Country brief · Updated August 13, 2026
Using a VPN in Italy
VPNs are legal, and Italy operates an automated blocking platform capable of taking down live streams within thirty minutes.
Legal and unrestricted
What actually matters here
A kill switch, and a provider whose addresses are not themselves caught in blocking orders.
Most country pages on the web recycle the same global ranking with a place name attached. This one filters on the capability that the situation in Italy actually calls for, which is why 11 of our 11 providers qualify rather than all of them.
Highest-scoring provider that meets it: Proton VPN, 90.0/100.
Visit Proton VPNWe earn a commission if you subscribe through this link. It does not change Proton VPN’s score.
The legal position
No restriction on VPN use.
This is a summary of publicly reported regulation, not legal advice. Rules in this area change without much notice and enforcement varies. If the consequences of getting it wrong are serious for you, check the current position locally.
What the network does
The Piracy Shield platform allows rights holders to trigger rapid blocking orders against IP addresses and domains. Over-blocking incidents have affected unrelated services, which is the practical argument for routing around it.
Retention and logging
Operators are subject to retention obligations narrowed by European court rulings.
Providers that meet the requirement
| # | Provider | Based in | Protocols | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proton VPN | Switzerland | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2, Stealth | 90.0 |
| 2 | Mullvad Unpaid | Sweden | WireGuard, OpenVPN | 85.5 |
| 3 | NordVPN | Panama | NordLynx (WireGuard), OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 84.0 |
| 4 | IVPN Unpaid | Gibraltar | WireGuard, OpenVPN | 82.5 |
| 5 | Surfshark Unpaid | Netherlands | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 75.5 |
| 6 | ExpressVPN Unpaid | British Virgin Islands | Lightway, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 74.0 |
| 7 | Private Internet Access Unpaid | United States | WireGuard, OpenVPN | 73.0 |
| 8 | CyberGhost Unpaid | Romania | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 70.0 |
| 9 | PureVPN | British Virgin Islands | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 69.0 |
| 10 | Windscribe Unpaid | Canada | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 67.0 |
| 11 | FastestVPN | Cayman Islands | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 48.0 |
Sources
Questions
- Is using a VPN legal in Italy?
- Legal and unrestricted. No restriction on VPN use.
- Which VPN works best in Italy?
- Proton VPN on the requirement that matters here: a kill switch, and a provider whose addresses are not themselves caught in blocking orders. 11 of 11 providers in our dataset meet it.
- Does the network block VPN traffic in Italy?
- The Piracy Shield platform allows rights holders to trigger rapid blocking orders against IP addresses and domains. Over-blocking incidents have affected unrelated services, which is the practical argument for routing around it.
- Are there logging or retention rules that affect me in Italy?
- Operators are subject to retention obligations narrowed by European court rulings.