There is an site called TVer in Japan that allows you to watch Japanese dramas and variety tv shows for free. I will go into how to use access it to stream Japanese tv shows, but before I waste your time, I will tell you some of the hoops you will have to jump through in order to do it. The app is made for people in Japan to catch up on shows they miss and enjoy some nostalgia shows. The key here is that there is no expectation that people outside of Japan will be using the app.
So there are a few things that you need to know:
The app is only available on Japan’s app store. (You can also watch through your browser, see below.) That means if you want to use the app, you will need to find a way to get the app onto your device somehow. Frankly speaking, that is the first challenge for you. For example, if you are using an Apple device, you will need to figure out how to get an account on the Japanese app store using a Japanese apple ID in order to download the device. You will also need to download the TVer app somehow in order to watch on an Android device.
It can be watched via browser, TVer.jp but you will need to be in Japan in order to see the content. This is the best way to avoid having to download an app from the Japanese app store. The app is of course a little cleaner looking than the browser version, but I have watched plenty of shows on my computer and never felt troubled.
The main thing that needs to be emphasized is that you need to be located in Japan to watch Japanese dramas and variety shows and all the other content on TVer. If you try to watch from outside of Japan you will get an error. (The error may say to try again later or have some otherwise ambiguous sounding warning. I have tested it a bit and found that the errors I get when accessing from outside of Japan go away when I access from inside Japan.
Therefore you will need a VPN. Everyone should probably have a VPN these days anyway, but that goes without saying. I was able to watch using a default IP address in Japan. (This means you probably don’t need a personal or private IP address in order to do it.) You will need to make TVer think you are in Japan, though, so VPN VPN VPN.
Unlike services like Hulu and Netflix, for many shows TVer only carries the latest episode or the latest few episodes. They are for people to catch up on shows, not necessarily for people to be able to binge watch. Be awa. re that if you wait too long, you may miss that important episode you had been looking forward to.
Also note that when you first start using the app, you may get a questionnaire asking your birth year, birth month, gender, and Japanese postal code. Feel free to just make it your favorite city or area in Japan. For example, Osaka Station’s postal code is 530-0001. (Their questionnaire does not require the hyphen.) This is not going to come back to haunt you later, it really just seems to be a simple questionnaire. It looks like this below:
Year – Month
- Gender: (Male, Female, Other)
- Postal Code
- Respond (the blue rectangular button at the bottom)
For a little background, the site has been around for a while. TVer started back in 2015 as a joint project between Japan’s five major private broadcasters. The idea was to give people a legal, convenient way to catch missed episodes online, and also to fight back against the spread of pirated uploads. At first, the selection was fairly limited, but over the years the app has grown into Japan’s biggest free streaming service. In 2022, TVer even began offering simulcast streaming for some programs, meaning you can watch live TV online as it airs.
To Sum Up:
What You Can Watch on TVer
The lineup is broad and changes weekly. You’ll find:
- Japanese drama streaming – catch up on the newest prime-time series.
- Variety shows – comedy, game segments, celebrity talk shows.
- Anime – some late-night series are included.
- News and documentaries – for practicing listening skills and staying informed.
Unlike Netflix or Hulu, TVer doesn’t provide full back catalogs. Instead, it focuses on what’s currently airing in Japan. That means you’re watching the same shows Japanese audiences are talking about right now.
How to watch Japanese TV streaming for free including dramas, variety shows, anime, news, and documentaries :
- Use a VPN (or fly over to Japan!) to access TVer from within Japan
- Use TVer on your browser, or download an app on your device, noting that in most cases you will need to get that app from the Japanese version of the app store
- Be aware that it is for “catch-up” style viewing so old episodes may not be available. Try to stay up to date.
- Enjoy your favorite Japanese tv shows streaming for free