Raven Wu
Updated on: December 22, 2023
Short on time? Here’s the best way to set up Real Debrid on Kodi in 2024:
- 1. Download and install a good VPN. My favorite VPN for Real Debrid is ExpressVPN, which is the fastest VPN on the market and has excellent privacy and security features.
- 2. Sign up for Real Debrid and set it up on Kodi. I recommend getting a premium account because free accounts are very limited.
- 3. Enjoy streaming your favorite shows and movies! You can now watch HD videos with less buffering.
Real Debrid is great for streaming content on Kodi, but it may put your privacy at risk. The service logs your IP address and streaming activity and may share this information with third parties for legal reasons.
Fortunately, there’s an easy way to protect your privacy — just use a VPN. A good VPN, like ExpressVPN, hides your real IP address and encrypts your data, keeping your personal information safe and online activities private.
What Are the Benefits of Setting Up Real Debrid on Your Kodi Device?
- High-quality streaming. Real Debrid provides access to premium hosters, which means you’ll be able to watch videos in HD and even 4K quality.
- Faster speeds. Real Debrid uses premium servers, which typically have faster and more stable connections. This helps avoid buffering and lag.
- Fewer broken links. Real Debrid prioritizes premium links, which are less likely to be removed compared to free links.
- Watch a wider range of content. With Real Debrid, you get a larger array of sources and links that are typically not available to free users. This broadens your selection of movies, TV shows, and other content on Kodi.
- Unrestricted downloading. Real Debrid provides high-speed downloads and allows you to store files on its server. It also supports multiple simultaneous connections, so you can download more than one file at the same time.
- Great value for your money. Although Real Debrid is a paid service, it’s relatively inexpensive compared to other streaming and file hosting services, especially considering the improved streaming experience and the variety of content you can find on it.
Why Could Real Debrid Be a Privacy Concern?
Real Debrid is severely lacking on the privacy front. Its privacy policy states that it logs your IP address and streaming activity. Also, the company will share this type of data with third parties if required by authorities.
The best way to protect your privacy online and use Real Debrid is to use a VPN. It has servers located all over the world. When you connect to a VPN server, it replaces your IP address, which reveals your general location, with a new IP address that matches the location of the server location — this way, it will appear as if you’re using Real Debrid from a virtual location. Also, a VPN encrypts your internet traffic, which makes it unreadable, even to your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
In addition, all of the top VPNs on the market have a strict no-logs policy. This means the provider doesn’t store any of your web activities, including the files you download, or log your IP address.
How to Install Real Debrid on Kodi (Step-By-Step Guide)
Before you get started, make sure you have an active Real Debrid subscription. I strongly recommend purchasing a Premium subscription, which is super cheap — Real Debrid offers a free plan but it’s extremely limited.
Setting up Real Debrid on Kodi can get a little technical, but you shouldn’t encounter problems if you follow my guide below.
- Run Kodi, then go to your Kodi settings by clicking on the gear icon.
- Click System in the settings menu.
- Click Add-ons, then Manage dependencies. If you don’t see Manage dependencies in your Add-ons menu, you need to change your view mode in the bottom left to Advanced.
- Find ResolveURL. You’ll have to scroll down the list to see it. If you don’t see ResolveURL, then you probably don’t have an add-on that’s compatible with Real Debrid, and you’ll have to install one to proceed. The good news is a lot of add-ons work with Real Debrid.
- Go to Configure.
- Click Universal Resolvers 2, scroll down to find the Real Debrid section, then click Priority.
- Change Real Debrid’s Priority to 90, then confirm the change by clicking Done.
- Make sure you save your settings by clicking the OK button.
- Next, click (Re)Authorise My Account.
- You will be prompted to go to real-debrid.com/device and asked to enter a code. Then, let the on-screen instructions walk you through the authorization process.
