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Netflix goes global: How fast can you stream videos in different countries?

Netflix has gone global, but what streaming speed and quality can you expect when traveling abroad?

With Netflix available in over 190 countries worldwide, you can now stream your favourite TV shows and movies from just about any hotel room while traveling abroad – or anywhere with an Internet connection. But is it going to be as fast to stream as it is in your home country? What kind of Netflix streaming speed you can expect abroad?

Netflix’s existing streaming rights mean that content availability varies by region. So, if you’re in Hong Kong, you might not have access to all the titles you would in Russia, India or Iran, for example. Don’t worry – if you have an active Netflix account, you’ll be able to access all the titles in the local Netflix catalogue. But you may not be able to access TV shows or movies you were watching in your home country.

Netflix streaming speeds

Content is one issue, and the other is connection speed. Netflix streaming speeds vary according to your local connection, and it dynamically adjusts the streaming video quality based on that. Netflix recommends certain connection speeds for each level of streaming quality.

Not every title available in Netflix’s catalogue – at home or abroad – will be available in High Definition (HD) or Ultra HD quality. For example, most Netflix Originals are available in Ultra HD, but other TV shows and movies might only be available in Standard Definition (SD) quality.

This is where Netflix streaming quality is the highest

The type of connection a user can expect depends on the average internet speed of the country they’re in. Once you locate the country you’re visiting, you will know what your connection speed is, and find out just how fast your Netflix streaming speed will be.

A minimum internet speed of 0.5 Megabits per second is required for Netflix to work.

The speeds recommended by Netflix are:

  • 25 Mbps to stream Ultra HD
  • 5 Mbps for HD quality
  • 3 Mbps to stream in SD
  • 1.5 Mbps to stream Netflix at all

There are only 26 countries where you can expect Ultra HD streaming, but there are over 100 where you’ll likely get speeds quick enough for HD streaming or better. Only 30 countries had an average connection speed lower than that recommended by Netflix.

Keep in mind that these are only averages, and that average connection speeds are constantly going up worldwide. You may well hit a better connection than these numbers suggest, which would improve your Netflix experience. Remember that these Internet connection speeds are useful to know for more than just Netflix streaming speeds, but also for general Internet access.

