CrunchyrollPay, got worseUS
Free ad-supported streaming ends
Crunchyroll ended free ad-supported streaming; watching now needs a paid Premium plan
What changed
- Free viewing
- Was Before: Ad-supported, more than 1,000 hours of anime
- After: None; a paid Premium plan is needed after the free trial
What this means for you
You can no longer watch anime in the Crunchyroll app for free with ads; the cheapest way in is now the paid Fan plan.
What you can do
How we know
Crunchyroll's May 1, 2024 announcement said its free ad-supported option remained unchanged.
Cord Cutters News reported an in-app message saying ad-supported streaming ends Dec 31, 2025.
Cord Cutters News reported that from Jan 1, 2026 every viewer needs a paid subscription.
The US Premium page, checked Sep 25, 2026, offers only paid plans after a free trial.
Related records
Sources
- Crunchyroll News: ad-supported option remains unchanged (May 1, 2024)
- Cord Cutters News: Crunchyroll is Shutting Down Its Free Ad-Supported Plan (Dec 8, 2025) (secondary)
- Anime News Network: Crunchyroll Halts Ad-Supported Streaming on December 31 (Dec 8, 2025) (secondary)
- Crunchyroll Premium plans (US): live check Sep 25 2026, paid plans only
Full research notes
Crunchyroll's May 1, 2024 announcement said its "ad-supported option also remains unchanged, and fans can watch more than 1,000 hours of anime for free." Crunchyroll showed free viewers an in-player message reading "Ad-supported streaming ends December 31, 2025", reported by Cord Cutters News and Anime News Network on December 8, 2025; Cord Cutters News reported that from January 1, 2026 every viewer needs a paid subscription to stream on Crunchyroll. The effective date is January 1, 2026, the first day of the paid-only terms. No Crunchyroll press release or help article about the end was found, so the date rests on those reports of the in-app message. The US Premium page, checked live on September 25, 2026, offers only the paid Fan, Mega Fan and Ultimate Fan plans with a 7-day free trial. The free Crunchyroll Channel on other platforms is a separate product.
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