Simon Migliano is a recognized world expert in VPNs. He's tested hundreds of VPN services and his research has featured on the BBC, The New York Times and more.
Our top-rated Italy VPN is ExpressVPN, with a 9.0/10 rating. Connecting to its Milan, Naples, and Cosenza servers allowed us to unblock popular Italian TV services with fast speeds and across the widest range of devices.
Our recommended VPNs for Italy maintain a pool of Italian IP addresses that bypass Italian geo-restrictions from abroad. They work to unblock platforms like Netflix Italy, DAZN Italy, Sky Italia, Mediaset Infinity, and RaiPlay.
Summary: The Best VPNs for Italy
Based on our tests, these are our most highly-rated VPNs for connecting into Italy from abroad:
We’re fully independent and have been reviewing VPNs since 2016. Our ratings are based on our own testing results and are unaffected by financial incentives. Learn who we are and how we test VPNs.
During our tests, we discovered that only a select few VPN providers offer a wide range of Italy servers that are fast and unblock geo-blocked Italian websites and apps.
We also tested 12 free VPNs but we were disappointed to find out that very few free VPNs operate servers in Italy, and even the best option, TunnelBear, is limited by a bandwidth cap and streaming restrictions.
VPN Comparison Table
The table below compares our recommended VPNs for Italy based on their price, download speed, Italian server locations, Italian streaming capabilities, and more:
ExpressVPN is our top choice for connecting into Italy. The VPN’s Italian IP addresses consistently unblocked every Italian website and streaming service we tested, including RaiPlay and DAZN Italy.
Connecting to the Milan, Naples and Cosenza servers was almost instantaneous, and the download speeds were far greater than Proton VPN and PIA VPN’s.
ExpressVPN is more expensive than most VPN services, but the excellent experience we had using it makes it worth the investment in our opinion.
Italy Servers Unblock Italian Streaming Services
When we connected to ExpressVPN’s Italy servers, we were able to unblock every major Italian website and streaming platform. This includes RaiPlay, DAZN Italy, Mediaset Infinity, La7, Sky Italia, and Netflix Italy.
You can see how easily we unblocked RaiPlay using ExpressVPN in the short video below:
We streamed ‘L’assoluzione’ on RaiPlay by using ExpressVPN’s Cosenza server.
The only slight downside was that we did occasionally experience slow loading times, particularly with RaiPlay. We’ve seen this with many VPNs, though.
We enjoy using ExpressVPN especially for its well-designed and user-friendly apps for most devices, including Fire TV Stick and Apple TV.
There’s also a rare router app available, which allows you to use ExpressVPN on your home router and unblock Italian content on devices like Roku, PlayStation and Xbox.
ExpressVPN unblocked all Italian streaming sites in our tests, including MediaSet Infinity.
High-speed VPN Servers in 3 Italian Cities
ExpressVPN offers Italian IP addresses for Cosenza, Naples, and Milan, covering both the North and South of the country.
Having 3 Italian city options is an excellent geographical spread, and a big improvement on most other VPNs that often limit their server coverage to just Milan.
ExpressVPN has IP addresses in Cosenza, Naples & Milan.
All server locations were extremely quick to connect to, and registered very fast connection speeds.
Connecting from abroad, we recorded an average download speed of 85Mbps, which was similar to PIA’s 86Mbps and faster than Proton VPN’s 84Mbps.
Depending on where you’re connecting from, select the Italian server location closest to you for marginally higher speeds.
During our tests, the occasional CAPTCHAs raised doubts about server quantity, as these can occur when servers are overloaded. Speeds were unaffected, but CAPTCHAs are a slight nuisance.
The Easiest Italy VPN to Use
ExpressVPN’s apps are the most intuitive we’ve used and as a result, the VPN provider scored 9.9/10 in our ease-of-use assessment.
The simple functionality and design consistency across devices is currently unrivaled. Many of the VPN’s app interfaces are the same across platforms, unlike other VPNs, which makes switching from one device to another seamless.
We can see that special attention has been given to the product’s usability and design, to make the VPN particularly accessible to beginners.
Proton VPN is another paid VPN that’s able to bypass Italian geo-blocks on the first attempt and on every server.