Position (2019) – Out of 207CountryMean download speed (2019) MbpsQuality Expected
1Taiwan85.02Ultra HD
2Singapore70.86Ultra HD
3Jersey67.46Ultra HD
4Sweden55.18Ultra HD
5Denmark49.19Ultra HD
6Japan42.77Ultra HD
7Luxembourg41.69Ultra HD
8Netherlands40.21Ultra HD
9Switzerland38.85Ultra HD
10San Marino38.73Ultra HD
11Norway38.46Ultra HD
12Andorra38.31Ultra HD
13Spain36.06Ultra HD
14Belgium35.69Ultra HD
15United States32.89Ultra HD
16Latvia32.74Ultra HD
17New Zealand32.72Ultra HD
18Estonia31.55Ultra HD
19Hong Kong31.37Ultra HD
20Hungary31.1Ultra HD
21Lithuania30.66Ultra HD
22France30.44Ultra HD
23Slovakia29.45Ultra HD
24Finland29.34Ultra HD
25Canada28.76Ultra HD
26Slovenia27.83Ultra HD
27Germany24.64HD
28Poland24.38HD
29Ireland23.87HD
30Malaysia23.86HD
31Czechia23.27HD
32Portugal22.75HD
33Madagascar22.57HD
34United Kingdom22.37HD
35Iceland22.13HD
36Liechtenstein22.04HD
37Romania21.8HD
38Gibraltar20.27HD
39Monaco20.2HD
40Austria19.33HD
41Macao19.19HD
42Republic of Korea19.18HD
43Serbia19.17HD
44Guernsey18.26HD
45Thailand18.21HD
46Malta18.16HD
47Italy17.3HD
48Croatia17.22HD
49Bulgaria16.95HD
50Australia16.36HD
51Cayman Islands16.12HD
52Barbados16.03HD
53Aruba15.15HD
54Russia14.89HD
55Bermuda13.55HD
56Greece13.41HD
57Belarus13.19HD
58Trinidad and Tobago12.9HD
59Kosovo12.07HD
60Republic of Moldova11.56HD
61U.S. Virgin Islands11.45HD
62Bahamas11.13HD
63Isle of Man11.04HD
64Cyprus11HD
65Faroe Islands10.21HD
66Réunion10.02HD
67United Arab Emirates9.62HD
68Dominica9.48HD
69Uruguay9.16HD
70Montenegro9.1HD
71Jamaica9.08HD
72Israel8.85HD
73Turks and Caicos Islands8.78HD
74India8.66HD
75South Africa8.4HD
76Panama8.09HD
77Puerto Rico8HD
78North Macedonia7.97HD
79Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba7.92HD
80British Virgin Islands7.75HD
81Ukraine7.72HD
82Sri Lanka7.67HD
83Curaçao7.64HD
84Kenya7.62HD
85Albania7.61HD
86Bosnia and Herzegovina7.53HD
87Martinique7.23HD
88Georgia7.14HD
89Vietnam7.02HD
90Belize6.8HD
91Guadeloupe6.72HD
92Indonesia6.65HD
93Greenland6.51HD
94Bahrain6.24HD
95St Kitts and Nevis6.16HD
96Saint Lucia6.08HD
97Philippines6.05HD
98Mexico6.02HD
99Antigua and Barbuda5.91HD
100Morocco5.48HD
101Qatar5.35HD
102Turkey5.27HD
103Saudi Arabia5.27HD
104Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan5.2HD
105Sint Maarten5.13HD
106Grenada5.07HD
107Oman5.07HD
108Mauritius5.02HD
109Myanmar4.87SD
110Armenia4.85SD
111Brazil4.84SD
112Brunei4.78SD
113Kazakhstan4.66SD
114Tunisia4.64SD
115Fiji4.62SD
116Anguilla4.59SD
117Costa Rica4.52SD
118Iran4.39SD
119New Caledonia4.34SD
120Saint-Barthélemy4.12SD
121Dominican Republic4.09SD
122Cambodia4.03SD
123Saint Martin3.98SD
124Chile3.89SD
125Kuwait3.88SD
126Saint Vincent and the Grenadines3.81SD
127Guam3.73SD
128Nepal3.62SD
129Paraguay3.55SD
130Guyana3.49SD
131Colombia3.48SD
132Ecuador3.46SD
133Suriname3.4SD
134Namibia3.39SD
135Rwanda3.34SD
136Cabo Verde3.31SD
137Guatemala3.22SD
138Uganda3.22SD
139Ghana3.2SD
140Zambia3.13SD
141Azerbaijan3.1SD
142Burundi3.03SD
143Haiti2.94SD
144El Salvador2.93SD
145Seychelles2.93SD
146Laos2.92SD
147Peru2.86SD
148Honduras2.84SD
149Argentina2.83SD
150Zimbabwe2.73SD
151Bangladesh2.72SD
152China2.69SD
153Comoros2.54SD
154Nicaragua2.54SD
155Kyrgyzstan2.5SD
156Papua New Guinea2.47SD
157Tanzania2.34SD
158French Guiana2.26SD
159Senegal2.25SD
160Mozambique2.16SD
161Liberia2.11SD
162Mongolia2.1SD
163Togo1.96SD
164Sudan1.93SD
165Botswana1.92SD
166Libya1.88SD
167Lebanon1.84SD
168Ivory Coast1.83SD
169Palestine1.83SD
170Maldives1.81SD
171Bolivia1.73SD
172Cuba1.66SD
173Egypt1.62SD
174Malawi1.59SD
175Mali1.56SD
176Nigeria1.56SD
177French Polynesia1.51SD
178eSwatini (Formerly Swaziland)1.45Unable to stream
179Pakistan1.44Unable to stream
180Iraq1.39Unable to stream
181Uzbekistan1.37Unable to stream
182Algeria1.37Unable to stream
183Venezuela1.37Unable to stream
184Afghanistan1.26Unable to stream
185Gabon1.26Unable to stream
186Guinea1.25Unable to stream
187Angola1.21Unable to stream
188Gambia1.21Unable to stream
189Sierra Leone1.2Unable to stream
190Democratic Republic of the Congo1.1Unable to stream
191Mayotte1.09Unable to stream
192Tajikistan1.05Unable to stream
193Cameroon1.03Unable to stream
194Burkina Faso1.02Unable to stream
195Syria0.95Unable to stream
196Benin0.94Unable to stream
197Republic of the Congo0.93Unable to stream
198Djibouti0.88Unable to stream
199São Tomé and Príncipe0.87Unable to stream
200Somalia0.86Unable to stream
201Ethiopia0.8Unable to stream
202Niger0.71Unable to stream
203Turkmenistan0.7Unable to stream
204Mauritania0.59Unable to stream
205Equatorial Guinea0.51Unable to stream
206Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste0.45Unable to stream
207Yemen0.38Unable to stream

Adjusting your playback settings for data usage.

When you are traveling, you might be on a limited data plan and need to monitor how much data your Netflix streaming is using. You can adjust your settings for streaming higher or lower quality videos by clicking on “Your Account” in the drop down menu at the top right of your screen. Then click “Playback Settings.” If your data is limited, choose “Auto” or “Low.” If you are connected to WiFi or broadband and data is unlimited, choose “Medium” or “High” for highest quality streaming (and highest data usage).

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