Best VPN for Streaming NFL Football: Watch From Anywhere
There are several VPNs to choose from, and we’ll break down the best ones available for watching the NFL here.
Unless you live under a fantastically large and heavy rock, you’re almost certainly aware that the 2024 NFL season kicks off on Thursday, Sept. 5 when the Baltimore Ravens travel to face the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs on NBC and Peacock. There are more games on streaming than ever in 2024, with contests to be found on Peacock, ESPN+, Paramount+, Prime Video, and Netflix at various points throughout the season. Live TV streaming services like DIRECTV STREAM and Sling TV will also provide games via streaming on channels like ABC,CBS, ESPN, and Fox.
NFL fans who find themselves traveling frequently for work or pleasure will want to seriously consider a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service for 2024. This will allow them to watch their streaming subscriptions much more privately and will help them continue to access all of the NFL games that they want to watch, no matter where in the world they are.
The Streamable’s Recommendations for VPNs to Watch NFL Football:
Why Watch the NFL with a VPN?
Even when you are in the United States, browsing the internet and watching streaming subscriptions with a VPN is still a good idea. VPNs create a private pathway for your data to travel through while you’re watching, keeping your browsing history and viewing safe from the eyes of hackers or others who want to steal your vital information.
If you’re traveling abroad, a VPN becomes even more important. VPNs allow customers to change their location and hide their IP address, so to the websites they visit it appears they’re connecting to the internet from any point in the world they choose.
For the average NFL fan, this becomes crucial, since NFL rights are distributed to different platforms in different countries. A game that might be found on Peacock in the United States, for example, would be located on a different channel or streaming service in Europe or Asia since Peacock is not available internationally.
That makes it critical to be able to change locations to make it appear that your devices are connecting to the internet from inside the U.S. It also helps inside the states if you want to watch your hometown team on a live TV streaming service while you are out of town. A VPN allows NFL audiences to log into their favorite streamers and watch football games on those services from anywhere in the country and around the world.
Which VPNs Does The Streamable Recommend for Watching the NFL?
Top Choice: ExpressVPN
Express VPN is The Streamable’s top choice for watching NFL football and everything else you could want on your favorite streaming services. It offers 105 servers around the world, including plenty of options in the United States so viewers can be sure their devices think they’re connecting domestically.
ExpressVPN offers several subscription options. Viewers who want more flexibility can go for the monthly plan for $12.95, or save some money with the six-month plan for $9.99 per month. ExpressVPN also offers a yearlong subscription package, which costs $6.67 per month and includes three months free if viewers sign up using promo code SPECIALDEAL.
Runner-Up: Private Internet Access VPN
Private Internet Access is another great way to watch the NFL if you’re traveling abroad this year, or simply want to keep your data private while you stream pro football stateside. Its military-grade encryption protocols keep your data safe, and you can choose to connect to servers in all 50 states, which is especially helpful for Paramount+ subscribers since that service offers in-market contests appearing on CBS.
Private Internet Access VPN also offers pricing flexibility; customers can sign up for a monthly subscription for $11.99, or go for the six-month plan at $7.50 per month. The best deal with PIA VPN is the 2-year plan, however; this option gives subscribers four free months, and drops the price to just $2.03 per month, 83% off the standard monthly price.
Streaming-Focused VPN: CyberGhost VPN
CyberGhost VPN is another of The Streamable’s favorites for watching NFL football. This service was specifically designed with streaming in mind, offering some of the fastest speeds available so you don’t have to worry as much about having a big play spoiled for you on social media before you see it happen on the field.
CyberGhost VPN comes with a $12.99-per-month option for customers who don’t travel all that often, or a six-month plan that drops the price to $6.99 monthly. The 2-year option is predictably the best value, since it comes with four months free and a price of only $2.03 per month.
Best Free VPN: Proton VPN
Proton VPN makes this list because, unlike the other selections, it comes with a free version of its VPN software. It doesn’t come with speeds as fast, or as many features, as paid Proton VPN plans, but it’s a great way to sign up and access an NFL game or two while traveling and ensure access and security on one device.
Proton VPN has paid subscription options available as well, which boost speeds and allow users to protect up to 10 devices at a time. Proton VPN Plus has a monthly plan for $9.99, an annual option for $4.49 per month, or a two-year plan that also runs $4.49 currently. The Proton VPN Unlimited plans offer 500GB of storage, 25 encrypted calendars, and more features, with monthly plans for $12.99, one-year plans at $9.99 per month or two-year plans for $7.99 per month.
Fastest VPN: NordVPN
NordVPN advertises itself as the fastest VPN on the market, which should be music to the ears of NFL fans, who rely on a consistent and fast browsing speed to deliver games via streaming. With servers in more than 100 countries around the world, it’s easy to connect to NordVPN and make it appear as if your device is in the United States.
NordVPN has three levels of service starting at $12.99 per month for the Basic plan. The more you pay, the more features you get; the Plus plan comes with anti-malware software and other protections, while the Ultimate plan comes with 1TB of encrypted storage in addition to all the other extras you get with the Plus package. NordVPN also offers 1-year and 2-year plans for each of these levels of service.
Unlimited Devices VPN: Surfshark
Surfshark plans offer protection on an unlimited number of devices, so you don’t have to worry about whether you’ll watch an NFL game abroad on your phone, tablet, or laptop. This service also has some unique features, including an alternative email generator that will keep providers from sending junk mail to your main account.
Surfshark is much like NordVPN in one respect: it offers three different subscription levels with distinct price points and features. Surfshark Starter is $15.45 per month, while Surfshark One upgrades to $17.95, and includes antivirus protection, a private search tool, and other features. Surfshark One+ comes to $20.65 per month and includes data removal from people search sites and company databases. One-year and 2-year plans are also available with Surfshark.