If you primarily use Firestick to watch live and on-demand content, you might have obviously come across geo-restrictions. This is where a VPN service like ExpressVPN comes into play. With ExpressVPN on your Firestick, you can bypass geo-restrictions and stream content otherwise inaccessible in your region.
Apart from letting you bypass geo-restrictions, ExpressVPN also helps you secure your data from online threats and hackers. Thankfully, the ExpressVPN app is officially compatible with the Firestick and Fire TV and can be installed from the Amazon App Store. In this guide, I will show you how to install, set up, and use ExpressVPN on a Fire TV Stick. In addition, you will also find our detailed review of using ExpressVPN on Amazon Fire Stick.
Valuable Findings !!
The VPN you are viewing now for your Firestick does offer decent security features. However, if you want to keep your digital presence private, consider choosing NordVPN for your Fire TV or Firestick. It's because we found NordVPN for Firestick to be more reliable and excel in terms of better security, speed, and convenience compared to the VPN you are reviewing now.
Also, NordVPN has over 6100+ ultra-fast servers in over 60+ countries. Upon choosing NordVPN over this VPN, you will experience a connection speed of 6730+ Mbps with no bandwidth limits. You can now take advantage of NordVPN's exclusive offer for a discounted price of 67% off + 3 Months Extra. Thus, you are one step away from protecting your Firestick from online threats.
What's More to Expect from NordVPN on Firestick:
- Meshnet
- Split Tunneling
- Smart DNS & Double VPN
- Torrenting Servers
- Obfuscated Servers
- MFA Protection
- No-log Policy
- 24/7 Customer Support
ExpressVPN Specifications – An Overview
Number of Servers | 3000+ |
Number of Countries | 105 |
App Availability | Yes [Amazon App Store] |
Compatibility | 2nd Gen (2016) 3rd Gen Fire TV Stick 4K (2018) Fire TV Cube (1st and 2nd Gen) Fire TV Stick Lite (2020) Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2021) |
Base Plan | $12.95 per month |
Payment Methods | PayPal, Credit Card, Debit Card, Bitcoin, and others |
Encryption | AES 256-bit |
Protocols | OpenVPN, Wireguard, IKEv2, L2TP/IPsec, Wireguard, PPTP, SSTP |
Jurisdiction | British Virgin Islands |
How to Install ExpressVPN on Firestick / Fire TV
To access ExpressVPN on Firestick, sign up for a premium plan on the ExpressVPN official website. You can also check our detailed signup steps for ExpressVPN in the next section.
1. Turn on your Firestick / Fire TV and go to the main screen.
2. Tap the Search icon and type ExpressVPN in the search field.
3. Select the ExpressVPN app from the suggestions, and click the Get or Download button to install the VPN on your device.
4. After installing, open the ExpressVPN app and follow the steps below to use ExpressVPN on Firestick.
How to Sign In / Activate ExpressVPN on Firestick
1. Open the ExpressVPN app and hit the Sign In option on the home screen.
2. You can use three ways to sign in to the app.
- QR Code
- Sign in With Code
- Sign in with Remote
3. If you have chosen the QR Code option,
- Take your smartphone in hand and open the camera in it.
- Scan the QR Code displayed on the ExpressVPN app and visit the website prompted on your smartphone.
- Enter the login details and hit the Sign In and Confirm button to finish the process.
4. If you have chosen the Sign-in with Code option,
- You will get an activation code with a URL on your screen.
- Visit the activation website of ExpressVPN [http://auth.expressvpn.com/activate] on any browser on a PC or smartphone.
- Enter the activation code on the ExpressVPN activation site and hit the Continue button.
- Next, enter your account details on the website and hit the Sign In button to finish the activation.
5. If you select the Sign in with remote,
- Enter the email and password of your ExpressVPN account using the on-screen keyboard on the TV and hit the Sign In button.
- Select the OK option on the app and end the process.
6. Once the Sign-in is over, hit the Power Icon on the app to connect your Firestick to a VPN network.
How to Use ExpressVPN on Firestick
1. When you open the ExpressVPN app on your Firestick, you will get the Connection button. Click the button to connect to the nearest and fastest server.
2. If you want to change the location, click the Smart Location button. You will get a list of all the locations.
- Recommended: In this section, you will get a list of optimized servers for your current location.
