“The best VPN for a TV” cannot be named in one word: on a TV it is not the service that decides first but the system inside the set. Below are seven checks that take an evening, with our own answer to each: is there an app for your TV, how to sign in without a keyboard, how many devices, paid or free. We do not write rankings.
In short. There is no “best for everyone” — choose by seven checks, and the main one is whether there is an app for your TV’s system. On Android TV and Google TV apps install from Google Play; for Samsung on Tizen and LG on webOS not every service has an app — Mayak does not. The rest: sign-in by code with no keyboard, plan slots, how the service earns its living, a no-card trial, where the app comes from, what has been measured on a TV. Mayak: Android TV and Google TV, sign-in by a code from your phone, a subscription of 300, 500 or 700 ₽ a month for 3, 5 or 10 devices (per the offer’s table as of 30 September 2026), a 3-day no-card trial once you confirm your email. There is no free plan forever.
We make Mayak, and under each check below there is our answer — with prices and caveats. You do not have to pay to try it on your own TV. 3 days free after you confirm your email, no card needed. The trial is free and needs no card; without an email it is 1 day.
📺 Once you have signed up, come back to the four TV steps: Mayak is installed on the TV itself, and the code from its screen is confirmed in your online account.
🍎 On iPhone Mayak works through the third-party Happ app — with the subscription link from your account. Happ is not in the Russian App Store; there INCY (publisher LLC ITDEV) works instead, checked on 22 September 2026.
Seven checks on one page
The first check weeds out the most: if there is no app for your TV, the other six do not matter. The rest are about sign-in, slots, money and what you can check without paying. Below is the whole table, and then each check in turn: what to look at and how we answer.
| Check | Warning answer |
|---|---|
| 1. Is there an app for the TV’s system? | “Works on any TV” with no list of systems |
| 2. How do you sign in on the TV? | Only by typing a long password with the remote |
| 3. How many devices, and does the TV take a slot? | “Unlimited” with no conditions |
| 4. Paid or free: how does it earn its living? | “Free forever” with no explanation |
| 5. Is there a no-card trial? | A trial with a card and no date or amount of the charge |
| 6. Where does the app come from? | A file from a chat or a channel |
| 7. What has the service measured on a TV? | “4K with no lag” with no measurement |
1. Is there an app for your TV’s system
It is not the brand that decides but the system inside: Android TV or Google TV (apps from Google Play), Tizen on Samsung, webOS on LG, VIDAA on some Hisense sets. A one-minute check: open the app store on the TV itself and search for the service by name. Not there — do not pay. An advertised “works on any TV” says nothing about an app.
With us: Mayak installs on TVs and set-top boxes with Android TV and Google TV (Android 7.0 or newer) — from Google Play or as a file from our site. For Samsung on Tizen and LG on webOS there is no Mayak app: you need an Android set-top box or a suitable router, covered in the articles on Samsung and LG and on which TVs fit. How to install on Android TV — a separate guide.
2. How to sign in on a TV without a keyboard
A remote and an on-screen keyboard are poor at an email, a long password and a “I’m not a robot” check. Ask whether there is a sign-in where nothing is typed: a code or QR on the screen that you confirm on your phone. A warning sign is a sign-in by a long password only.
With us: the account is created on a phone or in the online account (the “not a robot” check may not open on a TV). On the TV, Mayak shows a QR and an eight-character code that lives for five minutes; you confirm it in the phone app or in the online account from any browser, so a phone is not required. Confirm only the code from your own screen: a code sent to you in a message is a scam. The steps are in the article on the TV. A caveat: on a set-top box with plain Android (not Android TV) there is no code on the screen, and you sign in with email and password.
3. How many devices, and whether the TV takes a slot
A plan is a number of devices. Ask three things: does the TV take a slot of its own, how devices are counted, what happens when you change the TV. A warning sign is “unlimited devices” with no conditions: in a flat with two phones, a tablet and a TV the slots run out faster than it seems.
With us: the TV is an ordinary device of the account. It is not paid for separately, but it takes a slot, like a phone. “Start” is up to 3 devices for 300 ₽ a month, “Family” up to 5 for 500 ₽, “Max” up to 10 for 700 ₽ (per the offer’s table as of 30 September 2026; the account shows the final amount before you pay). Speed and traffic volume do not depend on the plan. An old device can be removed to free a slot in “Settings” or in the online account. More: how many slots a TV takes.
4. Paid or free: how the service earns its living
Servers cost money every month. With a paid service it is clear who pays: you. With a free one somebody else pays the bill, and you should ask who exactly: advertising, data, your connection, or a paid “upgrade”. On a TV advertising lands on a big screen at once, and without a privacy policy you cannot tell what the service records and for how long. Being paid does not prove quality by itself: what matters is that you were told what the money is for, and that it is written in the offer and the policy.
With us: Mayak is paid. A subscription of 300, 500 or 700 ₽ a month, paid in roubles by the Faster Payments System (SBP) or a Russian bank card; there is no advertising in the app, and we do not sell data (privacy policy). There is no free plan forever, but there is a trial. What money does not buy and what to look at when choosing a paid one is in “Paid or free”; the general list of questions is in “How to choose a VPN”.
