Is HBO Max Down Outside the US? How to Fix In 2023?

HBO Max is one of the richest and most popular sources of entertainment known across the globe today. However, many viewers have reported problems accessing HBO Max outside the US. Is HBO Max down outside the US? Let’s find out.

HBO Max is an American streaming service which has a geographical restriction. What is meant by this is that the platform ceases to function anywhere outside the US. It is only available to those physically located within the US boundaries.

If you are interested in watching HBO Max anywhere outside the US, you will first have to bypass geo-restrictions. The best way to do so is to use a VPN. A VPN will allow you to circumvent the restrictions and fix HBO Max down error anywhere.

Does HBO Max function outside the US?

HBO Max is an American streaming service with geographical restrictions and the restrictions are in all countries except for the US. Geographical restrictions make the service unavailable to people who are physically located outside the US.

The following message will pop up if you try to access HBO Max from any country other than the US: “Sorry, HBO Max isn’t available in your region yet”

For this, the service checks for IP addresses of devices. Devices having an American IP address means they are present in the US and are thus allowed access to the service.

Whereas, devices with an IP address of any other country are denied access in order to comply with the geographical restrictions.

How to fix HBO Max not working outside the US?

As the HBO Max platform is geographically restricted outside the US, a VPN is required to bypass these restrictions. What you have to do is employ a good VPN on your device and connect it with any server in the US. This will automatically give your device an American IP address.

HBO Max allows access to all the devices which have an American IP address and getting a fake American IP address with the help of a VPN will let your device have access to the service even when you are actually located in some other country.

To ensure that the service cannot find out your actual location, the VPN also hides the original non-American IP address of the device.In this way, making use of a VPN on your device will fix the issue of HBO Max not working outside the US.

Steps to set up a VPN for HBO Max

If you would like to enjoy watching HBO Max to the fullest with all the features and from anywhere around the world unrestricted, you would be needing a good VPN service.

Given below are the easy steps that will help you set up your VPN for watching HBO Max from anywhere.

Step 1: Sign up for a reliable VPN service like ExpressVPN to watch HBO Max unrestrictely.

Step 2: After downloading the VPN app, install it on your smartphone or another device.

Step 3: Sign in to the VPN app and connect to a server in the US as the service runs there without any restrictions.

Step 4: Open HBO Max on the web or launch the HBO Max app and start streaming even when you are outside the US.

VPN not working? Here are quick fixes

Delete cookies

The majority of websites, including streaming services, that are accessible nowadays on the internet give you the choice to accept or decline cookies whenever you visit the site.

This is done to make your visit to the website simple and effective. However, you should be aware that allowing cookies also keeps your information, including maybe your location.

Because of this, if you are located outside of the United States, HBO Max may recognize your location and restrict your access.

Switch between US servers

Each VPN can connect your device to a variety of servers. Additionally, every server has a unique IP address.HBO Max has the ability to detect VPN usage. Additionally, it restricts the IP address in use when it notices any access through a VPN.

However, it is unable to prevent all VPNs from being utilized with HBO Max. As a result, you can change to a different US server to provide your device a different fictitious IP address and watch on HBO Max.

Switch to another internet connection

Your internet connection may occasionally be the cause of a problem rather than the VPN or the platform. Therefore, you should try using a different internet connection if you are having trouble watching HBO Max.

You might use your mobile data or an alternate wifi or data hotspot to connect. In many cases, this simple fix resolves the entire issue.

Reinstall VPN app

It is likely that there might be a problem with the VPN application while it is being downloaded and installed, or a problem after the installation. A mistake in the application could also happen as a result of it not being updated.

Uninstalling and reinstalling the VPN application will solve all of these problems because it will download the most recent, bug-free version.

Make sure your VPN app is updated to the latest version

Your VPN app may not be updated to the most recent version, which could be causing issues for you when trying to stream on HBO Max.

If you use an older version of your VPN software, your VPN may no longer function fully. Maintaining your VPN app’s updates will ensure the greatest possible performance.

Look for a better VPN service

You may want to change your VPN if you have attempted all the options and are still unable to resolve the problem. It’s possible that your VPN service is insufficient to circumvent HBO Max’s geographic restrictions.

Think about signing up for a reliable VPN service such as ExpressVPN. After extensive testing, it was discovered that ExpressVPN offers top-notch services all over the world.

Compatible devices

The HBO Max streaming website is designed in a way that it is supported by most smart devices. Some of the popular choices are:

• Amazon Fire TV
• Android TV
• Apple TV
• PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5Cox
• Contour 2 and Contour Stream Player
• Roku
• Samsung TV (2016 models and later)
• Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S
• Xfinity X1 and Flex

HBO Max subscription plans

There are two subscription plans for the HBO Max streaming website. One is an ad-free version and the other is a plan available with ads.

1. With ads, the plan costs $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year.
2. The ads-free plan costs $14.99 per month or $149.99 per year.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

If you want to stream on HBO Max, you can, if you are in the US. But if you are in any other country then you will need a VPN to get access to the service.

Using a VPN bypasses geographical restrictions which are imposed on the HBO Max service and will thus let you stream on it from anywhere you are located. Our top recommendation is ExpressVPN because it’s features makes it completely safe to use.