| Price | Free |
| Version | VARY |
| Category | Entertainment |
| Developer | Ellation, LLC |
| Source | iOS, Android |
| Rating | (4.6) |
Crunchyroll is a free application that allows you to stream anime and drama programs. Although Crunchyroll started in 2006 as a forum, the service became an official platform that obtains the rights to play licensed anime and drama series such as Jujutsu Kaisen. Funimation and VRV are other streaming services dedicated to anime content. Amazon Prime Video, Hulu and Netflix are generic streaming apps that have anime and drama series. Crunchyroll and VRV offer the most anime titles to watch. Series are renewed often, as all apps add and remove titles from the library lists.
Crunchyroll is the optimal platform for anime, while Netflix is ideal for drama series. Netflix offers serialized dramas from more countries, but Crunchyroll offers you more anime shows with content mainly from Japan. While Crunchyroll has created original anime, Netflix has original dramas.
While Crunchyroll is free to use, there are subscription levels available for purchase that give you additional benefits. While offline downloads are not available with the free plan, you can save your videos to watch without wifi with the paid plans. The paid editions allow you to stream from multiple devices while the free version does not. Crunchyroll is updated daily with the newest episodes. While new shows are available to paying members one hour after they air in Japan, free users will have to wait a week to watch them.
Since the use of Crunchyroll is legal, the service receives official rights to publish content on the platform. Although you can watch anime, drama and manga series on Crunchyroll, the program is primarily used for anime. You can find old and new titles within the streaming service, with older titles in the Crunchyroll library such as Cardcaptor Sarkura and Naruto.
Crunchyroll is safe and you won’t risk copyright issues with the service. While the free app has ads that play multiple times during a single episode, the membership options give you an ad-free viewing experience.
The simple user interface has tabs at the top of the window. The “Home” tab allows you to view your queue and history. You can register or log in at the bottom of the window or use the hamburger menu to create an account or log in. You can upgrade to a premium account from the menu list. You can access the Crunchyroll store from the menu. Crunchyroll has an online store for purchasing anime-related products. In addition to the extra features of paid memberships, some of the paid plans also include an annual Crunchyroll gift bag. The most recently added programs will be available in the “New” tab. The “Anime” area includes all anime titles in the library. Although Crunchyroll does not include a large list of dramas, you can check the available titles in the “Drama” area. Descriptions and episode numbers will appear for each program. You can type keywords in the search bar to quickly find content by clicking the magnifying glass in the right corner. The “Sort by” filter, which is set to “Popular” by default, allows you to organize the results. English subtitles are available to read while watching. Although there are audio dubs over the original audio available, Crunchyroll primarily uses the subtitles to translate. HIDIVE is an anime streaming app that offers dubbed anime content in case you prefer to listen rather than read the translations.
Crunchyroll mainly offers animated shows and comics to users. While drama series are mostly from real actors and actresses, cartoon dramas are still available. The media available on Crunchyroll can fluctuate and sometimes TV and manga series that were previously available are no longer available. Crunchyroll keeps the database up to date for premium users, while free users will have to wait longer for new content.
The developers provide frequent software updates to add new features to the platform. You can download the Crunchyroll cross-platform app on Android, Apple TV, iOS, Chromecast, Fire TV, PlayStation 3, PS4, Roku, Wii U and Windows Phone devices.
