Why doesn’t Amazon Prime work when I’m using a VPN?

Have you just bought a VPN subscription, or maybe you have had a VPN subscription for a long time, and now you wanted to use it to stream content on Amazon Prime or Amazon Instant Videos abroad? But, instead of getting access to the content you wanted to stream, you still get the error messages on Amazon Prime?

Can you imagine this, I am using a VPN and I am connected to a server in the USA. I have an American IP address, and everything should be just perfect. But, when I try to watch Amazon Prime using the VPN, I still see messages like this all over the place: “This title isn’t available in your location.”

I get errors on Amazon.com, even when using a VPN with an American IP address
I get errors on Amazon.com, even when using a VPN with an American IP address

Now, what is the problem? Why doesn’t the Amazon Instant videos and the Amazon Prime videos work if you have an American IP address, just like I have? Well, it might sound complicated, but having an American IP address isn’t enough (anymore).

An American IP address isn’t enough to watch Amazon Prime videos abroad

Do you know why you get error messages as you try to watch Amazon Prime content using a VPN? You can mostly compare it to a concert you want to attend, and you have a ticket in hand. The ticket should be enough, but do you know what the security guards suddenly discover? They notice that 50 people just entered the building with the same ticket. Now, that makes them suspicious, and as a result, they are all sent out from the arena due to cheating.

What does that little story have to do with Amazon Prime and VPN services? Well, for a long time Amazon.com didn’t care about people using the same IP addresses (tickets). But, suddenly they started to go after them, and once they discovered such activity, they blocked those with such tickets, that is, IP addresses. And that is what has happened with the VPN providers.

Since so many people suddenly visited the Amazon websites using the same IP addresses at the same time, they caught suspicion and started to block those providers. As a consequence, more than 95% of all the IP addresses provided by VPN providers are today blocked by Amazon, and thus it doesn’t really matter if you use a VPN – you will be locked out from the services no matter what. So, what is the solution? If you want to use a VPN to watch Amazon Prime videos abroad and Amazon Instant Videos abroad, you need to use THE RIGHT VPN.

Which VPN provider actually works with Amazon Prime in 2020?

Let me tell you, it has become really hard to watch Amazon Prime content online outside the USA, and it is only possible if you use the correct VPN provider Which is that? The answer is ExpressVPN, a VPN provider that has worked with Amazon Prime constantly since the beginning of days (or at least since the beginning of Amazon Prime and ExpressVPN).

ExpressVPN49% discount – 3 free months

Click the button above to sign up for ExpressVPN. If you buy a 12-months subscription, you will get three months extra for free if you purchase after clicking the button above.

I have been writing about a lot of different VPN providers and I have tested a lot of providers, and they all have trouble with Amazon Prime. But, ExpressVPN works steadily on all platforms, and it is a brilliant solution if you want to watch Amazon Prime on your Amazon Fire TV abroad, on your computer abroad, on your iOS device abroad, or on some other device.

ExpressVPN is one of the best VPN providers on the market, and they are the best of them all when it comes to unblocking streaming services. They will give you access to more Netflix regions than any other VPN provider, and they are also superb for unblocking BBC in the UK and lots of other sites online.

ExpressVPN has a thirty-day money back guarantee, and you can use your subscription at three different places at the same time (or at three different devices).

How to use ExpressVPN and stream Amazon Prime abroad?

Are you tired of getting the error messages as you try to watch Amazon Prime abroad using a VPN? Use ExpressVPN instead and do as follows.

  1. Visit the ExpressVPN website and sign up for their services.
  2. Download their ExpressVPN application to your device.
  3. Connect to a server in the USA.
  4. Restart your browser.
  5. Watch Amazon Prime and Amazon Instant Videos abroad using a VPN.

If you do not get it to work at once, you can also try opening your browser in the so-called Private Mode or Incognito mode, which will help your browser forget about its own location and cookies added by the Amazon website. The most important to know is that ExpressVPN does work with Amazon Prime as one of the few VPN providers on the market. If you still have trouble, write a comment beneath or contact the live customer service at the ExpressVPN website.

