Roku is one of the streaming devices that offers many free and premium streaming services on its platform for streaming. You can watch free channels offered by Roku in HD clarity on your compatible TV devices. Since some of the channels on Roku are premium, we have handpicked some of the best streaming channels on Roku to watch movies and TV shows for free.
Best Free Channels to watch on Roku
| Best Free Channel | Roku Channel Store Link | Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube | Roku Channel Store | ★★★★☆ |
| Tubi TV | Roku Channel Store | ★★★☆☆ |
| CBS Sports | Roku Channel Store | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Popcorn Flix | Roku Channel Store | ★★★☆☆ |
| Pluto TV | Roku Channel Store | ★★★☆☆ |
| PBS Kids | Roku Channel Store | ★★★☆☆ |
| Xumo Play | Roku Channel Store | ★★★☆☆ |
| TED | Roku Channel Store | ★★★★☆ |
| Sky News | Roku Channel Store | ★★★☆☆ |
| Crackle | Roku Channel Store | ★★★☆☆ |
YouTube
Youtube is one of the media streaming services in which you can upload and stream videos on its platform. With many content creators out on the internet, there will be no shortage of creative and entertaining content on YouTube. YouTube allows users to stream most content for free with ads, except the YouTube originals. By installing the app from the Roku Channel store, you can get to watch free movies, Trailer clips, etc on YouTube.
Features
- Offers free and premium content for users
- YouTube supports VR content
- You can download your favorites to watch later on YouTube
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| Offers free movies and TV shows clips | Ads in between streaming |
| Easy navigation and get to watch TV show clips like Graham Norton, etc | |
| The ability to download and create your own playlist |
Tubi TV
Tubi TV is an ad-supported streaming service that offers free movies and TV shows to users. It has over 40,000 movies and TV shows from over 250 providers. The service gets revenue from the ads telecasted on the service. By just installing the app on Roku, and signing up with an email account, you can watch and get access to some of the Tubi TV features for free.
Features
- The app is compatible with devices like Android, Amazon Fires, Windows, etc.
- Offers Free HD movies and TV shows on its service
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| The service supports Anime shows | Ads in between streaming |
| Tubi has a good content library |
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is one of the streaming services that come under the CBS network. If you’re a sports person, then you can watch NFL, NBA, WWE, and many other live sports coverage on the channel for free. Since the app is free of cost, you don’t need to sign up or have a contract to stream CBS sports content on your Roku.
Alternatively, you can use the Cable TV provider to sign in and watch CBS sports on your Roku.
Features
- One of the free streaming services that stream sports coverages.
- Pregame & Postgame coverage of major sports
- Shows with expert analysis on betting in Sportsline insiders
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| Compatible with mobile devices to watch matches on the go | Can’t get full coverage of some contents |
| With a Paramount Plus account, you can watch CBS Sports exclusive | |
Popcorn Flix
Popcorn Flix is a destination to watch free movies, VOD, TV shows, etc for free. The only drawback of Popcorn Flix is commercial breaks that consist of more than 5 ads. You can movie categories like action, drama, comedy, etc. You can either sign up for the account or watch it for free without signing in.
Features
- Popcorn Flix offers movies and popcorn Flix original content for free.
- You can watch Documentaries that are offered by the service.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| Popcorn Flix some sports-related content in its free service | Collection and famous movies are missing |
| Offers Thriller, Sci-Fi category movies. |
Pluto TV
The next one on the list is Pluto TV. Pluto TV streams Live TV channels, VOD, movies, TV shows, and more entertainment content in its free service. With more than 1000+ movies and 100+ channels in the service, you will never get bored of the programs. Including Comedy Central and CNN, you can watch endless entertainment n your Roku using Pluto TV.
Features
- No Signup or contracts are required, totally free.
- You can watch Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen for tasty and nail bitting results.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| Favorite channels like Baywatch | A little clumsy UI |
| Supports Sports and Pluto TV on-demand shows | |
| Pluto TV is compatible with every device |
PBS Kids
PBS Kids is a service that focuses on Kids to provide knowledgeable and fun content from their TV shows. You can watch some of the famous cartoon shows like Sesame Street, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, Wild Kratts, etc.
Features
- The service has won some of the streaming service awards for Best Family and Kids entertainment.
- The content library has old and new cartoon shows for Kids.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| PBS Kids offers a child-friendly viewing experience. | The programs are made for toddlers and not for young kids of 6-10 age. |
| You can watch PBS local station channels on Roku using the LIVE TV button. | |
| New content will update weekly |
XUMO Play
Xumo Play is the next free streaming service that offers movies, news networks, and popular TV shows from over 250+ networks. You watch sports coverage, family-based content, and educational programs of Xumo Play on your Roku. Like other services, you don’t need to sign in or have any contracts for streaming Xumo Play.
Features
- The app gives a program guide for users to schedule their times.
- Xumo Play offers free movies and TV shows that are owned by 13+ on-demand channels.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| Xumo Play offers Country bases movies and TV shows. | The service doesn’t offer some of the top famous movies and TV shows |
| The service offers a neat UI to browse every genre of movies easily. |
TED
TED is a streaming service that helps in boosting confidence with knowledgeable content from experts. You can watch the inspiring and remarkable ideas of field experts to improve yourself in your career. To watch TED on Roku, just install the app from the Channel store and watch it for free.
Features
- TED offers over 2,000+ Talks on different categories of fields.
- You can listen to TED talks in 100+ languages.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| The app is compatible with devices like Android, iOS, Roku, etc | Navigation in the app is a little bit tougher |
Sky News
Sky News is a channel that streams news coverage over 24 hours. You can watch world business, Politics, entertainment, and day-to-day cover stories on the channel. Since the channel is compatible with devices like Android, Smart TV, and Radio, the channel is broadcasted to wider audiences.
Features
- Gives analysis on a specific cover topic.
- You can listen to the video catch-up of the key stories of the day.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| Neat UI with separate categories | The channel mostly focuses on UK news. |
| News updates about Royal Family, Technology, and the latest stories |
Crackle
Crackle is a streaming channel on Roku that offers free movies, TV shows, and a lot more in its service. By signing up with a new or dummy email, you can get to watch your content from where you paused on the crackle app. You can experience ads in between your streaming.
Features
- You can watch Anime shows on Crackle.
- The app contains over 10,000+ entertainment content to watch.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
|---|---|
| Crackle Spotlight channel offers a cool collection of movies | Downloading features not available on the app |
| You can create a Watch Later list for your films and TV shows |
These are some of the popular free Roku TV channels, where you can stream movies, TV shows, documentaries, etc for free. To know more updates about Roku, ping us in the comments.