Editor's pick: Best apps with free movies and TV

Did you know you can watch movies and TV shows online for free? And no, I'm not talking about piracy. I'm talking about completely legal and free TV and movie streaming apps. In fact, there are more of them around than most people realise and if you don't mind a few ads, you can watch some pretty decent stuff.

Tubi TV

Available on: Google Play, App Store

Tubi TV is an American TV and movie streaming service that offers free content with ads. Most of the really good content is blocked on the Australian site and app (sigh) but there's still some interesting things to watch: award-winning indie films, classic movies and retro kids' TV (it's got Babar!). Tubi TV is also an absolute treasure trove for those who love the its-so-bad-its-good genre of film. A brief sample of what's on offer: Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus (and sequels), Airplane vs Volcano, Bermuda Tentacle ... and so much more. Whether you like hunting for hidden gems or laughing at really bad acting and CGI, you should check out Tubi TV.

You can watch it on your smartphone, on your computer or Google Chromecast it to your TV.

SnagFilms

Available on: Google Play, App Store

This free streaming ad-supported service focuses on independent movies, documentaries, classic movies and foreign language films. It's like SBS on Demand. There's a "before they were stars" section with early career films from the likes of Kirsten Dunst, Ryan Gosling and Bennedict Cumberbatch, a healthy representation of LGBTQI movies, immigrant stories and of course, documentaries. Lovers of independent film could happily spend hours scouring this library. But if you don't want to do that there are helpful "editor's pick" tags to help you make a quick decision.

You can watch SnagFilms on your smartphone or computer and you can even download content to watch on the go.

Crunchyroll

Available on: Google Play, App Store

If you're an anime lover, rejoice, because Crunchyroll makes it completely legal and free to watch all your favourite Japanese TV shows, including latest episodes. There are plenty of anime hits both old and new, including Bleach, Fullmetal Alchemist, Attack on Titan, My Hero Academia, Naruto, Cowboy Bebop, Code Geass and even Sailor Moon. But if you're into the more obscure stuff, don't worry, there's enough content here to dive deep, with the library boasting 15,000 hours and 25,000 episodes. There's even live action Japanese TV.

All content is available free one week after airing in Japan. If you can't wait that long or if you want to watch ad-free or in HD, you can pay for the premium membership for $6.95 per month.

Crackle

Available on: Google Play, App Store

Crackle is Sony's answer to Netflix – it's a TV and movie streaming service complete with original TV shows produced by Sony Pictures. The difference is it's free, with ads. As with Tubi TV, it looks like nearly all the good Crackle content is blocked on the Australian app and website (double sigh) but there's still some cool stuff: From the Basement live music performances, 80s movies for those who love young Tom Hanks, young Kevin Bacon, young Bill Murray, et al, and if you're a soap opera tragic there's also Days of our Lives.

Watch it on your smartphone or computer.

SBS on Demand

Available on: Google Play, App Store

If you're looking for free movies and TV online one of the best sources is actually Australian broadcaster SBS's catch-up TV service, SBS on Demand. Like most catch-up TV services, SBS on Demand will let you watch what's been on TV over the past week. But it also has a large library of perennial content including around 600 on-demand movies and some premium complete season TV like the adaption of Margert Atwoood's dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale, Donald Glover's comedy Atlanta, and The Good Wife sequel The Good Fight.

The movie library on SBS on Demand ranges from weird foreign flicks you've never heard of to cult classics like David Lynch's Lost Highway to must watch experiences such as Hansel and Gretel and the 420 Witch. You won't find many big budget blockbusters, but you'll find plenty of interesting stuff.

Watch it on your smartphone or computer and most streaming devices.

Old Movies

Available on: Google Play

The clue is in the name with this one. If you love classic films, this is a great app to dive into, featuring hundreds of classic titles in the public domain of pretty much every genre: action, adventure, comedy, drama, family, fantasy, horror, musical, etc. The app is slick and easy to use and streaming is pretty much impeccable thanks to the fact that movies are all hosted on YouTube. You can even remove ads for free.

Watch it on your Android phone or computer or on your TV using Google Chromecast.

Classix

Available on: App Store

If you're an iPhone user, that doesn't mean you have to miss out on heaps of awesome free classic movies. Classix has thousands of classic movies and TV shows in the public domain and, like Netflix, it learns your preferences over time to make tailored recommendations. Not all content on Classix is free, but if you want to access the premium stuff all you have to do is pay a one-off fee of $0.99. So that's pretty much free.

Watch it on your iPhone or iPad or Apple TV.

ABC iView

Available on: Google Play, App Store

If you're looking for some free, legal entertainment, don't forget about the ABC iView app. As well as letting you catch up on whatever was just played on the ABC, the service also releases complete TV series for binge-watching. At the moment they've got complete seasons of the Indigenous cop drama Mystery Road and the BBC adaptation of hit Danish-Swedish crime series The Tunnel, among others. Series are usually online for a couple of months so while you don't need to jump right on it, don't waste too much time either.

Watch it on your smartphone or computer and most streaming devices.

TED

Available on: Google Play, App Store

Okay, so technically a TED Talk is not a movie or a TV show, but if you're looking for free online viewing the TED app should really be on your list. There are more than 3,000 really fascinating public lectures from some of the world's top minds on just about every subject you can think of from technology, to economics, psychology, political science and a whole lot more. With the TED app you can search videos by topic but you can also ask for recommendations based on the mood of the talk ("inspiring", "persuasive", "funny", "courageous"), and if you want to explore a particular subject in more depth there are hundreds of curated playlists covering everything from "talks for when you want to start a garden" to "truths about the US prison system".

Watch it on your smartphone or computer and some streaming devices.

Vimeo

Available on: Google Play, App Store

Vimeo is a video-sharing platform, much like YouTube, except that the content tends to be dominated by pro-grade filmmakers uploading documentaries and narrative films. Even the cat videos are swish. The great thing about Vimeo is that there are Vimeo Staff Picks if you want recommendations and the browse categories are also curated, offering a range of content from documentary to narrative, travel, animation, reporting and journalism and more.

Most of the videos tend to be short, around five to ten minutes, but there is some longer stuff too if you're willing to look for it.

Watch it on your smartphone or computer or Chromecast it to your TV.

Jacqui Dent

Editorial Strategist

Jacqui Dent is an Editorial Content Strategist at WhistleOut Australia, where she writes about mobile phone plans, NBN plans and everything in between. Over her ten-year career, she has worked to provide informed advice to the public, first in the sphere of writing and now in the world of consumer tech. Jacqui has also written about consumer telco products for Business Insider, Pedestrian and the 50Up Club.

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