If you want to watch American Netflix on Xbox One while living or traveling abroad, you’re not alone. American Netflix has thousands more titles than most other Netflix catalogs around the world, so it gives you the best bang for your buck.
But how can you watch American Netflix on Xbox One if you’re not in America? A proxy bypassing service, such as a VPN, will help get around the content blocking methods Netflix employs. In this article, we’ll discuss the basics about VPNs, and give you the best options for how to watch American Netflix on Xbox One.
[toc]
You Need a VPN to Watch American Netflix on Xbox One
Let’s start with the basics. To watch American Netflix from outside of America, you’ll need what’s called a “VPN”, or “Virtual Private Network”.
A VPN is a service that takes your web traffic, encrypts it, and sends it through a web server located in a different geographical location. For example, if you are in the UK, you could use a VPN to connect to an America-based server.
This has a number of benefits. First, it appears as if you are connecting from a real computer in that country. This means that you’ll able to access content like American Netflix that is not available your country.
In addition, a VPN protects your browsing traffic from snooping by ISPs, governments, and other third parties, which helps increase your privacy while using the web.
Our favorite VPN is ExpressVPN. ExpressVPN is ideal for watching American Netflix on Xbox One. It’s safe, secure, affordable, and has a number of great features, including servers dedicated specifically for unblocking Netflix
[callout id=”15845″ placeholder=XboxOneAmericanNetflix]
How to Get American Netflix on Xbox One – 3 Methods
While it is possible to get American Netflix on Xbox One using a VPN, it’s not as straightforward as you might think. There are no VPN apps available for the Xbox One, so you can’t use any native applications to change your IP address and access American Netflix.
Because of this, it’s a bit more complicated to use a VPN on Xbox One. In this section of our guide, we’ll discuss the top 3 methods that you can use to get a VPN like ExpressVPN on your Xbox One, and watch American Netflix.
Method 1: Using a router-based VPN
Using a router-based VPN is usually the best way to get a VPN service on gaming consoles and other such devices. A router-based VPN is different from a VPN that is only installed on one of your devices.
This is because, when you use ExpressVPN on a router, you encrypt all of the web traffic that goes through your router. That means that every wired and wireless connection in your home is secure, and will be protected from ISP snooping.
ExpressVPN offers a number of different routers that are compatible with its VPN service. If you are thinking about getting a new router, this is the easiest way to set up a router-based VPN. You can even purchase a pre-configured router to ensure that all you have to do is log into your ExpressVPN account to get started.
If you already have a router that you want to use, you can set it up manually using ExpressVPN. However, the process can be quite difficult if you’re not technically-savvy. Don’t worry, though. If you run into any issues, you can contact ExpressVPN to get help.
Don’t want to use a router-based VPN? Don’t worry. You’ve got a few other choices when it comes to getting American Netflix on Xbox One.
Method 2: Using a PC’s network connection
Your next option is to use your PC’s network connection to connect to your Xbox One. Essentially, you will be running the ExpressVPN software on your PC, and then “sending” this connection straight to your Xbox One console.
This allows you to use ExpressVPN on Xbox One without worrying about the complex set-up procedure of a router-based VPN, or having to buy a new router. Here are the details on how to set up your PC to share its network connection with your Xbox One.
For this method, you’ll need the following things:
- An ExpressVPN subscription
- An ethernet cable
- A PC or laptop
- Your Xbox One console
Step 1: Download and set up ExpressVPN
First things first, you’ll need to download the ExpressVPN client onto your PC and get it set up. The process is quick and easy — just download ExpressVPN, run the executable file, and log in with your account information.
Then, connect to a VPN server of your choice. You can either connect to the closest server, or use the server list to pick your preferred American server.
Step 2: Setting up the network connection
After you have downloaded ExpressVPN, plug the ethernet cable into the back of your Xbox One, and plug the other end of the cable into your PC. You may need a USB ethernet adapter if your PC is newer and does not have a dedicated ethernet port.
Next, on your PC, open up the “Control Panel” and navigate to “Network and Internet”. Then press “Network and Sharing Center”. Alternatively, you can just type “Network and Sharing Center” into your search bar.
Once you have opened up the Network and Sharing Center, you can click “Change Adapter Settings”, which is located in the left-hand side of the window.
Then, right click on the icon with the name of your VPN.
Select “Properties” to continue. You will see the following menu.
Open the “Sharing” tab to switch to your PC’s connection sharing options.
Be sure that the checkbox marked “Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s internet connection” has been selected. If it has not, select it now.
If you have plugged your Xbox One into your computer, and your computer is connected to the network via an Ethernet cable, you will want to select “Ethernet” from the above “Home networking connection” menu. Otherwise, just choose “Local Area Network”.
Step 3: Testing the connection on your Xbox One
After you have completed the previous steps, you should be all set up with your VPN and ready to get American Netflix on Xbox One.
To test your internet connection, simply navigate to any app on your Xbox One and open it up. If you’re connected to the internet, congratulations — you’ve set up your Xbox One correctly! You’ll be able to access American Netflix and other such services on your Xbox, using your VPN.
