Netflix has gone global, but if you are travelling, what speeds and quality can you expect?
Netflix has announced that it’s launching across the globe (excluding China, Crimea, Syria and North Korea), which means that the streaming service is now available in a whole host of countries that you might be planning to travel to in the near future.
You can check out the available titles per country by clicking here and the comparison of available titles versus the US library by clicking here.
The existing streaming rights that Netflix has means that the availability of content will vary by region, whether you’re in Hong Kong, India, Russia or Iran, for example. But Netflix itself won’t discriminate against you if you have an active subscription and your country location changes.
This means that if you log into Netflix abroad without using a VPN, you’ll be provided with whatever the local Netflix catalogue offers instead of the current library of titles in your location. Depending on where you are, that may be a larger or smaller library, but you should at the very least get a basic level of access.
Content is one issue, and the other is probably going to be connection speed, because Netflix dynamically adjusts the visual quality offered based on your current connection speeds. Netflix provides advised connection speeds for each level of quality offered, so it’s not too hard to discern what you need to have in order to be able to access a specific quality level.
It’s worth noting that not every title available on Netflix is streamed in HD or 4K quality. For example, most Netflix Originals are available in 4K, but other titles might only be available in standard definition (SD).
Here is Netflix’s advice on required broadband speeds for each type of connection, bearing in mind that the entry level speeds of 0.5Mbps and 1.5Mbps would require significant buffering:
0.5 Megabits per second – Required broadband connection speed
1.5 Megabits per second – Recommended broadband connection speed
3.0 Megabits per second – Recommended for SD quality
5.0 Megabits per second – Recommended for HD quality
25 Megabits per second – Recommended for Ultra HD quality
With Netflix increasing its footprint across the globe, it’s also increasing its audience, as long as those countries can meet the required speeds.
Using the global speed metrics provided by Akamai’s State Of The Internet data for Q3 2015, here is how each country compares and what type of connection a user in those countries can expect. Any location marked as N/A did not have available average download data for comparison purposes.
Keep in mind that these are only averages, and you may well hit a better connection than these numbers suggest, which would improve your Netflix experience. It’s interesting to note that there’s still no country on Earth that automatically passes the 4K quality barrier outright.
Likewise, for the countries where Akamai presents download speed data, there are none that outright fail the lowest bar for Netflix streaming, although you’re likely to encounter significant buffering connecting at anything under the recommended 1.5Mbps rate.
Country
Average Net Speed
Equivalent Netflix Quality
South Korea
20.543
HD
Sweden
17.445
HD
Norway
16.433
HD
Switzerland
16.204
HD
Hong Kong
15.8
HD
Netherlands
15.621
HD
Japan
15.027
HD
Finland
14.824
HD
Latvia
14.54
HD
Czech Republic
14.526
HD
Denmark
13.955
HD
Romania
13.082
HD
Iceland
13.046
HD
United Kingdom
12.974
HD
Belgium
12.775
HD
United States
12.572
HD
Singapore
12.5
HD
Ireland
12.431
HD
Lithuania
12.228
HD
Bulgaria
12.117
HD
Canada
11.896
HD
Andorra
11.78
HD
Germany
11.527
HD
Austria
11.391
HD
Israel
11.197
HD
Slovakia
11.189
HD
Hungary
10.659
HD
Portugal
10.583
HD
Poland
10.567
HD
Liechtenstein
10.476
HD
Spain
10.352
HD
Russia
10.225
HD
Ukraine
10.154
HD
Taiwan
10.07
HD
Slovenia
9.748
HD
Moldova
9.738
HD
Malta
9.695
HD
Estonia
9.374
HD
Rwanda
9.292
HD
Luxembourg
9.129
HD
Puerto Rico
8.795
HD
New Zealand
8.652
HD
Thailand
8.236
HD
France
8.154
HD
Australia
7.827
HD
Bahamas
7.599
HD
Mongolia
7.542
HD
Faroe Islands
7.479
HD
Georgia
7.071
HD
Trinidad and Tobago
6.799
HD
United Arab Emirates
6.793
HD
Italy
6.526
HD
Greece
6.322
HD
Turkey
6.225
HD
Macedonia
6.135
HD
Belarus
6.037
HD
San Marino
6.034
HD
Qatar
6.004
HD
Uruguay
5.92
HD
Kazakhstan
5.893
HD
Barbados
5.792
HD
Bosnia and Herzegovina
5.76
HD
Jamaica
5.684
HD
Papua New Guinea
5.683
HD
Chile
5.674
HD
U.S. Virgin Islands (St. Croix, St. John, St. Thomas)
5.665
HD
Croatia
5.563
HD
Mexico
5.546
HD
Cyprus
5.509
HD
Kuwait
5.301
HD
Grenada
5.142
HD
Sri Lanka (Ceylon)
5.13
HD
Albania
5.042
HD
Malaysia
4.883
SD (Recommended)
Montenegro
4.685
SD (Recommended)
Fijian Islands
4.637
SD (Recommended)
Zimbabwe
4.452
SD (Recommended)
Peru
4.43
SD (Recommended)
Saint Kitts And Nevis
4.396
SD (Recommended)
Colombia
4.242
SD (Recommended)
Argentina
4.171
SD (Recommended)
Ecuador
4.091
SD (Recommended)
Saint Vincent And The Grenadines
4.058
SD (Recommended)
Bahrain
3.957
SD (Recommended)
Dominica
3.957
SD (Recommended)
Cambodia (Kampuchea)
3.916
SD (Recommended)
Armenia
3.892
SD (Recommended)
Uzbekistan
3.778
SD (Recommended)
Iraq
3.7
SD (Recommended)
Brunei Darussalam
3.697
SD (Recommended)
South Africa
3.669
SD (Recommended)
Brazil
3.645
SD (Recommended)
Jordan
3.608
SD (Recommended)
Greenland
3.563
SD (Recommended)
Panama
3.485
SD (Recommended)
Azerbaijan
3.421
SD (Recommended)
Lesotho
3.416
SD (Recommended)
Vietnam
3.389
SD (Recommended)
Liberia
3.386
SD (Recommended)
Myanmar (Burma)
3.295
SD (Recommended)
Costa Rica
3.203
SD (Recommended)
Saint Lucia
3.201
SD (Recommended)
Morocco
3.163
SD (Recommended)
Western Sahara
3.163
SD (Recommended)
Saudi Arabia
3.152
SD (Recommended)
Oman
3.052
SD (Recommended)
Tajikistan
3.048
SD (Recommended)
Indonesia
2.969
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Mauritius
2.908
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Guatemala
2.907
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Tunisia
2.901
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
British Guyana
2.833
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Philippines
2.816
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
