If you’re struggling with geo-blocks or firewall restrictions, you might be wondering how to unblock websites. Let’s face it. We all deal with website blocks. They’re annoying, discouraging, and downright unsolvable. At least at first. Luckily, no problem is unsolvable.
You see, you can unblock websites and access them no matter the circumstance. Sometimes, a website is blocked because of a geo-restriction. In other cases, a website block can be a result of law compliance, censorship, workplace/school policy, or something else entirely.
The best option to unblock websites in 2024 is with a VPN. However, this guide will review many other options that might be helpful. Let’s go through them and see how they can help you overcome restrictions and have any site at your fingertips.
Unblock Websites With a VPN: The Best Overall Solution
Having tried multiple methods (explained below), our team determined that using a VPN works the best. Not sure how a VPN works? Check out this guide. In short, this service lets you connect to an intermediary server located in another country.
As a result, your traffic is routed to that server, where you’re assigned its IP address. With your IP address now changed, any website you visit will see that IP instead of the original one. This, in turn, lets you bypass geo-blocks and unblock websites promptly.
While website blocks have different reasons explained later in the guide, most if not ALL of them can be resolved with an IP address change. This is why VPNs work so well. They can not only change your IP address but also provide additional security to prevent your IP address from leaking.
This is how many people access restricted gambling sites, Netflix catalogs, adult platforms, and much more. As this is the #1 method to unblock websites effectively, we’ll explain how to use a VPN first, and then, we’ll discuss alternative but less effective methods.
Bear in mind that VPNs work on all platforms and devices. The following guide won’t apply only to PC users but also to those on iOS/Android phones, tablets, laptops, and even Smart TVs. This is, again, why VPNs work so well if you’re struggling with site blocks.
How to Use a VPN to Unblock Sites?
In theory, all VPNs work the same but in practice, it’s far from that. While all VPNs can unblock some sites, not all of them can unblock a whole lot. NordVPN seems to be the absolute best option in our experience.
Why? Well, it offers servers in 111 countries.
It’s also a worthy site unblocker with special optimization for this purpose. It’s no wonder many use it to binge on Netflix and BBC iPlayer and alleviate censorship. Coupled with top-tier security, strong privacy, unlimited bandwidth, and the fastest speeds, it’s an amazing choice.
Here’s how to unblock a website you want with a VPN.
1. Set Up a VPN Service
Setting up a VPN is a major step. You’ll need a subscription which you can get below. Click the button and you’ll be taken straight to NordVPN’s site. You can now pick a discounted 2-year plan at just over $3 a month or select any other deal you find suitable.
Click the plan you want, enter your email, and pay using one of many payment methods. From here, you’ll need to verify your account through the provided email, make a password, and download the VPN. Once that is done, install the VPN on your device.
After signing in with your email and password, the VPN’s dashboard will open.
2. Connect to a Server
You’ll need to connect to a server to unblock a website. For this scenario, we’ll use the Australian TV channel called 10play. We’re in Europe but 10play works exclusively in Australia. The same could be said about 9Now and other Australian TV channels.
Nevertheless, we’ll need an IP adress from this country to access the channel. To get it, simply connect to the VPN server in Australia. Open the server list, find the country, click or tap once on it, and you’re set. NordVPN’s “Connected” message will appear up top.
3. Visit the Website You Wanted
After the connection is established, you can try to visit the inaccessible website and see if it now works. In our case, 10play worked like a charm, which can be seen in the screenshot below. We not only unblocked it but also watched many of its content.
However, this is just one example of a foreign TV channel. You can use NordVPN to unblock websites with different content or even completely different types of websites. From gambling and betting to porn, streaming, and gaming platforms – you can access them all.
In many cases, connecting to a server in your own country will suffice. In fact, simply encrypting your internet traffic with a VPN allows you to unblock sites that are restricted by firewalls (whether in your school, office, etc.).
Other Methods to Unblock a Website in 2024
Everything comes at a cost, so if you don’t want to pay for a VPN, does it mean you won’t be able to unblock the site you want? Not necessarily. As explained, a VPN will work wonderfully but it costs money, although not a lot compared to paid proxy services.
If you can’t pay for this service or you simply refuse to, we’ll explore other solutions to access a blocked website.
Using a Proxy Service
A popular method of unblocking a site is using a proxy. By this, we don’t mean paid proxies like Bright Data, Oxylabs, and others. These are way too expensive and made for different purposes, one of which is scraping. We think mostly about open proxies like this:
This is Hide.me Proxy, a 100% free option that you can use without installation. Simply go to the website, select one of the three proxy locations, and input the domain address you want to visit. Click on Go and see if you can unblock the website you want.