- Favorites: Here, you can see the list of locations that you have marked.
- Search: Using this, you can search for a specific location and get a server.
- All Locations: In this tile, you can get a list of countries based on continents.
3. On the top, you have three options. VPN (default home menu), Help, and Options.
4. In the Help menu, you can contact the support team for information about the VPN version & legal information.
5. In the Options menu, you have seven different buttons to customize the VPN.
- Settings
- Account
- Secure All Your Devices
- Privacy & Security Tools
- Get 30 Days Free
- Rate ExpressVPN
- Sign Out
6. Clicking the Settings button will display some essential VPN features like Auto-Connect, Network Protection, Split Tunneling, VPN Protocol, Advanced Protection, and other settings.
- Auto Connect: Here, you can enable or disable the Auto Connect feature for a secured VPN connection.
- Network Protection: Here, you can toggle between blocking or allowing an internet connection when unable to connect to a VPN. Also, you have the option to turn local network access on or off.
- Split Tunneling: In this menu, you can customize a VPN connection based on apps. You can include or exclude apps to connect to a VPN network.
- VPN Protocol: In the Protocol menu, you can choose different protocols for the VPN connection. You can choose Automatic to get the appropriate protocol based on your internet.
- Advanced Protection: Here, you can customize options like Block Trackers, Block Malicious Sites, Block Ads, and Block Adult Sites.
- App and Website Shortcuts: Here, you can add & remove shortcuts to apps and websites on the VPN home screen for easy access.
- Help Improve ExpressVPN: In this menu, you can opt for or against sending usage reports to the ExpressVPN team.
7. Clicking the Account button will give you the Account Status and expiration date.
8. In the Secure All Your Devices, you can manage all the ExpressVPN-connected devices.
9. Open the Privacy & Security Tools to manage IP Address Checker, DNS Leak Test, and WebRTC Leak Test.
- IP Address Checker: Clicking this will display your original location & IP address along with the integrated map. You also have the option to live chat with the support team here.
- DNS Leak Test: Here, you can check for any DNS leaks on your internet connection.
- WebRTC Leak Test: Here, you can check for WebRTC leaks. The Silk browser is not compatible with this test.
10. The Get 30 Days Free is a referral program. Here, you will get a unique QR code to refer your friends and others.
11. In Rate ExpressVPN, you can rate the VPN’s performance and usage.
12. Clicking the Sign Out button will remove your ExpressVPN account from the Firestick.
How to Sideload ExpressVPN on Firestick
1. Hit the Search Icon on the Fire TV home screen and type Downloader in the search field.
2. Hit the Get or Download button to install Downloader on Fire TV.
3. Now, go to the Settings → My Fire TV → Developer Options → select Install unknown apps → Turn On Downloader.
4. Launch the Downloader app and permit the app.
5. Go to the Home tab on the Downloader app, enter the ExpressVPN APK link (https://urlsrt.io/expressvpn) on the URL box, and hit the Go button.
6. After the APK is downloaded, hit the Install button on the app.
7. Now, the ExpressVPN app will be installed on your Firestick.
ExpressVPN Features Available on Firestick
Features | Availability |
---|---|
Kill Switch | Yes |
Auto Connect | Yes |
Split Tunneling | Yes |
VPN Protocols | Yes |
Double VPN | No |
Ad Blocker | Yes |
Dedicated IP | No |
No Log Policy | Yes |
Torrenting Servers | No |
Password Manager | No |
Meshnet | No |
Obfuscation | No |
ExpressVPN: Speed Tests and Performance Results
Our testing team has been using the ExpressVPN service for more than a year. We did the speed test using the Internet Speed Test tool by Nav Wonders and the built-in speed test tool on Firestick.
For testing purposes, we are using the 100 Mbps baseline speed. We are doing this test on four cases. Without VPN, with the nearest server, with the USA’s fastest server, and with the UK’s fastest server. First, we recorded the pings, download speed, and upload speed of the base Internet speed without ExpressVPN. Then, we recorded the Internet speed again by connecting to ExpressVPN’s Nearest USA and UK servers. After evaluating the results, we have tabulated our findings below.
