Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the largest city in the state and the 6th most populous in the US. The estimated population is just over 1.55 million, with more than 6 million in the metro area. The city has a lot of history, and there are many reasons to visit. If you will be traveling to Philly and plan on using public WiFi, you won’t want to without first connecting to a VPN. This will help protect your privacy and unblock restrictions. You’ll see why in a moment. Here is a quick look at some of our favorite VPNs for Philly.
| Rank | VPN Service | Our Score | Server Locations | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | 9.8 | 160 |  |
| 2 |  | 9.4 | 87 | |
| 3 |  | 9.2 | 95 | |
| 4 |  | 9.0 | 110 | |
| 5 |  | 8.8 | 73 | |
Please note that none of the VPNs in our list host local servers in Philadelphia. Given the size of the city we are surprised that they’re aren’t any VPN servers there. However, they all host servers in New York City with varied levels of performance when tested to Philadelphia. Speeds ranged from a high of 398 Mbps for ExpressVPN down to 102 Mbps for Private Internet Access. You can view the speed test results in the summary below for each VPN.
Philly has all five top-tier sports. These include the Philadelphia Phillies (MLB), Eagles (NFL), the 76ers (NBA), Flyers (NHL), and the Union (MLS). With the success of these teams, there are fans everywhere, including the city. Unfortunately, those outside the area have an advantage. Even if you connect to a specialized app, you’ll have an issue watching online if you are in the city. That is because of licensing rights. The solution to that is to appear “out-of-market.” To do so, connect to a VPN server in another city. That will give the appearance of being outside, so you will be able to watch the Eagles, Sixers, Phillies, and more from anywhere.
Festivals in Philly can be epic, with some that are more epic than others. The city of brotherly love has some great ones, too. These include annual options like Decibel Magazine’s Metal and Beer Fest, the Philly Wine Fest, the Italian Festival, the Manayunk Arts Festival, and more. Of course, well-established events like these have a few things in common. Many of us are attached to our phones, so it is great to see festivals use pop-up WiFi spots. If you are planning to attend these or others, you’ll want to connect to a VPN. The extra layer of encryption will help protect your privacy and keep you safe. That way, even if you let your guard down at a festival, you don’t have to worry about losing your identity.
Because of the city’s popularity, it has some fantastic conventions. These include the Philadelphia Travel & Adventure Show, the Philadelphia Bridal & Wedding Expo, Philly Cigar Week, Tattoo Arts Convention, the John F. Scarpa Conference on Law, and more. While these events have an international draw, very few of them continue late into the evening. If you are an international traveler or want to explore content from other areas, you can catch up on your favorite shows and movies as long as you connect to a VPN. That will make any blocking software think you are local instead.
What is the best VPN for Philadelphia?
We’ll take a look at the best factors below to give you our list of the best VPNs for Philadelphia:
- Ability to lift blackout restrictions for out-of-market games
- A large stable network to reduce the number of disconnects
- Ability to get around geo-restrictions in place for the region
- Top-tier encryption strength to help protect your privacy
- Support for a wide range of devices including Amazon Firestick
Now, onto the list of the best VPN services for Philadelphia.
1. ExpressVPN – Fast VPN servers throughout the region
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A big issue that some VPN providers have involves location. ExpressVPN is under the laws of the British Virgin Islands. This makes a difference because it places the VPN outside of the jurisdiction of the “14 eyes” countries. If you are not aware, that is an alliance of countries that share information. In other words, if one country has access to it, the all 14 nations do as well. When combined with their no-logs policy, you can feel confident that ExpressVPN will help to keep you and your information safe.
If you play games online, you may have heard about Distributive Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. Those are attacks that can put a stop to your gaming experience in a hurry. However, the way around that is to connect to a VPN server. By doing so, you can get around those types of attacks because it changes your IP address. Whether you play competitively or casually, you have better things to concentrate on than not being able to compete in your favorite game.
