Free and paid streaming that works like magic
In 2013, I started my Ziff Davis career as an intern on PCMag's Software team. Now, I’m an Analyst on the Apps and Gaming team, and I really just want to use my fancy Northwestern University journalism degree to write about video games. I host The Pop-Off, PCMag's video game show. I was previously the Senior Editor for Geek.com. I’ve also written for The A.V. Club, Kotaku, and Paste Magazine. I’m currently working on a book about the history of video games, and I’m the reason everything you think you know about Street Sharks is a lie.
Vudu is an expansive, flexible, and convenient mainstream video streaming service thanks to free ad-supported content alongside paid rentals and purchases.
Not every piece of content makes sense for every video streaming service. Some companies will gladly let you stream their shows for free, while others will lock their films behind paywalls for as long as possible. Vudu recognizes this reality and says, “Why not both?” Not only can you stream a wide selection of ad-supported movies and shows, but you can also rent or purchase the biggest hits. The interface could be better, and you won’t find exciting exclusives, but Vudu is still an appealing service all around.
Instead of focusing on a niche, Vudu’s library consists of comprehensive mainstream entertainment. Naturally, the biggest difference is between the paid content and the free ad-supported content.
When you pay, you have access to all the current movies and shows you can think of, from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, to Better Call Saul, to Paw Patrol. Musicals like In the Heights, indie flicks like Zola, and horror films like The Forever Purge are all available for purchase. You can buy entire seasons of TV shows from The Office to Game of Thrones, Friends, and Rick and Morty. Studios are more than happy to give you whatever you want if you’re willing to pay them directly.
Of course, the free ad-supported library is significantly smaller, but with more than 10,000 movies and shows, it’s still very compelling. There’s a lot of direct-to-video schlock you’ve probably never heard of, like a movie called Medusa about a lady with snakes in her hair. However, you will recognize recent movies like Snowpiercer and Under the Skin, shows like Alf and Hell’s Kitchen, and even some anime like Naruto. Vudu’s free library is very worthwhile on its own, not just as a supplement to the à la carte marketplace. Don’t be surprised if the library changes from time to time as the service grows.
One major weakness Vudu has compared to other video streaming services is its lack of original movies and shows. Basically, all of its content is pulled from other companies, which may also offer those movies and shows through their own subscription services. Big, famous content is exciting, but there’s nothing to make you feel loyal to Vudu specifically, and nothing you can only watch on Vudu. I found exactly two movies under the Vudu Originals banner, and one is a remake of Mr. Mom that honestly looks fake. By way of comparison, Peacock's free tier has a growing catalog of original shows worth watching, and even The Roku Channel picked up exclusive rights to the Quibi library.
Vudu initially costs nothing. You do need to create an account (or log in with your existing Fandango or Walmart account) but entering your payment information is optional if you don’t plan on buying anything. Along with buying and renting movies and shows, you can also buy gift cards. If you’ve bought a physical movie that includes Movies Anywhere DRM, you can redeem it and add it to your Vudu streaming library. Combining free ad-supported streaming with purchases and rentals makes this feel like using Freevee and Prime Video under your same Amazon account.
Like The Roku Channel, Vudu has no premium subscription tier. You can’t pay a monthly fee to remove ads or unlock more of the library like you can with Peacock. There’s no live TV, and you also can’t subscribe to premium channels within the Vudu ecosystem. All you can pay for is a la carte shows and movies. Those prices vary. An episode of TV might cost $2, renting a current movie may cost $6, and buying an older movie on sale could cost $15. You can even pre-order upcoming releases. The more you buy, the more these prices add up, but because Vudu also has a free on-demand streaming option, you don’t have to rely on purchases like with Angelika Anywhere.
Vudu is available on a wide variety of platforms including web browsers, mobile devices (Android and iOS), Blu-ray players and smart TVs, video game consoles (PlayStation and Xbox), and streaming media devices (Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku).
Vudu’s web interface isn’t especially attractive but it is serviceable. The main page shows a big selection of what’s available, highlighting new releases, free shows, and ongoing sales and bundle deals. To find what you personally want you’ll have to search for it. Fortunately, Vudu has useful, detailed search filters. You can browse by genres like comedy or drama, but you can also filter by Rotten Tomatoes ratings, release year, and even film studios. Individual pages show the synopsis, trailer, cast, and crew along with the community rating. Vudu displays similar shows and movies you might like. Leave your own rating and add the listing to your watchlist, where you can continue watching movies and shows already in progress from where you left off.
Vudu supports up to three simultaneous streams, which is a standard limit for paid services. For the free material, though, you can very easily get around that limit by just making multiple accounts. Playback was satisfactory over my home Wi-Fi connection (60Mbps download), but the player itself was very basic. For example, there’s no way to skip forward or back a few seconds when watching in a web browser. You also can’t adjust video quality while watching, as that’s determined when you make a purchase since it could influence the price. Older, free shows also tend not to have the highest resolutions, to begin with. However, you can specifically search for 4K UHD movies. To our surprise, even some free movies claim to clear this bar.
Vudu looks a little nicer on mobile than it does on the web. Spotlight, Search, Vudu, Free, and Settings receive cute little icons at the bottom. The mobile player lets you skip forward or back 15 seconds. On mobile, you can also download your purchases for offline viewing. As for rentals, you have 30 days to start watching, and between 24 and 48 hours to finish watching once you begin. You can no longer download purchases to your PC.
Vudu lets you turn on subtitles, but you can’t customize them. Subtitles are also pretty easy to miss due to their small size and tendency to move around the screen. However, Vudu is one of the few video streaming services to offer audio descriptions(Opens in a new window) , which explain the audio action on screen for the hard of hearing. Not everything in the library supports this feature, but you can include it in your search filters.
Parental controls are tricky for free services, since there’s basically nothing stopping a clever kid from making their own account. Still, Vudu does display age ratings and lets you turn on a Kids Mode to restrict certain content behind a PIN code. We also like that you can block ad-supported content entirely.
Get a VPN already! They’re your best line of defense when it comes to keeping you and your data safe and private online. The only catch is that VPNs don’t always work well with video streaming services, although some are better than others.
I tested Vudu with a Windows PC connected to ProtonVPN servers. While using US-based servers, I could stream just fine. However, while using overseas servers, Vudu forcibly logged me out of my account and refused to recognize my password. Oh well. Even streaming services that do currently play nice with VPNs may not stay that way forever.
Vudu is a straightforward way to purchase current big-name movies and shows, as well as a free way to stream whatever else might be out there. It can cover a lot of your streaming entertainment bases.
If you prefer a traditional subscription and want access to exciting original shows along with other perks, stick with our Editors’ Choice picks Netflix (for original shows), Hulu (for live and on-demand content), and Peacock (for free TV shows and movies).
For more on streaming, check out five reasons to ditch your video subscription and keep cable. Learn how to pick streaming services that fit your budget, and enjoy all sorts of reality show trash. Finally, check out our recommended streaming video guides if you don’t know what to watch.
Vudu is an expansive, flexible, and convenient mainstream video streaming service thanks to free ad-supported content alongside paid rentals and purchases.
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In 2013, I started my Ziff Davis career as an intern on PCMag's Software team. Now, I’m an Analyst on the Apps and Gaming team, and I really just want to use my fancy Northwestern University journalism degree to write about video games. I host The Pop-Off, PCMag's video game show. I was previously the Senior Editor for Geek.com. I’ve also written for The A.V. Club, Kotaku, and Paste Magazine. I’m currently working on a book about the history of video games, and I’m the reason everything you think you know about Street Sharks is a lie.
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