- Wait for authorization. This may take a few seconds. Once it goes through, you’ve successfully set up Real Debrid on Kodi! From now on, when you search for a show or movie on your preferred Kodi add-on, you’ll see premium Real Debrid links show up on the list.
Best VPNs for Real Debrid & Kodi in 2024
- 🥇1. ExpressVPN — Best VPN for Real Debrid & Kodi in 2024.
- 🥈2. Private Internet Access — Great VPN for torrenting with Real Debrid.
- 🥉3. CyberGhost VPN — Good Real Debrid & Kodi VPN for beginners.
🥇1. ExpressVPN — Best VPN for Real Debrid & Kodi in 2024
ExpressVPN is my top VPN for Real Debrid. It’s our no. 1 choice for Kodi, and it’s on Real Debrid’s list of cooperative VPN providers, which means Real Debrid doesn’t block its IP addresses. I also really like that it has a vast server network spread across 105 countries, so you’ll always be able to find a nearby server to connect to for the fastest possible speeds.
This VPN provides industry-leading privacy and security features, so it resolves the privacy issues that come with using Real Debrid, including:
- Audited no-logs policy. ExpressVPN’s no-logs policy has been independently confirmed multiple times.
- Full leak protection. Keeps your IP address and location hidden by preventing IPv6, DNS, and WebRTC leaks. I ran leak tests on 10+ servers and never saw any leaks (I only saw the VPN’s IP address).
- RAM-only servers. Your data is never stored on a hard drive. Instead, it’s stored in volatile memory, which is wiped every time the server is powered on/off.
- Perfect forward secrecy. Constantly switches the encryption keys used to protect your data. This means that if a hacker obtained one of your keys, they’d only gain access to a tiny amount of your data, and data from your past and future sessions would remain secure.
ExpressVPN is the fastest VPN on the market. In my tests, videos I watched via Real Debrid’s sources loaded instantly, and I was able to stream in HD without buffering. I had my colleagues in other countries, including the US, Canada, UK, Austria, and South Africa test speeds connected to local servers with Real Debrid, and they all experienced similar speeds as me.
I like that ExpressVPN allows P2P traffic on all of its servers. To test this, I tried torrenting files from Real Debrid’s links while connected to 5+ different countries, including the US, Germany, Singapore, Japan, and Australia, and I never experienced any issues.
It’s really easy to set up and use, too. ExpressVPN divides its servers into regions, which makes it easier and quicker to connect to your preferred location. Plus, there’s a Favorites option for quick access to your most used server locations.
ExpressVPN is also one of the few VPNs which has a dedicated router app, which makes it a lot easier to set up the VPN for devices without native VPN support like your gaming console or your smart TV. Also, when you connect ExpressVPN to your router, it protects all of the devices in your home that are connected to the router.
I think it’s great that ExpressVPN has a split-tunneling feature. It lets you choose which apps use the VPN and which apps use your local network. I used it to only send Kodi traffic through my ExpressVPN connection, so I didn’t have to turn the VPN off every time I wanted to use an app that required my geo-location (like a food delivery service) or visit a site that blocks VPNs, such as most banking sites.
ExpressVPN’s plans start at $6.67 / month. It’s a little more expensive than its competitors, but it’s well worth its price for how much value it provides. All subscriptions are also backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try it out risk-free.
Read our full ExpressVPN review
🥈2. Private Internet Access — Great VPN for Torrenting With Real Debrid
Private Internet Access (PIA) is great for torrenting videos off of Real Debrid. It allows torrenting on all of its servers across 91 countries, and it comes with some great extra features. For example, it has port forwarding on all of its apps (though not on US servers due to legal reasons), which allows for much faster downloads on the go.
It’s also excellent for privacy and security. It has full leak protection and uses both perfect forward secrecy and RAM-only servers. Additionally, it’s one of the only VPNs with open-source apps, so anyone can inspect its code for vulnerabilities. Also, it releases regular transparency reports that detail all the requests for user data that it’s received and how it was unable to comply as it doesn’t keep logs.
