Libraries may not be as popular as they once were, but modern-day book shrines are finding ways to rebrand in the digital age.
Take Beamafilm, for instance. You get free movie and TV show streaming if you have a membership with a participating library. Kanopy is another library-membership alternative. And it's a similar story for Hoopla Digital, except Hoopla has more on offer than just movies and TV show streaming.
Scroll on for everything you need to know about Hoopla in Australia.
What is Hoopla Australia?
Hoopla Digital is a web and mobile streaming platform that's been around since 2013. It was built as a companion to libraries, wherein a library membership can offer digital content via the Hoopla app or website. This Hoopla content includes movies and TV shows, but also audiobooks, eBooks, music, comics, and manga.
What started as a US-centric service has since extended to Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. In Australia, Hoopla isn't automatically available at every public library. You can, however, search by library name on the Hoopla website to see if your local library has Hoopla. Alternatively, use the Hoopla global map to see if a nearby library supports Hoopla.
If your library isn't listed, Hoopla advises contacting that library directly. Otherwise, you can input your email address and postcode on the Hoopla website and they'll forward a request on your behalf.
Depending on your library membership inclusions, you may be able to access streaming on Beamafilm, Hoopla, and/or Kanopy.
Of the three, Beamafilm has the most straightforward access with unlimited content streaming on multiple devices. Hoopla has a larger library of content, including movies, TV shows, audiobooks, eBooks, comics, and music. But it's also limited to one stream per account. Kanopy has a lot of video content, but it also has a restrictive monthly ticketing system that stops it from being a viable binge-streaming service.
Dodo's NBN 500 Unlimited plan is our pick for the best NBN 500 plan for September.
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Dodo
FTTP, HFC
Editor's Pick
nbn500 Unlimited Plan
$62.99/mth
Min. cost $62.99
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No, Hoopla doesn't have a free trial because it doesn't need one. If you have a membership with a participating library, you can use Hoopla for free. That said, if your library doesn't offer Hoopla, you can't use the service.
How much does Hoopla cost in Australia?
Hoopla is free to use in Australia, but there's a catch. To access Hoopla's content, you need to have a membership with a participating library. Hoopla's network isn't as extensive as Beamafilm, but it still supports 100+ public libraries in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, and South Australia.
While free streaming sounds great, there are limitations that may vary between libraries. With a Wollongong City Library membership, for instance, users are restricted to ten titles. Compounding that restriction is the respective loan periods:
- 21 days for audiobooks, comics, and eBooks
- Seven days for albums
- Three days per movie (or single TV episodes)
- Seven days for SeasonPass (an entire TV season)
- Seven days for BingePass (specific collections)
What can I watch on Hoopla in Australia?
Hoopla has hundreds of movies and TV series to choose from. Here's a breakdown of popular movies and TV shows on Hoopla.
Popular movies on Hoopla
- Ballerina Assassin (2025)
- Canadian Sniper (2024)
- Curse of the Judas Chalice (2009)
- Dishing Up Love (2025)
- Predator Wastelands (2025)
- The Good Life (2014)
- The Lion of Judah (2011)
- The Park Bench (2014)
- The Witness for the Prosecution (2017)
- White Chicks (2004)
As you might be able to tell from that list of Hoopla movies, the quality is all over the place. It's also disappointing to see titles like Predator Wastelands and Ballerina Assassin, both of which reek of cheap knock-offs for tentpole 2025 movies Predator: Badlands and Ballerina, respectively.
Popular TV shows on Hoopla
- Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001, 14 seasons)
- Inspector Gadget (2015, two seasons)
- Malory Towers (2020, three seasons)
- Naked Science (2004, two seasons)
- No Luggage (2006, two seasons
- One Piece (1999, eight seasons)
- The Librarians (2014, five seasons)
- The Magic School Bus (1994, four seasons)
- The Sounds (2020, miniseries)
- Yu-Gi-Oh! (2000, five seasons)
- Recipes for Love and Murder (2022, two seasons)
Note that some TV shows on Hoopla have the full series, while others only have selected seasons. Outside of movies and TV shows, Hoopla also has thousands of audiobooks, eBooks, comics, and music to choose from.
Best internet plans for Hoopla
Hoopla doesn't publicly advertise how much bandwidth it needs to stream movies or TV shows. According to related library resources, though, an SD movie will use around 1GB of data. There doesn't appear to be any 4K content on Hoopla, and anecdotal reports suggest quality is below 1080p.
