Whether you're a soccer fan, Dr. Who addict, or you love to watch BBC news to keep up on the latest royal family gossip, BBC iPlayer is the perfect solution for you. But, there's one small issue preventing you from soaking up all of that Top Gear car action. You can't watch BBC iPlayer outside of the United Kingdom.

So, what do you do? Pack it all up and call it quits? Must you forgo all of that Premier League action and those hilarious British comedies simply because you don't live in the U.K?

Of course not! Today, let's talk about how anyone can watch BBC iPlayer abroad and tap into all of those fantastic T.V. shows and sporting events.

What's on BBC iPlayer?

Why do you want BBC iPlayer in the first place? Great question! Let's cover a quick list of BBC iPlayer features.

  • BBC One Live
  • BBC Two Live
  • BBC Three Live
  • BBC Four Live
  • CCBC Live
  • CBeebies Live
  • Premier League Soccer
  • World Cup Action
  • Tons of On-Demand Content
  • And LOTS more.

If any of that content sounds interesting to you, you're in luck. Here's how you can access BBC iPlayer from anywhere in the world.

Using a VPN to Access BBC iPlayer

The most common — and easiest — method of accessing region-locked content like BBC iPlayer is by using a VPN.

Here's how a VPN works.

First, you need to get a VPN of your choice and install the VPN app on your computer. Then, you simply connect to the VPN and choose a server that's located in the country that you are trying to access the region-locked content in.

So, if you wanted to watch BBC iPlayer, you would choose a VPN that had servers in the U.K. and connect to one of those servers. Here's where the magic happens.

All of your traffic will be routed through that server. So, it will appear as if your computer and network are located in the United Kingdom. As far as BBC iPlayer (or any other region-locked streaming service) is concerned, you're a U.K. citizen.

There are also some other benefits packaged into using VPNs, so let's cover those briefly.

  • All of your traffic is masked so that you can browse anonymously.
  • Your data is encrypted, which helps you remain secure.
  • You can rapidly change servers to access content from services in other countries.
  • And, you can bypass pesky work/school firewalls.

This is by far the easiest way to access BBC iPlayer from a country outside of the U.S. But, let's go over a few of the other popular (or once popular) options that are available to you.

Using a Chrome Addon to Access BBC iPlayer

This was one of the internets favorite methods of accessing region locked content a few years ago. Specifically, extensions like Hola were used widely to access Netflix, Hulu, and other region-locked content — giving people a much broader library of TV shows and movies at their fingertips.

We heavily recommend that you DO NOT use Hola anymore. It doesn't encrypt your traffic, and it has shady owners. In fact, Hola was caught using their service to perform DDoS attacks. So, everyone who had installed Hola was being used as a zombie to attack a popular image board.

Using a Proxy to Access BBC iPlayer

Proxies used to be a fantastic free option of accessing region-locked content. The easiest way to think of a proxy is that it only protects browser traffic, whereas VPNs protect and encrypt ALL traffic on your network.

So, you could simply log into a proxy and immediately start accessing content. That doesn't work anymore. Proxies have difficulty accessing region-locked content since they typically get their IP blocked within weeks of operation.

Plus, VPNs and Proxies cost about the same in today's tech ecosystem, and VPNs offer far greater speed, reliability, and coverage. Of course, you can still attempt to find a proxy that works. But, try to steer clear of the free ones, since they have heavy traffic caps — which impedes your ability to stream high-quality content.

Using a DNS Redirector to Access BBC iPlayer

Finally, you can use a DNS redirector instead of a VPN. To be clear, VPNs are still the better option (for many reasons,) but DNS redirectors can work. DNS redirectors create a direct tunnel between your network and a server located in another country. This is somewhat similar to a VPN — though far less comprehensive.

There are currently no free DNS redirector options on the market. The most popular one — Tunlr — was shut down. And, no other free DNS redirectors support the breadth of content that Tunlr did.

So, you're left with paid options. Here's the caveat. DNS redirectors are often more expensive than VPN services. So, you're getting less coverage for more money. They can have faster speeds, but the encryption is subpar (if existent) so you could get caught streaming the content — which isn't something you want to happen.

A Quick Note on Paid Services

Some region-locked content requires you to pay for a subscription or license. This can be an issue. Almost all of those services will check to ensure that the credit card that you're using is a regional card. So, if you want to pay for a U.K. service, you will need a U.K. credit card.

Don't worry! There's a workaround.

Entropay, Astropay, and similar services (there are a few on the market now) let you create virtual cards by adding funds to their account. These cards can typically bypass regional restrictions.

You will have to do research and ensure that you're using the correct solution if you run into a paywall.

Final Thoughts

If you want to enjoy Premier League action or royal family drama, BBC iPlayer is the perfect streaming service. But, it's only available to U.K. citizens! What do you do? Don't worry! You can access BBC iPlayer by leveraging VPN services and enjoy all of that sweet, sweet television programming.