In fact, unblocking Italian Netflix was even smoother than using ExpressVPN. However, the VPN is slower, less user-friendly, and less compatible with media streaming devices than ExpressVPN, which is why it only ranks #2 in our Italy list.
The Best VPN for Italian Netflix
Proton VPN is particularly good for watching Netflix Italy from abroad thanks to seamless, buffer-free connections.
In our latest tests, the VPN started streaming Italian geo-restricted content just as quickly as ExpressVPN. This was most evident with RaiPlay.
In the video below, you can see us stream movies exclusively available on Netflix Italy using Proton VPN’s automatic Italy server. We bypassed Netflix’s geo-restrictions without a hitch and instantly unblocked content:
We streamed ‘The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly’ (1966), an Italian Netflix exclusive.
Proton VPN delivers the same high level of streaming performance with RaiPlay, Mediaset Infinity, La7, and other Italian streaming services.
However, unlike ExpressVPN, it doesn’t unblock DAZN Italy. If watching Italian sports from abroad is your priority, ExpressVPN is the superior choice.
Limited Range of Italian IP Address Locations
Proton VPN runs 48 VPN servers in Milan. It’s less than half of what PIA offers, and a third of the city-level options available with ExpressVPN.
Despite these shortcomings, it’s still a good quantity of servers and VPN connections showed no sign of being affected by server congestion.
Proton VPN’s Italian servers display their percentage loads.
In terms of speed, Proton VPN is slower than ExpressVPN, scoring 8.6/10 in our tests. Nevertheless, it’s still a fast VPN averaging 84Mbps connecting into Italy.
User-Friendly Apps but Not as Compatible
Proton VPN has developed well-made apps for Android TV, Chromecast with Google TV, and Fire TV, so you can stream Italian shows on large screen devices.
We tested the VPN on all these devices connecting to the Milan server, with no unexpected surprises to either speed or unblocking performance.
All these apps are intuitive and rather well-designed, despite having a roster of advanced features that may intimidate you if you’re new to VPNs.
Where Proton VPN falls sort of ExpressVPN is device compatibility. For instance, there is no Apple TV app, or router app, which makes using Proton VPN less straightforward on certain devices.
At least, Proton VPN is slightly cheaper than ExpressVPN, with its two-year plan costing $4.99 per month. This is still on the pricier end of the spectrum, though.
While PIA performed very well in our speed and streaming tests, it earned its third-place by being the cheapest VPN for Italy. It only costs $2.03 per month on a two-year subscription plan.
However, PIA did disappoint us in our unblocking tests, where it couldn’t access Mediaset Infinity, Sky Italia, or RaiPlay from abroad.
87 Stable Servers in Milan & Rome
Private Internet Access has more Italian servers than any other VPN. Its network includes 87 servers in Milan and Rome.
Similarly to ExpressVPN, the VPN server spread is more balanced, and doesn’t favor Northern Italy like many other VPNs do.
PIA’s Italian streaming server disappoints.
PIA’s connections to both Italy server locations were stable throughout months of testing, with speeds equal to ExpressVPN and faster than Proton VPN.
Mixed Italian Streaming Performance
Despite having a server optimized for Italian streaming, PIA doesn’t unblock RaiPlay, Sky Go or Mediaset Infinity outside of Italy.
We were only able to unblock La7, which has the easiest geo-blocks to bypass. This is disappointing, and prevents PIA from ranking higher in our recommendations list for Italy.
PIA was blocked by Mediaset Infinity & RaiPlay in our Italian streaming tests.
There is also no dedicated router app, unlike ExpressVPN, and installing the VPN on our router wasn’t straightforward, unfortunately.
Easy-to use apps delivering fast speeds into Italy
Works with La7
Free browser extensions for Chrome & Firefox
2GB data allowance
Doesn't work with Italian Netflix or RaiPlay
Email address required for signup
Slow to establish server connection
IP addresses in Milan only
Data Cap
2GB
Free Italy Servers
Undisclosed
Italy Server Locations
Milan
Italian Netflix
No
RaiPlay
No
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
TunnelBear Free is the best free VPN for Italy because it is the only safe and free VPN to offer servers in Italy.
You can use TunnelBear to get an Italian IP address and access Italian websites completely for free, but its usefulness is limited by a monthly 2GB data allowance and an inability to unblock Italian streaming sites.