El Salvador
2.763
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Lao People’s Democratic Republic
2.677
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Kyrgyzstan
2.669
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Bangladesh
2.608
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Madagascar
2.564
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Nicaragua
2.553
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Nigeria
2.527
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Kenya
2.526
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
India
2.522
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Honduras
2.445
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Sao Tome and Principe
2.427
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Algeria
2.422
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Dominican Republic
2.303
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Suriname
2.232
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Haiti
2.145
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Bhutan
2.111
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Burundi
2.111
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Ivory Coast (Cote d’Ivoire)
2.076
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Pakistan
2.064
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
South Sudan
2.044
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Republic of the Congo
2.002
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Iran
1.997
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Belize
1.99
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Turkmenistan
1.975
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Mozambique
1.924
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Sierra Leone
1.886
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Gabon
1.877
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Tanzania
1.844
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Gambia
1.842
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Ethiopia
1.825
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Nepal
1.825
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Angola
1.8
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Namibia
1.781
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Bolivia
1.779
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Malawi
1.763
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Egypt
1.738
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Djibouti Republic
1.734
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Sint Maarten
1.703
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Anguilla
1.7
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Antigua and Barbuda
1.7
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Ghana
1.691
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Somalia
1.673
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Cameroon
1.657
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Uganda
1.633
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Lebanon
1.626
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Cuba
1.621
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Paraguay
1.506
SD (Recommended, buffering likely)
Venezuela
1.453
SD (Minimum Requirement)
East Timor (Timor-Leste)
1.437
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Zambia
1.397
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Swaziland
1.37
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Guinea
1.322
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Senegal
1.296
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Sudan
1.294
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Botswana
1.232
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Mauritania
1.229
SD (Minimum Requirement)
American Samoa
1.188
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Equatorial Guinea
1.164
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Democratic Republic of Congo
1.138
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Eritrea
1.134
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Benin (Dahomey)
1.126
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Chad
1.043
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Afghanistan
0.976
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Yemen
0.89
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Comoros
0.807
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Togo
0.777
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Guinea-Bissau
0.644
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Niger
0.622
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Central African Republic
0.616
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Libya
0.587
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Burkina Faso (Upper Volta)
0.578
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Mali
0.521
SD (Minimum Requirement)
Aruba
N/A
Australian Antarctica
N/A
Bermuda
N/A
Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba
N/A
British Indian Ocean Territory
N/A
British Virgin Islands
N/A
Cape Verde Islands (Cabo Verde)
N/A
Cayman Islands
N/A
Christmas Island
N/A
Cocos (Keeling) Islands
N/A
Cook Islands
N/A
Curaçao
N/A
Falkland Islands
N/A
Federated States of Micronesia
N/A
French Guiana
N/A
French Polynesia
N/A
Gibraltar
N/A
Guadeloupe
N/A
Guam
N/A
Guernsey
N/A
Heard Island and McDonald Islands
N/A
Isle Of Man
N/A
Jersey
N/A
Kiribati
N/A
Macao
N/A
Maldives
N/A
Marshall Islands
N/A
Martinique
N/A
Mayotte
N/A
Micronesia
N/A
Monaco
N/A
Montserrat
N/A
Nauru
N/A
Netherlands Antilles
N/A
New Caledonia
N/A
Niue
N/A
Norfolk Island
N/A
Northern Mariana Islands
N/A
Palau
N/A
Palestine
N/A
Pitcairn Islands
N/A
Réunion
N/A
Saint Barthélemy
N/A
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
N/A
Saint Martin
N/A
Saint Pierre and Miquelon
N/A
Samoa
N/A
Seychelles
N/A
Solomon Islands
N/A
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
N/A
Tokelau Islands
N/A
Tonga
N/A
Turks And Caicos Islands
N/A
Tuvalu
N/A
United States Minor Outlying Islands (Baker Island, Midway Atoll, Wake Island)
N/A
Vanuatu (New Hebrides)
N/A
Vatican City
N/A
Wallis and Futuna
N/A