Don't see this error message on Amazon Prime anymore - use a VPN that actually works with Amazon.
Don’t see this error message on Amazon Prime anymore – use a VPN that actually works with Amazon.

You now have a VPN that is working with Amazon Prime

There is no more need to worry or feel sad. If you follow these instructions, you will no longer have to watch the error messages coming up that you get as you use a VPN to unblock Amazon Prime. Instead, your browser will believe that you are in the USA, so will the Amazon website, and thus you can stream all the content that you are interested in at the Amazon website right away.

Do you need help using the VPN at Amazon.com?

If you have followed these instructions, but still suffer, do not despair, but ask us for help instead. We love answering questions, and since you are protected by the 30-day money back guarantee provided by ExpressVPN, you do not even have to worry about your investment. We always try to answer questions as quickly as possible and do not forget that you can also ask the ExpressVPN crew directly through the chat available on their website.

Did you know that many people who want to watch BBC iPlayer abroad suffer with their VPN providers as well? Just like many people are blocked by Amazon Prime in the USA while using a VPN, the same is happening to fans of BBC in England who wants to stream the service abroad. But, once again ExpressVPN comes to the rescue, as one of the very few VPN providers that will help you watch BBC in the UK without error messages, also when abroad.

Wish you all the best, and if you need help, write a comment beneath!

9 thoughts on “Why doesn’t Amazon Prime work when I’m using a VPN?

  1. David says:

    I have NordVPN and regular amazon shopping is blocked(!). It was working if I connected to Canada for some reason but that has stopped too. Amazon video will load the menu but err out when trying to start a video.

  2. Daniel T Lee says:

    I have Xpress VPN and I have never been able to get it to work with Amazon prime. Why? What am I doing wrong?

    • Thomas Stein says:

      I don’t understand as it should work without much trouble. Have you tried to chat with their customer service about this? Whenever I have had trouble with ExpressVPN, they have mostly been able to help me quickly through their live chat!

  3. larrybud says:

    There’s no guarantee that ExpressVPN or any other will work. It’s just a matter of Amazon adding the particular VPN Server IP address range to their block list, and boom, you’re done.

    I suspect amazon has to comply with copyright and licensing deals with various providers, thus the block. Even if you’re in the US using a US IP address, Amazon wouldn’t have any way to know where you’re coming from—after all, that’s the whole point of a VPN!

  4. Donald Gray says:

    Complete bull!
    Express VPN DOES NOT work with Amazon Prime. It gives a “You have a VPN or Proxy. You must disable VPNs or Proxies to use Amazon Prime.” I called them and complained. Their customer said they do not allow ANY VPN or ANY proxy access to Amazon Prime and the only way to use Amazon Prime was to disable VPNs and Proxies.

    And again I say Express VPN DOES NOT work with Amazon Prime!
    You are mistaken.

    • Thomas Stein says:

      Hello, if you called Amazon, that isn’t the right way to fix this. Go to the ExpressVPN website and ask their customer service for help (they have a live support available). They have several servers that work well with Amazon Prime, so even if you have tried one and gotten the proxy error, it doesn’t mean that none of their servers work. So, skip chatting with the Amazon customer service, and speak to the ExpressVPN customer service instead. Or simply try a couple of new servers! Do not forget to restart your browser before you try 🙂

    • Thomas Stein says:

      Hello again Donald,
      I just tried ExpressVPN myself now, and I did get the error with one of their servers, but then I just connected to a different server and I was able to stream Amazon Prime content immediately! 🙂

  5. Thomas says:

    I have had great trouble using IPVanish to stream Amazon Prime abroad, but based on your recommendation I gave ExpressVPN a try and it worked at once. Thanks 🙂 Finally I can watch The Boys again:)

Leave a Reply