Burned through everything watchable on Netflix? If you live in Canada, you can access Hulu’s library of movies and TV shows once you know the trick I’m about to reveal. With it, you’ll be able to unlock Hulu and watch all the thousands of titles that it makes available to its United States users. Read on to find out how to get Hulu in Canada.
Related: Hulu + Live TV Review – A Streaming Service Worth Testing
How to get Hulu in Canada: a 5-minute video summary
One fast and easy way to access Hulu in Canada is with ExpressVPN. ExpressVPN is a VPN service that blocks Hulu and other streaming services from knowing your true location. You can use it to make it appear as though you’re in the United States, even when you’re actually located in Canada. All you have to do is get a subscription, then use the easy-to-use app to set your virtual location to the United States.
This 5-minute video guide shows you everything you need to know:
ExpressVPN: the best VPN for accessing Hulu from Canada
Anyone can start a VPN service, but maintaining a high level of service is another matter. In order to provide consistent reliability, a VPN company has to be willing to invest in infrastructure and pay for quality customer support. ExpressVPN scores high marks in both categories.
One reason why ExpressVPN can offer good quality of service is because it owns a large number of American VPN servers. You can even scan all the servers to find the most responsive ones before you connect. Response rates vary based on a variety of factors, including distance and traffic from other ExpressVPN subscribers.
Customer support is an area where ExpressVPN absolutely shines. We’ve interacted with customer support teams from many different VPN services. ExpressVPN’s team never fails to respond quickly to all of our inquiries. This is important because streaming services are always finding new ways to block out VPN users. If Hulu makes a change that affects you, you can contact the ExpressVPN team and they’ll take quick action to resolve the situation.
ExpressVPN uses an interesting strategy for avoiding detection: they periodically change the servers that they use to help their customers access various streaming services. Last time we contacted ExpressVPN, the San Francisco server was the one that they were using for Hulu.
Related: ExpressVPN Review – How to Install and Use ExpressVPN
Good things about ExpressVPN
- You can try ExpressVPN to make sure it works. Any VPN service worth its salt will offer a risk-free trial. This gives you a chance to make absolutely sure that the service actually works. ExpressVPN’s trial lasts for a full 30 days. That’s more than enough time to verify that the VPN works as expected. If for any reason you want to discontinue your service within that time frame, you can get all your money back.
- You can get a huge discount if you purchase an annual subscription. If you like ExpressVPN and decide to stick with it, you can get a big discount if you purchase a year’s worth of service. Click here to find out more.
- Hundreds of US-based VPN servers. Hulu easily blocks VPN services that only have one or two American VPN servers. But ExpressVPN has hundreds of servers in the United States, and they’re adding more every day.
- Reliable. Because ExpressVPN uses advanced VPN technology, it is much harder for Hulu and other streaming services to block.
- Fast. In my experience, ExpressVPN provides better speed and performance compared to other VPN providers. That could be because the service uses their fastest VPNs to accommodate their customers that want to use Hulu and other streaming services abroad. The other servers that they have are for general use, like staying anonymous while you browse the web.
- Excellent customer support. Most VPN services give you a knowledge base of vaguely worded frequently asked questions and leave you to figure out how to use the service on your own. ExpressVPN is different because their support team will walk you through each step of whatever you’re trying to do.
ExpressVPN is also one of the largest VPN services in the business, and has been serving customers since 2009. If you’ve tried other VPNs and you’ve been disappointed with the results, maybe it’s time to get one that actually works.
How to get Hulu in Canada with ExpressVPN
Step 1: Sign up for ExpressVPN
Visit the ExpressVPN website to get three free months of VPN service. The site looks like this:
Step 2: Download and install the ExpressVPN client
ExpressVPN’s client is super easy to install. Just log into ExpressVPN, then download the installer to your hard drive. You should see something like this. The specifics may vary depending on your operating system.
Select the installer file and double click to begin the installation process. After installation has completed, you’ll be prompted to run the ExpressVPN client on your PC or Mac computer. Once loaded up, your client should look like the following:
Step 3: Login to ExpressVPN and connect to the recommended server
As mentioned, ExpressVPN occasionally changes the server they use to provide access to Hulu. If you’re having a hard time connecting, you can contact their team to find out which server is the best one to use.
- Before you can use ExpressVPN, you’ll need to login with your credentials. Once logged in, ExpressVPN will keep your client logged in automatically as long as it has an internet connection.
- To log into a new server, select Change Location on the lower left-hand side of the window.
- A window will pop up providing you a list of countries to choose from. Find and select the United States, or use the search bar at the top and type in “United States”:
- Now, select the server recommended by ExpressVPN. If you need help, just open a chat with the ExpressVPN customer service team and they will point you in the right direction.
- After making your choice, double click the location name. ExpressVPN will automatically begin to connect:
- Once connected, your ExpressVPN client will tell you that the VPN is “On”:
Congratulations! Setup is complete.
