Where You CAN'T Watch YouTube Anymore (2026)

Map Mayhem

Map Mayhem

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I checked whether YouTube works in all 197 countries: full blocks, age limits and bans that were later lifted. Real sources, no guessing.

🔴 6 countries block YouTube right now: 🇨🇳 China (since March 2009, part of the Great Firewall), 🇰🇵 North Korea, 🇮🇷 Iran (since 2012, plus a near-total internet blackout Jan–May 2026), 🇹🇲 Turkmenistan (since 2009, along with Facebook, WhatsApp and Telegram), 🇷🇺 Russia (slowed down from August 2024, then removed from Russia's national DNS in February 2026) and 🇬🇦 Gabon (social media shut down "until further notice" since February 2026).

🟡 1 country has an age ban: 🇦🇺 Australia. Since December 10, 2025, under-16s can't have a YouTube account, but they can still watch without logging in.

🟢 10 countries banned YouTube before, then lifted the ban: 🇵🇰 Pakistan (2012–2016, over an anti-Islam film), 🇹🇷 Turkey (2008–2010, over videos insulting Atatürk, and again in 2014), 🇧🇩 Bangladesh (Sept 2012 – June 2013), 🇳🇵 Nepal (September 2025, lifted within days after deadly Gen Z protests), 🇸🇾 Syria (2007 – Feb 2011), 🇱🇾 Libya (blocked in 2010 under Gaddafi), 🇹🇳 Tunisia (unblocked in January 2011 as Ben Ali fell), 🇹🇭 Thailand (April–August 2007, over a video mocking the King), 🇲🇦 Morocco (5 days in 2007) and 🇧🇷 Brazil (about 2 days in 2007, over a court order about a TV star's video).

🇩🇪 Bonus: Germany never banned YouTube, but a royalty fight with GEMA hid thousands of music videos there for 7 years (2009–2016).

The other 180 countries have no YouTube ban.

📊 Sourcing Wikipedia "Censorship of YouTube", cross-checked with Mediazona and The Moscow Times (Russia), Access Now (Gabon), Tor Project (Turkmenistan), Australia's eSafety Commissioner, and Al Jazeera / CNN / VOA / Global Voices for the historical bans. As of September 2026.

⚠️ Blocks and enforcement change fast. This reflects the latest verified reporting as of September 2026, not a live tracker. Short internet-wide shutdowns (like during exams or elections) are not counted.

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