You can check on your own TV without paying. Create the account on a phone and sign in on the TV with the code. We do not ask for payment details for the trial. A confirmed email opens the access — 3 free days. An email is optional: without one the trial is 1 day.
🍎 On iPhone Mayak works through the third-party Happ app — with the subscription link from your account. Happ is not in the Russian App Store; there INCY (publisher LLC ITDEV) works instead, checked on 22 September 2026.
5. A no-card trial, and what to check on the TV
A trial with a card almost always ends in a charge unless you cancel in time; a no-card trial simply ends. Ask: how many days, from which moment they run, and on how many devices. The key thing is that both your phone and the TV itself fit into the trial, otherwise there is nothing to check on it.
During the trial, check on the TV:
- the app installs and starts on your particular model;
- sign-in by code works the first time, with no password typed with the remote;
- the connection reaches “Protected” (the first time, the TV asks for permission — press “OK”);
- the video apps you need open in the evening, at your home’s usual network load, not only by day;
- how many slots are taken on the plan and how to free one.
With us: 3 days on two devices once you confirm your email, no card: the phone and the TV both fit, a third has no room. The days run from the day you register, so confirm your email at once. Nothing is charged at the end; we warn you a day ahead and about ten hours before the end. More: about the trial period.
6. Where the app comes from
The official sources are the app store on the TV or the service’s own site. A file from a chat or a channel is not. If a service offers a file, find out who signed it and how it updates. One more small thing that breaks installs: the store version and the site version usually do not install over each other.
With us: Google Play on the TV or a file from our site, short address mayak.ws/dl/app. The Google Play and site versions do not install over each other: to switch from one to the other, remove the first (more). Whether Mayak turns up in Google Play on your particular TV is up to Google; if it does not, install the file.
7. What the service has measured on a TV
A tunnel changes the path of the traffic, not the width of the channel. Wi-Fi in a far room, the provider’s evening load and an old router remain yours, and no service cures them. So “4K with no lag” without a measurement is only words. Ask: has the service measured speed on TVs, not only on phones and computers, and under what conditions.
With us: we have not measured speed on TVs, so we have no answer to “will 4K be enough through a tunnel”. What we can say: Mayak tries up to four ways to connect in a row, and what will work on your network is checked only in the trial days. Why video is a special case and what to do if it lags is in “Why video lags”.
How to use the list
Start with the first check: no app for your TV — go no further, look for another route (an Android set-top box) or another service. Then go through the other six and write the answers down. If several have no written answer — do not pay: it is not you, the service has no answer. You cannot pick a winner from the list, because different lines matter to different people: one needs sign-in with no keyboard, another five slots for a family.
We do not review or compare other services: the list is not a grade but a way to ask. General questions about money, data and payment that are not about TVs are in “How to choose a VPN”.
What we tested
- The 300, 500 and 700 ₽ plans — from the offer’s table (mayakpay.com/oferta.html) opened on 30 September 2026; the offer itself calls the table a reference, and the current prices are in the account.
- Sign-in by code and connecting on a TV — on an Android TV emulator (Android 14, a release build) at the start of September and on 16 September 2026, as in our article on the TV; we did not re-check today.
- With people: as of 18 September 2026 Mayak is installed and signed in on TCL, Haier, Xiaomi, Sber and HKC TVs and on set-top boxes — per our data on account devices.
- The trial and payment terms — from our articles on the trial and on choosing; we did not re-check them today.
What we do not know
- How other services are built. We did not check their apps, so we do not say who has an app for Samsung and LG and who does not: look in your TV’s store.
- Video speed on a TV. There were no TVs or set-top boxes in our line measurements.
- Prices today. We read the offer’s table on 30 September; we did not open the prices in the account that day.
- Whether Mayak turns up in Google Play on your TV. It has been installed from Google Play on TCL, Haier, Xiaomi and set-top boxes, but what to show yours is up to Google.
Short answers
What is the best VPN for a TV? There is no single best for everyone: on a TV the first question is whether there is an app for its system, then sign-in with no keyboard, plan slots, money and a no-card trial. The seven checks are above.
A paid VPN for a TV, or a free one? Start by asking how the service earns its living. With a paid one you pay for the servers; with a free one somebody else does, more often with advertising or data. Being paid does not prove quality: read the offer and the policy. The breakdown is here.
Which VPN suits Android TV? One with an app for Android TV or Google TV and sign-in with no keyboard. Mayak installs on both, sign-in is by a code from the screen, Android 7.0 or newer. The guide is for Android TV and Google TV.
Is there a VPN for a Samsung or LG TV? There is no Mayak app for Samsung (Tizen) or LG (webOS). You need an Android set-top box or a router with suitable firmware: what to do. For other services, check your TV’s app store.
How much does a VPN for a TV cost? Mayak is 300, 500 or 700 ₽ a month for 3, 5 or 10 devices (per the offer’s table as of 30 September 2026); a TV takes one slot, like a phone, and there is no separate charge for it.
Is there a free VPN for a TV? Mayak has no free plan forever. It has a trial: 3 days on two devices once you confirm your email, no card needed.