You won’t need an introduction to Crunchyroll if you’re an anime fan. The massively popular anime streaming platform reinforces policy changes that limit watching simulcast titles for free. Fans are left wondering if Crunchyroll is free or not moving forward and what are the premium subscription options.
We’ll explore that in this post. There are several subscription options for Crunchyroll Premium, including Fan, Mega Fan, and Ultimate Fan. The free ad-supported tier will be of limited use now, but it’ll still offer a wide library of anime content.
Let’s find out if Crunchyroll is still free and what’s happening with the newly introduced policy changes.
Is Crunchyroll Available To Use For Free?
Crunchyroll, one of the best video streaming services for anime shows and movies, is available in multiple tiers. It offers both free and paid tiers with different perks and limitations. If you’re wondering if Crunchyroll is free to use, it has a free tier that allows you to watch shows without a subscription to the service.
All you have to do is sign up for a free account and start streaming your favorite anime. However, the free tier is loaded with ads. Another newly introduced limitation to Crunchyroll’s free tier is that it doesn’t include simulcast titles and all of the library’s anime and manga collections.
There are over 1,300 series on Crunchyroll, including many simulcast shows. The recent merger by its new owner, Sony, to Funimation and VRV has expanded the library. The free tier provides you with everything, with ads, but seamless access isn’t available now.
Crunchyroll Limits Free Streaming Of Simulcast Titles
Sony has implemented new policies for the free tier of Crunchyroll starting the Spring 2022 season. It will be followed for all future seasonal releases as well. According to this, Crunchyroll will not provide simulcast titles with the free tier except for the first few episodes for a limited time.
Crunchyroll users must subscribe to the premium monthly or annual subscription to vire new and continuing simulcasts. Until now, users could watch simulcast episodes for free, but one week after their release and with ads. This is changing now.
Fortunately, the previously published episodes and all the existing content on Crunchyroll will still be available to stream for free. This is the first major change Sony has implemented in the streaming service’s content streaming policies ever since the grand acquisition.
Crunchyroll Season Sampler Shows And Free Episodes
Crunchyroll is implementing the change to the free tier starting in Spring 2022. From now onwards, users can watch the first three episodes of simulcast titles for free with ads but will need a Crunchyroll subscription plan to watch the rest of the show.
The following shows are included as part of Crunchyroll’s “Season Samplers” for Spring 2022:
- Spy x Family
- A Couple of Cuckoos
- Dawn of the Witch
- Tomodachi Game
- Skeleton Knight in Another World
- Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie
- The Greatest Demon Lord is Reborn as a Typical Nobody
- Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs
The first three episodes of these Spring titles will be free with ads one week after their subscription-only premier till May 31st. After that, all episodes within the season sampler preview will need a subscription.
“We want to encourage as many fans as possible to explore new shows and see the full benefits of Crunchyroll premium access. Crunchyroll makes more than 1,000 hours available for viewers to sample free of charge through our ad-supported tier and will continue to offer free content in the future,” states Crunchyroll on the announcement page.
Crunchyroll Premium Plans and Pricing
Crunchyroll provides four plans, including one free tier and three paid tiers. We have already discussed the free plan, and now let’s move forward to the paid ones. The first one is the Crunchyroll Fan tier which costs $7.99 per month and removes all the limitations of the free tier.
The next one is Crunchyroll Mega Fan which costs $9.99 per month. It includes full access to Crunchyroll’s library, discounts, access to fan expos, and offline viewing. The costliest is the Crunchyroll Ultimate Fan tier, which costs $14.99 monthly. It allows you to stream shows and movies on even more devices at once and get luxury gifts like bags, action figures, and more.
Here is a quick overview of all Crunchyroll plans:
Does Crunchyroll Premium Have A Free Trial?
Yes, Crunchyroll offers a 14-day free trial for new users to try out the premium membership. If you want to determine if the streaming service is worth your money, you can give it a shot by registering for an account and starting your free trial.
How To Start Your Crunchyroll Premium Free Trial?
Follow these steps to start your Crunchyroll Premium free trial:
- Visit the Crunchyroll home page from here (it opens in a new tab).
- Now click on the orange “View Premium Plans” button.