Connection | Pings (in ms) | Download Speed (in Mbps) | Upload Speed (in Mbps) |
---|---|---|---|
Without VPN | 14.97 | 53.64 | 32 |
With Nearest Server | 398.66 | 14.73 (73% ↓) | 1.38 (96% ↓) |
With the UK Server (Fastest Server) | 159.13 | 28.58 (47% ↓) | 4.94 (85% ↓) |
With the USA Server (Fastest Server) | 319.19 | 10.2 (81% ↓) | 1.62 (95% ↓) |
Note: As we are testing the VPN from India, the UK server performed better than the US server. If you try ExpressVPN at any other location, the results will vary.
Geo Restriction Testing
Focusing on accessing geo-restricted content, we tested ExpressVPN’s ability to bypass the geo barrier on Netflix. To test this, we have tried to access the Top 10 Movies in the US Today category.
First, we launched the Netflix app without connecting to the VPN. In the Top 10 Movies section, we got Top 10 Movies in India Today (our home location). Then, we connected to ExpressVPN’s USA server. We opened the Netflix app again and got Top 10 Movies in the US Today. We also tried accessing the NCIS series (available only in the USA). It worked for us but with a slow internet connection.
How to Sign Up for ExpressVPN
Take a look at ExpressVPN’s premium plans in the following table.
Premium Plans | Pricing |
---|---|
1 Month | $12.95/month |
6 Months | $9.99/month |
12 Months | $8.32/month |
1. Visit the official website of ExpressVPN.
2. Tap on the Get ExpressVPN button on the main home page of the website.
3. Choose any one of the premium plans on the website.
4. Enter the payment details on the website and finish the process.
5. Now, you have successfully signed up to ExpressVPN service.
Customer Support
Contact Us Page | https://www.expressvpn.com/support |
Email ID | [email protected]; |
FAQ Section | https://www.expressvpn.com/support/knowledge-hub/frequently-asked-questions |
Live Chat | Available at the bottom of the page |
Social Media Handles | https://www.youtube.com/@ExpressVPN https://www.facebook.com/ExpressVPN https://twitter.com/expressvpn?ref https://vg.linkedin.com/company/expressvpn https://www.instagram.com/expressvpn/?hl=en |
ExpressVPN Not Working on Firestick: Causes & Fixes
Due to numerous reasons, you may find the ExpressVPN not working on your Firestick device. Some of ExpressVPN’s non-working problems are mentioned below.
- The server is not connecting
- App freezing
- Server downtime
- VPN speed is reduced
- Geo-restriction not working and more.
Have you contacted customer support and are waiting for their call back? Then try the following solutions to fix the problem yourself in no time.
Reasons | Solutions |
---|---|
ExpressVPN Server down | Wait until the maintenance is finished |
Outdated ExpressVPN app | Update the ExpressVPN app on Firestick |
Firewall Protection | Disable Firewall or Antivirus |
Poor internet problem | Connect your Firestick to a strong WIFI network |
Corrupted cache files on Firestick | Clear cache files on Firestick |
Bugs on the ExpressVPN app on Firestick | Reinstall the ExpressVPN on Fire TV |
Expiry of subscription | Check the validity and activate the plan |
Outdated Firestick version | Update your Firestick to the latest version |
How to Update ExpressVPN on Firestick
1. Hit the Search icon on the Fire TV and search for the ExpressVPN app.
2. Pick out the app from the suggestions and tap on the ExpresVPN app.
3. Click on the Update option on the screen and finish the process.
FAQ
Yes. You can install the ExpressVPN app on Firestick for free. However, to use ExpressVPN, you must have a premium account.
Yes. You can uninstall and reinstall ExpressVPN to fix any issue that causes the app to not work on your Firestick.
Why We Choose ExpressVPN?
ExpressVPN is a widely used VPN services that offer best-in-class protection and real-time encryption for internet browsing. By installing the ExpressVPN on Firestick, you can easily bypass any geo-restriction and access outer region content hassle-free. You can use ExpressVPN on Hulu, Netflix, Disney+, IPTV Providers, and many more services.
Pros
- Good for Geo-restriction
- Split Tunnel feature
- Ad Blocker
Cons
- Quite Pricey
- No dedicated IP
-
Server Network & Locations10
-
Security & Privacy9.5
-
Performance & Speed9.5
-
User Interface10
-
Value for Money9.5
-
Geo-Restricted Access9.5
-
Reputation10