The Best Free VPNs for Netflix

Our tests have revealed that PrivadoVPN is the only free VPN capable of accessing US Netflix. While many paid VPNs offer this feature, PrivadoVPN stands out by allowing you to enjoy additional Netflix content at no cost.

In addition, PrivadoVPN can also access the UK Netflix library, enabling you to stream shows like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and other UK exclusives.

However, with servers in 11 countries, we hope to see PrivadoVPN expand its reach to more Netflix libraries and catch up with Windscribe Free, which currently unblocks 5 regions.

We were especially frustrated by PrivadoVPN’s inability to access the French and German Netflix libraries, which Windscribe reliably unblocks. These regions offer a lot of licensed content, including popular shows like Yellowstone and The Vampire Diaries.

For the regions it can access, we enjoy using PrivadoVPN Free with Netflix as it has very fast speeds and delivers a buffer-free experience. We’ve calculated its average international speed loss as 8%, which is actually outperforming paid providers like ExpressVPN and CyberGhost.

With fast download speeds, we consistently met the 25Mbps requirement for streaming Netflix in 4K without any issues.

To its credit, PrivadoVPN offers user-friendly apps for every streaming device, including Apple TV, Fire TV, and Android TV. Switching between UK and US servers for Netflix content is easy on all of these.

Its Android TV app is a standout, working seamlessly with US Netflix and making it our top free choice. Initially, PrivadoVPN faced bugs with Netflix on Fire TV, but these issues have been resolved, showing the company’s commitment to user feedback.

However, PrivadoVPN’s mobile performance is lacking, with our iOS and Android tests revealing slow load times (over 60 seconds) and poorer video quality compared to desktop.

Note that PrivadoVPN lacks browser extensions and Smart DNS functionality, limiting its ability to unblock Netflix on devices without VPN apps, like Smart TVs and gaming consoles.

PrivadoVPN doesn’t require any payment details for its free service, but it does have a 10GB monthly data cap, which translates to about 5 episodes of a Netflix show per month.

Additionally, PrivadoVPN requires you to manually renew your data every 30 days, which we found to be a frustrating requirement, especially since competitors like Windscribe, TunnelBear, and other free VPNs don’t have this issue.

Windscribe Free lets you access Netflix libraries from France, Germany, Romania, Switzerland, and the UK. It’s the best free VPN for unlocking the most Netflix libraries.

However, in our Windscribe tests, the free software failed to unblock American Netflix, one of the biggest content libraries.

This is a big disappointment, especially considering that Windscribe was previously the most dependable free VPN for accessing US Netflix, and we’d hoped the issue would be resolved by now.

For US Netflix specifically, use PrivadoVPN Free. Or, as both don’t cost anything and are easy to sign up for, you use a combination of both for broader access to Netflix.

Windscribe Free’s apps are ad-free and very user-friendly. It takes seconds to connect to a VPN server location and start streaming Netflix. You can do this on macOS, Windows, iOS, Android, Fire TV, Apple TV, and Android TV.

However, we preferred using PrivadoVPN on Android TV. Windscribe’s app for this platform feels clunky, with an oversized interface that’s difficult to navigate and a cumbersome login process.

Additionally, unlike like PrivadoVPN, Windscribe cannot stream Netflix on Apple TV. It lacks a tvOS app and using AirPlay results in a black screen due to Netflix restrictions.

Windscribe Free is slower than PrivadoVPN but still offers excellent long-distance speeds. We often streamed Netflix in HD and occasionally enjoyed Ultra HD, with an average download speed of 87Mbps from the US to the UK. This represents a speed drop of 13% compared to our 100Mbps baseline.

A major downside is the 10GB monthly data limit for free users, which translates to about 4 hours of HD Netflix streaming per month. While Windscribe’s 10GB cap is among the highest for free VPNs, 4 hours of streaming isn’t much.

It is possible to get an extra 5GB per month if you tweet a Windscribe ad. You might want to consider this as it would make Windscribe Free the only free VPN that works with Netflix and has over 10GB of free data.

