Long gone are the days when we all depended on what TV stations offered. You also no longer have to wait until your favorite movies premiere and air in movie theatres. With paid and free online movie streaming sites, you now have access to your best movies and shows, anytime, anywhere, and using just about any device.
Well, if you feel that paid movie streaming services are too expensive, or they are not worth it for some reason, you will be pleased to know that there are actually multiple streaming sites that are completely free and still offer high-quality movies and shows. Check them out below;
10 Best Free Online Movie Streaming Sites
Looking for the best free movie streaming sites? We’ve got you covered! Check out our list of the best places to watch free movies online.
1. YouTube
We all are well familiar with YouTube. The Google-owned service is more than just a mere social media platform to share videos. With stable internet, you don’t need to subscribe to any TV service or movie streaming sites.
Just download the app on your smartphone, or head over to Youtube.com on your computer and enjoy thousands of movies. You can create an account if you want to but you don’t have to, to watch movies on YouTube.
You can also find just about all genres of movies uploaded by various people, get real viewers’ reviews in the comment section below the movies so you decide whether or not to watch a movie, and leave your own review after watching the movie, if you want to.
What’s more? You can subscribe to a specific channel that uploads your type of movie regularly, and always get notified whenever there is a new upload. The platform also recommends more movies depending on your searches, making it even easier to use.
Features
- Create videos to share with your audience
- Upload your videos to YouTube and watch them instantly appear on your channel
- Add custom thumbnails and captions to your videos
- Share your videos on Facebook and Twitter, or embed them on other sites
- You can upload, share, and view videos.
- You can watch all the videos you want without paying anything.
- Manage and edit your videos
- Share your videos on Facebook and Twitter, or embed them on other sites
- Youtube is not available in every country, so you can’t access some videos if you are outside of the United States or Canada.
2. Netflix App on SmartPhone
Netflix is one of the people’s favorites. While it is not super expensive, it could be hard to afford sometimes. But did you know that with a Netflix app on your smartphone, you actually get to enjoy thousands of movies for free?
All you need to do is download the app on your smartphone and install it, and create a Netflix account if you don’t already have one and you are ready to go. Of course, there are some movies that you can only access with a premium subscription, but the good news is that, even with the free version, you still get to enjoy thousands of quality movies.
Just like with a paid plan, you get to easily choose your movies depending on the different categories. You can filter by Horror, Thriller, Action, Drama, TV Shows, and more. And, you still get a free “Kids” section, for your kids, nieces, and nephews (if you have any).
Features
- Watch instantly or download for later offline viewing.
- Get personalized recommendations based on what you love to watch.
- Browse thousands of titles in high definition (HD) and ultra-high definition 4K HDR quality on your favorite devices
- Free to use, with a premium option for $8.99/month, including commercial
- free streaming
- Subscribers can download titles to watch offline (on mobile devices) or on planes without Wi-Fi.
- No AirPlay or Chromecast support, so it’s not ideal for watching on big screens like TVs.
3. Tubi
Tubi has been around for almost a decade, having been first launched in 2014. Like Netflix, it is also a great place for great, high-quality, and popular movies. And, it has a kids’ section too. It also comes with many categories to help you easily filter down to your favorites.
There is a premium subscription if you want to watch a specific movie not available in the free version. However, if you are looking for some fun time, you can never run out of interesting shows and movies to watch in the latter section.
The Kid’s section offers hundreds of kid-related movie categories and shows, including Anime, Friendly Monsters, and LEGO, amongst others. If need be, you can use the parental control function on the website to control what your kids watch.
Features
- Thousands of movies and TV shows available to stream
- New titles added every day
- Choose from a wide variety of genres and themes
- Free to download and use
- Variety of genres to choose from action, comedy, drama, sci-fi
- Plenty of new content is added daily
- Allows users to search by category or title
- Some ads play before some videos
- Content is often duplicated across multiple platforms
4. Vudu
Some of the best reasons to watch Vudu include many high-quality movies, popular movies, easy to filter in different categories, and more. As long as you don’t mind enduring commercials, you will enjoy some of your favorite movies for free.
You can easily browse New Releases or sort by “Most Watched”, “Hidden Gems”, “Big Time Movie Stars”, and “Critically Acclaimed” categories. The different genres are also on different pages, making your filter and search easy. There is a paid version if you don’t mind spending a couple of dollars to elevate your experience.
Features
- Watch movies in 1080p HD or 720p HD resolution (depending on your device).
- Stream movies over Wi-Fi or 4G LTE using the Vudu app on your phone or tablet.
- View movie ratings before you rent or purchase a title.
- Streaming service with no monthly fee
- Offers HD and SD films
- Large library of movies and TV shows
- 4K HDR support for newer devices
- A large selection of Dolby Vision titles
- High-quality audio tracks (Dolby Atmos)
- It only offers new releases, so no classic or foreign films.
5. PopcornFlix
Pocornflix is a smooth website with a pretty simple layout easy to navigate. You can expect a constant flow of new releases from Screen Media Ventures, a company that runs Crackle (another movie streaming site), all for free.
With different genres of movies being added all the time, you can expect hundreds of choices from different categories, including comedy, horror, romance, action, drama, Family Films, documentaries, and foreign films.
Unlike most streaming sites that require you to create an account, you don’t have to on Popcornflix. Just head over to the website, find your movie, sit down, relax, and enjoy.
Features
- Watch unlimited movies and TV shows on your phone, tablet, or PC.
- Set parental controls and determine how much time you want to spend online.
- Get suggestions based on your viewing history.
