The awesomeness of the Amazon Fire Stick doesn’t need to be emphasized. This portable streaming device makes it possible to enjoy content from Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and other movie or music streaming services.
It’s portable but changing your geolocation might cause issues with content accessibility.
The resolve is simple, just recruit a VPN service.
But not everyone knows how to install a VPN on Firestick, so if you are looking for ways to set up a VPN for Firestick, this guide is for you.
Why You Should Use a VPN
- Privacy: With a VPN, you’ll comfortably hide your affairs from your Internet Service Providers (ISP). Unless you are doing something more profound than basic streaming, a VPN service can block your ISP from seeing what you are watching.
- View restricted contents: Many channels are geo-locked, but you can access contents reserved for that location with a VPN of the specific geographical location.
- Protect data: A VPN helps you protect your data from advertisers and other companies that sell data. With it, you can avoid annoying over-targeted ads.
- Bypass restrictions: Most countries and even offices restrict streaming, but you can avoid getting punished or sanctioned with a VPN as they won’t see your activities.
- Secure VoIP: VPNs protect not only your data but your calls and messages.
What to look out for when choosing a VPN?
Before we show you how to get a VPN on Firestick, let’s first see the criteria or things you should look out for when selecting a VPN service.
- Security: When it comes to your private data, security is critical. Go through the VPNs privacy police and browse forums to know more about the VPN. This is integral to avoid using a service that keeps your info or browsing log. Look out for its headquarters and be sure it isn’t located in members of the surveillance alliance Five Eyes or located in a country that’s a complete ally with your current country. VPNs with AES-256 offer strong encryption.
- Speed: Speed is integral; having a slow network connection is a problem on its own; now, pairing it with a slow VPN is a whole new issue. Ensure your VPN is fast enough; there are ways to test your VPN further below.
- Compatibility: Not all Firesticks accept VPNs, and not all VPNs are compatible with Amazon Firestick. So, before hitting the purchase button, dig to know if your VPN is compatible with your Firestick.
- Price: It’s better you go for a premium plan when using VPNs with Firestick. Out of over 300 VPNs, just a few work with Firestick; while these few offer free trials, they often include limitations like low data usage and speed. To bypass this, the premium plan is your best bet.
Firestick and VPN Compatibility
Firestick that Accepts VPN
- Fire TV Cube 1st and 2nd Generation)
- Fire TV Stick (2nd Generation)
- Fire TV Stick 4K
- Fire TV (3rd Generation Pendant Designer)
VPNs that work with Firestick
Before we see how to enable VPN on Firestick, let’s see services that are compatible with Firestick. The services listed here were selected based on our criteria for choosing good VPNs to use.
- CyberGhost: Renowned for speed and top-notch security. It offers features like global service coverage, VPN encryption, anti-censorship, and no logs policy. It costs $13 per month and features many other pricing plans.
- Express VPN: Offers servers in over 90 countries with 160 locations. Features like anonymous browsing, IP address masking, 24-hour live chat, VPN split masking, no logs policy. $13 per month
- IPVanish: Can be used over public Wi-Fi, prevents deep packet inspection, stops geo-targeting, VoIP security. $11 per month.
- NordVPN: Good choice for streaming, offers over 5000 servers in about 53 countries, can be used on multiple devices, split tunneling, dedicated IP, masked IP, plus double protection. $12 per month.
- Windscribe: It has servers in over 63 countries and over 100 cities. Uses AE-256 encryption, offers configuration generator, port forwarding, split tunneling, static IP, firewall. $9 per month.
- Norton VPN
- Encrypt.me
- Hotspot Shield
- Ivacy VPN
- KeepSolid VPN Unlimited
- Perfect Privacy
- PureVPN
- VyprVPN
- Surf Shark
- Private Internet Access
How to Install VPN on Firestick
1. Install VPN from Fire TV’s App store
- Launch your Amazon Fire TV Stick, then go to your Home screen. With the search feature, type in any of the VPNs above or any other compatible with Firestick.
- Select the resulting VPN, then click the Download button. Preferably, allow the download to complete before leaving the download page.
- When done, the download button changes to Open. Click on it using your remote.
- Fill in your log-in details if you already have an account. If you don’t create a new account and purchase a plan or go with its free trial, if any, you should create the account with your mobile device or computer. (Firestick counts as a device, so check how many devices the VPN can work on simultaneously.)
- When done setting it up and choosing your location, click the Connect button and enjoy the ride.
Typically, VPNs only startup manually, but you can make it start automatically with customized settings.
The steps above also show how to download apps on Firestick, in such case you’ll replace the VPN’s name with the app.
2. Install a VPN from an Android APK
The above shows how to download VPN on Firestick.
While installing VPN through the Firestick app is the simplest method, you can also get a VPN on Firestick through your Android APK, this method is called sideloading.
Amazon offers a Firestick android version, so getting VPN services on your Fire TV with an Android app might suffice.
Be aware that not all VPN services available on Android are compatible with Firestick; if the list above isn’t enough, you should research compatible Firestick VPN.
- Launch your Fire TV, go to the Home screen, search for Downloader, then open its app page.
- Click on the Downloader Download button.
- When the download is over, click Open to access the Downloader.
- Visit your VPN site and copy the direct download URL of the VPN. Go for its Android app.
- Go back to the downloader, paste the link, and hit Ok.
- When download is complete, Fire TV should prompt you to install the app immediately; if it doesn’t access the Downloader app’s download section, click the APK file and proceed.
The app might not show on Firestick’s app list, so go to your Settings to find it.
- Open Settings, then select Applications.
- Click on Manage Installed Applications, then navigate to the VPN.
