I've Been Using Kanopy To Watch Movies For Free, And It's Been (Mostly) Amazing

I cannot even begin to tell you how many times I’ve taken out a pen and a piece of paper to keep track of all the streaming services I pay for each month. Admittedly, it’s getting out of hand, and I have had to get rid of a few of them so that I’m not defeating the purpose of “cord-cutting.” However, there’s one streaming platform that I’ve actually been using a lot as of late, and it doesn’t cost a thing. Have you met my friend, Kanopy?

Sure, there are countless free streaming platforms out there these days, but I hate those annoying ads as much as I hate spending money, which is saying a lot. With Kanopy, that’s not really a problem, as there’s no monthly fee and no annoying backloaded ads attached to the streamer’s massive library of movies, shows, and documentaries. But, there is a catch. Let me explain…

If Kanopy Is Free, Does That Mean There Are Ads?

Nope. It’s true, it’s true; there are no ads on any movie, show, or documentary found in Kanopy’s library of content, but how is this so? Well, unlike services like Tubi, Plex, Pluto, and the Roku Channel, which force you to sit through ads before you watch anything (and again during the program), there are no interruptions once you press play. That’s because Kanopy is paid for by local libraries and colleges for their patrons and/or students.

Basically, your local library pays Kanopy a fee whenever you watch something (I’ll get into the ticket system in a bit), meaning you don’t have to pay a dime to watch all kinds of programming. Sure, you’re paying for your library system through taxes, but I’m not getting into that today.

Signing Up For Kanopy Is A Breeze

I found out about Kanopy when I was visiting my public library a few years ago, and quickly found how easy it was to create an account.

If you go to the Kanopy website, there’s a button to register for an account, which will then take you to a page where you find your library system, enter in your library card number and pin, and then create a username. Don’t have a library card? Well, there’s another button that’ll direct you to your library’s website, where you can register to get into the system. Pretty easy, right?

There’s also an option for college students and professors. You’ll follow the same basic steps, but instead of entering your library, you’ll search for your university and then go from there.

Kanopy Works On A Ticket System, Which Has Some Pros And Cons

Watching movies on Kanopy is a lot like borrowing stuff from the library, in that you check out each title before you start streaming. On top of that, each rental stays in your account for 48 to 72 hours, meaning you can watch it as many times as you want before you need to return it (this happens automatically, so don’t worry about late fees here). However, you don’t have unlimited rentals. Instead, your account is allotted a certain number of tickets (mine was 15, but I don’t know if that’s the same across the board) that you then use for your various movies, shows, and documentaries.

The number of tickets required to watch something differs from title to title, but short films are typically one ticket, movies range from two to four, and seasons of TV shows cost five. However, I can’t seem to find any rhyme or reason when it comes to the required number for movies. For example, Best Picture winners Parasite and Spotlight cost you two tickets while the 2025 big Oscar winner, Anora, requires four to watch. I thought it was due to the latter’s length, but there are longer movies that require fewer tickets.

Your allotment of tickets does replenish at the start of each month, but your leftovers don’t carry over. If your library gives you 15 tickets, that’s the max you can have each month. I should add that titles found in the Kanopy Kids section don’t use any of your tickets, so you don’t have to worry about your kids wiping out your stash.

There’s A Vast Library Of Movies, Shows And Documentaries

Don’t get the impression that Kanopy is going to compete with the offerings found with a Netflix subscription or an HBO Max subscription, but for a free (and ad-free) streaming platform, this one packs quite a punch.

With the upcoming Oscars ceremony a few weeks away, the app has an Academy Award Winners & Nominees section that is full of must-watch movies. On top of that, there’s a collection of some of the best A24 movies, an assortment of riveting true crime stories, a magical realism section (this includes The Life of Chuck, one of CinemaBlend’s best 2025 movies), and multiple others. And that’s just the movie sections.

Over on the TV side, there are shows like The Last Enemy, The Dead Zone, Paradise Lost, and The Night Manager (only the first season), and more from the BBC, Masterpiece, and more. Then there’s a long list of documentaries, including Diane Warren: Relentless, which received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.

Oh, Don’t Forget About Kanopy’s Collection Of Courses

Another thing that I really like about Kanopy is its collection of instructional courses for a variety of topics, fields, and disciplines. Considering this is a service provided by libraries, it only makes sense that there would be so many educational tools found here, but I still can’t get over it.

From a sizable collection of “The Great Courses” to a variety of Skillshare videos to others about history, science, religion, and cooking (these videos are incredibly helpful), there’s a little something for everyone. This is definitely something I’m going to be digging into more in the coming weeks.

Kanopy Works On A Number Of Supported Devices

From what I’ve gathered on the Kanopy help page, the service can be used on most modern mobile devices (both iOS and Android have apps) as well as various Amazon tablets. In terms of streaming boxes, the service can be used on Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, and modern smart TVs (I typically avoid those).

I have used Kanopy on my computer, my phone, and my Roku, and the experience has generally been the same on all three, which isn’t always the case. However, I haven’t checked it out on Apple TV or my kids’ Fire TV just yet.

Despite the issue of the limited number of tickets and no rollover, Kanopy is honestly one of the best streaming platforms out there, both in terms of free and paid. Now it’s time to dive back into those educational courses.