How to Watch for FREE

Spoiler Alert: I make no claims as to the usability and content of the streaming sites mentioned here. I’ve used Hoopla and Kanopy which offer Free streaming through my library and no ads and have tried a few sites as noted below. (No links in this post, you can search online for the sites.)

Budgets are being stretched more than ever now, but did you know that you can stream FREE movie and TV entertainment ? 

Now that we have unlimited home time, I've been online quite a bit a lot and have learned a lot too. Like others, we have paid subscriptions to streaming services, Netflix, Acorn TV and Amazon Prime, but who doesn't like something that's totally Free?  And, there's plenty of other things to spend $$ on these days — hand sanitizer, gloves, masks to help keep us safe in this current COVID-19 crisis.

That's right, there's no $$ needed and, better yet, some sites don't even require a sign-in account. There are no-cost, totally Free alternatives, that offer legal movies and TV shows that you can watch on smart TVs, media streamers and mobile devices.

OK, you may forego original, exclusive content that paid services provide and ads may come with many of these viewing choices. After all, commercials are how these services pay their costs. On the plus side, ads will let you get some popcorn and snacks. 

Hoopla and Kanopy are two streaming services that let me stream free with my library card through the Nashua Public Library. Your local library may offer a similar service.

Hoopla bills its digital media services as having your public library at your fingertips, anytime and anywhere. Usage requires a library card, then you can borrow movies and TV shows to watch on a computer, tablet, cell phone or TV, also music, books, audiobooks and comics. There’s a lot of titles.  After borrowing a title, I have 72 hours/3 days to watch. The library sets the number of monthly borrows; mine has a limit of 4. Hoopla's mobile apps have a download option for offline viewing.

Kanopy is another streaming service available to holders of a public library card. This commercial-free service, which started in Australia, has a large catalog of ad-free critically acclaimed movies, documentaries, indie films, award-winning foreign films, TV shows, and choices for younger viewers. Its library includes titles from the esteemed Criterion Collection. A new Kanopy Kids section allows unlimited plays. Like Hoopla, there's a monthly limit, which my library sets at 10 and my  watch list carries over to the next month. The monthly viewing allowance resets at the start of each month. Check the website to see if your library offers Kanopy.

The Internet Archive is home to all things in the public domain, including a lot of great vintage feature-length movies. Public domain basically means old and/or mostly black-and-white, which makes this site ideal to find classic films, such as His Girl Friday, The Strange Loves of Martha Ivers and Suddenly. There's no cost to use the service, no account is needed, but creating one lets you mark favorites. The library contains classic full-length films, to daily alternative news broadcasts, cartoons and concerts uploaded by Archive users. Some videos are available for free download. I've been watching episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, a show from the mid-1950s.

Tubi features thousands of free commercial movies and hours of streaming video content

from the libraries of Warner Brothers, Paramount, Lionsgate and MGM and more than 20,000 titles. There's no subscription fees, but commercials are included. You can watch movies and television shows anywhere, including classic TV shows (Bonanza, Dick Van Dyke, Family Affair, Father Knows Best, Unsolved Mysteries are a few. The drawback is that not all seasons are available. Other fun categories include: Not on Netflix, Only Free on Tubi, Highly Rated on Rotten Tomatoes, and Movie Night. You can stream Tubi online or on Android, iOS, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Xfinity X1, Xbox, Samsung Smart TVs, Sony Smart TVs, PlayStation. To make a watch list, you need to create an account, but it's not needed to just stream. I watched a movie online last week with only 1 commercial break in the 90-minute film, but unsure if this holds true for all.

Crackle is available in the U.S. and Australia. This ad-supported video entertainment network includes full length movies, TV shows and original programming. Some titles include Catch & Release, Friends With Money, The Jane Austen Book Club, Julie & and Julia. It's available on several platforms, including connected TVs, mobile devices, video game consoles and online. I've watched a few episodes of a 1960s TV show, Fantasy Island on this site.

Pluto TV is owned by Viacom and has more than 100 live and original channels, including Paramount Movie Channel, CNN, NBC News, and on-demand movies in partnership with TV networks, movie studios, publishers and digital media companies. It’s available online and on Roku, Apple TV, iPhones, Android TV, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Sony, Samsung and Vizio smart TVs. I checked it out briefly and didn't like that movies and shows were shown at scheduled times like TV viewing.

Watchyour.tv will appeal to fans of classic TV shows and movies. This free, ad-supported service is from TVS Television Network, which claims to be the fourth oldest commercial TV network in the country. The site is organized by "networks" based on interests and genres, such as sports, movies, entertainment, and kids and family, and subcategories. You can watch older movies and classic TV shows, including Andy Griffith, Bonanza, My Favorite Martian, and The Beverly Hillbillies. It’s available on many devices including iOS and Android smartphones and tablets, Amazon Fire TV, Roku players and televisions, Apple TVs, and Android TVs. The format is similar to Pluto TV. I checked out this, but disliked it for the same reason as Pluto TV.

Vudu requires no contract or subscription to watch movies and TV shows with limited commercials. Users can choose from thousands of free movies, like Maid in Manhattan, Three Men and a Baby and Gravity, to watch on a mobile device, TV and computer. Like some other sites, you need to create an account to watch a Free with Ads film. I didn't create a sign-on to try this site.

Popcornflix bills itself as being created for people who want to watch Great Movies. Free. These films include Stuck in Love and Paris, Je T’Aime which are available on this streaming service, supported on Apple TV, Roku, Google Play, Xbox, Amazon and iOS devices. Users don’t need to register or create an account. Just select a movie or show and hit play to watch on the ad-supported site. I started a 90-minute movie and 3 short ads came on after the first 15 minutes, under 2 minutes total. The same ads reran after another 15 minutes. Since I didn't watch the entire film, unsure if these same ads continued throughout. 

Roku Channel is where TV and movie goers can enjoy an “always-changing selection of free movies, shows, live news, kids’ TV and more.” Apart from free films on the weekly watch list, Roku offers live television streaming like ABC News and Cheddar News. Stream on Roku with devices that connect to a TV or on Roku TVs that have the streaming experience already built in. If you want to watch from a laptop, you need to create an account to watch online.

IMDb TV (Internet Movie Database), which began as a movie database once called Freedive, allows U.S. users to watch TV shows and movies for free on IMDb and Fire TV devices. The database is owned and operated by IMDb.com, an Amazon subsidiary. IMDb TV videos include ads that run before and/or during playback and can’t be skipped. You must create a sign-on via Facebook, Google, Amazon or IMDb to view. I didn't create a sign-on to try this site.

YouTube is a great site for free movies and TV shows with no sign-on required. The site also provides show and movies which users can purchase to view. This week, we've watched Alfred Hitchcock classic movies in glorious B&W: Strangers on a Train, Rebecca, and Shadow of a Doubt. It's so true that sadly they don't make films like these now!