Best VPN for Italy

If you’re lucky enough to spend some time in Italy either as a tourist, student or even while on a work permit, then I’d bet you’d agree that the country is easily one of the most beautiful places on the planet. The cities there are full of architectural history, and the landscaping as well is very tastefully done. Whenever you’d get tired of the sightseeing, you can always take a rest and stream content from some of their Italian TV channels,  such as Rai TV and Sky Go Italia. The thing is, once you go back to your home country, you’d need a VPN to regain access to the channels.

Best VPN for Italy

Also, while in Italy, you should be able to enjoy access to most of your favorite sites, with the exception being that records of your browsing traffic might be kept due to the data retention laws that apply here. In terms of Internet speed, Italian ISPs are a bit slower compared to what we know of as European standards. They’re working to improve them in the near future. So don’t lose hope just yet.

The Best VPNs for Italy – Our Recommendations

The VPN market is flooded with such a high number of VPN services to the point that it might be really difficult to decide which one to choose. Lucky for you, we’ve gone ahead and picked the best 4 services you can rely on, based on the following criteria:

• Ease of Use of the VPN service.
• Protocol range.
• Availability of 24/7 customer support.
• The validity of the Privacy Policy.
• Pricing.
• The range of Supported Devices.
• Level of Encryption.
• Lack/Presence of a Refund Policy.
• The total number of Italian servers.
• The speed of Italian servers.

Best VPN for Italy – In-depth Review

Here’s our list of the top 4 Italian VPNs:

1. ExpressVPN

For a long time now, ExpressVPN continues to dominate the number one spot since no other provider comes close to the quality of service and customer care that these guys offer. In case you’re new at using a VPN, you’ll always be able to contact their customer care team and receive guidance on what you need to do to overcome any problems or solve any issues. You can go ahead and test them out since they offer a 30-day money back guarantee where you can ask for a refund if you still won’t be impressed. Here’s what you should know:

Pros

• High level of security.
• Really fast speeds.
• Always available 24/7 customer support.
• Well-optimized & performance oriented app.
• Works well with Hulu, Netflix & other streaming services.

Cons

• Very limited configurations.
• Expensive subscription fees.

2. NordVPN

The people in charge at NordVPN made a smart move by setting up their base in Panama since this is a country where data retention laws do not apply and user privacy restrictions are well respected. With 559 servers in over 80 different locations, NordVPN is one provider you can rely on to ensure that your work online remains private, and your work well respected. Here’s a good summary of the pros and cons you get to enjoy once you switch to Nord VPN:

Pros

• Servers in more than 61 countries.
• No log policies kept.
• Up to 6 simultaneous accounts.
• The service is based in Panama.
• Works well with Hulu, Netflix & other streaming services.

Cons

• No Manual Configuration guides.
• No form of technical support available.

3. Cyberghost VPN

Coming in second on our list is Cyberghost VPN, a service that’s well known for not caring much about what their customers are up to whenever they’re online. With this provider, you’re guaranteed of a super fast connection, at a very affordable rate. You’ll have up to 30 days to sample their service, and then decide whether or not you’re willing to sign up with them. Here’s what you need to know:

Pros

• User-friendly interface.
• Affordable pricing.
• Available transparency report.
• Great Windows client.
• Fast connectivity.

Cons

• Weak HMAC MD5 authentication.
• Some connections are logged.

4. HideMyAss

Based in the UK, HideMyAss is a credible VPN service that was launched back in 2010. It’s IP addresses are just over 120,000, and its network consists of over 940 servers that are well scattered all around the world. Its Italian customers have so far been impressed by the service, and this is a good indication that you will be too. Here’s what to expect:

Pros

• Easy to Use interface.
• Allows P2P file sharing.
• Works at a good speed.
• Large server network.
• No Data Restrictions.

Cons

• No advanced features.
• Quite expensive.

There you have it, the top 4 VPNs you can rely on in Italy. If you’re still not convinced that you need a VPN service in Italy, then perhaps the following reasons might help persuade you:

Why you Need VPN in Italy

Data Retention

Like I mentioned in the beginning, living in Italy means subjecting yourself to their data retention laws. This is not something you’d want to do, especially if you carry out very sensitive work online. Also, it wouldn’t hurt to get to watch some of the home channels that you’re already used to while abroad in Italy.

Geo-Restrictions

With a credible VPN service, you’ll be able to stream geo-restricted content from some of your favorite American channels such as Netflix & Hulu.

Using a VPN service will also allow you to work around error messages that you’ll get whenever you’re outside Italy, and you’re trying to access Italian channels such as Rai TV and Sky Go Italia. This means no more error messages that read: “We apologize. The content is not available due to copyright restrictions.”

Freedom of Speech

Another reason is that fact that Italy is well known for its stringent policies that work against freedom of speech. Most of the news outlets there are barred from spreading any form of content that speaks against their government. If anyone is found doing so, then they might face a jail term given without hearing. A VPN connection will hide your traffic, and prevent anyone from knowing what you’re up to online.

Copyright and Internet Piracy Laws

The Italian government is also well known for its strict copyright and internet piracy laws. They’re known to keep an eye on such websites and close them down whenever the site owners don’t respond to their warnings. They even prosecuted an employee who was found out to have been defaming his employer on his Facebook case. It’s not good to have the government snooping on your social media pages. Prevent this by turning to VPN.

Education

Lastly, in case you want to learn how to speak Italian, a VPN service will grant you access to training programs that are only reserved for the locals. You’ll also get to fast track your progress by listening to Italian music, videos and other media. You’ll become very fluent in their language within a very short time.

4 of the Best Italian VPNs – Conclusion

If we’re being honest, you stand to gain a lot by subscribing to a VPN service that you can rely on. The 4 we’ve gone through above are all worth what they’re asking for, so we’re sure subscribing with them won’t lead to any frustrations going forward. You’ll get to stream content from the likes of Hulu, Pandora, BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime, HBO, Crackle, and Netflix; all the channels you’re used to watching from home.

If you do decide to subscribe, let us know how good your experience with the providers we’ve mentioned was. We’d really appreciate hearing from you.