How To Unblock Youtube Videos Blocked In Your Country (2024)

by SwitchVPN Team

YouTube is a website that needs no introduction.

It's one of the most versatile online video platforms with over a billion users.

However, YouTube is also one of the most censored websites on the worldwide web for various reasons.

Now, there's nothing more annoying than clicking on a Youtube video you want to watch only to get a message that the video is blocked in your country or unavailable due to other circumstances.

The entire website may also, for example, be blocked by your employer to improve productivity at work.

Luckily, there exist quick and safe processes for unblocking YouTube in any part of the world.

How To Unblock Youtube At School, Work, Or In Restricted Countries

By far, the safest and most reliable way to unblock Youtube in your location is to use a virtual private network.

And that’s what we are going to discuss in the next few paragraphs.

Use a VPN

Regardless of the reason why you're facing Youtube restrictions, you can remove them by using a VPN.

A VPN works really simply: it changes your IP address by connecting you to a server different than that of your Internet Service Provider, thus making it appear like you're accessing YouTube from another location.

Aside from that, a virtual private network encrypts your whole connection, which means that your online activity is invisible to the government or anyone else trying to spy on you – whether you're watching videos on YouTube, browsing, chatting to a friend or playing an online game.

And yes, that also means you'll be safe from the prying eyes of your boss or school network administrators.

Not sure whether getting a VPN is the right thing to do? Check this article to learn more about pros and cons of a VPN.

How To Unblock Youtube Using A VPN?

  1. Download the SwitchVPN app on your preferred device
  2. Install the app
  3. Choose a server in a region that isn't blocked by Youtube

Unblocking Youtube is easy if you connect to a VPN server in a country that hasn't imposed any regional restrictions on the service. With SwitchVPN, you get access to more than 250 high-speed servers across 43 locations in the world, which makes bypassing Youtube blocks a breeze.

4. Ensure your traffic is routed by the app

Turn the app on and make sure your traffic is routed via the app. For that, you can perform a simple test: before enabling your VPN, go to the what is my IP page and note the IP address you see. That's the original IP given to you by your ISP. Now turn SwitchVPN on, connect to the server of your choice, and visit that page again (or just refresh it). Now, you should see the IP of your chosen VPN server. That's how you can check the VPN is working.

5. Visit Youtube and watch videos with no restrictions

Go to the Youtube website or open the Youtube app and search for the video you want to watch. If you've chosen the right VPN server (in a country with no regional restrictions), you should have no problem watching any Youtube video you want.

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What Makes A Great VPN For Youtube

If you want to use a VPN to unblock Youtube, you need to know what to look for in a virtual private network.

Here are the most important features a great VPN should have:

  • Speed

A great VPN for Youtube has to be fast since comfortable Youtube video streaming requires a fast and stable Internet connection.

  • Security

If you're accessing Youtube from a heavily-restricted country, you ought to make sure that your identity is protected and you don't leave any footprints when accessing censored media resources. Therefore, it's very important to choose a VPN that is truly secure.

  • Advanced features

A secure VPN implies lots of advanced features such as Kill Switch, IP & DNS Leak Protection, support of OpenVPN protocol, and more. Choose a VPN provider that is capable of providing such features.

  • Cross-device support

The advent of the IoT brought us a variety of Internet-enabled devices that are now a part of our daily lives. A great VPN should support not only personal computers, laptops, and smartphones, but also smart TVs, gaming consoles, and much more.

  • Expert customer support

A great VPN should have 24/7 expert customer support ready to land you a helping hand in case you have any issues.

Why Are Youtube Videos Blocked?

As we’ve mentioned before, there are numerous reasons YouTube may be blocked at your location.

Sometimes it's certain videos, and sometimes it's the entire website.

Below, we've shortlisted the main types of YouTube restrictions:

1. Geo-censorship

When you receive the boring message, "This video is not available in your country," you're witnessing geo-censorship.

This means that the video owner limited the use of the video to a certain location(s), cutting off some parts of the world.

You've probably tried to watch a video but couldn't because it violated copyright laws.

However, sometimes these videos are only unavailable on certain devices like mobile phones, which means that there are other ways to watch them.

3. Restrictions at work or school

The most common restrictions you may face are those created by a network administrator at work or school.