- Click the VPN app, then select Launch Application.
- Sign-in to the VPN if you already have an account or visit the VPN’s site on your mobile device or computer to create an account.
- Connect to the VPN after selecting a server.
If you cannot install the VPN app, go to Settings, open the Device option, and then select Developers Option. When in, toggle on the Allow Apps from Unknown Sources switch.
When installing the VPN, follow the steps above to toggle off the Allow Apps from Unknown Sources switch. This feature is added to ensure apps used on your device are gotten from its store only.
3. Access the VPN Services on Firestick through Your Router
You can get a free VPN on Firestick through your router. This is a bonus method. If your VPN isn’t available on the Amazon store or doesn’t have an app, then you can connect the VPN through your router.
The process here differs by router model or make, so research how to install VPNs on your router. It would be possible if the VPN has a router app.
You could also use streamlocator, which is an alternative to VPN or you could also call it a VPN router.
How to Check if the VPN is Working
You’ve seen how to install a free VPN on Firestick through the Amazon app store, with an APK, or via the router now. But now, let’s see how to confirm the VPN is working.
- Open the Downloader app on Firestick with your remote.
- Click on Home, then type this URL https://whatismyipaddress.com/ in the address bar and click Go.
- Compare the IP figures there with your default router’s or network’s IP address. If they are not the same, then your VPN is working.
Also, try accessing any geo-locked channel that’s allowed on your perceived new VPN address.
How to Update your VPN
After seeing how to add VPN on Firestick, you must learn how to update your VPN. Typically, VPNs updates are automatic, but you often need to update them manually when dealing with their apps.
- Locate the VPN app, then click on it.
- Next, click on Menu and then More Info and allow the app’s details to load.
- Find the Update button; if there’s none, then the app is up to date.
- If you find an update button, click on it and allow the update to complete.
How to Uninstall the VPN
- Visit your Fire TV Settings app.
- Navigate to and select Applications.
- Click on the VPN, then select Uninstall.
- Follow all on-screen instructions to complete uninstallation.
Troubleshooting VPN issues
To reap the full benefits of VPNs, they should be fully functional and without any issue whatsoever. Also, a glitch in the VPN could result in your IP address and online activities being exposed, which trumps a few of the main reasons for using a VPN.
So, after you install VPN on firestick then later encounter any issue while using your VPN, try any of the solutions below to see if you can troubleshoot and resolve the issue.
- Restart Everything
- From your Firestick Home page, enter Settings.
- Locate and select My Fire TV, then click Restart
- Also, unplug your modem and router, allow for about 1 minute, then plug it back in.
- Change Network
- If you are using a router, you could try a wired connection or vice versa.
- Try connecting your Fire TV to a new network, preferably with a higher signal strength.
- Clear Cache and Data
Doing this wipes out your VPNs data; that is, all customized settings alongside your log-in details would be cleared.
Cache files have necessary advantages, but sometimes they conflict with things. So, wiping them out may suffice; follow these steps.
- From your Fire TV homepage, go to Settings.
- Select Applications, then click Manage Installed Applications.
- Locate and open the VPN app, then click on Force Stop.
- Click the Clear Data and Clear Cache option.
- Go back to Settings, then select My Fire TV and click the Restart option.
- Switch Protocols
- Open Settings, then turn on TCP
- You may switch to UDP or turn TCP off if you meet it on.
- Reinstall the VPN app
- Follow the instructions above to uninstall VPN.
- Restart your Fire TV, then follow the steps you used to install the VPN and install its latest version.
- Try connecting and check if the problem persists.
Also, you can update the VPN as updates are renowned for fixing bugs and addressing other issues.
Conclusion
Well, now you know the best ways how to install VPN on Firestick.
It’s easy to get done from the Firestick app store or with an Android APK. If none of those work out, you may pair your VPN with your router.
This article also showed how to troubleshoot your VPN. Thank you for stopping by; share with us what worked for you.
FAQs
Q. Can Norton VPN be installed on Firestick?
No, it can’t. Although Norton VPN is compatible with Firestick, there’s still no direct way to install Norton VPN for Firestick; however, you can make use of Norton on Fire TV by sideloading it.
Q. How to install NordVPN on Firestick?
First, you’ll configure Firestick to accept apps from other sources. Open Settings > My Fire TV > Developer Options, and toggle on Apps from Unknown Sources switch.
From the search screen, search and download Downloader.
Follow all on-screen instructions after launching the Downloader app.
Visit Norton to get the APK download link or enter this URL https://bit.ly/3tvWEb9 in the Downloader URL address bar, then hit Ok.
After downloading, locate the app from the Download folder and install it.
Launch the Norton app and sign in or create an account with your mobile device. If Fire TV doesn’t list the app, visit Settings > Application and open it there then proceed.
Q. How to mirror iPhone on Fire TV stick?
To mirror an iPhone on a Fire TV stick, you need to make use of a third-party app. While this guide would use AirScreen, other apps to check out are –
– AirBeam TV Mirroring Receiver
– Video & TV Cast for Fire TV
– iWebTV
– AllConnect for Fire TV
– AirPlayMirror Receiver
– Reflector 2 – AirPlay Receiver
– AirReceiver
Steps to mirror iPhone on Fire TV Stick with AirScreen
– Search for AirScreen from Firestick, then download it.
– On your iPhone, open Control Center then Screen Mirroring
– Click on your Firestick device name and enjoy.
Q. How to install a free VPN on Firestick?
Go through the VPN’s site to confirm if they offer free trials of any sort or at least a discount.
Most free VPNs are limited and it’s advisable you go for its premium version to enjoy its full benefits, so read extensively before proceeding.