Private Internet Access not working with Amazon Prime? Try these EASY fixes! (2023)

If you’ve been watching Amazon Prime with Private Internet Access and it’s stopped working, the streaming service has managed to block all of the IP addresses Private Internet Access can provide.

This can be frustrating but don’t panic. This article will explain some fixes you can try to resolve Private Internet Access not working with Amazon Prime.

See also:

• CyberGhost not working with Amazon Prime? Here’s how I FIXED that! (2023)
• ExpressVPN not working with Amazon Prime? There’s an EASY way to fix that! (2023)
• Tunnelbear not working with Amazon Prime? Try these EASY fixes! (2023)

Private Internet Access not working with Amazon Prime: Fixes

Below is a list of fixes you can try to resolve Private Internet Access not working with Amazon Prime.

Try each fix in order, if one doesn’t work, move on to the next and you’ll be watching Amazon Prime with a VPN again in no time:

Why does Amazon Prime block Private Internet Access?

To protect itself from potential copyright and licensing issues. Amazon Prime tries to block all VPNs from accessing its service. 

Amazon doesn’t have the rights to broadcast all of its content worldwide. Some content can only be broadcast in certain geographic areas. 

This is because Amazon has content distribution agreements with its content partners. These agreements stipulate where the content can be broadcast. This is why Amazon Prime libraries differ in different locations. A certain show will be on US Amazon Prime but not on UK Amazon Prime, for example.

Because VPNs are a good way to watch Amazon Prime libraries outside of their broadcast zones, Amazon tries to block them. If it didn’t do this, it could result in a breach of its content agreements, and when this happens, Amazon will face severe financial punishments. 

How does Amazon Prime block Private Internet Access?

Amazon blocks Private Internet Access by constantly monitoring VPN IP addresses connecting to its service.

Like most VPNs, Private Internet Access has more customers than IP addresses. This business model is the only way VPNs can work financially. The problem with this model is Private Internet Access users are forced to share IP addresses. 

When Amazon Prime sees an abnormal amount (more than an average household) of connections coming from the same IP address, it knows it’s an IP address provided by Private Internet Access, and it blocks it. 

This happens to all VPNs, but the best VPN, ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) has measures in place to make sure they can get around these issues.

Does Amazon Prime still work with VPNs?

Although Private Internet Access has stopped working with Prime, the best VPNs won’t run into these sorts of problems. 

ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) has measures in place to get around Prime’s VPN blocking techniques.

First, this VPN has a large amount of IP addresses, meaning you will have less chance of sharing an IP address with other customers. Second, its are capable of staying ahead of Prime’s blocks. 

When Amazon Prime blocks an IP address provided by ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) this VPN will close that IP address and open a new one that hasn’t been identified. This simple technique will allow you to watch Prime anywhere in the world reliably. 

The best VPNs to watch Amazon Prime

1. ExpressVPN 🥇

Why You Should Use ExpressVPN? It’s the fastest and MOST reliable VPN of 2023

Number of servers: 3,000+ | Speed: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 160 in 94 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes

ExpressVPN ($6.66/month) is still the best VPN. And importantly, it ALWAYS has servers that are open with major streaming sites such as Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, etc.

ExpressVPN is usually very good at playing Cat and Mouse with online streaming sites. Meaning, whenever one of its servers is blacklisted it creates a new one – giving its users a constant stream of servers that aren’t blocked. Needless to say, this is a valuable attribute if you’re looking for a VPN to unblock streaming sites.

Its app is easy-to-use and free to download on pretty much any device you can think of. Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, FireStick, Android TV, Roku, PS4, Xbox, Linux, even Apple TV (with a workaround). It’s got it all covered.

The app is another main reason this VPN is so good at unblocking TV streaming sites (that claim they block VPNs) is that its software takes a pragmatic approach to user management. While other VPNs tempt customers by promising them access to hundreds/thousands of servers in multiple countries, ExpressVPN does things differently.

With ExpressVPN you only have a handful of server locations to choose from. Once you select your location the app takes care of the rest. Assigning you to the fastest available server that’s not oversubscribed. This simple technique is so important, as it keeps ExpressVPN’s servers operating at lightning-fast speeds and prevents its IPs from getting blacklisted for “abnormal” usage in the first place.

Check out our full ExpressVPN review.

2. NordVPN 🥉

A very quick and trustworthy VPN

Number of servers: 5,000+ | Speeds: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 62 countries | Devices supported: 6 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes

NordVPN is the most widely-used VPN in the world. And it’s easy to see why. It’s a polished app that delivers fast connections (more on this later) to a massive network of VPN servers.

