How to Watch AbemaTV Outside Japan

Over-the-top media services have been running the entertainment industry for a while now. Nothing beats the joy of wanting to watch something and having it provided to you whenever you want. AbemaTV was established only five years ago, yet it’s joined some of the excellent streaming services, right up there with Crunchyroll and Gyao. However, AbemaTV can only be viewed while in Japan.

But people living or visiting places outside Japan also hate to skip their favorite shows. So, what are you to do when you want to watch K WORLD, Quest, or Fighting outside Japan? Use a VPN. With a VPN you can get a Japanese IP address, and then you will be able to stream AbemaTV from all over the world.

A VPN is one of the limited choices you have when it comes to streaming channels outside their licensed areas. You could use a proxy or another tool, but you’d probably miss out on some of the other amazing benefits the best VPNs can provide.

Why AbemaTV is blocked outside Japan

There are a few countries outside Japan in which AbemaTV is available. In 2019, the management of AbemaTV spread AbemaTV to the following countries: America, Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, and Thailand. Even these countries have a minimal list of channels, mostly Abema News channels and not much else.

One would have to ask why this is so. Well, it’s because of licensing agreements, money, and internet censorship. The company has licensed all the content that you stream. These licenses specify where this content can be shown. The producers of this content can charge streaming companies based on audience size. Basically, more countries mean more money.

Streaming companies mitigate costs by only supplying content that’s heavily demanded. All of this is why AbemaTV hasn’t blown up across the world, yet. The demand isn’t high enough to mitigate costs. So, we still need VPNs. Here are a few of our best.

The best VPNs for AbemaTV

There are extremely many VPN services all over the world. However not all works that well with AbemaTV. Here is the best VPN services for AbemaTV that we have tested.

ExpressVPN

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Key features

  • No logging of personal data
  • Excellent customer support
  • Over 3000 servers
  • Fast and reliable speeds

This VPN is our favorite VPN on this list. We’ll tell you why. To watch AbemaTV, a VPN should have servers in Japan, and not just any servers, optimized streaming servers. ExpressVPN has over 3000 servers in 94 countries, and Japan is one of them. These servers are fully optimized for streaming.

But, you can’t stream without a speedy network. ExpressVPN already has that covered, with enough speed to let you watch your favorite anime, dramas, and sports in HD and 4K.

ExpressVPN also protects your privacy from any prying eyes, including those from ExpressVPN itself. This VPN provider is so dedicated to protecting clients’ internet security that they set up a feature called TrustedServer. This feature deletes all information about your session once you switch off.

There’s also protection from outside threats with features like kill switch, private DNS servers, and leak protection. All your data is encrypted with best-in-class encryption technology.

You can also choose which apps or information you want to pass through ExpressVPN’s protective layer, and which you wish to pass through your regular Internet Service Provider. This feature is called split tunneling. ExpressVPN can be used on several operating systems, including all of the most popular operating systems like Android, Windows, iOS, macOS, and Linux. They can also be used on gaming consoles, browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox, and on routers. They have an excellent 24/7 live chat customer service unit to answer any questions you might have.

ExpressVPN is one of the more expensive VPN providers, with its cheapest service at $8.32/month and its most expensive at $12.95/month. However, it’s our opinion that you get what you pay for with this VPN. But ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee with no questions asked. So, there’s no risk at all.

Besides from being a good choice for AbemaTV, ExpressVPN also lets you easily unblock shows such as GYAO or U-next if you are outside of Japan.

NordVPN

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Key features

  • Super-affordable
  • Cryptocurrency payments allowed
  • Compatible with all devices
  • Optimized servers with AES 256-bit encryption

NordVPN is often one of the best VPNs together with ExpressVPN, and it’s effortless to watch AbemaTV with it. This VPN has an enormous server count at over 5800 servers in 59 countries. Seventy-two of these servers are in Japan and seeing that they’re all optimized for both streaming and speed, you’ll be able to stream AbemaTV from wherever you want, whenever you want. These servers are also optimized for torrenting, so you can share and download all you want.

But while you’re being entertained, your data still needs to be protected. To do this, NordVPN has a kill switch and DNS leak protection. It also uses next-generation encryption to protect your web traffic, turning it to gibberish to any third party. However, NordVPN takes its customer’s privacy much further by incorporating two features.

One is DoubleVPN, a feature that allows you to take your data through two different servers, encrypting it twice and leaving no link to your real location. The second feature, Tor over VPN, does much the same thing. It encrypts your data multiple times by taking it through The Onion Router (TOR). Apart from these protective encryption features, there’s also CyberSec, a feature that protects users from ads and malicious websites.

NordVPN has apps for all the popular operating systems, and routers. It also has browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox. There are 24/7 live chat and email support to help with problems. NordVPN has pretty standard prices with the least expensive plan at $3.49 and the most expensive at $11.95. They also offer a refund within thirty days if you’re unsatisfied, so your money is safe.

Besides from AbemaTV, NordVPN is also a great choice for unblocking shows such as Japanese Netflix or Japanese Amazon Prime.

Surfshark

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Key features

  • Ads and tracking blocker
  • Connects unlimited devices simultaneously
  • Excellent speed
  • 24/7 customer support

Surfshark is a fantastic VPN provider that’s firmly established itself in just a few years. Surfshark may be young, but it’s not any less impressive than the other, older VPN providers. Surfshark only has about 1000 servers, but they’re cleverly spread out across 61 countries and optimized for speed, streaming, and P2P sharing. It also has NoBorders Mode, a feature that was set up to remove any restrictions on content.

