Anicloud and free anime: where to stream anime legally in the US

You typed Anicloud because you want anime without paying, and you'd rather not guess who's behind the site. A licensed anime service is an app that pays rights holders for the shows it streams. We couldn't confirm who runs Anicloud, so every option here names its company on its US listing.

First up are the free anime apps that run ads, then Hoopla and your library card, then whether Crunchyroll is still free. Next come what the paid plans cost by the year, buying a season outright and reading the Advertising label. We finish with where Anicloud fits under US law and where we'd start.

Free anime apps that run ads: RetroCrush, Tubi and Pluto TV

Three apps on the US App Store stream anime at no charge. Under each one's age rating, a short Contains line names Advertising, Apple's label for paid promotion shown inside the app. Unless a line names another page, each quote below comes from the app's own US listing, read on October 30, 2026, and matches Apple's catalog data for that app.

RetroCrush

Unlike the other two, RetroCrush is built just for anime. Its US App Store listing says "Watch classic anime that matters, including exclusive first-time English releases." The seller line reads Cinedigm Entertainment Corp., while the copyright line reads 2026 Cineverse, and the RetroCrush YouTube About page agrees: "Part of the Cineverse streaming family." A paid tier sits beside the free one. The listing shows RetroCrush+ Year w/ Trial at $49.99 as of October 2026, which is $4.17 a month ($49.99 / 12).

A second in-app line, RetroCrush+ 365 with Trial, lists $4.99 as of October 2026. It names no term, so we left it out of the math.

Tubi

Next is Tubi, a general free service. Anime is one corner of it, not its specialty. Its US listing says, in Tubi's own words, "Ikuze! We have all the anime!" and calls Tubi "a completely fee-free streamer." Tubi's corporate site backs the price claim: "Tubi is a free streaming service that entertains over 110 million monthly active users."

Treat "all the anime" as a slogan; the listing never counts its anime titles.

Pluto TV

Then there's Pluto TV, which leans on live channels, so it feels closer to flipping through cable. Its US listing promises "Exclusive free channels covering sports, crime, comedy, anime, and more," and it also lists Anime among the genres you can browse. The listing also says it adds "new movies and TV shows" to its library daily, though it doesn't say how many are anime. Neither Pluto TV's nor Tubi's US listing shows an in-app purchase, so there's nothing to buy inside either app.

Official YouTube channels

Beyond apps, publishers post anime on YouTube, but we only list a channel whose own About page says viewers in the US can watch its full episodes. We read the About pages of Crunchyroll, RetroCrush and GUNDAM CHANNEL INTL on October 30, 2026. Crunchyroll's says it posts "full episodes every week," yet none of the three says which countries can play them, so they're not on this list.

Hoopla: anime on a library card

But if an ad break in the middle of a fight scene bothers you, a public library card is the other $0 route. Hoopla's US listing, sold by Midwest Tape LLC, says you can "Stream movies, TV shows, documentaries, and anime at home or on the go."

Its description says "No subscription. No ads." The catch: "borrowing limits vary by library."

For anime, the useful part is SeasonPass. The listing says it "lets you borrow a full season of a show and watch at your own pace," which suits a 12-episode season better than single episodes. Kanopy, the other library app, isn't covered here; our roundup of free movie apps for US viewers walks through it.

Is Crunchyroll still free?

Still, Crunchyroll ranked first in Apple's US search for "anime" in our test. Its US App Store listing, sold by Crunchyroll, LLC, reads like a membership pitch, listing "Ad-free streaming," "Early access to new episodes" and "Over 2,000 titles available."

We couldn't confirm a free tier from any US source we could read. Unlike RetroCrush, Tubi and Pluto TV, Crunchyroll's listing names no Advertising capability under its age rating.

Its own site gave our checker a bot check (HTTP 403) instead of a plan page.

As of October 2026, the listing's in-app list shows Fan at $9.99 (the line names no term), Mega Fan [Monthly] at $13.99 and Ultimate Fan at $17.99. Two yearly lines sit beside them, Mega Fan [Annual] at $139.99 and Ultimate Fan Annual at $179.99, and neither one names a monthly price. The billing note says "Your account will be charged monthly for renewal." A second line warns that "Subscription pricing may vary based on region and selected membership tier." Three older lines, such as Anime Membership at $7.99, still appear in that list, and we couldn't match any of them to a plan the listing describes.

What do the higher tiers add? The listing ties Crunchyroll Game Vault, "exclusive mobile games with no ads or in-app purchases," to Mega Fan and Ultimate Fan members.

What the paid anime plans cost by the year

So if you watch new episodes every week, a paid plan is the licensed way to see them soon after Japan. HIDIVE is the second simulcast service. Its US listing calls it "a passion-driven anime streaming service for full-tilt fandoms." It also promises "uncensored simulcasts, fresh dubs, classics, and deep cuts." It belongs to AMC Networks, whose AMC Global Media site lists HIDIVE among its brands. HIDIVE's listing carries a 16+ age rating, so check it before a younger viewer shares your account. If you lock the app with Screen Time and later forget the code, our guide to resetting a Screen Time passcode walks through Apple's reset.

Yearly billing lowers the cost. The table multiplies each monthly price by 12 and divides each yearly price by 12. All prices are in-app prices from the US listings as of October 30, 2026.

