data or speed limitations, however, it isn't possible to stream video content from abroad with ProtonVPN's free version. With their Premium plan, however, we were able to unlock all services assessed in our review.

ProtonVPN also scored points with us for its transparent open-source philosophy, user-friendly app, and extra security features.

Hide.me scored at least "good" in all of our assessment categories. We found its user-friendly app particularly impressive owing to its numerous features and settings. They also emerged in the upper third of our speed ranking, taking a respectable 7th place. Unfortunately, we did experience occasional disconnections during our review. In addition, the provider last submitted to an independent security audit in 2015—a more current audit would certainly be desirable.

During our review, we were able to access content from abroad on every steaming service we tried with hide.me.

Ten of the 27 providers in our VPN review were able to bypass geoblocking on all four streaming services. Apart from our Top 5 listed above, these were:

Once you've chosen a VPN provider, using it to access streaming content from abroad is a breeze.

1. Install the VPN's client or app on your device and launch the program.

2. From the server list, select the country in which you want to access streaming content and connect to a server there.

3. Once connected, visit the streaming service of your choice. If you were already on the website before you established the VPN connection, you'll need to reload the page.

4. You can now browse the selected country's streaming catalog.

For a VPN to facilitate streaming content from abroad, pay attention to the following:

Not every VPN supports bypassing geo-blocked streaming video content, and not every streaming-enabled VPN facilitates access to all services. Therefore, make sure that the VPN you choose is suitable for the streaming services that matter most to you.

We tested all providers for their ability to stream Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and the BBC's iPlayer in specific regions. In separate articles, we've listed the best VPNs for Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+.

The table below shows which VPN services from our review worked with each streaming service. Please note, however, that the information below is only a snapshot—a VPN's streaming capability is not set in stone.

While video streaming isn't very demanding, it still requires a stable Internet connection. Poor quality or constant buffering can instantly spoil any viewing experience. You can find out which VPN services offer the fastest and most reliable connections in EXPERTE.com's VPN speed ranking.

In order to watch movies and series from another country, you'll need to log in to them with an IP address from that country. Therefore, it's important that your chosen VPN has streaming servers in the country where your favorite content is located. Most VPNs have good coverage of Europe, North America, and parts of Asia.

No. We aren't aware of any free VPNs that allow users to reliably access content from abroad on major platforms. Even "freemium" VPN services, which are streaming-capable, usually don't offer this in their free versions.

Of course, on occasion, it may be possible to access some streaming services with a free VPN, however, reliable video streaming via VPN requires a paid subscription.

Streaming video content with a VPN is not illegal. Even though you're not breaking any laws, the truth is, that you're operating in a bit of a gray area. This is because by circumventing region restrictions, you're violating the streaming platform's terms of service. As a result, your account could be blocked if they discover you're using a VPN, however, this is unlikely and we aren't aware of any related account closures or suspensions.

In short, you don't have to fear any legal consequences when streaming via VPN.

VPNs help get the most out of any streaming services that you already pay for. Netflix and others offer different movies and series from country to country. Using a VPN to change your virtual location makes it possible to access a huge selection of new content with the tap or click of a button. While you'll likely be violating the platform's terms of service, you don't have to fear any legal consequences.

That being said, not all VPNs are streaming-capable, and not all streaming-capable VPNs manage to bypass every services' region restrictions. Our Top 5 VPN services made content from abroad available on some of the major streaming services. Just remember to find out whether your favorite service is currently supported before signing a contract.

We assessed the streaming capabilities, as well as a host of other factors, of 27 provides in our comprehensive EXPERTE.com VPN review.