Proxies are far different than VPNs, however. They don’t have encryption and don’t use tunneling like VPNs. Even worse, they’re unoptimized for, let’s say, unblocking streaming sites, and will only work in mild cases of censorship and school/workplace restrictions.
Bear in mind that schools and workplaces will often block proxy sites, making them unusable. In addition, proxies lack security features and free options (not Hide.me) tend to track your online activities and collect sensitive information about you.
Proxies can be extremely slow, displaying just a bare minimum of performance. Don’t get your hopes up. Proxies can’t always unblock websites, so in many instances, they simply won’t work, making VPNs a superior option overall.
Access websites freely with NordVPN
Routing Your Traffic Through Tor
Tor is a great and pretty much the only way to access the dark web. We explained how to go on the dark web in privacy and Tor Browser is an integral part. However, it can also be used as a website unblocked if the reason for blocking lies in IP blacklisting.
Tor functions by routing your connection through its many nodes or servers handled by volunteers worldwide. In this process, your IP address is hidden and the connection becomes encrypted. The entry node encrypts the connection and it is decrypted at the exit node.
If your IP address has been banned from the site, Tor will hide it and make the request to visit the website look like it originates from another machine. Tor, however, doesn’t let you select the location like VPNs, so it’s a poor option for geo-restrictions. It doesn’t end there.
This browser is VERY slow because of the level of encryption and “bouncing” your traffic through multiple nodes. Not to mention it’s not as “anonymous” as it claims to be because its nodes can be compromised, in which case, you can be exposed.
Using an IP Address Instead of a Website URL
How to unblock websites without special software? Well, you can go for the very old trick and try to get on the site through its IP rather than the URL. Schools, workplaces, and other institutions can block only specific URLs but leave out IP addresses.
This is rather stupid on their side but it will let you capitalize on it by using the IP of the website. To clarify things, every website has its IP address, which is a unique sequence of numbers assigned to each website. The problem is how to find the IP address.
Well, it’s simple:
- Open the Command Prompt on your computer (as an administrator)
- Type in “ping” and then enter the name of the website (example of a command “ping facebook.com“).
- Press Enter and the IP address of the website will appear.
With this IP address in your hands, copy and paste it into the browser window and see if you can unblock the site. There are other ways to detect an IP of the domain. macOS users will need to use the Terminal and the “traceroute” command, for instance.
Linux users can use the “dig websitename.com” command instead.
Clearing the Website Data (Works on Chrome)
Some people want to know how to unblock websites on Chrome. The trick that they can perform is to clear the website data, which consequently works on Brave and other Chromium browsers. How does this help? It returns the site to its original state.
This, in turn, makes it as if you were visiting the site for the first time, wiping all cookies, cache, and other data accumulated in your device. To unblock a website on Chrome, you’ll need to follow these few steps:
- Open Google Chrome.
- Go to Settings.
- Click on “Privacy and Security” and select “Site Settings.“
- Go to “View permissions and data stored across sites.“
- Find the website you want to unblock and click on the Trash icon next to it.
- When the prompt appears, click “Delete” to remove all permissions and site data.
- Go to the website now and see if it works.
Unblocking websites on Chrome also works on its mobile versions, so you can follow this guide even if you aren’t a PC user. We want to quickly mention that you can use a VPN for Chrome and not have to perform this solution. VPNs have their browser extensions.
They can be installed directly on the browser and help you unblock websites easily. NordVPN and ExpressVPN, in particular, have the best extensions that work like full-on VPNs and unblock websites the same way, helping you bypass even geo-restrictions.
Clearing the website data, unfortunately, works only on non-geo-blocked websites.
Try Using Cached Versions of Websites
If you’re trying to access a restricted domain without success, we suggest going for its cached version. This domain version is stored on Google’s temporary storage. The solution is simple. Before you enter the URL, type in “cached:” and you’re good to go.
Here’s an example; cached:www.facebook.com.
After you enter the domain address this way, press Enter and it should work. As this is a cached version of the site, it might not work as the current version, so don’t be shocked if it’s slower, looks altered, or is missing some of its crucial elements.
Visiting a Website Through Google Translate
Google Translate is handy if you’re having trouble with foreign languages but that’s not all! This capable translator can help you unblock websites, which, at first, sounds silly. In practice, this solution works relatively well unless we’re talking about, of course, geo-blocks.
Open Google Translate and type in the domain of the website in the left text box. In the Translation box, which is on the right, will appear the hyperlink of the domain. Click on it and you should be able to visit the website. It’s far from perfect, though.
The website quality will be poor and you won’t get the experience you want. We noticed that some websites display only text instead of their full page. Pages can be in disarray and missing elements, so links and buttons will not work.
We think this method of unblocking websites is useful only if you need to extract information from them. In some cases, seeing only text is enough to fetch the information you need and move on. If not… well, we go back to our VPN recommendation from before.
