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How to Watch HBO Max from Outside the US

Callum Tennent oversees how we test and review VPN services. He's a member of the IAPP, and his VPN advice has featured in Forbes and the Internet Society.

Did you know that you can watch HBO Max from outside the US using a VPN?

Image of the HBO Max brand logo.

HBO Max has some great TV shows and movies: Friends, The Sopranos, The Big Bang Theory, and many more. The problem is that unless you’re located in the US you can’t stream all this great video content because HBO Max is only meant for a US audience.

However, you can use a VPN to change your IP location to a US city. By connecting to a US VPN server, you trick HBO Max to think you’re in the US and stream all its videos from anywhere in the world.

Keep reading to learn how to easily unlock HBO Max with a streaming VPN. Right now the best VPN to watch HBO Max is ExpressVPN (try it risk-free for 30 days). Further down we also show you how to sign up to HBO Max from abroad.

How to Unblock HBO Max with a VPN

Most VPNs (especially free ones) won’t unblock HBO Max. That’s because HBO Max detects and blocks many VPN connections.

 

Therefore, you must use a reliable VPN that works with HBO Max. You can get any of these VPNs up and running in minutes, and they’ll quickly change your IP to a US one.

Spoiler: our current number one VPN for HBO Max is ExpressVPN.

Here’s how to unlock HBO Max from anywhere, if you already have a HBO Max account:

  1. Choose a working HBO Max VPN

    Select one of the VPNs that we’ve verified to unlock HBO Max. Or, just choose ExpressVPN, which works great.

  2. Download and install the software

    Download the VPN onto your preferred device(s) and set it up follow the onscreen installation prompts. It’s as easy as installing antivirus, or any simple piece of software.

  3. Connect to a US server

    Once the VPN is set up, launch it and select a server from the list of locations. To stream HBO Max, select a US server. ExpressVPN’s New Jersey, Washington DC and San Francisco servers worked well in our tests.

    How to Connect to a Server with ExpressVPN on macOS

  4. Clear your web cookies

    Clear your web cookies from your browser so that any trace of previous visits from your device to the HBO Max website are wiped. Sometimes cookies from previous non-VPN visits to HBO Max can affect how well the VPN unlocks the service.

  5. Stream HBO Max!

    Visit the HBO Max website or launch the HBO Max app. As long as you’re using one of our recommended HBO Max VPNs, start streaming all that new video content you couldn’t access before!

How to Sign up to HBO Max from Abroad

If you don’t have a HBO Max account yet, don’t worry. Although HBO only accepts US payment methods, there’s a simple way to sign up to HBO Max from outside the US.

In fact, HBO also accepts gift cards, and you can buy a HBO gift card from anywhere in the world, and use it to subscribe from outside the US.

HBO gift cards are available from MyGiftCardSupply.

Once you’ve bought your HBO gift card, use a VPN to connect to a US server. Then, redeem your HBO gift card on the HBO Now website by submitting your redemption code.

After signing up to HBO Now, go to the HBO Max website and sign in using your HBO Now login details. That’s it!

For more information on redeeming a HBO Now gift card to watch HBO Max, read this helpful article.