The world of streaming services has blown up in a big way over the past few years.
And it’s not just the major players making an impact in the space anymore; more minor services with a niche scope of content are taking up space and making an impact.
One of those, for example, is Crunchyroll.
Die-hard anime fans are well aware of Crunchyroll already, but if you’re an anime newbie looking for a way to watch the best and most popular titles around, you may only just be finding out about the service.
Below, we’re answering all your questions about the service, including how to subscribe and how much subscriptions cost.
Crunchyroll is a Sony-owned streaming service primarily dedicated to East Asian media focusing on Japanese anime.
The service’s library includes over 1,000 anime titles, 200+ East Asian dramas in more than 10 languages, and roughly 80 digital manga titles available with Crunchyroll Manga (included with a base subscription for American subscribers).
Crunchyroll is particularly valuable for fans of anime currently on air. New episodes of titles that are part of Crunchyroll’s library are added to the service just an hour after they air in Japan — no more waiting weeks or even months for new episodes or complete seasons to drop!
Crunchyroll has three subscription tiers: Fan, Mega Fan, and Ultimate Fan.
The Fan tier, priced at $8/month, includes the entire Crunchyroll library ad-free, new episodes one hour after they air in Japan, and access to Crunchyroll Manga. You can stream on one device at a time with the fan tier.
The Mega Fan tier will run you $10/month. The streaming service highlights that it is the most popular, and it includes everything from the fan tier plus four device streams, offline viewing and $15 off a $100 purchase in the Crunchyroll store every three months.
The Ultimate Fan tier costs $15/month and includes everything from the Mega Fan tier with a few tweaks and additional exclusive perks. Instead of four simultaneous streams, you’ll get six, and instead of $15 off in the Crunchyroll store every three months, it’s $25 off.
Ultimate Fans will also receive free shipping on every order in the Crunchyroll store and a free gift after a full year (as 12 consecutive months) as a subscriber.
All of Crunchyroll’s subscription tiers come with a 14-day free trial.
Many titles on Crunchyroll are available in Japanese with subtitles and an English dub, but others are only available with subtitles or dubbed in English.
At the time of publication, these are 10 of the most popular anime series on Crunchyroll:
- Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (sub/dub)
- Hell’s Paradise (sub/dub)
- One Piece (subtitled)
- MASHLE: MAGIC AND MUSCLES (sub/dub)
- I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World, Too (sub/dub)
- The Aristocrat’s Otherworldly Adventure: Serving Gods Who Go Too Far (sub/dub)
- Dr. STONE (sub/dub)
- VINLAND SAGA (sub/dub)
- Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation (sub/dub)
- Dead Mount Death Play (sub/dub)
Here are 10 of the most popular anime movies on Crunchyroll:
- Fullmetal Alchemist: The Conqueror of Shamballa (subtitled)
- King of Thorn (dubbed)
- BAYONETTA: Bloody Fate (subtitled)
- Mobile Suit Gundam Wing ENDLESS WALTZ (subtitled)
- Jin Roh (dubbed)
- Sword of the Stranger (dubbed)
- Kite (subtitled)
- Street Fighter II The Animated Movie (subtitled)
- Garakowa – Restore the World (subtitled)
- Origin: Spirits of the Past (subtitled)