If you’ve been watching Amazon Prime with Surfshark and it’s no longer working, all of Surfshark’s IP addresses have been blocked by Amazon.
This can be frustrating but fortunately, there are some easy fixes you can try to resolve this problem.
To fix Surfshark not working with Amazon Prime, follow the simple steps below in order and by the time you reach the final step, you’ll be able to watch Amazon Prime with a VPN again.
See also:
- Tunnelbear not working with Amazon Prime? Try these EASY fixes! (2023)
- ExpressVPN not working with Amazon Prime? There’s an EASY way to fix that! (2023)
Surfshark not working with Amazon Prime: Fixes
Follow these fixes in chronological order. If one doesn’t work, move on to the next until Amazon Prime works with a VPN again.
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Delete Cookies
Amazon might be accessing information stored on Cookies to determine your physical location.
Cookies are small, non-malicious files used to make your online experience better. The problem is, in order to do this, they contain information about your location.
If Amazon sees a discrepancy between the location Surfshark is showing, and your physical location stored on your Cookies, it knows you’re using a VPN and it blocks the connection.
To fix this issue simply delete your Cookies so Amazon cannot identify your location.
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Change to a different server
The most likely reason Surfshark has stopped working with Amazon Prime is because Amazon has blocked the IP address you’ve been given by the VPN.
The good news is Amazon Prime isn’t able to block Surfshark entirely. It can only block the IP addresses it provides.
Changing to a different Surfshark server will give you a new IP address. If this new IP hasn’t been identified and blocked by Amazon Prime, Surfshark will work with the streaming service again.
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Upgrade to a more reliable VPN
Unfortunately, if you’ve made it this far in the list, all of the IP addresses Surfshark can currently provide have been blocked by Amazon Prime.
This has happened because Surfshark can no longer stay ahead of Amazon Prime’s VPN blocking techniques.
From here there are two things you could do. You could wait for Surfshark to release new IPs that Amazon Prime hasn’t blocked, however seeing as its measures to stay ahead of Amazon are no longer working, the new IP addresses will inevitably be blocked as well.
The best way to get around this problem is to upgrade to a VPN that is still able to get around Amazon’s VPN blocking techniques.
The best VPN for Amazon Prime is ExpressVPN ($6.67/month). ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) has fast servers all over the world, and most importantly, it has measures in place that will stop all of its IP addresses from being blocked by Amazon.
On the off chance your IP address is blocked by the streaming service, ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) closes that IP address and opens a new one ensuring you can use the VPN to watch Amazon Prime reliably wherever you are.
This will stop you from running into the same problems you’re coming across with Surfshark.
Why does Amazon Prime block Surfshark?
Amazon Prime blocks Surfshark because of broadcast rights.
Amazon Prime doesn’t have the rights to broadcast its content internationally. A lot of Prime’s content is geo-locked meaning the streaming service only has the rights to broadcast it in certain countries. You may have noticed that Amazon Prime has different libraries in different countries.
Amazon Prime has to agree to very strict licensing and copyright agreements to get the rights to braodcast its content. And if it breached these agreements, it could face severe financial punishments.
Because Surfshark is a well-known way of watching Amazon Prime anywhere in the world, it could be the reason these agreements are breached.
To prevent this from happening, Amazon Prime tries to block Surfshark users from connecting to its service.
How does Amazon Prime block Surfshark?
Amazon Prime blocks Surfshark by monitoring abnormal connections coming from the same Surfshark IP address.
In order to be profitable Surfshark has more customers than IP addresses. The problem with this business model is it forces customers to share IPs.
Usually, only a household of devices (8-10) use the same IP address to connect to Amazon Prime.
When a large amount of Surfshark customers connect to Amazon Prime using the same IP address, Amazon Prime knows it’s a Surfshark IP address and it blocks it.
Does Amazon Prime still work with VPNs?
Yes, Amazon Prime still works with VPNs but you need a VPN that is still compatible with the streaming service.
You need a VPN with a lot of IP addresses, fast servers, and stay ahead of Amazon Prime’s blocking techniques.
The best VPNs for watching Amazon Prime are ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month). Both these VPNs have fast servers all over the world, they have a significant amount of IP addresses so there’s less chance you’ll be forced to share with another customer and they both use a technique that lets them stay ahead of Amazon Primes blocks.
When Amazon Prime blocks an IP address provided by these VPNs, ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month) will close that IP address and open a new one. This cat and mouse game allows you to stay one ahead of Amazon Prime’s blocks so you can watch your favourite shows without issues anywhere in the world.
The best VPNs to watch Amazon Prime
1. ExpressVPN 🥇
Why You Should Use ExpressVPN? It’s the fastest and MOST reliable VPN of 2023
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
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Get 3 extra months free when you sign up for a 12-month ExpressVPN plan. That’s 15 months in total for the price of 12.
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
- $6.66/month for 15 months
- $9.99/month for 6 months
- $12.95/month for 1 month
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.
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(30-day money-back guarantee)
2. NordVPN 🥈
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ No logs
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 6-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ No refunds for purchases from iTunes/App store
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for a 3-year plan with Private Internet Access and save 83% + 3 months free. That works out at $2.03/month.
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
- $3.49/month for 2 years
- $6.99/month for 1 year
- $11.95/month for 1 month
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.
Read our NordVPN review.
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3. Private Internet Access
The BEST low-cost VPN for streaming!
Pros
- ✅ Fast and reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Only 48 server locations
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for a 3-year plan with Private Internet Access and save 83% + 3 months free. That works out at $2.03/month.
Number of servers: 25,000+ | Speed: >75% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 70 in 74 countries | Devices supported: 10 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $2.03/month for 3 years
- $7.50/month for 6 months
- $11.99/month for 1 month
Private Internet Access is one of the leading no-log VPN services with over 1-million paying customers.
This VPN is one of the best in the industry at beating streaming sites’ VPN bans. It provides reliable connections with US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney+ Amazon Prime Video, etc. It also allows 10 simultaneous devices to be connected to its servers at the same time, so you can share the account with your close friends.
If – for whatever reason – you’re not happy with Private Internet Access, there’s a 24/7 live chat support available to assist you with your problem. PIA also offers the industry-standard 30-day money-back guarantee.
From my tests (from New Zealand) I was able to get download speeds of 70 Mbps while connected to a UK server using the Private Internet Access VPN (my non-VPN speed is 100 Mbps).
Special Offer – Save 83%
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4. Ivacy
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ Dedicated streaming servers
- ✅ 5-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
Cons
- ❌ Only 5 devices
- ❌ Sometimes runs slow
- ❌ Occasionally block by streaming sites for several days
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for Ivacy and enjoy a 7-day trial with no strings attached
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
- $1.16/month for 5 years
- $3.50/month for 1 year
- $9.99/month for 1 month
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.
Special Offer – 7-day FREE trial!
(30-day money-back guarantee)
5. CyberGhost
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ 1-day free trial
- ✅ Reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 7-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
- ❌ Average speed scores
SPECIAL OFFER – 1-DAY FREE TRIAL
Take advantage of CyberGhost’s 1-day FREE TRIAL!
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
- $2.75/month for 3 years
- $3.69/month for 2 years
- $5.99/month for 1 year
- $12.99/month for 1 month
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.
SPECIAL OFFER – 1-DAY FREE TRIAL
(30-day money-back guarantee)
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?