Milan-based IP Addresses
TunnelBear Free offers a free Italian server that allows you to get an Italian IP address based in Milan. This means you can access Italian websites from anywhere for free. You can do this via the TunnelBear VPN app or its free browser extension for Chrome and Firefox.
TunnelBear has a free server based in Milan, available via its apps and browser extensions.
TunnelBear Free is ideal for light browsing of Italian websites, with well-designed apps that are friendly to VPN beginners. It has a fun and colorful interface and its features are easy to use.
Restrictive 2GB Data Allowance
TunnelBear imposes one of the harshest data caps of any free VPN, permitting only 2GB of data per month. This is highly restrictive and prevents uninterrupted streaming or file sharing.
It’s also abandoned the practice of allowing your free data to accumulate if it goes unused. Previously we enjoyed using TunnelBear Free after letting the free data pile up. This is no longer possible.
Fails to Unblock Most Italian Streaming Services
Unfortunately, TunnelBear Free is not a good free VPN for Italian TV or Italian Netflix. It cannot access Netflix Italy, Mediaset Infinity, or RaiPlay outside Italy. However, TunnelBear Free did stream La7 in our tests.
We tried to stream ‘Zio Gianni’ on RaiPlay using TunnelBear Free, but the VPN was detected.
Though it’s not good for streaming, TunnelBear Free is fast for a free VPN. Its average speed for long-distance connections is 85Mbps, making for smooth US to Italy speeds — only 15% slower than your normal internet connection.
As a result of our in-depth research and testing of VPN applications, we know which VPNs have servers in Italy and which don’t.
Of the 62 VPNs we’ve examined, only these have VPN servers in Italy:
AirVPN
Astrill VPN
Atlas VPN
Avast
AVG Secure VPN
Avira Phantom VPN
Bitdefender VPN
CyberGhost
ExpressVPN
FastestVPN
Hide.me
HideMyAss
Hotspot Shield
IPVanish
Ivacy VPN
IVPN
Kaspersky VPN
McAfee Safe Connect
Mozilla VPN
Mullvad VPN
NordVPN
Norton Secure VPN
Perfect Privacy
PrivadoVPN
Private Internet Access
PrivateVPN
Proton VPN
Psiphon VPN
Psiphon VPN Free
PureVPN
StrongVPN
Surfshark
Thunder VPN
TorGuard
Touch VPN
TunnelBear VPN
TunnelBear VPN Free
VPN.AC
VPNArea
VyprVPN
Windscribe VPN
X-VPN
ZoogVPN
Which VPNs Do Not Have Servers in Italy?
Most paid VPNs have servers in Italy. However, most free VPNs do not. Below is a complete list of the free and paid VPNs that do not have servers in Italy:
Atlas VPN Free
Avira Phantom Free
Betternet Free
Hola VPN
Hotspot Shield Free
Hide.me Free
Kaspersky Free
PrivadoVPN Free
SkyVPN
Snap VPN
Turbo VPN
Windscribe Free
ZoogVPN Free
VPN 360
VPNBook
VPNhub Free
VPN Unlimited
VPN Proxy Master
Italy VPNs We Don't Recommend
We’ve tested 62 free and paid VPNs to find the very best for Italy.
Most VPNs include servers in Italy, but many services under-performed in our tests, including popular VPNs like NordVPN, Surfshark, and PrivadoVPN.
Below are a few examples of well-known VPNs that do not meet our strict standards for Italy, and why we recommend avoiding them:
VPN Service
Why We Don’t Recommend It for Italy
NordVPN
While NordVPN comes with 60 Italian servers and unblocks Italian streaming services, ExpressVPN unblocks more, including DAZN. Similarly, PIA has more Italian servers and is cheaper than NordVPN.
IPVanish
IPVanish is a good VPN generally, but it was unable to access Netflix Italy, Sky Italia or Mediaset Infinity in our tests.
PrivadoVPN Free
PrivadoVPN Free is one of our favorite free VPNs in general, but it’s not suitable for Italy as it doesn’t provide access to a free Italian server. Therefore, you simply can’t use it to get an Italian IP address.
Italia VPN
Despite its name, Italia VPN is not a good VPN for Italy. It doesn’t work to unblock Italian geo-restrictions and it doesn’t come from a trustworthy company.