Schools block access to YouTube to prevent their students from being distracted in class, while employers want to make sure their employees are productive and focused on work instead of "wasting their time" on YouTube.

4. Other kinds of censorship

Some Youtube videos are deemed offensive or illegal in certain countries, which automatically means they will be blocked in that country.

While countries like China and Iran completely blocked Youtube and other popular social media and video platforms, Germany has a vague law that forces YouTube to remove some videos that they consider offensive, which often leads to overboard censorship.

How To Unblock YouTube Videos At Home, Work, School, Or Abroad (Other Options)

1. Unblock Youtube with Tor

Another way to unblock Youtube is the Tor browser.

The way Tor works is that it hides your real IP address by routing your Internet traffic through a number of random Tor servers, also called relays or nodes.

So what the Youtube server sees is the IP of the last node but not your real IP, and if the last node’s country isn’t blocked by Youtube, you’ll be able to access the platform with no issues.

However, unlike a VPN, Tor has some significant downsides when it comes to watching Youtube.

As we've already said, it routes your traffic through a number of completely random servers, so if the exit server is located in a censored country, you won’t be able to unblock Youtube.

Also, Tor servers are quite slow, so using Tor to watch even low res videos isn’t a pleasant experience, let alone higher resolutions.

2. Unblock Youtube with a proxy

A proxy server can also hide your IP and, as a result, give you the ability to unblock Youtube.

But, if you’re more of a security-oriented person, this option might not be suitable for you since proxies do not encrypt your Internet traffic and, for example, transparent proxies don’t even hide your digital identity.

3. Use Google Translate

Google Translate may not only be useful for translating one language into another but also for unblocking Youtube at your classroom or even office. To unblock Youtube using Google Translate, all you need to do is search for the video of your interest in a different language. For example, choose a (from) language other than English, then simply enter the URL of Youtube, and ensure that the (to) language is set to English. Now, the URL should become a clickable link and should be able to access Youtube.

4. Unblock Youtube by using browser extensions

Browser extensions can also be useful for unblocking Youtube but use them with caution as, usually, they won't protect your digital identity when accessing a blocked resource.

Now, to bypass Youtube restrictions with a browser extension, simply search for a browser extension such as Unblocker for Youtube, download it and use to unblock Youtube videos you want.

5. Unblock Youtube by modifying a URL

Sometimes, network administrators block only the HTTP version of Youtube. What that means is you can try to add S to the "http://" before the Youtube's main URL , and you will be granted full access to the service. It should look smth like this: (before) http:www.youtube.com --> (after) https:www.youtube.com. Unfortunately, this trick works rarely, but it's worth trying it out.

6. Download Youtube videos

One more thing you can do to watch restricted Youtube videos is to use specific websites or to download those videos directly to your device.

Once they are downloaded, you can easily watch them offline.

There are a few answers to this question. First, it's not illegal to bypass Youtube restrictions at your work or school. You, of course, can get into trouble for doing that, but it's nothing like unblocking Youtube in a heavily-censored country. When it comes to watching Youtube in a country like China, you should be aware that the problems you can get into are way more serious since bypassing the government restrictions will likely be viewed as illegal.

Therefore, we recommend that you use a reliable VPN and watch Youtube without worrying about your personal security.

Is It Safe To Unblock Youtube?

As long as you use a reliable virtual private network, unblocking Youtube is safe in any location of the world.  Not only will you be able to access Youtube (and other censored websites), but also you will stay under the radar of your country authorities as well as hackers and snoopers.

Is It Safe To Unblock Youtube With Free Unblockers?

Unfortunately, free Youtube unblockers like those that you can download from the Chrome Web Store do not provide you any degree of protection.  Therefore, you can use them only at your own risk.

List Of Countries Where Youtube Is Banned

The countries that block Youtube are the following:

  • China
  • North Korea
  • Iran
  • Eritrea
  • Syria
  • Sudan
  • South Sudan
  • Tajikistan
  • Turkmenistan

Wrapping Things Up

While there are plenty of ways to bypass Youtube censorship, the most secure and reliable way to unblock Youtube is by using a VPN.

With a VPN, you can enjoy your favorite videos on all devices with no restrictions and buffering issues.

Plus, you can rest assured your Internet connection is robustly protected from hackers and spies.