Rams vs. 49ers Livestream: How to Watch NFL Week 18 Online Today

The 12-4 San Francisco 49ers have clinched the top seed in the NFC playoff and a first-round bye. You can expect plenty of backups to get extended playing time for the Niners on Sunday. The 9-7 Los Angeles Rams have clinched a Wild Card spot and have little to play for on Sunday, too. A win coupled with a Packers loss to the Bears will move them up from the No. 7 to the No. 6 seed.

The Rams and 49ers kick off in San Francisco at 1:25 p.m. PT (4:25 p.m. ET) on Fox. We’ll show you how you can watch, even if the game isn’t available on your local Fox channel.

The game will be shown on TV in the LA and San Francisco areas (according to 506 Sports) on live TV streaming services, but there may be cases where you’re blocked because of an internet location glitch or if you’ve elected to have an added layer of privacy for streaming. 

There is an option that doesn’t require subscribing to something like NFL Sunday Ticket or NFL Plus, or searching the internet for a sketchy website: You can use a virtual private network, or VPN.

Here’s how you can watch the game from anywhere in the US with a VPN. 

Read more: NFL 2023: How to Watch and Stream Games and RedZone With or Without Cable

Rams vs. 49ers: When and where?

Week 18 of the NFL season sees the 49ers host the Rams at 1:25 p.m. PT (4:25 p.m. ET)  on Sunday. The game will take place at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, home of the 49ers.

How to watch the Rams vs. 49ers game online from anywhere using a VPN

If you find yourself unable to view the game locally due to incorrectly applied blackout restrictions, you may need a different way to watch; that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s a great idea for when you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you can virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. If your internet provider or mobile carrier has assigned you an IP address that incorrectly places you in a blackout zone, a VPN can solve for that by giving you an IP address in your correct, non-blackout area. Most VPNs — like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN — make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US and Canada, as long as you’ve got a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

Livestream the Rams vs. 49ers game in the US

This week’s Rams-49ers game is on Fox, so in addition to a VPN set to an area carrying the game (see tips below) you’ll need a live TV streaming service that carries a local Fox affiliate that’s broadcasting the game. The least expensive such service is Sling TV Blue.

Sling TV’s Blue plan includes NBC, Fox and the NFL Network, although it does not have CBS, ABC or ESPN. Enter your address here to see which local channels are available where you live. NFL RedZone is also available for an extra $11 a month.

Note that to get ABC and ESPN, you’ll need to switch to the similarly priced Orange plan (which drops Fox, NBC and NFL Network) or go for the combined $60 a month Orange and Blue bundle that includes channels from both packages. With the combined plan, the Sports Extra add-on (which has RedZone) is an extra $15 a month. 

One important caveat: In our experience, Fox local affiliates will only be available if your billing address is in one of the 18 metropolitan areas covered in Sling’s agreement. If you’re outside of one of these areas, you’re probably better off going with one of the alternate services listed below. 

Numerous other live TV streaming services carry local Fox stations as well, namely YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo. They all cost more than Sling TV, but they also carry more channels, including football-broadcasting channels like ESPN. Check out our live TV streaming services guide for details.

If you live in an area where the game is being broadcast, an over-the-air antenna connected to your TV provides another option for Fox. The best part about antennas is that no streaming or monthly fees are required, although you will need to make sure you have good reception. 

Quick tips for streaming Rams vs. 49ers using a VPN

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — experience and success may vary.
• Sling Blue is only an option if and when the ability to get Fox local affiliates is active on your account. You may want to verify that your billing address is eligible for that option before committing your credit card. 
• If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
• If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location. 
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.