The Best VPNs for Japan

For expats and tourists in Japan, ExpressVPN is the strongest option for keeping access to your favorite content from back home.

It’s a fantastic VPN for Netflix, giving me access to 18 regional libraries, including Canada, Korea, Japan, the UK, and the US.

Switching to a US VPN server restored my access to Hulu, Peacock, and YouTube TV almost instantly.

And connecting to a UK server location, BBC iPlayer, ITVX, and Sky Go all streamed without a hitch.

Whichever country you’re calling home, the content you’d miss while in Japan is only a server switch away.

I had equally good results on ExpressVPN’s Japanese servers, which reliably unblocked Netflix Japan, AbemaTV, and TVer. Here are some of my streaming results:

Table showing ExpressVPN’s access to Japanese content platforms.

Streaming Service	Unblocked?
AbemaTV	Yes
DAZN Japan	Yes
Crunchyroll Japan	Yes
Disney+ Japan	Yes
Hulu Japan	Yes
Netflix Japan	Yes
Prime Video Japan	Yes
TVer	Yes
U-Next	Yes

ExpressVPN and NordVPN performed very similarly in my streaming tests. The only exception was DAZN Japan, which ExpressVPN unblocked but NordVPN didn’t.

For Japanese Netflix specifically, NordVPN was actually more reliable, since not all ExpressVPN servers worked every time.

In my experience, very few VPNs are as easy to use as ExpressVPN.

Compared to most of its rivals, it takes a plug-and-play approach. Features like rotating IPs and protocol obfuscation happen in the background without you needing to touch anything.

Where ExpressVPN is truly unbeatable is usability and device compatibility. Not even NordVPN comes close.

In addition to well-designed, beginner-friendly apps on computers and smartphones, it’s especially good on streaming devices like Firestick, Android TV, and Apple TV.

Every native app shares the same interface, so switching between devices takes seconds rather than minutes.

ExpressVPN doesn’t cut corners on security, either. It runs on Lightway, its own proprietary protocol, using AES-256 and ChaCha20 encryption with diskless servers that store no activity data.

The service’s no-logs policy is really important in Japan, where ISPs can legally retain connection logs for up to six months.

And it’s been proven under pressure. ExpressVPN servers have been seized by authorities twice, and not a single piece of user data was retrieved either time.

NordVPN’s feature set goes a little deeper than ExpressVPN’s, and a few of those extras are particularly relevant if you’re in Japan.

Multi-hop (or Double VPN) routes your connection through two VPN servers instead of one, adding an extra layer of encryption.

It’s overkill for casual browsing, but worth knowing about given Japan’s 2025 Active Cyber Defense legislation, which expanded law enforcement’s access to local ISP data.

Threat Protection Pro, NordVPN’s built-in malware blocker, is also worthy of mention. Unlike ExpressVPN, which only flags malicious links, NordVPN scans files as they’re downloaded and blocks threats before they reach your device.

It’s a particularly useful layer of protection when you’re on the go and where the temptation to quickly download something over an unsecured WiFi connection is real.

The most distinctive feature, though, is Meshnet. It lets you create a secure, private connection back to your home network from any country. It’s entirely free, and doesn’t even require an active NordVPN subscription.

For tourists or expats in Japan, that means accessing files on a home computer or routing your traffic through your home country’s IP address as if you never left.

NordVPN doesn’t unlock quite as many international platforms as ExpressVPN, but for the services that matter most to the majority of people, it more than holds its own.

For British users, BBC iPlayer, ITVX, and Channel 4 all worked reliably in my tests.

BBC iPlayer in particular is one of NordVPN’s genuine strengths; it’s as good as anything I’ve tested for it. For US users, Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ all streamed without hiccups.

Just like ExpressVPN, NordVPN accessed most geo-restricted Japanese streaming services. It’s also the most consistent VPN for accessing Netflix Japan, working on every attempt.

The only exception to this excellent performance is DAZN Japan, which NordVPN still can’t unblock.

Japan has intensified its monitoring of what happens online. ISPs are now allowed to retain connection metadata for up to six months and law enforcement has unlimited access to telecommunications data.

In this climate, using Proton VPN is a free way to ensure you stay private and secure at all times.

That’s because Proton keeps no logs of your activity, a policy that’s been independently audited and verified.

Its apps are also fully open-source, meaning security researchers can inspect the code for vulnerabilities.

This level of transparency is rare even among paid VPNs, let alone free ones.

The main limitation is that Proton’s free tier no longer lets you choose your server location.

Despite having a free Japanese server, you can’t connect to it manually. The app picks the fastest available option automatically, which may or may not be Japan depending on where you are.

Proton’s free Japanese server also doesn’t unblock geo-restricted streaming services. In my tests, it failed to access Netflix Japan, AbemaTV, and all other Japanese platforms.

If you want consistent streaming access or reliable control over your IP location, I’d use one of the paid options above instead. Both NordVPN and Surfshark offer genuine VPN free trials, too.

For a free VPN, Windscribe’s streaming success rate is genuinely impressive.

Its free servers across 10 countries work with a solid range of popular platforms.

British users will find that BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4, and Sky Go all stream consistently from Japan.

US users will be able to access Hulu, HBO Max, and Peacock, and the free Android GPS spoofing setting is especially useful for US sports apps like ESPN and NFL+.

From Japan, I found Windscribe’s Hong Kong server gave the fastest speeds and lowest latency on the free tier. It also worked with Viu and a few other regional platforms.

Windscribe’s streaming access is impressive, but it comes with real frustrations.

Buffering on the free servers is a genuine problem. I saw the loading spinner every 10 to 15 seconds during live streams on more than one occasion.

The volume of CAPTCHAs triggered by search engines is also irritating, particularly when using Windscribe’s browser extensions.

Then there’s the data cap. At 10GB per month, you’re looking at roughly four hours of HD streaming before you hit the ceiling.

For occasional use, that’s workable. For anything more, you’ll run out quickly.