How to Watch HBO GO in South Africa in a Few Minutes

Want to catch up on the latest HBO blockbuster shows? Then HBO GO is the service for you. Unless, of course, you’re not in the US. Since this is an American-based service, it only caters to US customers. If you want to watch HBO GO in South Africa, though, here are two easy-to-use methods that you can try out.

How to Watch HBO GO in South Africa with a VPN

Anyone who’s tried watching HBO GO outside of the US knows that the streaming giant has strict geoblocks in place. This means that unless you’re in the US and have an American IP, you won’t be able to access the service. In fact, you’ll get the following error message:

However, if you use a VPN, you’ll be able to bypass those blocks from the comfort of your own home. Short for Virtual Private Network, a VPN will encrypt all of your data and re-route your traffic through its own secure servers. When this happens, your public IP address automatically changes to match the location of the server.

In other words, all you need to do to access HBO GO in South Africa is to connect to an American VPN server. Here’s how you can go about doing that:

1. Sign up with a trusted VPN provider. Make sure to stay as far away as possible from free VPNs as they’re actually very dangerous to use.
2. Download and install the VPN app that matches your streaming device. You’ll find native apps for Windows, MacOS, iOS, and Android devices. Depending on the VPN provider, you can also find installation guides for non-native VPN devices like Smart TVs and gaming consols.
3. Sign in to your account and pick an American server to connect to.
4. Wait for the connection to establish. Once it has, you’ll have an American IP.
5. Go to HBO GO and enjoy your content from the comforts of your South African home!

Best VPN for HBO GO

Our leading VPN expert, Charles, has already written a detailed analysis of the best VPNs you should be using to unblock HBO GO. In a nutshell, ExpressVPN ranked as the top VPN to use.

Honestly? I’ve personally been using ExpressVPN for a very long time now, and I’ve never had a problem unblocking any website (including HBO GO) during any of my overseas vacations. They have a great 30-day “No Questions Asked” refund policy that you can use to test out their services.

If you find that ExpressVPN isn’t the provider for you, you can try out any one of these top-tier providers instead. They all have a valid refund policy that you can benefit from before deciding to commit to the service.

Rank

VPN Provider

Features

Links

• Best for streaming and privacy
• High speed servers in 160 VPN locations
• Works for Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu
• 24/7/ live chat support
• 3 extra months free on annual plan

Visit ExpressVPN Try risk-free for 30 days Read our review

• UltraHD streaming
• Free Smart DNS proxy
• Unblocks all major streaming services
• Limited Time 72% Discount

Visit BulletVPN Read our review

• Unlimited VPN connections
• Over 1000 servers
• Ad-blocking feature available

Visit Surfshark Read our review

4

• User-friendly application
• Exclusive Smart VPN feature
• Standalone Smart DNS subscription available

Visit Unlocator Read our review

5

• Extra security features
• Extensions for Firefox and Chrome
• Split-tunneling available

Visit NordVPN Read our review

How to Watch HBO GO in South Africa with a Smart DNS Proxy

If you’re not interested in the added security a VPN can offer but still want to watch HBO GO in South Africa, you can use a Smart DNS Proxy. Here are a few things you should know about this particular service:

• It does not hide your IP address. You will not be anonymous online while using a Smart DNS Proxy.
• This is a service you subscribe to that offers a list of channels it can unblock. Every Smart DNS service is different, so make sure you get a service that can unblock HBO GO.
• You can switch from US channels to UK channels (and so much more) without having to change servers.
• You will need to configure a Smart DNS Proxy on your device. This will require a little bit of patience and tech-savviness. Don’t let this deter you, though, you can easily find helpful setup guides that will walk you through the whole process.
• Since a Smart DNS Proxy doesn’t re-route your traffic, it also doesn’t slow down your internet connection.

If this seems like a service you’d be interested in, I would suggest using Unlocator to watch HBO GO in South Africa. Unlocator has a very varied list of channels you can watch with their service and offers up very handy setup guides to help you through the installation process.

As an added bonus, they offer a free 7-day trial that you can use to test their services out. You don’t even need to put in a credit card for it to work. If you do subscribe to Unlocator, you can still benefit from their 14-day refund policy.

Access HBO GO in South Africa – Final Thoughts

That’s really all there is to it! By using either method mentioned above, you’ll be able to bypass regional restrictions and watch HBO GO in South Africa. Remember, though, neither one of these services will remove the need for a subscription fee from the streaming channel itself. If you have to subscribe with HBO, neither a VPN nor a Smart DNS will bypass that subscription.