The 13 Best Free Movie Download Apps for Android

Most Popular and Established App: YouTube

Most of us have heard of YouTube, so this one shouldn’t be a surprise. YouTube now has a paid premium service called YouTube Premium that provides ad-free viewing on regular YouTube plus access to their original programming. However, with some determination and good searching skills, you can find just about anything to watch. Just be aware that YouTube is diligent in policing pirated content.

Largest Add-ons and Customization Options: Kodi

While Kodi itself is merely an interface that requires additional add-ons for movies and TV, it's still one of the most popular apps for viewing streaming content. The beauty of Kodi is the options for video streaming are nearly endless. The main thing to watch for is add-ons with pirated content. If you choose to use one of these add-ons, make sure you use some sort of VPN for your protection.

Best Rotten Tomato Reviews Integration: Tubi

Founded in 2014, Tubi is a completely free movie streaming service that's supported by ads and has thousands of titles from both the cinema and TV. To help locate the right thing to watch, Tubi has dozens of different categories including a handy “Highly Rated on Rotten Tomatoes” category if you follow the movie ratings there. If you’re like most households and have various technologies you use, Tubi will surely delight as it's supported not only on Android but on iOS, Roku, AppleTV, Amazon Fire TV, on the web, and others.

Easiest App for Customization: Pluto TV

This app is a channel-based app with over 100 channels for anyone’s taste, including new movies and sports channels. Its interface looks like the familiar TV programming grid we’re all used to, which makes finding streaming programs easier. Signing up provides the ability to customize your channels. Pluto TV is a bit unique as it has both live streaming and on-demand programming.

Best App for Movie Suggestions: Sony Crackle

A clean movie and TV app from Sony, Crackle provides a simple interface with tons of movies and television programs. Since the service is free, there are, of course, ads. At times, they can get annoying, but the quality of licensed content from mainstream media companies certainly makes it a contender.

As with several of the best movie apps, Crackle comes on many platforms besides Android. A couple of nice features include the ability to rate movies with a thumbs up/down and other programming suggestions. Depending on what you're looking at, Crackle will give the user other viewing ideas.

Best App for New Releases: ShowBox

ShowBox is one of the most popular movie apps for Android. It has both paid and free content numbering in the thousands. However, some argue some of these sources aren’t entirely legal, so tread with caution. Because of these possible issues, Google Play doesn’t host this application, so you’ll have to enable third-party downloads to get this gem onto your Android device. The main thing to be wary of is where you download the app. Some sites that host this app may contain malicious software, so viewer beware.

Best Family-Friendly App: Dove Channel

For family-friendly viewing, you can’t go wrong with the Dove Channel. Founded in 2015, this Christian-based programming provides hours of movie entertainment for all family members. They even have their own rating system based on age appropriateness (All ages, 12+, and 18+).

The app is simple to navigate and also has a web version for those that want to stream on their computers. They even have the channel on Roku if you have a Roku receiver. While they do have a paid membership, which gives you full access to all programming, exclusive content, and removes ads, there are a ton of movies available for free.

Best Classic Films App: Old Movies

If you’re into classic movies, then Old Movies is your Android movie app, as it offers hundreds of movies made before 1970. While this app has ads, you can remove them by giving the app a good rating. Most of the available movies aren’t mainstream favorites, but there are tons of good ones for hours of free entertainment.

Best Anime App: Crunchyroll

If you’re a fan of anime, Crunchyroll is a must-have app for your Android device. The developer promises over 25,000 episodes and more than 15,000 hours of the latest anime available. If you choose to subscribe to their premium services, you'll have access to the newest anime episodes immediately after they're aired in Japan.

Best Documentaries and Intellectual Viewing: CuriosityStream

For those that love to be mentally stimulated while also being entertained, CuriosityStream is perhaps the best place to start watching. While the free viewing library isn’t very large, the paid plan is fairly inexpensive. The app is available on quite a few platforms besides Android and is even available on several smart TVs. The app itself has several categories to find just the topic you want to watch about. It also has a customizable watchlist so you can save programs you’d like to watch later.

Best Choice for Students: Kanopy

A unique entry for university students, Kanopy only requires your university and login credentials for authentication and to stream for free. Participating public libraries also provide free access. Not only are there hundreds of documentaries and other educational videos, but they also have quite a bit of mainstream programming.

Best App for Indie Lovers: PopcornFlix

Another free movie app that has a great selection of independent movies is PopcornFlix. Supported by ads, this app also has a fair amount of international films. It's also available on multiple platforms and has a kids version with social media sharing and commentary.