Apart from a kill switch and private DNS and leak protection, Surfshark has several other features made to protect its user. There’s MultiHop, Surfshark’s version of DoubleVPN. Camouflage Mode allows a user to hide their activities from everyone, even their ISPs. Your information is protected to the extent that no one can see it, but no one knows you’re using a VPN either. Add this to using industry-leading encryption technology and some of the most secure protocols in the world, and your data might as well be in Fort Knox.

Surfshark also has Whitelister, its own split tunneling feature and CleanWeb, which clears out ads, trackers, and malicious software. No matter how great all these features are, they still aren’t Surfshark’s trump card. Surfshark took advantage of a small weakness most, if not all, VPNs have in offering their services. Their device allowance.

Most VPNs only allow a specific number of devices per account. So, Surfshark solved the problem by enabling unlimited devices on one account. Surfshark has apps for all the standard operating systems, smart TVs, routers, game consoles, and browser extensions.

Their prices are one of the lowest we’ve seen, considering the quality of service. Their prices range from $1.99 to $11.95. They also have a 30-day refund policy, so you have a chance to get your money back if you don’t like their services.

Surfshark is in general a great choice for watching Japanese TV overseas, easily unblocking shows such as NicoNico or TVer.

UltraVPN

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Key features

  • 256-bit AES encryption.
  • App compatibility with most devices.
  • Unlimited bandwidth.
  • One-click connect.

UltraVPN is another extremely young VPN, even younger than Surfshark. However, they’re both exceptional VPN, especially when it comes to streaming AbemaTV. UltraVPN is a service that’s rather focused on offering a site where streaming and torrenting media is safe. However, that doesn’t mean that security is lax.

UltraVPN has a fully functional kill switch and DNS with leak protection. It also uses powerful encryption technology. However, they’re unblocking capabilities are unmatched. You can securely unblock AbemaTV from wherever you are and stream in HD. UltraVPN has 100+ super fast servers across over 30 countries, Japan being one of them.

UltraVPN has apps for all the most popular operating systems, except Linux. They have the advantage of having apps that are extremely easy to use. You just sign up, choose a plan, download the app, login, and connect.  It allows five connections per account so, you should be able to cover all your devices. It can also be installed on FireTV. UltraVPN’s customer care representatives are on live chat 24/7, and there’s also email support.

UltraVPN has a price list ranging from $3.75/month to $7.95/month. Plus, they take their 30-day refund policy seriously, so if you’re not happy about how it works with AbemaTV, you can just get your money back.

CyberGhost

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Key features

  • Been around for a long time
  • Robust and fast servers
  • Many servers in Japan

Compared to some companies on this list, CyberGhost is ancient. This VPN provider has been ensuring data privacy and security for over 15 years. More recently, they’ve started to ensure internet freedom. They believe that the internet should be uncensored, and everyone should be able to view whatever content they like. This is why 44 out of its 112 locations are in Japan; to help you watch whatever you like, including AbemaTV.

CyberGhost has 5900 servers in 89 countries, and some of these servers are optimized for streaming and torrenting. CyberGhost also makes it easy to hide your IP address, which is essential for unblocking AbemaTV. It also protects you from spying eyes with their military-grade encryption. Thanks to its kill switch and DNS leak protection, you and your web traffic are also safe while using any network, anywhere.

For those who are more dedicated to protecting their privacy while they stream AbemaTV, you can choose to buy CyberGhost’s NoSpy Servers. The NoSpy Servers are operated independently by the CyberGhost team. It uses super high, premium hardware and has dedicated uplinks. It has a larger bandwidth and better speeds than a regular CyberGhost subscription. Otherwise, it has everything a regular subscription has. NoSpy Mode costs $4.99/month.

CyberGhost allows up to seven simultaneous connections on one account. It has apps for all popular operating systems, routers, browser extensions, smart TVs, game consoles, proxies, and TV boxes. CyberGhost is also averagely priced, ranging from $2.75 to $12.99.

Is it legal to use a VPN?

This isn’t a question that can be answered with a yes or a no. Or, we should say it can be answered with both a yes and a no. In places like North Korea, Russia, and Iran, there are restrictions on using VPNs, and some of them don’t allow it at all. Other countries like the USA, the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, the UK, France, Norway, Spain, etc., share information gotten from ISPs to other countries in an organizational network.

But these countries don’t ban VPNs outright. In most of these countries, it’s your right to choose if you want to use a VPN or not. However, if you commit a digital criminal act while using a VPN is still a criminal act. Your VPN provider’s headquarters may or may not be stationed in a country that will force it to hand over your logs. To avoid this, you should choose a VPN with a clear privacy policy and no-logs policy.

This is because, even if your logs are demanded, there won’t be any to give them, simply because your VPN provider doesn’t keep any.

Can you use a free VPN to watch AbemaTV?

We’re not sure that it’s impossible to find a free VPN that will allow you to stream anonymously. If you do find one, we would advise that you do not use it. AbemaTV is established by a large corporation and spends a lot of money blocking those addresses that aren’t located in Japan. It takes a lot of time, money, and resources for paid VPNs to unblock this service. Money that is earned from subscriptions.

Free VPNs do not collect payment for their service, so it’s suspicious that they have the funds to unblock media streaming services. Network providers that collect logs can sell these logs to the highest bidder and make a lot of money. If you’re concerned about your online privacy, you probably don’t want to use a free VPN.

In conclusion

For those who love Japanese culture, variety shows, or are originally from Japan and have moved somewhere else, watching AbemaTV may be extremely important. Using a VPN is the only surefire way to unblock AbemaTV’s restrictions. However, you must remember to choose a VPN that’s trustworthy and effective, like the ones explained above.