Netflix has different movies and TV shows available for streaming in different countries. The Netflix library can differ greatly, depending on where you are. But there are a few tricks to get access to other libraries. For example, if you'd like to watch Netflix USA while you're in the UK or vice versa.

In this article, we explore why Netflix content differs from country to country and how you can watch everything on Netflix regardless of where you live.

Why Does the Netflix Library Differ Internationally?

According to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, the Netflix library or catalog differs in each country because of territorial licensing. Here's how it works.

The producers of any movie or TV show want to maximize profits from their product. So, they license their creation to different content distributors in different parts of the world. Naturally, the highest bidder wins the rights. For the sake of an example, let's talk about Star Wars.

As a distributor (yes, streaming content counts as "distributing"), Netflix has to decide if enough people in the US, the UK, India, and other regions will watch Star Wars to recover the expense of buying the rights.

If Netflix's research shows an interest in Star Wars in the US but not in India, then it will buy the Star Wars territorial license for the US but not for India. So, US Netflix users will be able to watch Star Wars, but Indian Netflix users will not.

If Netflix's research shows an interest in Star Wars in both the US and India, it will then bid for the territorial license for both regions. However, some other distributors might offer a higher price for the Indian territorial license or perhaps already have the license. Then, once again, US Netflix users will be able to watch Star Wars, but Indian users will not.

In short, audience interest and territorial licensing determine why the Netflix library varies from region to region.

Netflix is trying hard to secure international availability of all the content on Netflix so that geographic restrictions go away. But that will take some time. So, at least for now, different countries will have access to different Netflix libraries.

How to Watch Netflix From a Different Country

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Not all virtual private networks (VPNs) can fool Netflix. According to Netflix Help Center, "using a VPN to access Netflix will hide your region and only allow you to see TV shows and movies available to all regions globally." In other words, Netflix suggests that your library will shrink.

With the right VPN, however, it's actually pretty easy to watch the Netflix library from a different country (more on that below). There's also another technology called DNS tunneling or Smart DNS. Both routes serve the same end purpose: they make Netflix think your device is in a different region than the one you are in.

These methods have some limitations, though. For instance, you won't be able to use a Chromecast to relay Netflix from your phone to your TV. These methods might also adversely affect the speed of buffering and streaming. However, on the flip side, you'll have a larger video library than ever before.

Can You Access Another Country's Netflix Library Using a VPN?

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While Netflix says you can't, you can actually watch a different country's Netflix library with your existing Netflix account. If you believe in Netflix, you might think that using a VPN would primarily help you enjoy your own country's Netflix movie and TV show selection while you're traveling. But this wasn't the case for us.

We set up a new Netflix account in Canada while using a US VPN. We couldn't use our Canadian credit card since the ZIP code format didn't match. However, when we used that same credit card via PayPal, the payment went through, and we could access the US Netflix library, which we verified by trying to access various shows available in the US, but not Canada, or vice versa.

When we turned the VPN off, US-only options, such as Blade Runner - The Final Cut, disappeared. To our surprise, however, we now had access to the Canadian Netflix library, which includes films not available in the US at the time of writing, such as Terminator 2 - Judgement Day. The same happened when we switched our VPN to access the UK and German Netflix libraries. Suddenly, we had access to The Lives of Others, which is available in Germany only, and Amélie (UK, France, Japan, and South Korea).

Changing Your Country by Using Netflix With a VPN

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While you can use a proxy DNS to access region-blocked content, it also opens you up to some security risks. Moreover, using the right VPN for Netflix is more reliable. But the biggest point in favor of VPNs is how easy it is to get started.

Netflix is available on all platforms, which gives you some freedom in choosing a reputable VPN that works for you. (Netflix is vigilant about VPN usage and blocks most free VPNs, but many paid VPN services still work.) The process is the same for all of them:

  1. Install and switch on your VPN.
  2. In the VPN, choose the country whose Netflix library you want to browse.
  3. Open the Netflix app or go to the Netflix website.
  4. Enjoy that country's Netflix catalog.

Not all paid VPNs are equal. For the best chance of success, we recommend using ExpressVPN (use this link to get up to 3 months for free).

Watching Netflix From Another Country With Smart DNS

With things like YouTube, it's better to use Smart DNS services to watch region-blocked videos, but Netflix has made it harder than ever to use Smart DNS to access another country's catalog.

The advantage of using this technology is that Smart DNS does not route data through an intermediary server between you and Netflix, so it's faster. This is especially evident with high-quality streams like 4K videos.

Unlike VPNs, your options are severely limited if you want to use a Smart DNS for Netflix. At the time of this writing, the only one that still works is Smart DNS Proxy, which also supports mainly the US and Canadian Netflix catalogs.

Right now, unless you have some specific other reasons apart from Netflix to pay for Smart DNS Proxy, we recommend paying for a good VPN instead.

How to Find What's Available in Other Netflix Regions

Now you know how to watch Netflix from other countries, but that still leaves one problem. How do you search for a movie to know which country's Netflix you can stream it on? That's where the uNoGS web app comes in.

This web app searches Netflix libraries across the world. One quick search and the service will tell you which country's library you need to change your VPN or DNS to.

You can filter your search results by IMDb rating, the year the film was released, the genre, and other categories. And of course, you can choose which of the countries on offer you want to search in.

Can You Access Another Country's Netflix Catalog by Using a VPN?

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A VPN lets you change your IP address, which makes it look like you're in another country, but your Netflix account won't change. If you want to watch a show only available in the US, you'll need a US-based Netflix account, in addition to a US-based IP address.

Setting up a Netflix account in a foreign country is tricky. Trying to set up a US account failed for us because none of our payment methods was accepted. While purchasing a Netflix gift card from Amazon might work, note that you'll also need a US phone number to confirm your Netflix subscription. The frustrating thing is that Netflix won't give you a specific error message, but they likely figured out you're trying to cheat.

We succeeded in setting up a German Netflix account from Canada using ExpressVPN. The key was to create the account from scratch in a neutral browser profile (we used Firefox). None of our old accounts had passed the payment stage. We also needed a genuine German phone number and payment details to complete the process.

Which VPNs Work With Netflix?

Netflix is routinely cracking down on VPNs, making it difficult to bypass regional licensing. While the methods listed above work at the time of this writing, we cannot guarantee they will work forever.

Overall, ExpressVPN and Private VPN are among our favorite options. The first always works with Netflix US, one of the best catalogs in all countries. And Private VPN supports the most number of countries for Netflix libraries. You can try either of them with a free trial.