A YouTube Premium subscription lets you watch videos ad-free, download videos to watch offline, and play videos in the background. It also includes ad-free access to YouTube Music. However, subscription prices vary hugely by country. It costs USD $13.99 a month in the US but is far cheaper in other countries such as India where it’s the equivalent of just $1.55 a month. Fortunately, you can use a VPN to get a YouTube Premium discount.
You can use a VPN service to connect to a server in another country. This encrypts your data and hides it (along with your IP address) so that your online activity and location can’t be seen. Instead, you’re provided with a temporary IP address so you can spoof your location. This allows you to access another country’s version of YouTube Premium and get a discount in the process. In this post, we’ll explain exactly how you can do this.
How to get a YouTube Premium discount with a VPN
It’s not difficult to use a VPN to get a YouTube Premium discount although there may be some trial and error involved to find a country that works. Below, we’ve provided step-by-step instructions to make things quicker and easier.
Here’s how to get a YouTube Premium discount by using a VPN:
- Sign up with a quality VPN provider. We particularly recommend NordVPN although Surfshark and ExpressVPN are also among the best VPNs for YouTube.
- Download and install the VPN on your device. Reputable VPNs make this process very simple. It only takes a minute or two.
- Log in to the VPN app and connect to a server in a country in which YouTube Premium is more affordable. YouTube Premium Ukraine works best as of late.
- Visit YouTube Premium and select your preferred plan before creating a new Google account (one that’s not tied to your data such as your actual location).
- Enter your payment details. Note that this is not guaranteed to work. YouTube Premium has increasing restrictions that can be somewhat difficult to bypass (more on this below).
You may need to clear your browser’s cache and cookies before visiting YouTube Premium. This ensures that it forgets your previous IP address (and location), and acknowledges the data provided by the VPN.
What are the cheapest countries for YouTube Premium?
YouTube Premium subscription prices vary by country. While you’ll pay as much as $13.99 a month in the US and 12.99 in the UK, it costs as little as $1.55 a month in India and $1.99 each month in Turkey.
Here’s a list of the cheapest countries for YouTube Premium:
| Country | Subscription price (local currency) | Subscription price in USD | Difference from US subscription price |
|---|---|---|---|
| India | 129 (INR) | $1.55 | $12.44 |
| Turkey | 57.99 (TRY) | $1.99 | $12.00 |
| Argentina | 1738 (ARS) | $2.16 | $11.83 |
| Ukraine | 99 (UAH) | $2.64 | $11.35 |
| Philippines | 159 (PHP) | $2.87 | $11.12 |
As you can see from the above table, India is by far the most affordable country for a YouTube Premium subscription. However, there are other cheap options if your payment method doesn’t work with the Indian version of YouTube premium.
Which version of YouTube Premium do VPNs work best with?
VPNs don’t work with every version of YouTube Premium. Indeed, it’s a growing challenge to get a YouTube Premium discount with a VPN due to restrictions in place (particularly those surrounding payment methods). India and Turkey are the cheapest countries for YouTube Premium but an increasing number of users are reporting having difficulties using their credit card or debit card from another location.
At the time of writing, VPNs seem to work best with YouTube Premium Ukraine. The Ukrainian version of YouTube Premium doesn’t require you to have a local credit card as yet. Of course, you’ll need to use a VPN that has servers in Ukraine. Fortunately many of our top-rated VPNs have servers in this location. Just be sure to clear your cookies once connected to the VPN before you access YouTube Premium to sign up for an account.
Why is YouTube Premium rejecting my payment method?
If YouTube Premium is rejecting your payment method, it’s most likely because it’s detected that your current location doesn’t match the version you’re signing up for. This is more likely to occur with some versions of YouTube Premium than others. Your options are to try a different payment method, try a different version of YouTube Premium (Ukraine works best), or to try a different VPN. We’ve found that NordVPN is the best VPN for YouTube.
Can I get a YouTube Premium discount with a free VPN?
It’s less likely you’ll be able to get a YouTube Premium discount with a free VPN (although not impossible). One of the main issues in this case is that few free VPNs actually offer servers in Ukraine. Those that do don’t tend to have many and you may find that you need to try a few in order to find one that works. Even if it does work, free VPNs are too slow for streaming anyway. This is largely due to the fact that most free VPNs engage in bandwidth throttling.
Free VPNs may compromise your online security. They can fail to properly encrypt your data, or simply not offer enough security features (such as a kill switch). This may leave your personal information at risk to third parties like your ISP and cybercriminals. In fact, some free VPNs keep logs of users and sell them to third parties. This can include browsing data which may compromise your identity. Overall, a free VPN isn’t worth the risk.
YouTube Premium discount: FAQs
Can I use my YouTube Premium subscription in another country?
YouTube Premium is available in over 100 countries and you can use it when you travel abroad to another country. However, if you travel to a country in which YouTube Premium isn’t available (such as China), you’ll need to use a VPN service to unblock and access its content. This requires connecting to a VPN server in a country in which YouTube Premium is available. This will change your IP address and bypass any restrictions.
Is it legal to use a VPN to get a YouTube Premium discount?
Yes, the good news is that it’s legal to use a VPN to get a YouTube Premium discount. It’s also legal to use a VPN to access YouTube Premium from overseas, provided VPNs are legal in the country in which you’re located (VPNs are legal in most countries).
However, using a VPN to get a YouTube Premium discount may go against the YouTube Premium Terms of Service. Indeed, it makes reference to its use of location detection services to determine a subscriber’s location.
Although YouTube Premium is cracking down on the use of VPNs to get a cheaper YouTube Premium subscription, it’s unlikely your Google account will be banned. However, you may find that YouTube Premium stops working in time, particularly if restrictions get tighter. If you’d like to reduce the risk of an account ban (or at least its impact), be sure to create a new Google account when signing up for YouTube Premium.
Will using a VPN slow down YouTube video streaming?
Yes, you can expect a VPN to slow your internet connection as a whole. A VPN encrypts your internet traffic and routes it to a server in your preferred location. This process (and extra distance traveled) can make for slower browsing and streaming. However, it’s far more noticeable with some VPNs than others.
We recommend you use a fast VPN which uses an efficient VPN protocol such as WireGuard. It should also provide unlimited bandwidth. This should allow you to use a VPN with YouTube Premium and still stream in high resolution without lag or buffering.
