Are you a British ex-pat who’s found your second home in Australia? Well, you’re certainly not alone: according to data from a 2019 United Nations report, Australia ranked as the number 1 most popular country for British citizens to relocate to, with around 1.2 million British residents currently living in the land down under. If you’re homesick (or just a fan of British television), you may be wondering how you can watch UK TV in Australia.
Perhaps you’ve tried to stream content from BBC iPlayer or Netflix and get a disappointing error message informing you that you’re outside of their service region.
“BBC iPlayer only works in the UK” error message
So.. How can you get around this?
If you’re in Australia, the best way to get around geo-restrictions and steam your favorite British content is by using a reliable VPN service.
TL;DR
Using a VPN with servers located in the UK is the only 100% effective way to unblock and watch UK television and streaming services like Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Sky Go, and ITV Hub (formerly ITV Player). The best VPNs for streaming content in 2024 are NordVPN, Surfshark, ExpressVPN, and CyberGhost.
Table of Contents
Best VPNs for Watching UK TV in Australia
There is an overwhelming number of VPN providers on the market today, and not all of them will work for unlocking geo-blocked streaming sites.
To narrow things down, I’ve compiled a list of the four best VPN providers for streaming British TV in Australia in 2024.
1. NordVPN (#1 Best VPN to Watch UK TV in Australia)
NordVPN is another great VPN provider that offers a smooth content streaming experience and airtight security.
Like ExpressVPN, NordVPN encrypts all your internet activity, scrambling it so that no one can see what you’re up to. Like all VPNs, it disguises your IP address so that your computer appears to be in another place physically.
NordVPN has 5334 servers worldwide and over 440 servers in the UK (all of which are located in one location, although this isn’t necessarily a bad thing). Simply connect to any of these to make watching UK TV a breeze.
NordVPN also offers split tunneling, a feature that allows you to run your internet traffic through the VPN on certain applications but not others (literally splitting your internet connection into two tunnels).
In other words, if you’re streaming the BBC tv services or BritBox on Chrome but checking your email on Firefox, you can choose to only have your internet traffic from Chrome disguised behind a VPN.
NordVPN is the best VPN to watch BBC iPlayer in Australia.
NordVPN can unlock BBC iPlayer, BritBox, Netflix UK, ITV Hub, Sky Go, and All 4, amongst others (it also plays well with the American streaming platform Hulu). It’s super-fast, so you’ll never have to worry about buffering.
Finally, you can connect and run NordVPN on up to 5 devices simultaneously, meaning that one account is likely sufficient for the whole family.
In addition to NordVPN’s great features, its prices are very reasonable: plans start at $3.99/month for a 2-year plan. If you don’t feel ready to sign on for a full two years, you can opt to pay $4.59/month ($59.88 total) for a 1-year plan. If you don’t feel like making a long-term commitment, you can pay monthly for $12.99.
NordVPN is one of the best VPNs to watch UK TV in Australia, and if you want to know more, check out my NordVPN review.
2. Surfshark (Cheapest VPN to Watch UK TV in Australia)
Founded in the British Virgin Islands in 2018, Surfshark is another great option for streaming your favorite UK shows from Australia. It comes with a pretty standard array of features and security protocols, as well as a few special features that set it apart from the competition.
One of these is the ability to connect and use your VPN on as many devices as you want, with no limit. That’s right: Surfshark offers unlimited device protection, with no limitations on bandwidth or simultaneous connections.
Another unique feature is MultiHop, which routes your connection through more than one secure server. This adds another layer of protection because it further disguises your IP address from any malicious actors who might be trying to steal your data.
In terms of more standard security, Surfshark comes with an automatic kill switch, a no-logs policy, private DNS and leak protection, and a camouflage feature that makes it impossible for even your internet provider to tell that you’re using a VPN.
And, because the British Virgin Islands don’t have any data retention laws, Surfshark and other VPNs that are based there (including ExpressVPN) are able to set their own security protocols that don’t include storing your data.
Surfshark is compatible with Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, Chrome, Firefox, and Edge. It’s decently speedy and won’t impact your ability to stream videos. It effectively unblocks most streaming services, including Netflix and BBC iPlayer.
Surfshark’s plans start at $2.49/month for a 2-year plan (billed at $59.76). They also offer a 12-month plan for $3.99/month and a monthly plan for $12.95/month.
If committing to a longer plan isn’t a problem for you, then Surfshark’s 2-year plan is a fantastic deal that’s difficult to match. The company also offers a full refund within the first 30 days, so you have plenty of time to try it out and make sure it works well with your favorite streaming platforms.
For more on why Surfshark is one of the top VPN companies on the market today, check out my full Surfshark review.
