How to Watch Italian TV in USA States & Abroad With a VPN in 2025: Stream Italian TV Channels From Anywhere
Traveling is always fun, but it can be frustrating when you want to access streaming sites from home and geoblocking makes things difficult. Never fear – we’re here to show you how to watch Italian TV in USA states and abroad.
Written by Kit Copson (Writer, Briefing Editor)
Reviewed by Jackie Leavitt (Co-Chief Editor)
Facts checked by Jasna Mishevska (Lead Fact-Checking Editor)
Last Updated:
All our content is written fully by humans; we do not publish AI writing. Learn more here.
Key Takeaways: Watch Italian TV in USA
- Sign up for a NordVPN subscription at a 72% discount.
- Connect to an Italian server.
- Access Italian TV services such as RaiPlay, Cielo TV and Italia 1.
Best VPNs for Streaming Italian TV:
- NordVPN — Top-rated VPN delivering exceptional performance. NordVPN is available at a 72% discount and offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
- Surfshark — Unlimited devices, unbeatable price. You can sign up for Surfshark with a 66% (plus 3 months free) discount and use the 30-day money-back guarantee if you change your mind.
- ExpressVPN — User-friendly VPN with premium performance. ExpressVPN’s yearly plan offers 25% off on the first year with three months free.
What to Know About Watching Italian TV in the US:
- You can find Italian TV content, including live TV programming and on-demand content, on various free Italian TV sites online, including RaiPlay and Mediaset Infinity.
- If you’re outside Italy, you will need a VPN with Italian servers to access most Italian TV sites, as many are geoblocked so that only those in Italy can use them.
- NordVPN is our top recommendation for streaming Italian TV content from outside Italy, but Surfshark and ExpressVPN are alternatives you might want to consider.
Traveling abroad and living as an expat comes with its fair share of challenges, and can often leave us longing for a piece of home. Online streaming platforms full of TV content are at our fingertips, but services from our home countries often aren’t available once we head overseas. Luckily, there’s a fix. In this guide, we’ll explain how to watch Italian TV in USA states and abroad.
In the modern world, watching a livestream from a TV channel — even without a TV subscription — is as easy as heading over to that channel’s website. However, if you’re abroad, you may find that the service you want to use is geoblocked, which means regional restrictions are in place to prevent viewers from outside the country from accessing its content.
To circumvent this issue, you can use a reputable VPN provider like NordVPN to change your IP address and watch Italian TV content online from wherever you are. Keep reading to learn how this works.
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10/01/2024
We updated the setup process and refreshed the VPN list to align with our current evaluation of top VPN options.
How to Watch Italian TV in U.S. States: Where Can I Find Italian Content Online?
Various major streaming services have libraries in Italy, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney Plus. The content available on these platforms differs by country due to distribution agreements, and some, like Netflix, switch to the local library when you travel abroad. For example, if you head to the U.S. from Italy, your library will switch to the American one.
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You can use a VPN to access the Italian libraries on popular streaming services from wherever you are in the world — check below to find out how to do this. Alternatively, if you have an account with your favorite Italian streaming service or premium account, you can use a VPN to unblock the service in the U.S. and abroad.
How Can I Watch Italian TV in the USA for Free?
You can watch Italian TV in the U.S. using free sites that livestream Italian TV programming and, in some cases, on-demand content. For most, you need to connect to an Italian server on a VPN to gain access due to geoblocking restrictions, but we’ll show you how to do that in our tutorial below.
You can also get a 30-day free trial with Amazon Prime Video and use a VPN to access content in the Italian library. For now, here is a selection of free Italian channels you can watch online with ads.