You can now use up to five devices with ExpressVPN at the same time
ExpressVPN allows users to use the same account on up to five devices. This makes it more family-friendly, since it means that more devices can geo-hop to Hulu and other streaming services through one account.
The limit only applies to simultaneous use. In other words, you can install ExpressVPN on as many devices as you want, but you can only log on with five of them through one account at once.
Can Hulu block Canadian credit cards?
Yes. In order to keep out Canadians that use a VPN to access Hulu, the company has decided to ban the use of Canadian credit cards. And you may think that this will stop you from watching Hulu in Canada. But the good news is that there is a workaround.
If you don’t have an American credit card, you can buy a Hulu gift card for yourself and purchase your subscription with that. Once you create your account, you’ll be able to login to Hulu as long as you use a VPN to do so.
Please note that we are not responsible for any issues you have with purchasing a gift card from eBay. As always, use caution when dealing with sellers. Be sure that they’ve had many successful sales and good reviews before you buy.
And while watching Hulu in Canada is not illegal, it is a violation of the Hulu Terms of Service. This means they have the right to cancel your account at any time, and you will not be refunded.
Why is Hulu blocking Canadians?
Hulu doesn’t block Canadians out of maliciousness. It’s only available in two countries – The United States and Japan. The reason for this is simple. Different countries have different broadcasting rights.
For example, Hulu has the rights to Family Guy in the United States. But in Canada, Disney+ has the rights to Family Guy. In other words, Hulu can’t offer the same content in Canada as it can in the United States.
And, due to the complexity of negotiating different content deals and licensing for Canadians, it seems that Hulu and the Walt Disney Company have decided that it’s simply not worth expanding the service into Canada. This may change in the future, but for now, you’ll need to use a workaround to watch Hulu in Canada.
How is Hulu blocking Canadians?
Hulu’s geo-block is actually quite simple. Basically, a geo-block is just a simple IP address filter. If you’re not a computer person, that may sound complicated– but actually it’s not.
Every machine on the Internet has a unique IP address. Computers can’t communicate without them. IP addresses help information flow from point A to point B. If you try to load the Hulu page from a computer that has a Canadian IP address, you get geo-blocked. But if your computer has an American IP address, you can easily watch Hulu from Canada. That’s why disguising your true IP address is the key to getting where you want to go online.
The easiest way to change your computer’s Canadian IP address into an American one is to get a VPN. If you login to an American VPN server, it’ll look like you’re located in the United States when you go online. Once you’ve got an American IP address, you’ll be able to access not only Hulu but also all the other licensed content that’s only available in the United States. In addition to Hulu, all kinds of other streaming services use geo-blocks to block or filter content. DirecTV Stream Now, Sling TV and YouTube TV are just a few of the many streaming services that use these kinds of blocks.
Can Hulu block VPNs?
Yes, they can– but there’s no way to block VPNs consistently.
VPN servers are not immune to geo-blocks. VPN servers are computers on the internet, just like yours. They have IP addresses, too. And they can be geo-blocked.
Hulu and Netflix have both tried to block out various popular VPN providers. But they haven’t been successful.
Unlike physical mailing addresses, VPN IP address are not permanent. Any VPN service provider can easily change all their servers’ IP addresses. All it takes is a few simple commands.
So long as the VPN service provider is willing to play “whack-a-mole,” it can react to and overcome any type of block that Hulu tries to implement.
We’ve identified several VPN services that are responsive when it comes to helping their customers avoid geo-blocks. As far as we can tell, ExpressVPN is the most consistent at avoiding geo-blocks and helping their customers access Hulu and other streaming services.
Final thoughts on how to get Hulu in Canada
The fastest and easiest way to access Hulu in Canada is with a VPN– we recommend ExpressVPN. Try out your 30-day free trial today.
Alex Munkachy is a freelance writer, game developer and hobby robotics enthusiast. You can find his blog about robotics news and reviews at robotfanatics.com.
If you are in Canada, can you sign up to Hulu (using your Canadian address and credit card) and still use Strong VPN successfully?
This actually won’t work. Hulu has gotten smarter. Even with a good VPN/American IP, you need an American credit card to pay for the Hulu account.
Hi Amy, thanks for bringing that up. Here’s a workaround: buy a Hulu gift card on eBay: http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=hulu&_sacat=0
Hi there. I am receiving an error 403 every time I try to put my gift card code in. Any help? Hey
Hi Glenn, there could be some type of problem with your gift card. Open up a ticket at help.hulu.com to see if they can verify that your gift card is OK. Once your gift card is good to go, you should be all set.
but mostly VPN slow down the speed of internet.
It can slow you down if you’re not close to a server. if you have speed issues with VPNs and you’re mostly interested in downloads, you may want to look into usenet instead. Read this for more info: https://addonhq.com/usenet-newsgroups/
Yes I think you are right
they also sell Hulu gift cards here : http://www.pcgamesupply.com/buy/Hulu-50/
the website is reliable, digital delivery (to your email address)