If we use Stan's download speeds guidance, Hoopla will need around 3Mbps for uninterrupted SD streaming and roughly 4.5Mbps for HD content. Because Hoopla doesn't support any simultaneous streams, you should be able to comfortably use Hoopla on any broadband internet connection. That said, we recommend most homes start comparisons with an NBN 50 plan to account for internet usage on other devices in the home.
Here's a look at popular NBN 50 plans from our database.
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#1
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Dodo
FTTP, HFC
Editor's Pick
nbn500 Unlimited Plan
$62.99/mth
Min. cost $62.99
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#2
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Tangerine Telecom
FTTP, HFC
Speedy Max NBN 500/50
$59.90/mth
Min. cost $59.90
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#3
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Superloop
FTTP, HFC
Family Max nbn500/50
$74/mth
Min. cost $74
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#4
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amaysim
FTTP, HFC
NBN500
$50/mth
Min. cost $50
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#5
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TPG
FTTP, HFC
nbn Home Fast Unlimited Plan
$74.99/mth
Min. cost $74.99
Link not supplied
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#6
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iiNet
FTTP, HFC
nbn500 Liimitless
$69.99/mth
+ $10 Upfront
Min. cost $79.99
Link not supplied
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Hoopla FAQs
Does Hoopla work in Australia?
Yes, Hoopla Digital is officially available in Australia. The only catch is that you need to have a membership with a participating local library to access Hoopla's content.
How do I watch Hoopla?
While you can install the Hoopla app on as many supported devices as you like, you'll only be able to stream on one device at a time per account. Simultaneous streaming limitations aside, Hoopla has a wide range of supported devices:
- AirPlay devices (2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th gen devices)
- All Amazon Fire tablets
- All Android TV set-top boxes
- Android Auto
- Most Android devices (Android 7.1 and newer)
- Apple CarPlay
- Apple Safari, Google Chrome, and Mozilla Firefox Mac browsers
- Apple TV devices (4th and 5th gen)
- Most Chromebooks
- Chromecast (1st and 2nd gen + TVs with inbuilt Chromecast)
- Fire TV (1st, 2nd, 3rd gen devices)
- LG TVs (webOSTV 23–25 and webOSTV 5.0–7.0)
- MacOS (11 and newer)
- Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, and Mozilla Firefox PC browsers
- Roku (9.4 and newer)
- Samsung TVs (2022 and newer)
- Windows 7, 8.1, 10, and 11 computers
Does Hoopla have ads?
No, Hoopla doesn't have ads. Hoopla is monetised by charging participating libraries for allowing their members access to the expansive content catalogue.
What features does Hoopla have?
Because Hoopla doesn't support my local library, I haven't been able to dig into its playback functionality. That said, you should be able to enjoy offline downloads for most content on mobile devices. If you're streaming Hoopla via a supported browser, you'll have to scroll through understandably prioritised audiobook, ebook, and comic content before getting to movies and TV shows on the homepage.
Alternatively, head to the Hoopla hub of interest, including movies and television. As is the modern streaming trend, promoted content is presented in a top carousel. Start scrolling to see popular picks and featured items before you get into more focused content breakdowns. Unlike Netflix, it's not a seemingly infinite scroll of content, and you're better off searching or digging into the genres if you're struggling to find something to watch.
One of the unique features of Hoopla is BingePasses. Using a BingePass grants seven days of on-demand access to a rotating roster of bingeable content. At the time of writing, BingePass included puzzles, TV seasons, The Great Courses (a $7.99 monthly add-on via Prime Video channels), and even Curiosity Stream.
Does Hoopla allow password sharing?
While I couldn't find anything that says Hoopla is explicitly against password sharing, you're only able to stream on one device per account. According to user reports, you can share a password, but as soon as you start using your account on another device, it'll log you out.
What is the downside to Hoopla?
The major downside to Hoopla is that you need to have a membership with a participating library to even use it. Even then, your library may set a monthly borrowing cap. You can also only stream on one device with a Hoopla account.
Is Hoopla a free subscription?
Yes, Hoopla is a free subscription as long as you have an eligible membership with a participating library.
Nathan Lawrence
Freelance Contributor
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