Streaming Services in China: What Works in 2026

App	Chinese networks	Roaming eSIM	VPN
NetflixChecked Oct 20, 2026	Blocked	Varies	Varies
RobloxChecked Oct 23, 2026	Blocked	Varies	Varies
YouTubeChecked Oct 8, 2026	Blocked	Varies	Varies
SpotifyChecked Oct 20, 2026	Unreliable	Works	Works
SteamChecked Oct 20, 2026	Unreliable	Varies	Varies

What US streaming services work in China?

Few of them work on Chinese mobile data or Wi-Fi. The table above shows the ones we track.

• YouTube is blocked. The UK government lists it among the services permanently blocked in China, and GreatFire, which checks from inside mainland China whether sites open, answers “No” for www.youtube.com.
• Netflix isn’t offered. Its help center lists China among the places where Netflix is not available.
• Hulu and Amazon Prime Video are on Yale’s list of commonly used sites that aren’t available in China, along with Netflix.
• Apple TV is missing from Apple’s list of its services in China mainland. The list includes Apple Music, but not the Apple TV app or an Apple TV subscription.

For Twitch, see how to livestream from China.

Music streaming services in China

Apple Music is officially available in China, Spotify works only sometimes, and QQ Music and NetEase Cloud Music lead China’s own music streaming. Apple lists Apple Music as available in China mainland, but YouTube’s list of places with the YouTube Music app leaves out mainland China.

Spotify doesn’t list mainland China among the places where it’s available, and GreatFire answers “No” for its web player, open.spotify.com. Reports on the app disagree. On Reddit in March and July 2026, several users said it worked in China, some on travel eSIMs or roaming and one with “no need to vpn”. The travel site MyChinaGuide, which promotes its own app, says the app can’t reach its servers on a Chinese SIM or hotel Wi-Fi.

MyChinaGuide says QQ Music and NetEase Cloud Music dominate China’s own music streaming. Tencent Music Entertainment, which runs QQ Music, also runs Kugou Music and Kuwo Music. Holafly, an eSIM seller, says QQ Music’s and NetEase Cloud Music’s apps are mostly in simplified Chinese and need a local phone number or a WeChat or Alipay login.

Streaming services available in China

China’s own video services work on regular Chinese networks, Holafly says, naming iQIYI, Tencent Video, Youku and Bilibili. All four websites open in GreatFire’s checks from mainland China: www.iqiyi.com, v.qq.com, www.youku.com and www.bilibili.com.

• iQIYI calls itself a leading provider of online entertainment video services in China.
• Tencent Video is made by Tencent, according to Apple’s China App Store.
• Youku is Alibaba’s. Alibaba calls it China’s leading online long-form video platform.
• Bilibili calls itself a leading video community whose mission is to enrich the everyday lives of young generations in China.

MyChinaGuide says their catalogs are overwhelmingly in Chinese with limited English subtitles, and that signing up generally requires a Chinese phone number.

Download before you fly

Downloads play without a connection, so get them at home.

• Netflix downloads work in its phone and tablet apps. They expire after a period of time, and you need to stay signed in. Netflix’s terms say a download won’t play in a country where that title can’t be streamed, once you go online there.
• Spotify Premium downloads albums, playlists and podcasts. You need to go online at least once every 30 days to keep them. The free version downloads only podcasts.
• YouTube Premium benefits don’t work in countries where Premium isn’t offered, and mainland China isn’t on YouTube’s list. YouTube says videos downloaded before the trip stay available offline for 30 days.

Can you play games in China?

Yes, with limits: games you’ve installed on Steam play offline, but Steam Community is blocked, and Roblox needs a roaming eSIM or a VPN.

On Steam, a Steam Deck owner in Beijing wrote on Reddit in March 2026 that signing in, downloading and cloud saves work without a VPN, but Steam Community needs one. In the same thread in April, another user said Steam failed every time they tried to sign in on a laptop. GreatFire answers “No” for steamcommunity.com and “Sometimes” for the Steam store. Set up offline mode at home: Valve says to sign in with “Remember me” checked, update your games and launch each one before you choose Go Offline. Valve adds that games needing an active connection, or using an external launcher, won’t run offline.

Roblox is harder. In a May 2025 r/travelchina thread, one user said it couldn’t connect on Chinese internet without a VPN, and another said a Trip.com eSIM allowed Roblox sessions. The parent who asked reported in October 2025 that the kids could play, but it was slow and their data was limited. Roblox said in February 2026 that its Chinese version, Luobulesi, isn’t currently available to users in China.

How to watch YouTube and Netflix in China

To stream YouTube or Netflix in China, you need an eSIM that takes your data out of mainland China, or a VPN. Set up either one at home, before your flight.

• Roaming eSIM. MyChinaGuide says YouTube opens normally on a travel eSIM, because its mobile data never touches the filtered Chinese internet. Holafly, which sells eSIMs, says that depends on whether the provider routes your data through a network outside mainland China, so check before you buy. Video uses a lot of data: MyChinaGuide says a nightly Netflix binge would use up a typical 20 GB plan in under a week.
• VPN. You need one on hotel Wi-Fi, where MyChinaGuide says your traffic is filtered again. It says YouTube over a VPN often buffers and drops, especially since a crackdown in April 2026. VPN provider websites are filtered in mainland China, it adds, so install yours at home.

Our eSIM or VPN guide explains which one you need, the China eSIM comparison lists plans, and which VPN works in China now tracks VPN status. Our guide on VPN legality in China covers the rules for visitors.