- Next, select the subscription plan you want to try.
- Next, click on the “Start 14-day free trial” button.
- Sign up for your account by entering an email address and a password.
- After that, select a payment method such as a credit card, PayPal, etc.
- Finally, click on the “Start free trial” button.
Note: You can also use Crunchyroll gift cards, Apple iTunes, Google Play, and local pre-pay options (in some regions) to start your free trial, apart from credit cards and PayPal.
That’s it. You can now enjoy Crunchyroll Premium for free for 14 days. Remember that the selected payment method will be charged automatically when the free trial expires. To avoid that, you can cancel the free trial before it is over.
How To Cancel Crunchyroll Premium Free Trial?
Follow these steps to cancel your Crunchyroll Premium free trial:
- Visit Crunchyroll and sign in to your account.
- Now go to your account from the profile button.
- Next, click on “Premium Membership” status.
- Finally, click on the “Cancel Membership” button.
Crunchyroll will ask for confirmation, click on “Yes” to proceed with the cancelation. Remember that your free trial will be over when you cancel the subscription. Ideally, you can set a reminder and cancel the Crunchyroll free trial on the 13th day.
Is Crunchyroll Premium Worth It?
If you’re an avid anime fan, then Crunchyroll Premium is worth the money you spend on the subscription. The streaming service maintains a brilliant library of anime series and movies, including simulcast shows. The library has become even more incredible ever since the absorption of Funimation.
You can watch all the amazing shows and movies on Crunchyroll without getting interrupted by ads. The free tier users don’t get the seamless experience as ads keep popping up occasionally and can’t enjoy all the episodes of simulcasts. To eliminate these limitations, subscribing to Premium is a must.
There are plenty of things to watch on Crunchyroll, including 40 simulcast shows such as Ace of the Diamond, Black Clover, In/Spectre, My Hero Academia, and One Piece. If you want to watch these, you’ll have to subscribe to one of the premium Crunchyroll plans. The Fan tier would be enough.
However, if you are a hardcore fan who wants to save stuff offline, watch on more than one screen, visit expos, and gather collectibles, you should consider getting the costlier Crunchyroll plans. The free trial will help you figure out which plan you should get.
Frequently Asked Questions:
A: Yes, Crunchyroll is still free to use. You can sign up for a Crunchyroll account for free and start watching anime shows and movies, except for the new simulcast titles. However, you’ll have to view many ads with the free tier.
A: Crunchyroll Premium offers all new users a 14-day free trial. You can start your free trial by heading to the Crunchyroll home page, exploring Premium plans, and then hitting the button to begin your free trial. You will require a valid payment option to start the trial.
A: Yes, Crunchyroll free is incredible as it provides you access to the vast library of the streaming service featuring more than 1,000 anime shows, movies, and over 1,000 hours of free Simulcast titles. The only drawbacks of the free trial are the ads and limited streaming of new simulcast episodes.
A: Crunchyroll Premium comes with three different plans: Fan costs $7.99 per month, Mega Fan costs $9.99, and Ultimate Fan costs $14.99.
A: Crunchyroll Premium is worth the money you pay as you get ad-free access to the amazing library of anime shows and movies. You can also watch new simulcast titles on the day of their release without any limitations. The higher-tier plans also come with added perks and benefits.
Final Words:
Crunchyroll allows anime fans to watch their favorite show and movies for free. However, there are annoying ads that ruin the experience. Another newly introduced drawback for free users is they won’t get access to new Simulcast shows from Spring 2022 season and can only preview the first three episodes for free.
This makes it the perfect opportunity to upgrade to Crunchyroll Premium. If you still haven’t decided to upgrade, you can start your Crunchyroll Premium free trial and make up your mind yourself. That’s all for this post. Feel free to share your thoughts about it in the comments.
This is Saquib, a technology and social media expert with over 10 years of experience in the industry. With a passion for staying up-to-date on the latest developments and trends in the tech and social media world and as a writer, I have been creating informative and engaging content that is easy for readers to understand and enjoy, also published in several leading tech and social media publications and is a regular speaker at industry events. In addition to my writing and speaking engagements, I also work as a consultant, helping businesses grow with the ever-changing tech and social media niche.