3. ExpressVPN (Fastest Speed VPN to Watch UK TV in Australia)
Number one on my list is ExpressVPN. Founded in 2009 and serving millions of customers in over 180 countries, ExpressVPN is one of the best all-around VPNs on the market today. It comes with super-fast speed, unlimited bandwidth, strong security features, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
In terms of speed, ExpressVPN is hard to beat. It’s a well-known fact that using a VPN will slow down your internet traffic a bit, but ExpressVPN largely gets around this problem by using bandwidth from Tier-1 providers.
Speed is a particularly important factor when accessing a streaming service through a VPN, and ExpressVPN doesn’t disappoint.
ExpressVPN also has strong security and encryption and never tracks or records your activities or personal data. It downloads onto your computer as an app and is compatible with Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, and iOS devices. It also has browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox.
In terms of streaming content, ExpressVPN effortlessly unblocks BritBox, BBC iPlayer, Netflix, and a host of other streaming platforms because they rotate their UK-based IP addresses routinely.
It’s also one of the most user-friendly VPNs on the market, with an easy installation process and intuitive interface that’s appealing to beginners and experienced VPN users alike.
ExpressVPN has three server locations in the UK: London, Docklands, and East London. You can choose from one of these three, or you can simply select “United Kingdom” and let ExpressVPN choose the fastest available server for your needs.
ExpressVPN is a bit pricier than the others on my list, but it’s well worth the investment. It offers three payment plans: one-month for $12.95, six months for $9.99/month, and 12 months for $6.67/month. All plans are backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee, so there’s no risk in trying it out.
All in all, ExpressVPN is one of the best VPNs on the market for bypassing geo-blocking and accessing your favorite UK content from Australia. If you want to know more about why I recommend ExpressVPN, check out my ExpressVPN review.
4. CyberGhost (Easiest VPN to Stream UK TV in Australia)
CyberGhost is another great option to watch UK TV from Australia. With over 6,800 servers globally (and 370 in the UK), it’s fast and secure, and it works excellently at unblocking streaming services such as BBC iPlayer, BritBox, and Netflix UK.
CyberGhost is compatible with Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, Android TV, and Amazon Fire. It also has browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox.
Like all of the VPNs on my list, CyberGhost puts security first. It is a no-logs provider, meaning it will never track your personal data, and it uses 256-bit AES encryption to keep your internet activity safe from prying eyes.
It also comes with an automatic kill switch that detects when your VPN has failed and automatically disconnects your computer from the internet.
Best of all, CyberGhost’s user-friendly interface makes it a hassle-free experience for anyone trying out a VPN for the first time.
You can use your CyberGhost VPN on up to 7 different devices at the same time, which makes it a great choice for families or homes with multiple devices. They offer customer support through email and 24/7 live chat.
CyberGhost’s pricing starts at an incredibly low $2.23/month, although to access this price, you have to sign on for a 2-year + 3-month plan (billed at $56.97 every 2 years).
You can also opt to pay for a 6-month plan at $6.99/month (billed as $41.94/year) or monthly at $12.99/month.
While monthly plans are generally a worse deal for your money, if you’re traveling for a short period of time in Australia and simply want to watch your favorite TV shows while you’re on vacation (and don’t plan to use a VPN for anything else) then it’s a better deal to pay monthly.
CyberGhost also comes with a generous 45-day money-back guarantee, so there’s absolutely no risk in giving it a try.
For a fuller picture of CyberGhost’s features and performance, check out my comprehensive CyberGhost review.
FAQs
How We Review VPNs: Our Methodology
In our mission to find and recommend the best VPN services, we follow a detailed and rigorous review process. Here’s what we focus on to ensure we provide the most reliable and relevant insights:
- Features and Unique Qualities: We explore each VPN’s features, asking: What does the provider offer? What sets it apart from others, such as proprietary encryption protocols or ad and malware blocking?
- Unblocking and Global Reach: We assess the VPN’s ability to unblock sites and streaming services and explore its global presence by asking: How many countries does the provider operate in? How many servers does it have?
- Platform Support and User Experience: We examine the supported platforms and the ease of the sign-up and setup process. Questions include: What platforms does the VPN support? How straightforward is the user experience from start to finish?
- Performance Metrics: Speed is key for streaming and torrenting. We check the connection, upload, and download speeds and encourage users to verify these on our VPN speed test page.
- Security and Privacy: We delve into the technical security and privacy policy of each VPN. Questions include: What encryption protocols are used, and how secure are they? Can you trust the provider’s privacy policy?
- Customer Support Evaluation: Understanding the quality of customer service is crucial. We ask: How responsive and knowledgeable is the customer support team? Do they genuinely assist, or just push sales?
- Pricing, Trials, and Value for Money: We consider the cost, available payment options, free plans/trials, and money-back guarantees. We ask: Is the VPN worth its price compared to what’s available in the market?
- Additional Considerations: We also look at self-service options for users, such as knowledge bases and setup guides, and the ease of cancellation.
Learn more about our review methodology.