Of the two services that promise simulcasts, HIDIVE's yearly plan costs less per month: $6.67, against $11.67 for Crunchyroll Mega Fan [Annual], as of October 2026. Every plan here renews on its own. Crunchyroll's listing says membership "auto-renews unless turned off at least 24 hours before renewal." Set a reminder two days before the yearly date if you only want one season.

Buying a season instead of a subscription

Now for a third licensed route that skips subscriptions: buying one season from Apple's TV store. Apple's US catalog data listed SD and HD season prices on October 30, 2026, and dividing the HD price by the episode count gives the cost of each episode.

At $24.99 to $28.99 in HD as of October 2026, each of these seasons costs more than three months of HIDIVE's Monthly Subscription at $7.99 ($23.97). Buying fits one show you'll rewatch, while weekly simulcasts are cheaper on a plan.

Not every hit was there. Our searches found no season for Demon Slayer or Cowboy Bebop, and "one piece" returned an unrelated show. Across all 19 anime seasons the searches did return, 13 cost $2.07 to $2.10 per HD episode, and the full range ran from $0.38 to $2.80. Check the store before you plan around a title.

Reading the Advertising label on a US listing

Those Contains lines sit under the age rating on every listing quoted above, and they're the quickest way to see how a $0 app pays for its anime. Apple's age rating definitions describe Advertising as "Paid promotion of products or services within the app." They add that it "May include: banner ads, video and playable ads, rich media ads, or native ad formats."

Who fills in that label? Apple's page says "Apple generates appropriate ratings based on your answer to the age rating questionnaire," so it's the developer's own declaration. Apple's App Review Guidelines add a rule for video apps in guideline 5.2.3. Apps "should not facilitate illegal file sharing or include the ability to save, convert, or download media from third-party sources" without explicit authorization.

What we tested

Then our Python script read the Contains line and in-app list on nine US listings downloaded October 30, 2026, with Netflix, Hulu and Kanopy as controls. RetroCrush, Tubi, Pluto TV, Netflix and Hulu listed Advertising. Crunchyroll, HIDIVE, Hoopla and Kanopy didn't. It also counted "anime" in each description: Crunchyroll 14, HIDIVE 4, RetroCrush 2, Pluto TV 2, Tubi 1, Hoopla 1. Netflix, Hulu and Kanopy had none, so they're off this list. Apple's US search for "anime" returned 21 apps, and only two came from sellers on our list: Crunchyroll, LLC in first place and HIDIVE, LLC in sixth.

Where Anicloud fits, and what US law targets

So where does Anicloud fit? We couldn't confirm who runs it, so we don't open or link it.

US law aims its streaming felony at the people who run unlicensed services, not at a show's title or a single episode. The federal statute, 18 U.S.C. 2319C, makes it unlawful to willfully offer such a service for commercial advantage or private financial gain. The service must be one that "is primarily designed or provided for the purpose of publicly performing works protected under title 17" without the owner's authority. A first offense carries up to 3 years in prison. The Copyright Office's bill excerpt shows the rule came in with the spending law enacted December 27, 2020.

For a viewer, the risk is more practical. A 2019 FTC consumer alert about malware in pirate video apps says their malware may "serve pop-up windows or ads, or take you to sites you didn't want to visit." The FTC's malware guide is blunt about download buttons: "Don't click on ads to download software." Report suspect ads at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Some sites push an anime APK instead; our walkthrough on checking an APK before you install it shows how to verify the signer. Our MP4Juice safety guide covers video converter sites.

Where we'd start

Our take: install RetroCrush if you like older series, or Tubi if you want anime mixed with everything else. Then add Hoopla through your library card for ad-free borrows. Pay only when a weekly simulcast matters. Once you know you'll watch for 12 months, HIDIVE's yearly plan or Crunchyroll's Mega Fan [Annual] costs less than paying monthly. On a TV, RetroCrush, Tubi, Pluto TV and Hoopla all name Apple TV on their US listings. Other screens? Read OTT boxes versus smart TVs. Does your watchlist also hold Korean dramas or South Indian films? Our pages on K-drama apps when kisskh is down and Tamil films for US viewers cover those two searches.

Anicloud and legal anime: quick questions

How we made this guide: Our checker downloaded nine US App Store listings, Apple's catalog data and three YouTube pages. Then we read Apple's rating rules, the federal statute and two FTC pages. Service websites showed us regional pages or a bot check, so no US price comes from them. Facts checked by the DigitalTreed team on October 30, 2026.

First published December 2023 as a profile of the Anicloud site. Rewritten October 30, 2026 around licensed anime services, with every plan price taken from that service's US App Store listing.

Sources

• App Store (US): RetroCrush
• App Store (US): Tubi: Movies & Live TV
• App Store (US): Pluto TV
• App Store (US): Hoopla: Your Library Anywhere
• App Store (US): Crunchyroll
• App Store (US): HIDIVE
• Tubi: corporate site
• AMC Global Media: brands
• RetroCrush YouTube channel: About
• Apple App Store Connect Help: Age ratings values and definitions
• Apple: App Review Guidelines
• govinfo: 18 U.S.C. 2319C, Illicit digital transmission services
• U.S. Copyright Office: unauthorized streaming bill excerpt (PDF)
• FTC: Malware from illegal video streaming apps
• FTC: Malware, how to protect against, detect and remove it