Best VPN for Amazon Fire TV Stick in 2023

When using Amazon's Fire TV Stick, you're able to turn nearly any television into a smart TV set and stream your favorite movies and shows. All that you need to do is plug the stick into the back or side panel of your TV and then simply access streaming platforms like Netflix, Max, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu and Disney Plus, along with other features like games, apples and, of course, live TV. A Fire TV Stick comes with an array of capabilities, but to really enjoy all there is to offer -- and maintain your privacy while you're at it -- pairing it with a virtual private network, or VPN, is a smart decision. Our VPN experts here at CNET have put nearly a dozen of the top VPNs on the market to the test on an assortment of platforms, including Amazon’s Fire TV Stick. 

Fire Stick hardware can run as low as $30, making it the most cost-effective and easiest way to set up a VPN on your smart TV. Once a Fire Stick is connected to a TV, your VPN can be used to stop ISP throttling and sidestep geoblocks while streaming content or gaming (whether you're at home or traveling abroad), without the need for VPN-compatible routers or complicated home network setups. Your VPN will also hide your viewing habits from your ISP and encrypt your internet traffic. Be sure to consult local laws and confirm that VPN use is permitted by the terms of service with your internet service provider.

We determined that ExpressVPN is the best VPN for Fire TV Stick, after running several VPN apps through extensive testing on the streaming device. ExpressVPN’s Fire TV Stick app is easy to use, quick to connect and is the best choice for streaming content through your Fire TV Stick device. Surfshark is a close second and is a solid choice for anyone on a budget or who wants access to multiple Netflix regional libraries. NordVPN is another excellent option for Fire TV Stick users. It was the fastest VPN in CNET’s hands-on testing, delivers a smooth streaming experience and offers a few extra privacy features not available on other VPNs’ Fire TV Stick apps.

Each of CNET's top VPNs offers a native VPN app for the Fire TV Stick, but a few of them stood out during our tests. In addition to evaluating the usability and features of the Fire TV Stick VPN apps, we prioritized other important factors like security, speed and unblocking capabilities of each VPN we tested.    

We opened each app on the Fire TV Stick and first tried to get a sense of the usability and the features available. Is the app easy to navigate and are the servers accessible? Are the features useful, organized and simple to access?  

We then evaluated the overall performance of the app to see if the servers connected quickly, whether or not the connections were stable and how well the features performed. Finally, we tested how each VPN was able to provide access to various popular streaming services. Did the streaming services load up and start playing content quickly? Was the streaming experience smooth and absent of buffering? Was the VPN able to provide access to each streaming service we tested, and from multiple server locations? The VPNs that consistently passed these tests earned a spot among our top picks.  

We also tested ProtonVPN and IPVanish on the Fire TV Stick. While both providers have native Fire TV Stick apps and are excellent options for various VPN use cases, they didn't perform to our standards during our Fire TV Stick tests. 

Proton VPN's Fire TV Stick app is very basic and offers no options beyond connecting to a server or reporting an issue. It's slow to connect, and the overall app experience was clunky and awkward. Once we were finally able to connect to a server, we weren't successful in our attempts to stream content from any streaming service. Oddly enough, it was when we tested Proton VPN's free version on Fire TV Stick that we were able to access Netflix. Even though Proton VPN's free tier is one of the only free VPNs that's actually worth using, it's not optimized for streaming, so it may not always work for accessing geoblocked content.  

IPVanish was a little better -- the app included various settings and features to tool around with, but we weren't able to stream UK Netflix or Amazon Prime Video. The automatic app launch feature allowing users to select an app to launch automatically after a successful connection is a nice addition and worked well in our testing when we set it to auto-launch Netflix. But besides that, there wasn't much more to like about IPVanish's performance on the Fire TV Stick in terms of features, and it failed to access some streaming services. We decided we couldn't enthusiastically recommend it as a viable VPN solution for the Fire TV Stick.

We'll continue to test these and other VPNs on the Fire TV Stick, so be sure to check back often.

Privacy

If you want to keep your viewing activities on your Fire TV Stick hidden from your ISP, then you’ll want a VPN that delivers on privacy. Be sure to check the VPN provider’s privacy policy to see what personal information may be collected, who it’s shared with and how it’s protected. Do some research into any privacy or security incidents that the VPN company may have dealt with in the past. Look into the provider’s no-logs policy and check for any third-party no-logs audits or real-life cases where the provider’s no-logs claims were put to the test. Also, you’ll want to make sure the VPN has a kill switch and DNS leak protection to ensure your traffic doesn’t leak unencrypted. 

Speed

Nothing’s worse than constant buffering when you’re trying to stream movies or shows with your Fire TV Stick. You’ll need a fast VPN to ensure a smooth streaming experience, especially if you’re streaming in 4K. Keep in mind that a VPN will slow your internet speeds, sometimes by 50% or more. But with a VPN that cuts your internet speeds by 20% or less, you’ll probably hardly notice the speed reduction and your speeds should be sufficient for streaming on your Fire TV Stick (provided your base internet speeds are fast enough, to begin with).     

Streaming and unblocking capabilities

Some VPNs are better than others when it comes to streaming. Because you’ll most likely be spending the majority of your time streaming content on your Amazon Fire TV Stick, you’ll need a VPN that can handle your streaming activities. And if you’re looking to unblock streaming content from other regions, you’ll want a VPN that can capably unblock geographically restricted content.  

Usability

Just because a VPN has a dedicated app for Amazon’s Fire TV Stick, doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a good VPN for the device. You’ll want your VPN to be easy to use on your Fire TV Stick. The app should be similar to its desktop and mobile counterparts and should be just as simple to navigate, apply settings and connect to a server. It should also connect quickly and remain connected throughout your streaming sessions. 

Cost

If you’re on a budget, cost will be an important consideration in choosing a VPN for your Fire TV Stick. VPN prices can vary from provider to provider, but you’ll typically save more money over the long-run when you commit to a longer timeframe. You can expect to pay anywhere from $30 to $100 per year for an annual VPN subscription, and anywhere from $5 to $13 for a monthly VPN subscription, depending on which VPN you go with.