BBC iPlayer is a popular internet streaming service operated by the BBC. The service is available on a wide variety of devices including cell phones and tablets, PCs, and smart TVs. iPlayer services for viewers in the UK do not provide commercial advertising. And there is the catch: the BBC iPlayer is only available to viewers from Great Britain. And that's a great shame as this streaming service has a wide range of series and shows from different genres. You need a VPN for BBC iPlayer so that you can take advantage of the range.
We explain how to use a VPN for the streaming service and what advantages and disadvantages there are. We have also tested the best VPN providers for the BBC iPlayer for you.
Content
No time? - The best VPN for BBC iPlayer at a glance:
UltraVPN 
The VPN service UltraVPN advertises with the slogan "The Internet, Unlocked" and convinces us with excellent speeds and easy installation as well as a large selection of servers. Very good for streaming.
NordVPN
NordVPN is one of the most reliable VPN providers when it comes to streaming. With its enormous server selection in Great Britain, you can stream the BBC iPlayer without hesitation, buffering or disconnection.
CyberGhost
The fastest VPN we tested with the most servers to choose from. A solid VPN provider with which you can safely use the BBC iPlayer. A big plus is the purely German user interface and handling.
What is the BBC iPlayer?
Most of them are already familiar with the BBC. The BBC (British Broadcasting Cooperation) is one of the largest British broadcasters, which is known worldwide. The BBC currently has 10 television channels, 40 local radio stations and 10 national radio stations. For many, the BBC is most likely known for broadcasting news, however it has been around since 2007 the material moisture meter shows you the BBC iPlayer.
This streaming service offers a large assortment of English series and shows that we usually don't have in our country or that are broadcast late. Often the shows are tailored purely for English viewers and that's precisely why they don't make it to Germany. Furthermore, this streaming service is completely free - you just have to be in England to access the offer. And that's why you need a VPN for the BBC iPlayer.
VPN for BBC iPlayer
If you do not live in the UK you have no way of enjoying the BBC iPlayer range. Users from Germany, Austria or Switzerland therefore need, similar to Netflix or Hulu, a VPN. If you have a non-UK IP address, you get the following Error message:
Translated into English: "Sorry, due to licensing rights, BBC iPlayer only works within the UK."
Due to the Country lock or that geoblocking so you can't stream a title.
Why you need a VPN for BBC iPlayer
When you connect to the internet without a VPN, you expose your IP address. Your IP address reveals your websites & Co. approximate location. Thus, the BBC iPlayer determines that you not staying in the UK. Through the so-called geoblocking So anyone outside of the UK is prohibited from streaming its title.
But if you want to stream titles, you'll need a VPN. VPN stands for Virtual Private Network and ensures anonymity and security on the Internet. With a VPN, all your internet traffic goes through a virtual tunnel directed to a secure server of your choice. In this process, your IP address will also be changed depending on the selected location. So when you connect to a server in the UK, you will be given an IP address to match.
- You connect using a VPN service encoded with a VPN server. This VPN server then connects you to the Internet. Depending on the server selection you will get one accordingly new IP address allocated. Your IP address is thus concealed (so-called IP cloak). This means that Netflix only sees the IP address that you selected through the VPN provider. Your normal IP address remains hidden.
Geoblocking - what is it?
Geoblocking is the technology used on the Internet for regional Blocking of Internet content by the provider. The technology is used in particular for copyright protection of works such as films and television broadcasts distributed over the Internet. This Country lock you especially notice when you want to stream titles that do not exist in German-speaking countries. So if you want to watch a series or show on the BBC iPlayer website but are not using a VPN, the website will immediately recognize that you are not in the UK. So you get an error message. This country block comes about because the BBC iPlayer has no international broadcasting rights.
How can I get around geoblocking?
Um geoblocking To work around, you need a solid VPN provider with adequate servers in Great Britain. With help of a good and secure VPNs you can use your IP address hide and pretend you're in the UK. As soon as you have connected to a server of your choice, you can stream all the titles on the BBC iPlayer website - and in excellent quality.
VPN for Amazon Prime Video: which provider is suitable?
Free vs. Paid providers
First and foremost, we have to talk about the wide range of VPN services that either free or chargeable gives. In our Test of the free VPN providers we have already listed which free VPN services are also suitable for the own home network worth it. However, we found that most services for the BBC iPlayer Unfortunately not suitable are because many are only one low selection bid on servers and IP addresses. Often there is also no way to choose a server in the UK.
Most free providers also have one Bandwidth limitation. In other words: You can only use a limited amount of data. This is because a large number of users connect to a free VPN. So that there is enough bandwidth for everyone, it must be throttled for everyone. This is very disadvantageous when streaming.
Based on these Data and speed limit As well as the lower security, we recommend that you use a paid service in any case. This is the only way to ensure that you have unlimited data volume at full speed for streaming.