For more details, check out our guide on watching Netflix with Windscribe.

CyberGhost offers the best VPN free trial available. You can use CyberGhost with Netflix completely free through several options.

Firstly, it provides a 1-day free trial on Windows and macOS with no payment details required. This is unique as no other leading VPN offers free use without upfront payment.

Secondly, you can access a 3-day free trial on Android and a 7-day free trial on iOS, though these require payment details. You can cancel before the trial ends to avoid charges.

Lastly, CyberGhost provides an industry-leading 45-day money-back guarantee. Unlike most VPNs that offer a one-month refund, CyberGhost allows a full, risk-free refund for up to 45 days with the 12-month subscription plan or above.

Regardless of how you access CyberGhost for free, you’ll find that each method provides a VPN that effectively bypasses Netflix geo-blocks.

Our extensive testing confirms that CyberGhost reliably unblocks 10 regions, including popular libraries from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Japan, Singapore, Spain, the UK, and the US. This makes it one of the top 5 VPNs for the number of Netflix libraries available, behind only Windscribe, ExpressVPN, NordVPN, and PrivateVPN.

Additionally, CyberGhost offers a free Chrome browser extension that successfully unblocks US Netflix. While the interface and design could use an update, it remains functional and effective at bypassing Netflix restrictions.

CyberGhost offers fast connection speeds suitable for Full HD streaming of Netflix content from any global library.

However, its speed reduction is higher compared to other leading VPNs. We recorded a 17% decrease in speed when connecting to UK servers from the US. While this speed loss isn’t catastrophic given the distance, we experienced longer loading times and occasional streaming interruptions compared to ExpressVPN and other VPNs like NordVPN.

In addition, we prefer the user experience of ExpressVPN’s apps. Although CyberGhost provides functional apps for various streaming devices including Fire TV, Apple TV, and Android TV, they don’t perform as smoothly as those from ExpressVPN.

On a positive note, CyberGhost’s Smart DNS feature is unique in its ability to unblock both US and UK Netflix content, whereas ExpressVPN can only unblock US Netflix.

ExpressVPN offers a full refund to customers within the first 30 days of purchasing a subscription – no questions asked. This means you can use the very best Netflix VPN for an entire month completely free of charge.

When we tested this policy, we received our refund within three business days.

We also verified with customer support that as long as you cancel within the 30-day period, your refund is guaranteed.

On mobile, there’s an additional option of a one-week free trial through Google Play or the App Store. To avoid charges, just cancel within the 7-day window.

Unlike the money-back guarantee, you can cancel immediately after signing up and still enjoy full access for the entire week.

You can find out exactly how to do this in our ExpressVPN free trial guide.

Although ExpressVPN doesn’t offer a permanent free plan, its 30-day refund period gave us enough time to access most of the geo-blocked content we wanted to watch.

With access to 18 different Netflix libraries, ExpressVPN opens highly sought-after regions, including Netflix US and Japan. PrivadoVPN and Windscribe don’t offer free VPN servers in Japan, so ExpressVPN is currently one of the best VPNs for watching Japanese Netflix.

In addition, ExpressVPN delivers some of the fastest VPN speeds we’ve tested. We recorded an average speed loss of just 7% on long-distance connections from the US to the UK. Streaming Netflix in Full HD has never been a problem for us.

Even after testing ExpressVPN for 8 years, it continues to be a pleasure to use due to its attractive and user-friendly apps.

It offers intuitive software on Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS devices, making it easy to switch between servers and access different Netflix libraries.

We found its browser extensions particularly useful, as they allow for quick Netflix region changes without ever leaving the browser.

Notably, unlike CyberGhost, ExpressVPN has an app for tvOS, making it an excellent choice for Netflix if you own an Apple TV.

Additionally, ExpressVPN offers a unique feature: an app for routers. This allows you to connect every device to the same VPN server, even ones that don’t support VPN apps, like Chromecast and Roku.