What YouTube varies by country
Ads depend on the viewer's location and context, search and recommendations are localized, and a video can be blocked in some countries because of licensing or local law. A creator or rights holder who needs to confirm a block, or an advertiser who needs to see a pre-roll in a target market, has to load the page from that market.
Which session mode to use
Ad checks usually need a sticky session. Load a video, let the pre-roll play and capture it, then check the landing page, all from one IP so the location stays constant. Hold the session 5 to 30 minutes for this. Rotating sessions fit availability checks across a long list of video URLs, where each request is independent. Video streams are bandwidth-heavy; for availability checks, load the watch page or oEmbed data and do not stream the video.
Targeting tips
- Choose the exit country that matches the campaign's target geography; add a city token for local campaigns.
- Use mobile proxies when you must see the mobile experience on a carrier network.
- Log the exit country, time and a screenshot with each check.
- Re-run at several times of day; ad delivery rotates.
The ad verification page covers the general workflow, and SEO monitoring applies to YouTube search rankings too.
Staying within YouTube's rules
Use Nefo only for publicly available YouTube data. Do not inflate views or engagement, run bot accounts, access private or logged-in content, or try to evade bans, all of which violate YouTube's Terms of Service and our acceptable use policy. Watch your bandwidth when playing video: size the package to your workflow before you stream.
How to set up the proxies
Buy a package from 5 GB ($4.50, bandwidth never expires), open the proxy generator and copy the host, port, username and password into your tool. The gateway is gw.nefo.net:9000, and targeting lives in the username: -country-jp for Japan, -session-yt4 to hold one IP. Integration examples are in the docs, and prices are on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
Use a sticky residential session in the target country, load the video, capture the pre-roll and landing page, and record the exit location and time. Repeat at different hours.
Yes. Load the public watch page through a residential exit in that country and see whether it plays or shows an unavailable notice.
No. Inflating views or running bot accounts breaks YouTube's terms and our acceptable use policy.
Yes, video streams are heavy compared with page loads. For availability checks, load the page only. Residential bandwidth is from $0.90/GB and never expires; see pricing.
Sticky (1 minute to 24 hours) for ad checks that span several loads; rotating for independent availability checks on many URLs.