The best VPN providers for BBC iPlayer - our test winners
1nd place: UltraVPN
Our test winner is the VPN service UltraVPN. The provider itself advertises with the slogan “The Internet, unlocked” and was able to convince us in our test. We were able to connect to servers in Great Britain without any problems in order to stream BBC iPlayer titles. It happened no disconnections and also no error message, Further Features from UltraVPN:
- Good range of servers and locations
With over 1000 servers and 55 locations, UltraVPN is behind NordVPN and CyberGhost, but the connection was consistently more stable and faster. UltraVPN has enough servers in the UK so streaming wasn't a problem. - Very good encryption
UltraVPN uses the OpenVPN protocol with secure AES 256-bit encryption based on military standards. So you are safe and anonymous on the Internet. - Excellent speed
In our test, we were able to achieve an average speed of 63 Mbit / s determine. There were no disconnections and we were able to stream titles without buffers. - Very good extra features
Furthermore, UltraVPN offers features like an automatic one Kill Switch, a strict one No log policy and a rock-solid connection. - Simultaneous use of up to 6 devices
With UltraVPN you can use up to 6 devices at the same time. However, we recommend a maximum of 3 devices for streaming, due to the speed. So you can enjoy streaming without buffering. - Very good value for money
The annual subscription costs just € 3,75 per month. There is also a monthly package and a 6-month package.
Bonus: You can use UltraVPN for 30 days test without risk. If you don't like the program, you will get the full purchase price back.
And finally ... UltraVPN was able to convince us in every respect. Even if the number of servers is lower than NordVPN or CyberGhost, we were able to stream titles from the BBC iPlayer without any problems.
Place 2- NordVPN
NordVPN is one of the most common providers for the most common operating systems and is one of the best-known VPN providers currently on the market. With its enormous range of over 4900 servers in over 59 countries you can easily enjoy titles from the BBC iPlayer. Further Features:
- Large selection of servers and countries
With 4900 servers in 59 countries, NordVPN gives you the ability to connect to numerous different servers from all over the world. NordVPN also has enough servers in Great Britain. - Excellent speed
With an average speed of around 57 Mbit / s we were able to stream all the films or TV series that we tested without any problems. - Unlimited data volume
An enormous amount of data is required, especially when streaming. With NordVPN you don't have to worry about that, because the provider offers unlimited data volume. - SmartPlay function
The SmartPlay function combines Smart DNS with VPN security in order to bypass geographic country blocks. With the help of this technology, your anonymity is guaranteed at the same time. - Streaming on up to 6 devices possible
If you have a high internet speed by default, you can theoretically stream on up to 6 different devices at the same time with NordVPN. In our test, we performed this with 3 different devices and could not find any loss in speed.
Bonus: You can use NordVPN thanks to the 30-day money-back guarantee risk free test.
Summary: NordVPN impresses with its fast speed, security and its SmartPlay function. The VPN provider is available on all common operating systems. If you want to learn more about NordVPN, you can check out our comprehensive review here read.
3rd place: CyberGhost
CyberGhost is a good VPN provider that scores above all with its very large selection of servers and countries. The German provider ended up just behind NordVPN in our speed test. The service is particularly impressive because of the following Features:
- Large selection of servers and countries
With more than 6200 servers in over 89 countries CyberGhost offers a wider range of servers and countries than NordVPN and UltraVPN. This is particularly advantageous if an IP address is blocked. Simply connect to a new server. You can stream undisturbed. In our test, we only had a problem with an IP address from the UK once. Thanks to the large selection of servers, we simply reconnected and were then able to stream without any problems. - Good speed
Cyberghost offers speeds of up to 50 Mbit / s an excellent download speed. We did find slower servers in our test, but after changing the server we were able to stream Amazon Prime Video without any problems. - Stream up to 7 devices possible
With CyberGhost you can stream on up to 7 devices at the same time. However, for good quality you should not stream on all devices at the same time.
Bonus: thanks to the 45-day money-back guarantee you can try CyberGhost risk-free and see if this service is the most suitable for you.
And finally ... CyberGhost ended up just behind NordVPN in our test. The VPN provider impresses with its high selection of servers and outstanding speeds. You can find more information about CyberGhost here .
VPN for BBC iPlayer How to set up your VPN service
Setting up and installing a VPN service is quick and easy. Using our test winner, we'll show you how to do it easily UltraVPN install on your computer:
| 1. Download and install | 2. Connect | 3. stream |
|---|---|---|
| Lade you download the software, install they and execute them. |
Connect you now with a server of your choice. | Open the BBC iPlayer in your browser start with the stream! |
 |
 |
 |
And you've done it!
Summary
In our test, both UltraVPN, NordVPN and CyberGhost convince. All three VPN services are solid providers that offer powerful VPNs. This means you can stream shows on the BBC iPlayer without buffering or crashing. Thanks to the large selection of servers and the excellent speeds, you have no problems with these providers. We generally recommend using a paid provider for streaming, as free providers are usually not intended for streaming.
FAQ
Is it legal to use a VPN for BBC iPlayer?
Yes! Streaming or watching titles with a VPN does not infringe any copyrights. As long as nothing is downloaded, saved and shared, you can safely stream your favorite show.
Can i use a free VPN?
We generally don't recommend using free VPNs. When it comes to streaming, the options are limited. Free VPN providers are financed through data and speed throttling and additional annoying advertising. Usually you cannot choose the server location either. So you cannot choose a server from Great Britain here at BBC iPlayer to access the titles. However, the VPN services we tested offer a 30 to 45-day money-back guarantee. So you can first test the VPN service in detail.
Do I need an app for the BBC iPlayer in addition to the VPN?
The BBC iPlayer can be easily accessed on its website. All titles are played from the website, so there is no need to download an additional app or program. Simply install the VPN program, log in and surf the BBC iPlayer website. You can stream undisturbed!