Italy VPN
Similar to Italia VPN, Italy VPN doesn’t work to access Italian websites. It’s also not safe to install.
Urban VPN
Urban VPN is a popular free VPN with an Italy server, but it’s slow, full of bugs, and not safe to use.
How We Test VPNs for Italy
The table below summarizes how our recommended Italy VPNs performed in five key testing categories. These categories collectively contribute to each VPN’s overall rating for Italy:
Below is a detailed breakdown of our Italy VPN testing process, alongside the weighting of each category towards each VPN’s overall rating:
Italy Server Locations: 30%
Having access to Italian VPN servers and IP addresses is the most important feature of a VPN for Italy.
Connecting to Italian VPN servers allows you to access blocked Italian websites and stream your favorite shows and movies from sites like RaiPlay and Mediaset Infinity.
The more Italian servers available the better, as this results in better speeds, uninterrupted connections, and less congestion. We reward VPNs that have lots of Italian servers spread across multiple cities, and spread evenly across the country for good coverage.
Italy Streaming: 30%
Although most VPNs have Italian servers, not all of them can unblock Italian streaming services. We regularly test 62 VPNs on six Italian streaming sites: Netflix Italy, RaiPlay, Mediaset Infinity, DAZN Italy, SuperTennis, and La7.
We gather data and recommend the VPNs that consistently unblock these Italian sites and stream content without buffering. You can see the results of our Italian streaming tests in the table below:
Speed: 20%
We reward the VPNs that provide fast international speeds. Connecting to Italy from a country as far away as the US should affect your normal internet connection speeds as little as possible.
Our evaluation is based on data that we gather from regular manual speed tests, conducted on our own test servers.
Security & Technical Features: 10%
We ensure that every VPN we recommend is safe to use by putting it through a series of security tests.
We use our own leak test tool to check for any IP, DNS, or WebRTC leaks. We use Wireshark to check that every VPN is actually encrypting your traffic, and we inspect the security protocols used by each VPN. Kill switches are also tested via our in-house kill switch test tool.
We give extra points to VPNs that include additional technical features like ad and tracker blockers, double VPN, or rotating IP addresses.
Privacy & Logging Policy: 10%
VPNs are tools that safeguard your online privacy and security, so we always make sure the VPNs we recommend are safe to use.
We analyze each VPN’s privacy policy, legal jurisdiction, corporate history, and any evidence that substantiates its logging claims, including audits and court cases.
Based on this data, we determine each VPN’s privacy performance and give it a rating. This ensures we never recommend a VPN that logs identifying data or doesn’t effectively encrypt your web traffic.
Data Cap Penalty
Free VPN services can be useful, but it’s important to acknowledge the limitations that data caps impose on VPN users.
To account for this, we apply penalties to free VPNs that enforce data usage caps. The more restrictive the data limit, the stricter the penalty. Here’s how it breaks down:
10GB per month: -20% applied to the overall rating
500MB per day: -25% applied to the overall rating
5GB per month: -30% applied to the overall rating
1GB per month: -35% applied to the overall rating
200MB per day: -40% applied to the overall rating
500MB per month: -50% applied to the overall rating
TunnelBear Free has one of the the strictest data caps of any VPN, so we’ve docked 35% from it’s overall Italy rating to reflect its limited capabilities.
FAQs
What’s the Best VPN for Connecting to Italy?
The best VPN for connecting to Italy is ExpressVPN. It has servers located in Cosenza, Milan, and Naples, and therefore spread across Northern and Southern Italy. These servers were fast and stable in our tests, and easily bypassed Italian geo-blocks, including those applied by Italian Netflix, MediaSet Infinity, and RaiPlay.
PIA has 87 Italy servers, which is considerably more than the second best, NordVPN, which has 60 Italian servers.
However, it is worth noting that not every VPN discloses the exact number of servers it operates, and that server count is always subject to change.
Which Free VPN Has Servers in Italy?
The only free VPNs we’ve reviewed with servers in Italy are TunnelBear Free and Psiphon Free. All other free VPNs do not offers servers in Italy.
However, avoid using Psiphon since it performed very badly in our privacy and security assessments. Therefore, the only free Italy we recommend using is TunnelBear Free.
