The Google Chromecast is a handy media player that lets you easily stream movies, series, music and other online content on your TV from your smartphone, tablet or laptop. Do you have a Chromecast dongle and would you like to take more advantage of it? You can do so by using a VPN.
In short, a VPN makes your Chromecast more secure, more privateé and also gives you access to more content. In this article, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about using a VPN in conjunction with Google Chromecast. We list the best VPN’s for Chromecast, discuss the benefits and explain how to set up a VPN for Chromecast.
The best VPN’s for Google Chromecast
A good VPN for Chromecast is fast, user-friendly and secure. In addition, it is important that the VPN can unblock online content. Streaming to your television is easy with Google Chromecast. However, it is nóg better if you also use a VPN for your Chromecast. We tested a whole bunch of them and this is our top 3:
- ExpressVPN for the fastest speeds and good encryption.
- Surfshark if you have a smaller budget.
- NordVPN for the best security.
An excellent and inexpensive VPN that you can use for both your regular internet traffic and your Chromecast is Surfshark. Want to know more about how a VPN protects your Chromecast, what the benefits are and what all you can do with a VPN on this dongle? Then read the rest of our article by scrolling further down.
ExpressVPN: high speeds and good encryption
ExpressVPN is currently the best VPN provider. The team behind ExpressVPN makes sure every day that you have access to thousands of servers in numerous countries. As a result, you’ll almost never have to deal with geographical blockages.
- On top of that, ExpressVPN has a good 256-bit encryption and no logs are kept of your activity. This makes ExpressVPN a good choice for both your Chromecast and any other device you want to protect.
- ExpressVPN offers fast speeds, so streaming movies, series and music is no problem. In addition, ExpressVPN has excellent customer service and easy-to-use software. On ExpressVPN’s website there are several tutorials explaining how to set up the VPN on different devices.
Surfshark: the best price/quality ratio
Surfshark has proven to be a very reliable and affordable service. The VPN provider has one of the cheapest subscriptions you can get. Still, it offers a stable server network that may not be as large as other providers, but still works perfectly.
- You won’t come across many programs’™ that you can’t stream with Surfshark.
- The encryption and ease of use are also very good. Likewise, the customer service is very effective in answering questions. In short, Surfshark is a fantastic and inexpensive choice for Chromecast.
NordVPN: stream movies and series safely
Another VPN alternative with a good value for money is NordVPN. NordVPN is known for its strong security options. In addition, the VPN provider has invested heavily in speeds and advertising policies over the past year. NordVPN is therefore a great VPN for streaming Netflix and many other platforms.
- In particular, the decent price tag makes NordVPN an interesting VPN. NordVPN has one of the largest server networks of any VPN’s we’ve tested to date, which means it will be hard to find online pages’s you can’t reach with NordVPN.
- In other words, NordVPN is a very solid choice if you’re looking for a good VPN for your Google Chromecast.
What should I look for when choosing a VPN for Google Chromecast?
As with other hardware such as your Smart TV or the Amazon Fire TV Stick it is also important for Google Chromecast that the speed of the VPN provider is high. After all, it does you no good if you want to watch a movie, but it constantly falters or keeps buffering. Some VPN providers slow down your internet connection because of the many layers of encryption they use. However, there are also providers that can offer both high speeds and good protection.
A second important factor is the size of the server network
Most VPN’s have servers in multiple countries. The location of these servers is important for unblocking online content. So it is important that the VPN provider gives access to the geographical location you need. For example, if you want to watch German streams you need a VPN provider that offers servers in Germany.
- Finally, the quality of the VPN is also very important for a good experience. The best VPN providers have user-friendly applications and accessible customer service. Ideally, of course, you want them to offer all this at a decent price.
- Based on these important criteria, we recommend the above VPN’s for Google Chromecast. Want to know more about how different VPN’s score on all these factors? Then read our VPN reviews.
Free VPN’s for Google Chromecast
Maybe you’d rather choose a free VPN than ééone of the premium providers listed above. However, if you want to unblock or protect content on your Chromecast, a free VPN won’t be much use. This is because most free VPN providers limit the amount of data you can use each month. Usually, this limit is not even enough to stream an entire movie.
- Some free VPN’s also work with speed limits. This means it can take ages to load a video or song. In addition, many free VPN’s do not give you access to streaming services like Netflix.
- If you just want to surf the Internet anonymously, a free VPN may be a solution. Even then, however, you need to be careful. In fact, many ‘free VPN’s’ on the Internet are not secure at all. Check out our article on the best free VPN services to learn all about the best options.
Why Google Chromecast via VPN?
With Chromecast you can easily stream media to your TV. Combining this with a VPN gives you even more possibilities. For example, with a VPN you can access geographically blocked content and you are protected from prying eyes. Below we briefly explain the benefits.
Overcoming geographic blockages with a VPN
The main reason many people use a VPN for their Google Chromecast is to bypass geographical blockages. This allows them to access more content. For example, you may not be allowed to watch a YouTube video because of your location. With a VPN, you can bypass these kinds of blockages.
- A VPN allows you to access the Internet as if you were in a different location. For example, do you want to enjoy the wide range of series and movies on the American Netflix? Then connect to American server. Also BBC iPlayer and Hulu you watch in this way from your own country.
- You can also use a VPN to watch television from your home country from abroad. Take your Chromecast with you on vacation and enjoy local television abroad, by using a VPN server in your home country.
Safely online on your Chromecast
A VPN encrypts your data traffic, secures your connection and ensures that you are anonymous online. This stops governments, hackers, advertisers, ISPs and companies from watching what you do. They can’t build a personal profile of you based on your surfing habits. You get your online privacy back. Perhaps you think you have nothing to hide on your Google Chromecast. Yet companies use the information they can derive from your viewing habits to bombard you with personalized ads. This is how they decide what you can and cannot see, taking away some of your online freedom.
Safely using Kodi
Kodi is a popular, open-source streaming service. It gives you access to all kinds of online content, including sports games and television channels like CNN. Still, you may find that your access is blocked based on your geographic location.
- If you set up a VPN on your Chromecast and choose a location in another country, you won’t be affected by this. That way you can still watch that American sports game.
- In contrast to Popcorn Time, most content on Kodi is legal to stream. However, this does not mean that there are no security risks’associated with it. Want to make sure you re safe using Kodi? Then make sure you use a VPN. This way you will remain anonymous and your privacy will be guaranteed.
Setting up a VPN on Chromecast
There are several methods to install a VPN on your Chromecast. Unfortunately, it is not possible to install an app directly on the device. However, you can easily connect via your Chromecast to a VPN router or a virtual router in the form of a hotspot on your Windows PC, Mac or smartphone. If you install the VPN on this router or the device that broadcasts the hotspot, your Google Chromecast is then still protected. In our comprehensive guide you will find the different ways you can set up a VPN on your Chromecast.
Conclusion
If you connect your Chromecast through a VPN, you can watch streams from abroad without any problems. Also, your browser data remains protected and you are not at risk when using streaming services, such as Kodi. Even though Chromecast does not allow you to install a VPN directly, setting up a VPN is relatively easy. There are plenty of good VPN’s for Chromecast. The best three are, without a doubt, ExpressVPN, Surfshark and NordVPN. These providers all offer good speeds and have many different servers. So you can watch what you want, when you want. In short: with a VPN, you can easily get even more enjoyment out of your Google Chromecast.