Why Are Websites Blocked?
Nothing happens without a good reason. This clever phrase can be applied to website blocks and restrictions that we frequently encounter. Let’s explain the most typical reasons for not being able to access the website.
Geo-Restrictions
Not being able to use Netflix, BBC, Hotstar, and other streaming services comes as a result of geo-blocks. As the name implies, this means the website is restricted only to specific regions or one region, while the rest are not allowed to access it.
Here’s an example:
This happens because of licenses and copyright agreements that allow the site to operate only in specific regions. Netflix is a good example. It doesn’t own all of its content and most belong to copyright holders. These companies decide where the content will be accessible.
For example, if a movie is owned by a company that doesn’t want it broadcast to Germany, people in this country won’t be able to watch it on Netflix. Netflix has its own “Originals” that represent titles owned by the company and they’re available worldwide.
You won’t have to change your Netflix region to watch them. Geo-restrictions can ONLY be overcome with a VPN – no other solution works. They allow you to switch your IP to another location, pretend that you’re there, and unblock websites that are region-locked.
ISP Blocking
ISPs have total control over your internet experience. They can use bandwidth throttling to deter you from gaming, torrenting, streaming, and so forth. In the same fashion, they can block websites to prevent bandwidth congestion and enforce their proprietary apps.
For example, ISPs offer their apps for streaming that you need to pay for. If you use Netflix, your money doesn’t fill their pockets and they’ll intentionally throttle all bandwidth spent on Netflix, making the streaming experience choppy and laggy.
In some cases, they can completely block websites and VoIP services. People use VPNs in the UAE to enjoy Skype, WhatsApp, Viber, and other free messaging apps for this reason.
Censorship & Legal Reasons
Censorship and legal reasons are often combined in many countries. China, Turkey, Russia, Belarus, and many other countries block websites that counter their political or religious beliefs. Censorship is a serious issue in 2024 and makes the internet extremely limited.
China blocks all Google services, social media, YouTube, and all mainstream sites, leaving you with nothing but crumbs. Some countries block porn, while others restrict access to anti-religious content found on some platforms. The same can happen in reverse.
Websites can use self-blocking in specific countries to adhere to legislation. That was the case with PornHub, which self-restricted access to its site to people in Texas. If you are in a country or state where the site is inaccessible, we recommend reading our selection of the best VPNs for Pornhub.
School & Workplace Policies
Unblocking websites at school and the workplace is often a primary interest for internet users. However, we understand that restricting certain sites is sensible. After all, you’re at school to learn, not to juggle between Facebook and TikTok.
Conversely, your workplace should be a place to work and earn your keep and not have fun all the time. This is why gaming sites, social media platforms, and adult portals aren’t allowed in these places. Schools and companies don’t want you to be distracted – understandably.
If you ever need to access a site blocked by your school, feel free to check out our list of the best VPNs for school.
Is It Legal to Unblock Websites?
While a VPN and other tricks can help you access restricted sites, some wonder if this is the right call. We discussed the VPN legality in a separate guide where we explained that this service is usually legal in most countries. By most, we mean more than 90%.
However, the legality of this service is valid unless you use it to perform illicit online activities. Downloading copyrighted torrents, despite the VPN’s ability to conceal this activity, is still illegal. It’s like murdering someone and not getting caught.
This still means you’ve performed something you shouldn’t. Unblocking websites at school, bypassing geo-blocks, and circumventing censorship are benign and usually won’t get you in trouble. It will, however, go against certain policies and rules.
Netflix has an anti-VPN policy that forbids the use of IP-changing tools to access its region-locked content. However, no one landed in jail for watching Netflix with a VPN. One thing to worry about is your country’s legislation, which might differ if the country is more “strict.”
For example, many countries deem gambling illegal, so if you unblock a website like Betfair or a random online casino, it’s against the law. Many Muslim countries don’t allow pornography, so again, watching PornHub there will be law-unfriendly.
Before you unblock a website of a sensitive nature (excluding Netflix and most streaming sites), inform yourself about your country’s laws and legislation. If the site is illegal in your country, don’t do it and fully respect the laws put in place. They’re there for a reason!
Final Words
Despite the type of website block, a VPN remains the most dependable option to get over it. This especially applies to geo-restrictions that can only be circumvented with a Virtual Private Network. Other restrictions can sometimes be remedied with alternatives.
Proxies can help you unblock websites at school, while Tor gives access to otherwise restricted Onion domains. Other methods might work for you as well but they’re way less effective and aren’t guaranteed to always work.
As for the VPN, we also gave you a few choices. NordVPN tops the list as the best overall option, but ExpressVPN and even Private Internet Access should fit the bill. Their large server networks can help you change your IP and unblock websites in seconds.