ExpressVPN for streaming in 2026: which services and TVs it works with

In our research (October 2026), ExpressVPN scores 95% or more with BBC iPlayer (UK), Prime Video, Disney+, HBO Max and Hulu (US). It is the only VPN in our streaming ranking to do that on all five. Netflix is its weak spot, at 78% across all libraries. Below are its scores, TV apps, features, prices and owner, and who it fits.

ExpressVPN is first in our streaming ranking and on Fire TV, where its help lists no features missing from its Vega OS app. For Netflix it comes second, behind IPVanish, whose research score across all Netflix libraries is 83% against ExpressVPN's 78%.

Positions among the seven VPNs we cover, scores out of 10. A VPN with too little research data for a use case is not ranked there. Our research, 19 October 2026.

The score combines how well each VPN works in practice in our research, device compatibility, features, and price and refunds. How we rank explains how rankings work on this site.

ExpressVPN is strong on five main services and weakest on Netflix

ExpressVPN's research scores (October 2026) are 100% with BBC iPlayer (UK), HBO Max and Hulu (US), 99% with Disney+ and 95% with Prime Video. Netflix is lower, at 78% across all libraries, where a library is one country's catalog of a service.

Each score is for ExpressVPN with one service, on any device, not only on a TV. A score of 100% means all the recent evidence we gathered says the VPN works. Below that, some of the evidence says ExpressVPN was blocked or worked only on some servers.

Source: whatworks.tech research, October 2026. 100% means all recent evidence says ExpressVPN works with that service. An "all libraries" cell covers every country together, so it can differ from a single country's score. Checked October 2026.

Our research does not yet have enough data for an ExpressVPN score with ESPN, Apple TV+, Peacock, Paramount+ or YouTube TV.

No other VPN in our streaming ranking scores 95% or more on all five of BBC iPlayer (UK), Prime Video, Disney+, HBO Max and Hulu (US). NordVPN comes closest, with 94% for Prime Video and 98% to 100% on the other four. Each of the other five ranked VPNs scores 85% or less on at least one of them.

ExpressVPN with Netflix, library by library

ExpressVPN's Netflix score changes a lot from one library to another. Our research (October 2026) gives it 100% for Australia, 88% for the UK, 80% for the US and 75% for Japan. France (68%) and Germany (67%) are lowest.

Source: whatworks.tech research, October 2026. Libraries without enough recent evidence for a score do not appear. Checked October 2026.

Across all libraries, ExpressVPN's 78% is the second-highest of the seven VPNs we cover, after IPVanish at 83%. For a single library, NordVPN scores higher for the US (87%) and Germany (88%). Netflix says VPNs are not supported on its ad plans or for live events. Every VPN's scores for the US, UK, Japan and Germany are in the Netflix table, library by library.

ExpressVPN runs on both Fire TV systems, Apple TV and Android TV, with workarounds for other TVs

As of 6 October 2026, ExpressVPN has TV apps for Fire TV sticks on both Fire OS and Vega OS, for Android TV and for Apple TV. The Apple TV app needs tvOS 17 or later, and the Android TV app, from Google Play, needs Android 7.0 or later. Roku, Samsung and LG TVs have no ExpressVPN app.

Source: ExpressVPN's help pages and app store listings. Checked October 2026.

ExpressVPN has a separate app for each Fire TV system, Fire OS and the newer Vega OS. On any current stick, search for ExpressVPN in the Amazon Appstore. The Fire OS app needs Fire OS 6 or later, and you can also sideload it, meaning install its app file from outside the store. The Vega OS app, for newer sticks such as the Fire TV Stick 4K Select, installs only from the Appstore.

ExpressVPN's help lists no features as missing from its Vega OS app, unlike NordVPN's, Surfshark's and IPVanish's. ExpressVPN also reported in August 2026 that on Vega OS, a few DNS lookups (how a device finds a service's address) skip any VPN app. They include some lookups Netflix makes when it starts, which ExpressVPN says Amazon plans to fix. By ExpressVPN's account this affects every VPN app, and nothing we read says whether it causes Netflix errors.

Source: ExpressVPN help pages; router makers' help pages. Checked October 2026.

MediaStreamer is a Smart DNS service: you enter its DNS addresses in the TV's network settings instead of installing an app. It needs your home internet address (IP address) registered with ExpressVPN, or a DDNS hostname, a name that follows an address that changes. ExpressVPN's guide, updated on 29 September 2026, says "You cannot change locations with MediaStreamer". For another country's catalog on these TVs, use ExpressVPN on your router, or on a Fire TV Stick or other streaming device plugged into the TV.

ExpressVPN's own routers stand out, while MediaStreamer cannot change your location

As of October 2026, ExpressVPN's streaming features are routers, split tunneling on Android TV, 10 to 14 devices at once, and MediaStreamer, its DNS service. Its own routers are what sets it apart from our other picks.

Source: ExpressVPN help, pricing and release-notes pages; Surfshark and IPVanish pricing pages. Checked October 2026.

Of our five streaming picks (ExpressVPN, NordVPN, Surfshark, Proton VPN and IPVanish), only ExpressVPN has its own routers: Aircove, and the Fortify, a co-branded GL.iNet GL-MT6000. The Fortify comes with 12 months of the Advanced plan for new or returning users. Its router app also runs on some Asus, Linksys and Netgear models, but ExpressVPN says security updates for all compatible Asus models have ended. So if you are buying a router for ExpressVPN, look at its own routers or a supported Linksys or Netgear model. NordVPN and IPVanish point to routers that FlashRouters sells ready-configured, while Proton VPN and Surfshark publish manual setups.

