VPN for a Fire TV Stick: Which Apps Work on Fire OS and Vega
For a Fire TV Stick, Surfshark is my pick, because it has a native app for Fire OS and Vega OS alike and costs £26.28 for a year on its 12-month plan. Anyone who wants specialty servers and Meshnet on the television should choose NordVPN, which reached the 4K Select alongside IPVanish when Vega OS first allowed VPNs.
| Provider | Price a month, 12-month plan | Local download speed | Latency to a nearby server |
|---|---|---|---|
| Express VPN | £3.99 | 98 Mbps | 28 ms |
| NordVPN | £4.09 | 96 Mbps | 16 ms |
| Surfshark | £2.19 | 96 Mbps | 17 ms |
| IPVanish | £3.40 | 96 Mbps | 10.24 ms |
Fire TV Stick models that run a VPN
A first-generation Fire TV Stick cannot connect to any VPN at all. NordVPN adds that the second-generation stick and the Basic Edition run Android versions too old for its app. Surfshark's setup guide asks for Fire OS 7.0 or later. ExpressVPN covers a wider range, listing the 4K, 4K Max, 2nd and 3rd generation sticks along with the Fire TV Cube and Fire tablets.
You can see which system your stick runs under Settings, then My Fire TV, then About. Smart TVs sold as Fire TV Edition run the same software, so they take a VPN app too.
Our own comparison data at The VPN Advisor, checked between September 2026 and October 2026, prices a year of IPVanish at £40.80 on its annual plan against £47.88 for Express VPN.
Vega OS sticks got VPN apps late
Vega OS is Amazon's Linux-based system, launched in October 2025 to replace the Android-based Fire OS. Surfshark says the Fire TV Stick 4K Select and every later device run it. The 4K Select launched in mid-October as the first Vega OS stick, with no VPN app support at first.
Amazon's OS 1.1 update brought VPNs back to it, starting with only NordVPN and IPVanish. Surfshark followed with a native Vega OS app built on WireGuard. ExpressVPN then released its own, joining the other three.
Vega sticks only take apps from Amazon's own store, so sideloading is out. NordVPN says some features are temporarily missing on Vega OS.
Installing from the Amazon Appstore
NordVPN's Fire TV app comes from the Amazon Appstore rather than a sideloaded file. Amazon does not block it on Fire devices. Signing in takes a QR code or a validation number entered on your phone, laptop or PC. NordVPN says the standard VPN warning Fire OS shows on connection is safe to click past.
Surfshark needs an active subscription before you install its app. You find it by searching from the home screen under Find, then Search. Logging in works by scanning a QR code from the phone app or typing a login code from your account settings. Amazon's store hands each stick the right version for Fire OS or Vega OS by itself. You can install ExpressVPN's own Fire TV app from Amazon's store using nothing but the remote. Its Fire OS instructions cover Fire TV devices on Fire OS 6 and above. On those, ExpressVPN also lets you sideload its APK if the store is unavailable.
Speed and streaming on the stick
ExpressVPN builds its Lightway protocol for stable HD and 4K streaming. Its servers run on RAM only, so a restart wipes their data. First-time customers get a 30-day money-back guarantee. Surfshark and NordVPN both work with Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video on our data.
On this hardware, Fire TV's system limits IPVanish's startup feature, so connecting at boot can take 5 minutes or more. By its own account, it leads VPN downloads on the Amazon Appstore. Its existing app keeps full support and updates on older Fire OS sticks.
App features beyond the connection
NordVPN's Fire TV app keeps much of its full toolkit, with Quick Connect, a country list and specialty servers such as Double VPN and Onion Over VPN. Its settings cover auto-connect, split tunneling, a choice of NordLynx or OpenVPN, custom DNS and Threat Protection. Meshnet links your devices into a private network as well.
Surfshark's CleanWeb blocks ads, trackers, malware and phishing, while Bypasser lets chosen apps skip the tunnel. A kill switch and a Small packets option for slow networks sit in its settings. Static IP and MultiHop tabs let you pick those server types from the sofa. One account covers unlimited devices at once. That single subscription stretches to phones, computers, smart TVs, consoles, tablets and routers. Surfshark also suggests the Fire TV app for getting past local Wi-Fi blocks at a school, workplace or hotel.
Help with the setup comes from Surfshark by live chat, email or its knowledge base.
Surfshark for most sticks, NordVPN for settings
Pick Surfshark for a Fire TV Stick on either system, because it has the lowest 12-month price of the six providers we price here. Its Vega OS app handles only a secure connection and server choice so far. Choose NordVPN to link your devices or set custom DNS from the sofa, because its Fire TV app carries Meshnet and custom DNS. Its drawback for a large household is a limit of 10 devices at once. A first-generation stick needs replacing before either app helps, since neither provider can connect on it.