PIA’s speeds are impressive, but it’s not as fast as ExpressVPN. I tested several nearby servers and was always able to stream in HD using Real Debrid buffer-free.
I’m a fan of PIA’s apps because they’re user-friendly and customizable. I was able to change my encryption level between 128-bit AES or 256-bit AES encryption (the former provides slightly faster speeds) and set rules for when PIA should automatically connect to trusted/untrusted Wi-Fi networks. I also find it very convenient that PIA lets you change the look and layout of the apps and move your most-used features to the top for quicker access. On top of that, PIA allows unlimited connections, so you can use it on as many devices as you need for Real Debrid.
And, I really like PIA’s split-tunneling feature. It lets you split-tunnel apps, but it also allows you to exclude websites from the VPN connection. I was able to set it up so only my Real Debrid traffic was routed through the VPN, which increased by speeds a little bit.
Private Internet Access (PIA)’s plans cost as low as $2.11 / month, making it one of the most affordable VPNs out there. It also backs all subscriptions with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Read our full Private Internet Access review
🥉3. CyberGhost VPN — Good Real Debrid & Kodi VPN for Beginners
CyberGhost VPN is one of the most intuitive VPNs for Real Debrid and Kodi. Its apps are very easy to use, and I particularly like how all of its basic features have brief explanations attached to them. It’s also handy how its home screen tells you useful connection information like your current IP address and what your upload and download speeds are.
You get great privacy and security. CyberGhost protects against DNS and IPv6 leaks (disables all IPv6 traffic) and uses perfect forward secrecy and RAM-only servers. Like Private Internet Access, it also releases regular transparency reports.
I got good speeds while connected to CyberGhost. All HD videos loaded immediately, and I never experienced any buffering even when I skipped through videos.
CyberGhost allows torrenting on dedicated P2P servers in 75+ countries. It’s fewer than ExpressVPN, but this shouldn’t cause any real problems when you want to torrent videos via Real Debrid on Kodi since you’ll still be able to find nearby servers for fast speeds. I still prefer Private Internet Access for downloading torrents off of Real Debrid since CyberGhost doesn’t have port forwarding.
CyberGhost VPN’s plans cost $2.03 / month, and all of its long-term plans are backed by a generous 45-day money-back guarantee. Its monthly plan, on the other hand, comes with a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Read our full CyberGhost VPN review
Comparison of the Best VPNs for Real Debrid & Kodi in 2024
How to Choose the Best VPN for Real Debrid & Kodi Content in 2024
- Get a VPN that works with Real Debrid and Kodi. Real Debrid maintains a list of VPNs that work with its service and that it recommends, so if a VPN is not on that list, it may not work with the service. All of the VPNs on my list are compatible with both Real Debrid and Kodi.
- Pick a VPN with strong privacy and security features. All of the VPNs I recommend include industry-standard VPN security features like 256-bit AES encryption, which is used by militaries, a strict no-logs policy, meaning it doesn’t log your IP address or online activities, and a kill switch, which disconnects you from the internet if your VPN connection drops to avoid accidental data leaks.
- Look for a VPN with fast connection speeds. All VPNs reduce connection speeds to some extent due to the encryption process and the distance the data needs to travel to get routed through the VPN server. The VPNs I recommend minimize the slowdown and are still able to maintain very fast speeds to ensure buffer-free streaming and fast downloads (ExpressVPN is the fastest VPN on the market).
- Select a VPN with easy-to-use apps. All of the VPNs above have user-friendly apps for a variety of platforms, including Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS, and also work with routers, smart TVs, and Amazon Fire devices. ExpressVPN is one of the only VPNs with a dedicated router app.
- Find a VPN that provides good value. The VPNs on my list all have reasonably priced plans, allow a minimum of 5 device connections, and come with a money-back guarantee.