Method 3: Using a Mac’s network connection
Don’t have a PC? No problem! You can use any Mac computer running macOS instead. Here are the step-by-step instructions for setting up a Mac to connect to American Netflix on your Xbox One.
To use this method, you will need:
- An ExpressVPN subscription
- An ethernet cable
- USB-ethernet adapter (for newer Mac computers)
- A macOS laptop, Mac Mini, Mac Pro, or iMac
- Your Xbox One console
Step 1: Download and set up ExpressVPN
Again, you’ll need to download and set up ExpressVPN before you can get started. Head over to the downloads page, download the application software, and install it on your Mac. You’ll be asked to configure the VPN, and enter your login information. After you do, you’ll see the following screen:
Sign in now with the credentials given to you during the ExpressVPN sign up process. You’ll see the following screen:
Press the large “power” button in the middle to connect to the VPN server. You can also use the “Choose Location” button to select a different American VPN server.
Step 2: Setting up the network connection
Next, plug your ethernet cable into the back of your Xbox One, and your Mac or MacBook. Note that, unless you you have an older Mac, you will probably need a USB-ethernet adaptor for this step.
Next, head to “System Preferences”, and open the “Sharing” menu.
Next, select “Internet Sharing” from the list that appears on the left of the window.
From the drop-down menu, select “Share your connection from”, and choose “Wi-Fi”. Then, in the “To computers using” section, select “Apple USB Ethernet Adapter”, or “Ethernet”, depending on whether or not you are using an adapter.
Then, click the “Internet Sharing” toggle on the left-hand menu to create the connection.
Step 3: Testing the connection on your Xbox One
After completing this step, you should be able to access American Netflix and other content using a VPN on your Xbox One. Open up Netflix or another application to test out the VPN connection, and ensure that it works properly.
I’m Blocked from Connecting to American Netflix with My VPN – What’s Happening?
Unfortunately, Netflix has caught on to the fact that many people from other countries are using VPNs and Smart DNS services to access American Netflix. Because of this, the service has begun blocking many VPN and Smart DNS servers.
It’s usually pretty easy for Netflix to tell if someone is using a VPN. If many different people connect from the same server location or IP address, they will simply flag and blacklist the server, preventing future connections.
This can happen to ExpressVPN, as well. Usually, you can solve the problem simply by using a different American ExpressVPN server. However, if you have no luck with multiple servers, you can contact ExpressVPN customer service. They will tell you which server to use, to ensure that you can watch American Netflix on Xbox One.
Top Alternatives to ExpressVPN for Watching American Netflix on Xbox One
Not sure if you want to use ExpressVPN to watch American Netflix on Xbox One? Don’t worry, there are quite a few other VPNs that you can use to unblock geo-restricted content on the Xbox. Here are a couple of your best alternatives.
VyprVPN
VyprVPN is a great alternative to ExpressVPN because of its most unique, standout feature — the “Chameleon” protocol.
VyprVPN was developed by GoldenFrog after the revelations about the NSA spying on American citizens. As part of the VyprVPN service, Chameleon was developed.
Chameleon is a specialized data obfuscation service which hides information about your browsing habits from websites using Deep Packet Inspection (DPI). DPI is one way websites like Netflix detect VPN usage, so if you use the Chameleon protocol from VyprVPN, you never have to worry about being blocked from American Netflix.
The service does not have as many American servers as ExpressVPN, but still has a total of 700 servers located across 70 different locations around the globe, so you should have no trouble finding a high-speed server.
If you want the Chameleon protocol, though, you’ll have to pay extra for VyprVPN premium, which costs $12.95 monthly or $6.67 yearly, which is about the same price as ExpressVPN. Still, VyprVPN is a viable alternative, and one of our top picks.
You can try VyprVPN for free with a 3-day trial, and there is a 30-day money back guarantee if you try the service and don’t like it.
NordVPN
NordVPN is the best choice for you if you’re on a tight budget, and don’t mind signing up for a multi-year subscription to a VPN service.
This is because NordVPN offers huge discounts for long-term service contracts. You’ll pay $11.95 for a monthly subscription, which is slightly cheaper than ExpressVPN. However, a 1-year subscription only costs $5.75 per month, which is nearly a 50% discount. And if you pay every 2 years, you can get a subscription for only $3.29 per month. If you don’t like the service, you can still get your money back with their 30-day satisfaction guarantee.
NordVPN also has an enormous number of servers. The service offers an incredible number of servers — over 2,000 in the Americas alone — with a total of around 1,700 in America. This means you won’t have to worry about finding a high-bandwidth server without too many users.
With a ton of discounts available for long-term users, plenty of servers, and a no-logs policy, NordVPN is a great choice if you want to get American Netflix on Xbox One, but don’t want to pay too much for VPN service.
Eric Liston is a content writer based in Columbus, Ohio. Since 2015, he’s been writing about technology, cord-cutting, and helping everyday people save money. He also has expertise writing about medicine, dentistry, insurance, and a variety of other industries. No matter what he’s writing, his focus is always on simplifying complex concepts and making them approachable for everyone. When he’s not slamming away on his keyboard at his home office, you’ll find Eric reading sci-fi novels, improving his disc golf game (he just hit his first 400-foot drive) and playing video games on his gaming PC.