- No ads! Popcornflix offers a premium experience with no interruptions.
- No signup is required! Use your Google account to get started right away.
- New movies and TV shows are added daily!
- No restrictions on how much you watch or how often you watch.
- Watch any video on your phone, tablet, or computer.
- No Chromecast support
6. 123Movies
This streaming website has been around for a long time, offering some of the most popular movies and shows for free. And you don’t have to create an account to enjoy it. All you have to do is go over to the main site, choose a movie from the hundreds available, and enjoy.
Know that you also have to put up with some ad annoyance. Besides that, the site is super easy to navigate and the categories and search features have made it extremely easy to find the exact movies you look for.
Features
- Watch the latest movie releases
- Thousands of titles to choose from
- Watch your favorite shows
- Free to use, and no registration is required.
- Good quality streaming links.
- The website is easy to use. You can find movies easily by title, year, or genre.
- It has a huge selection of movies and TV shows.
- Easy to use a search engine to find your favorite content.
- HD quality streaming on all devices.
- There are no ads on the site, so you can watch your favorite content without interruptions.
- Limited library, only popular titles are available.
- The website has many ads on its homepage, making it difficult for users to access it without getting distracted.
7. The Roku Channel
With The Roku Channel, you have access to Roku originals, various movies, and multiple TV shows. The platform is free, but they are ads supporters, meaning you will encounter some distractions with ads.
However, the many quality movies which come for free makeup for the few ads which don’t even ruin your streaming experience whatsoever. This is all in HD quality, and you don’t have to worry about buffering or lags.
Features
- Stream over 1,000 free movies and TV episodes from top studios like Lionsgate and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios.
- Watch your favorite titles as often as you like with no additional charges.
- Discover new movies and shows with personalized recommendations based on what you watch.
- Enjoy exclusive content not available anywhere else, including movies from The Criterion Collection, anime classics, music videos.
- No ads or commercials
- Free content
- Original programming
- Convenient interface
- Easy-to-find titles
- Limited selection
- The menu isn’t as intuitive as other apps
8. Pluto TV
This is another one of the popular free online movie streaming sites you should definitely try if you haven’t already. The platform is owned by ViacomCBS. And while it supports ad content, it has ensured to manage ads neatly, to still give you the best experience.
Some of the perks you are set to enjoy include a vast content catalog, with no pop-up banners.
Features
- Watch live-streaming channels like Comedy Central, MTV, and VH1.
- Get personalized recommendations based on your viewing habits.
- Create your custom channel lineup by selecting shows from different categories, such as entertainment news or sports highlights.
- Free ad-supported version
- Hundreds of channels are available
- Choice of live or on-demand programming
- The easy-to-use interface makes watching the channels simple for all ages
- No registration or login is required to view content
- Limited device support
- Poor search capabilities.
- Pluto TV is ad-sponsored
- The quality of the video isn’t great
9. Vumoo
Vumoo allows you to choose from a wide range of movies, TV shows, and more. The streaming site has its new releases and trending series right on the homepage. It has a smooth interface and great layout, with a search feature to make your search easier and faster.
To get started, head over to the website, pick or search for a movie of your choice and enjoy. When you click on a movie, it redirects you to a different page, enabling you to watch it right on your browser.
Features
- Live to a stream of all the channels.
- Video-on-demand (VOD) content is available for some channels.
- Live chat with other viewers while watching live TV or VOD content on Vumoo.
- The ability to chat with other viewers while watching live TV or on-demand content on Vumoo’s website.
- Vumoo offers a free trial to try the service before committing to a subscription.
- The company has a wide range of sports channels and offers various packages for different budgets.
- It offers a wide selection of movies and TV shows
- Allows users to download videos for offline viewing
- Some users find that their connection is unstable when they’re watching live streams on Vumoo.
10. Crackle
Crackle was bought by Sony back in 2006, as an independent service called Grouper. Sony later changed the name again from Crackle to Sony Crackle. This means all the content you find on Crackle is run by the one and only Sony Entertainment.
From a wide range of content, including horror, action, thriller, romance, and comedy, to sports and documentary, you can never run out of options. And, you can stream through multiple ways, including your PlayStation, Google TV, Android and iOS devices, and more, through the Sony Crackle app.
Features
- Watch movies and TV shows for free without paying for a subscription.
- Watch live sports events such as college basketball.
- Browse through a wide selection of movies to watch at any time.
- Search through the entire library of content to find something that interests you.
- No ads on the free version (but you will see prerolls)
- Unlimited viewing on most shows and movies
- Available on most devices, including smartphones, tablets streaming only
- Wide variety of content
- No way to save favorite shows or movies
- You have to watch commercials during some programs.
Finally
Note that most of the free online movie streaming sites you find online are not operational. There are those that are popular but existed some time back and not anymore. But, even so, there are still multiple legit sites with high-quality movies and a range of options.
You also want to make sure that the services are available in your region, they are really free (no hidden fees), and provide high-quality movies. Some sites provide ad-supported content which can also be annoying sometimes.
This means you may need to do some searching before you actually find which is your best one yet. This article saves you time by providing 10 of the best and legit sites where you can watch free movies and TV shows from anywhere in the world, anytime, and with just about any device.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are many free sites to stream movies on. Some of the best ones said in this article include YouTube, Crackle, Pluto TV, The ROKU channel, Goku, Tubi, and VUDU.
Yes, streaming movies online is absolutely legal. The only time when it is illegal is streaming Unlicensed content (or downloading) and making copies of copyrighted content without the owner’s permission.