The ExpressVPN team goes the extra mile to provide a feature rich service. They are also strong privacy advocates. They offer a $5,000 Future of Privacy scholarship every year to help promote privacy among college students. Just a quick example of their dedication to spreading the message of privacy around the world. Just as important, they offer a premium network to allow for fast connections. This makes the service an excellent choice for downloading and streaming. Test their network for yourself with their 30-day money-back guarantee. Sign up for 12 months and get 3 months free with our ExpressVPN deal.
Want to learn more? Read our ExpressVPN review to examine the results of our research and testing.
2. NordVPN – hosts servers near Philly in NYC
Since many stream sports on mobile phones these days, some wireless companies have given their users the ability to watch on their devices free of charge. Of course, that is offered in several different countries. If you are traveling abroad, though, you may have to miss out on seeing your favorite team in action. The solution is to connect to a VPN server from NordVPN. When you do, you make the blocking software think you are still in the correct region. That way, you won’t have to miss out on the great moments of your sport.
One of the big reasons that users connect to a VPN is to help them stream content from other regions or countries. Using NordVPN will help you do that. Whether you want to watch shows from some of the top US streaming services, check out BBC iPlayer, or perhaps even a service like Stan from Australia, you should not have to miss out on them because of where you are currently. However, you can enjoy the ones we mentioned and more with NordVPN.
Want to learn more? Read our NordVPN review to examine the results of our research and testing.
3. Private Internet Access – US-based VPN with servers in NYC and DC
If you are going to visit a country or you live in a region that censors content, Private Internet Access is an excellent option to use. With the various safeguards and features that the company has, you will be able to defeat this type of censorship. Whether you are trying to access social networks, political discourse websites, or any other kind of banned content, you can be sure that Private Internet Access will help you access all the content you want to see.
Setting up your Private Internet Access account is easy to do. The company is a well-established brand and has been in the VPN community for a long time. Gone are the days when setting up a VPN was involved, and only a computer person could handle it easily. These days, if you need help setting up your connections or have questions, there are a few different options you have. Those include their knowledgebase, extensive guides, and even a 24/7 customer service team to help you in your time of need.
Want to learn more? Read our Private Internet Access review to examine the results of our research and testing.
4. CyberGhost – easy to use, perfect for non-techies
Some countries have streaming services that are specific to that country. For example, if you want to watch HBO Now outside the US, Hulu outside the US, Stan outside Australia, or others, you need to connect to a VPN server in that region. Of course, there are excellent streaming services all over the world. We do not feel that you should have to miss out on them, simply because of where you are. Fortunately, the way around that is to connect to a CyberGhost VPN server located in the area you want to see. Then, you should be able to enjoy your favorite streaming services no matter where they are.
Once you sign up for your VPN service with CyberGhost, the company provides you with seven simultaneous connections. While that will take care of most families or groups, it may not solve the problems of everyone. If you are worried about running out of connections, setting up your VPN through a router may help you. When you do so, you will ensure that all of the devices that you attach to your network are protected. Of course, that will help you free up some connections.
Want to learn more? Read our CyberGhost review to examine the results of our research and testing.
5. IPVanish – supports VPN and Socks5 proxy
For gamers, distributive denial of service (DDoS) attacks can pose a significant threat to your gaming experience. When you connect to a VPN server from IPVanish, however, it can help you combat that issue. No one wants to get locked out or booted from a game. If you play for fun, it is an annoyance. If you play competitively, there are more significant consequences involved. Instead, just connect to a VPN so you do not have to worry about getting attacked while competing.
No sports fan should have to miss out on their favorite sport if they are traveling abroad. That is why we suggest you connect to a VPN from IPVanish. When you do, you won’t have to worry about that. Just choose your sport, connect to a server in your home country (or a different city than yours if you are restricted), log in to your sports streaming site, enter your credentials, and there you have it. You should be able to stream and enjoy your sport no matter where you are.
Want to learn more? Read our IPVanish review to examine the results of our research and testing.