It’s the most reliable at unblocking popular streaming services too – US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. This is because NordVPN hired a full-time technical team (that’s responsible for monitoring its servers’ connections with popular TV streaming services) and has been aggressively investing in its network of IP addresses in key locations.

Another interesting thing to note is that NordVPN is an industry leader in its development of Nordlynx technology. Nordlynx is built using the WireGuard, a new VPN tunneling protocol designed to outperform current standards (OpenVPN and IPSec). The benefits, according to NordVPN, are dramatically faster transfer speeds while connected to a VPN. My tests – New Zealand to London – confirm that Nordlynx is currently the fastest VPN on the market. However, the difference isn’t dramatic, a few Mbps is all.

3. Ivacy

A very quick and trustworthy VPN

Number of servers: 1,000+ | Speed: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 275 in 100 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes

If you’re looking for an excellent VPN, with an even better price tag, Ivacy ($1.16/month) is a great option.

This VPN has all the features you need to stream BBC iPlayer, in HD, from any country in the world. I’ve been testing the app recently on Mac, PC, Android, iOS and FireStick and the results have been impressive – unlocking BBC iPlayer, US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. with ease.

The Ivacy app is a little different in regards to its UX (user experience). Instead of just selecting a UK server, you need to select the specific BBC iPlayer server. Don’t worry, this isn’t a bad thing – by connecting to a dedicated BBC iPlayer server, it simply means that you’re connecting to an IP address that Ivacy knows works with BBC iPlayer.

For an extra $1.99/month (£1.74) you can add-on a dedicated IP. This will buy you sole access to an IP address in a country of your choice, meaning you won’t have to share your IP (and speeds) with any other use. I don’t recommend this though, using the regular Ivacy servers is enough 95 per cent of the time.

4. CyberGhost

A very quick and trustworthy VPN

Number of servers: 1,000+ | Speed: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 275 in 100 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes

CyberGhost is one of the more established VPNs on the market. It has a well-established, and well-tested global network of servers that perform well.

From my tests over the past several months, CyberGhost has no trouble at unblocking major streaming services – US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max etc. This VPN performed well at maintaining download speeds, well above 65 per cent of my regular (non VPN) ISP speed.

That said, there’s nothing really unique about the service. Which forces you to look at its price-point. And there’s nothing special here. Its short-term $12.99/month price tag puts is well above the industry average of $10.10/month. Similarly, its long-term $2.75/month for 3 years deal isn’t much of a “deal” either.

Oddly, CyberGhost’s most unique feature is its a 1-day, no obligations, free trial. This is an appealing offer to customers who are new to VPNs. However, it’s important to remember that most reputable VPNs will offer customers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so try not to be too seduced by the offer.

Is watching Amazon Prime with a VPN legal?

In most countries, using a VPN is legal. There are only a handful of countries (spot the authoritarianism link) where using a VPN is illegal; these are: China, Russia, Iran, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, North Korea, Iraq, Belarus, Turkmenistan, Egypt, Eritrea, Seychelles, Suriname, Namibia, Slovenia, Nicaragua and Tajikistan.

If you’re outside these countries and are using a VPN, you’re legally allowed to do so. However, it’s important to know that using a VPN with some streaming services may breach that service’s terms of use.

If you subscribe to a streaming service, you automatically accept its terms of use. If we look at Amazon Prime’s terms of use, it states, “Due to technical and other restrictions imposed by content providers, the Service is available only in certain locations. The Digital Content (including subtitled and dubbed audio versions of Digital Content) and how we offer Digital Content to you will vary over time and by location. Amazon will use technologies to verify your geographic location. You may not use any technology or technique to obscure or disguise your location.”

This means, Amazon Prime can stop your subscription and ban you from the streaming service if you try to access its content with a VPN turned on.

However, given the wide-spread use of VPNs, plus the many legitimate and legal use cases for VPNs, it’s fair to suggest that banning customers for using a VPN would be a heavy-handed and financially costly policy for Amazon Prime (and other streaming services) to enforce.

In theory, if you’re trying to watch a streaming service (that you pay for) in a region where it does not traditionally operate, you risk having your account banned. However, the best VPNs for Amazon Prime Video use military-grade encryption, it’s impossible for streaming services to trace where you’re physically accessing its content from.

There’s one final thing to note on the subject: Amazon Prime has never banned anyone for using a VPN to access its service.

For more information you can check out our article answering Is streaming with a VPN legal?