You can use a 30-day money-back guarantee with a VPN provider to access these free sites without the worry of wasting your money if you change your mind.
| Channel: | Content | US VPN | English Subtitles | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RaiPlay | Films Series Kids TV | Free account required to stream some content | ||
| Mediaset Infinity | Canale 5 LA 5 Italia 1 Live TV | * | Free account required to stream some content | |
| Cielo TV | Canale 26 Live TV | N/A | ||
| DMAX Italia | Live TV News WWE Documentaries | Some content is accessible via Discovery Plus | ||
| LA 7 | TV shows Livestreams News Sports Politics Series | N/A | ||
| Discovery Plus | Live TV Series Sports Lifestyle True crime | Small selection of content is free, but subscription is required for the full library, English audio is available on some content | ||
| TV8 | Live TV Documentaries Sports | N/A |
How Does a VPN Help You Unblock Italian Content Online?
A VPN can help you unblock Italian content online by giving you an Italian IP address, making it look like you’re in Italy rather than the country you’re actually in. This will let you livestream from your favorite Italian TV channel even if it’s geoblocked in other countries.
In brief, a virtual private network (VPN) keeps you anonymous online by rerouting your data through an encrypted tunnel, so nobody can see it and changing your IP address to one in another location. In addition to being an important piece of security software, a major perk of using a VPN is that changing your IP address allows you to access geoblocked content in other countries.
If you want to explore streaming sites in other countries, all you need to do is change your server to one in that country. Just be aware that some streaming services have payment restrictions in place, meaning you can only use a local payment method to sign up. However, this won’t be a problem if you already have an account or want to access a free service like those mentioned above.
How to Watch Italian Shows & Movies on Netflix
If you want to watch Italian TV shows and movies on Netflix, you’re sure to get a much better selection on Netflix Italy than Netflix U.S. However, as mentioned earlier, Netflix libraries change based on your location, so you’ll need to subscribe to a VPN service and connect to an Italian server to access the Italian content selection.
Once you’ve connected to an Italian VPN server, simply open Netflix and search for what you want to watch, as usual. If you experience any problems, try refreshing the page or connecting to a different Italian server.
How to Watch Italian Channels Online With a VPN
In this tutorial, we’ll explain how to watch Italian Rai TV in USA states and abroad via streaming site RaiPlay. You can also go through the same steps to stream Italian TV sites like Mediaset Infinity, Cielo TV and Italia 1 as well as subscription services like Amazon Prime Video, and Netflix.
The Rai TV app, RaiPlay, is available to download on Google Play and the app store if you’re planning on streaming Rai TV content on your mobile device.
- Get a VPN
Decide which VPN provider you want to subscribe to, head over to its website and sign up for a plan. We recommend NordVPN, which has an affordable two-year plan and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
- Download the VPN App
Download the VPN app and go through the installation steps. Make sure you select the correct app for your device.
- Connect to an Italian Server
Go to the VPN’s server list and connect to an Italian server.
- Watch Rai TV Content via RaiPlay
Open RaiPlay, search for the content you want to watch and click “riproduci” (play) to start watching Rai TV. You may have to sign up for a free account to watch some content.
The 3 Best VPNs for Watching Italian TV
The world of VPN services is huge, so filtering out the worthy from the unworthy can be time-consuming if you’re new to it. To save you some time, here are our top three recommendations for watching Italian TV abroad.
You’ll need to make sure you select a VPN with servers in Italy.
1. NordVPN — Best Streaming VPN
Very Fast
Very Fast
Very Fast
With the best average speeds, top streaming ability and affordability, NordVPN is the best VPN you’ll find. Speed is one of the most important factors when it comes to using a VPN for streaming, and NordVPN is stellar in this area. Moreover, it offers a selection of two-year plans with excellent pricing.
That said, though NordVPN offers a smooth user experience on the desktop app, its mobile app is more challenging because it’s easy to get lost if you’re not good with geography. Try out NordVPN with its 30-day money-back guarantee, and head over to our NordVPN review for the full lowdown.
- **VAT may apply
- Unlimited GB
- 10
- Yes
- *The prices are charged in the first billing cycle only. Renewal prices vary.
- Unlimited GB
- 10
- Yes
- *The prices are shown only apply for the first 12 months.