Choosing an ExpressVPN server, and the US server order it gives for Netflix

To watch a service through ExpressVPN, connect to a server in the country whose catalog you want:

• BBC iPlayer (UK): a UK server, because the BBC says you must be in the UK to watch.
• Hulu (US): a US server, because Disney's US agreement limits Hulu to the US.
• Prime Video: for your usual catalog while you travel, a server in your Amazon account's country, shown under Your Account › Your Content and Devices › Preferences › Country/Region. Amazon says that abroad you can stream only a selection of Prime Video titles, and that on a Fire TV, changing your account country hides your Prime Video purchases. ExpressVPN's Fire TV guide also points to your account's country. Our research has too little recent evidence to score ExpressVPN with Prime Video country by country, only across all libraries. Our Prime Video VPN ranking shows those all-libraries scores.
• Netflix: a server in the country of the library you want (see the scores by library above).

On a Fire TV, ExpressVPN's apps connect by default to a Smart Location, a server the app suggests. To watch a particular country's catalog, pick that country from the app's location list instead, as our Fire TV guide to picking a server shows for each app.

When Netflix spots the server, it may show only titles it licenses worldwide. It may also stop the title with error E106: "You seem to be using a VPN or proxy." ExpressVPN's Netflix help then gives these steps:

1. Change server location. For US users, it lists six locations to try in order: Washington DC, San Francisco, New York, New Jersey 3, Los Angeles 3 and Denver.
2. After each change, force-close Netflix and reopen it. On Fire TV, open Settings › Applications › Manage Installed Applications, select Netflix, then Force Stop.
3. Restart the device, then sign out of the Netflix app and back in.
4. Try Netflix in a web browser.
5. Contact ExpressVPN's support.

For what other VPN companies suggest, such as a DNS leak test, see the E106 fix for VPN users.

ExpressVPN's help pages say stay in your country, while its marketing says otherwise

ExpressVPN's help pages tell you to use a server in the country where you are, while its marketing pitches streaming while you travel. Both are the company's position, not a record of what works.

Source: ExpressVPN help and marketing pages, read on 6 October 2026. Checked October 2026.

Private Internet Access and CyberGhost, ExpressVPN's sister brands at Kape, give the same server advice and the same Terms of Service warning. What happens in practice is in ExpressVPN's research scores (October 2026). It scores 95% to 100% with BBC iPlayer (UK), Prime Video, Disney+, HBO Max and Hulu (US), and 78% across all Netflix libraries.

ExpressVPN's prices for Basic, Advanced and Pro, and its 30-day refund for new users

ExpressVPN sells three tiers, Basic, Advanced and Pro, and new users get a 30-day money-back guarantee. The table lists each tier's 2-year plan with 4 extra months, as offered to an EU visitor on 6 October 2026, and its yearly renewal price.

Introductory prices shown to a visitor in the EU on 11 October 2026. VAT may apply.

The tiers differ in how many devices can connect at once: 10 on Basic, 12 on Advanced and 14 on Pro. On the Basic and Advanced plans, ExpressVPN sells a dedicated IP as a separate add-on.

Use the 30 days to play each service you watch on your own TV, and ask for the refund if one fails. If you paid through Apple's or Google's app store, Apple or Google handles the refund, not ExpressVPN.

Kape, the London company behind Private Internet Access and CyberGhost, owns ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is one of the brands of Kape, a company headquartered in London. Kape's brand list also includes two other VPNs we cover, Private Internet Access and CyberGhost. Apple's App Store lists Expressco Services, LLC as the seller of ExpressVPN's apps. Our provider comparison lists who owns each of the seven VPNs we cover.

The three Kape VPNs sit far apart in our streaming ranking: ExpressVPN first, Private Internet Access sixth and CyberGhost seventh. Private Internet Access says its app is not currently compatible with Vega OS. CyberGhost has no Apple TV app, and we found no CyberGhost app for Vega OS. Across all Netflix libraries, our research (October 2026) gives Private Internet Access 70% and CyberGhost 64%, against ExpressVPN's 78%.

Where ExpressVPN fits best, and which pick to choose instead

ExpressVPN suits a home that streams several services on a Fire TV, Apple TV or Android TV. Look at another pick if you mainly watch Netflix Germany or France, need more than 14 devices at once, or want split tunneling on a Fire TV Stick.

Source: whatworks.tech research, October 2026; provider help and pricing pages. Checked October 2026.

If another pick fits your situation better, its profile goes further:

• NordVPN for streaming: Netflix US and Germany, and split tunneling on Fire OS.
• Surfshark for streaming: Netflix Germany and no device limit.
• IPVanish for streaming: Netflix across all libraries, and no device limit for personal use.
• Proton VPN for streaming: Netflix UK and France.

Where to go next

• The best VPN for streaming: all seven ranked VPNs, compared service by service.
• Vega OS app gaps, provider by provider: which features the NordVPN, Surfshark and IPVanish Vega OS apps leave out.
• Setting up a VPN on a Firestick: the Appstore steps, sign-in and how to check the VPN is on.
• Does Netflix work with a VPN?: Netflix's rules and plans, and how to set up a VPN for it.
• Fix Netflix error E106: what the message means and the fixes, quickest first.