Tried Installing Real Debrid on Kodi But It’s Not Working? Try These Troubleshooting Steps
Check Your Internet Connection
Real Debrid and Kodi won’t work without a stable internet connection. So the first thing you should do is test your connection. If your tests indicate a weak or unstable connection and you’re on a wireless connection, try moving your Kodi device closer to your Wi-Fi router or getting a Wi-Fi extender. If you’re on a wired connection, try restarting your router, checking your ethernet cable connections, or contacting your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
Restart Your Kodi Device
Many minor issues can be resolved by power cycling your device, which clears temporary data and reestablishes connections. Restarting Kodi is pretty simple — all you’ll have to do is close the app on your device and relaunch it to see if the problem is fixed.
Make Sure You Have an Active Real Debrid Subscription
It’s possible that your subscription has expired. Since free accounts are very limited, you might stumble upon some issues. You can check the status of your Real Debrid subscription in your account. Log into your account on Real Debrid’s website and check your account status at the top.
Ensure You’ve Set Up Real Debrid on Kodi Correctly
The process is a bit technical, and you have to make sure that all settings are set up correctly. For example, you need to have set Priority to 90 on URLResolver for it to work properly and to have authorized your account. Otherwise, it may not work correctly. To avoid any issues, I recommend following my instructions on how to set up Real Debrid on Kodi very closely.
Confirm that the VPN Is Compatible With Real Debrid
Real Debrid blocks some VPN IP addresses and maintains a list of supported VPNs on its website, which you can find here. Every VPN I recommend for Real Debrid is on the list.
Try a Different VPN Server
Sometimes, servers can become crowded, which can slow down the connection speed or even cause the server to become unresponsive. They also sometimes encounter technical issues that can cause them to become unresponsive. Also, servers occasionally need to go down for maintenance or upgrades and you won’t be able to use it until the maintenance is completed. Reconnecting to a different server will solve all of these issues.
Contact Customer Support
Each of the VPNs on my list offers a 24/7 live chat option accessible on their websites. I put all of them through a test and managed to link up with a support representative in under a minute for each. All of the support reps I interacted with were approachable and offered valuable assistance. Furthermore, I emailed every provider and got a reply in less than 24 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe to use Real Debrid without a VPN?
No, especially if you care about your privacy. Real Debrid’s privacy policy states that it logs your streaming activity, your IP address, and your approximate location. It also states that the company may share this information with judicial authorities upon request. Using a VPN with Real Debrid can solve all of these problems. All of the VPNs on my list have a strict no-logs policy and strong privacy and security features.
Should I use Real Debrid or a VPN?
Real Debrid and a VPN do different things. Real Debrid helps you find working, high-quality streaming sources for your favorite TV shows or movies. A VPN encrypts your data to protect your personal information and online anonymity from third parties. If you’re looking to stream HD or 4K content on your Kodi device, I recommend using both Real Debrid and a good VPN that works with it. ExpressVPN is my favorite VPN for streaming on Kodi with Real Debrid.
Does Real Debrid on Kodi have a free VPN?
No, neither Real Debrid nor Kodi comes with a free VPN. I also don’t recommend using free VPNs in general, as they come with lots of risks and restrictions. For example, many free VPNs lack critical security features or may even sell your data to third parties, which defeats the purpose of using a VPN with Kodi to protect your online privacy. Plus, most free VPNs limit your server selection and cap the amount of data you can use per month or per day. I recommend getting a good, paid VPN for Real Debrid on Kodi instead.
Is using Real Debrid legal?
Yes, there’s nothing illegal about the service itself. All it does is aggregate links. However, it’s possible for it to grab links for TV shows or movies that are copyrighted, and these links would be illegal to watch or share. You have nothing to worry about if you merely use Real Debrid to find higher-resolution and buffer-free sources to content you have legal access to. That said, we don’t condone the use of Real Debrid or a VPN for any illegal activities.