- Unlimited GB
- 10
- Yes
- **The prices are applicable only for the first 24 months. Secure, high-speed VPN Threat Protection Pro™: Anti-malware and advanced browsing protection Threat Protection Pro™: Ad and tracker blocker Password manager with Data Breach Scanner 1 TB of encrypted cloud storage Identity and SSN monitoring and alerts Credit monitoring services Up to $1M in identity theft insurance Up to $100K in cyber extortion insurance
- 10
2. Surfshark — Best Budget VPN for Streaming
Very Fast
Very Fast
Very Fast
Surfshark is one of the cheapest paid VPNs you could use for just a few dollars when subscribed to one of their long-term plans . We really admire Surfshark’s commitment to providing a premium service for a low price. It also has good speeds overall and offers unlimited simultaneous connections, which is great if you plan to share your VPN with others.
Nevertheless, Surfshark sits in third position behind NordVPN in our fastest VPNs roundup because of its latency, which is higher than that of its competitors in the U.S. and Singapore. This shouldn’t put you off using it for streaming, though — just take note of this if you plan to game on U.S. or Singaporean servers.
Surfshark also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee and, of course, we have a full review of Surfshark to help you make your mind up.
- Unlimited GB bandwidth, Unlimited devices, Secure VPN, Ad blocker, Cookie pop-up blocker. Pricing for the annual and biennial plans only apply for the first payment. Renewal fees vary.
- Unlimited GB
- Unlimited
- Yes
- Everything in Starter, plus Antivirus protection, Identity protection, Email Breach and Credit Card Alerts, Online Alias Pricing for the annual and biennial plans only apply for the first payment. Renewal fees vary.
- Unlimited GB
- Unlimited
- Everything in One, plus Data removal Pricing for the annual and biennial plans only apply for the first payment. Renewal fees vary.
- Unlimited GB
- Unlimited
3. ExpressVPN — Best User-Friendly VPN for Streaming
Very Fast
Very Fast
Very Fast
Whether you want to unblock Rai TV content or access another Italian platform, ExpressVPN is a great choice for the job. An unfailingly secure, smooth and consistent VPN that’s been around for years, ExpressVPN has perfected its streaming game with excellent speeds and an easy-to-use interface for all devices.
ExpressVPN doesn’t come cheap, but if you don’t mind splashing out a bit extra for quality, this could be the service for you. If you’re still uncertain, ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, and our ExpressVPN review shares all the finer details.
- Pricing for the annual and biennial plans applies only on the first year.
- Unlimited GB
- 8
- Yes
Can I Use a Free VPN to Watch Italian TV Online?
You can use a free VPN like Tunnelbear to watch Italian TV online, but its monthly data allowance is just 2GB, so you won’t get very far with that streaming-wise. Check out our Tunnelbear review if you’re interested in learning more about it.
Unfortunately, our top free VPN recommendations — Proton VPN and Windscribe — don’t have free Italian servers.
Alternatives include going for a budget-friendly VPN like Surfshark and building a plan with Windscribe, as this allows you to pick and pay for only the servers you want. Check out our free Italy VPN guide to learn more.
Final Thoughts
Though it can be frustrating when your favorite content or streaming platform is geoblocked, you can easily get around those blocks with the right VPN. In addition to allowing you to access Italian content, a VPN keeps you secure online and lets you explore a multitude of streaming services that would otherwise be unavailable to you.
The best VPN for watching Italian TV is NordVPN. You don’t have to take our word for it, trying NordVPN yourself is completely risk-free, thanks to the 30-day refund period.
What are your favorite Italian TV shows? Is there a specific channel you miss from home that you can now access? Let us know your experience using a VPN in the comments below. Thanks for reading.
FAQ: Italian TV From the U.S. & Abroad
Some platforms, like RaiPlay and Mediaset Infinity, have apps that you can download in the app store or Google Play store.
Yes, Italian Roku channels include Italy TV, TVL and Ciao Italy TV.
If you want to watch Rai TV online, you can do so via RaiPlay. This is a free service.
If you’re outside Italy, you can connect to an Italian server on a VPN to unblock Italian TV sites like RaiPlay, Cielo TV, DMAX Italia and Mediaset Infinity, which hosts content from various Italian TV channels.