With so many streaming services, tracking which titles are available, where, and how much they cost can take time and effort. On top of that, the content disappears from services like Netflix when the rights expire or go on sale soon after you bought it for the total price.
JustWatch helps people by offering a search engine that finds streaming content from today's most popular services. The app gives you access to HBO Now, Showtime, Epix, Crackle, Xbox, PlayStation, and smaller US providers.
Learn more about the JustWatch app’s features, content, availability, and limitations. Discover how to download the JustWatch app on your mobile device.
- What Is JustWatch?
- How Did JustWatch Start?
- Is JustWatch Free?
- Exploring the JustWatch App Tabs
- What Are the Features of the JustWatch App?
- Even More Features of the JustWatch App
What Is JustWatch?
JustWatch is an online guide that collects all of the movies, TV shows, and other types of content that is available to be streamed online. You can open a website in any browser and a smartphone app that works on iOS, Android, and Fire TV devices.
JustWatch lets you look through over 100 content libraries to see what's available where, how much it costs, what quality it streams in, and what payment options are available (subscription, rental, etc.).
You can also narrow down the huge number of titles by Movies, TV Series, Release Year, Genre, Price, Rating (like an IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes score), and Age Rating.
This means you can search across multiple services at once instead of just looking for a specific title or going to Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu one at a time to see what action movies or animated movies are available.
How to Download the JustWatch App
JustWatch claims it is the best streaming guide for smartphone users. It allows its users to get personal recommendations for movies and TV shows you can watch on Netflix, Now TV, Disney Plus, and many other services.
Thus, the team decided to launch the JustWatch app for Android and iOS devices to make it more accessible to many TV shows and movie lovers.
You can get the JustWatch app for free on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.
How Did JustWatch Start?
JustWatch was a startup company in 2015. It has a search engine that helps cord-cutters find where they can watch their favorite shows and movies.
Even though many apps and websites like JustWatch, such as Fan TV, Yidio, Instantwatcher, CanIStreamIt, and more, offer similar services, JustWatch stands out by focusing on both US and international audiences.
The service works like a search engine. You type in a title to find out where you can stream or buy it and which service currently has the best price. The site also has updates that let you know when new content on your favorite service is available.
What Streaming Services Can You Search For On JustWatch?
JustWatch has over 100 TV streaming services, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video (rentals, purchases, and those with a Prime membership), Syfy, and CBS All Access. DC Universe, Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus, Acorn TV, Rakuten TV, Comedy Central, Hulu, and HBO Max/Now/Go are other notable services.
For the complete list, check out the JustWatch website, where each TV streaming service has its own icon at the top of the content filters. You'll also find a summary of each episode's title and plot and a list of the cast and other shows you might want to watch.
For each movie or TV show, you can see when it came out on each platform, how many episodes are available, the streaming quality (SD, HD, or 4K), and how much it costs each platform for each quality.
Is JustWatch Free?
The best thing about JustWatch is that it is free to use. You can create an account to get a more personalized experience, mainly in the form of emails that highlight content it thinks you'll like, but you don't have to.
JustWatch uses a model called "freemium," which means a free level of service and an optional paid level of service. The free version of JustWatch will be enough for most streamers. Most of the app's most important features can be used with the free version.
If you decide to pay for the "JustWatch Pro" version, you'll get some of the following benefits.
- Experience without ads
- Better functions for the Watchlist feature
- Getting access to more search filters (such as IMDb vote count or production company)
- Ability to "hide" titles you've seen or don't like
JustWatch Pro costs $2.49 a month, and you don't have to sign a contract. You are free to cancel your JustWatch Pro subscription at any time.
How to Sign Up on the Just Watch App
Users can sign up for JustWatch with their Google, Apple, or Facebook accounts. You can also use an email address and a password to sign up. You can manually enter your email address and password if you want to sign up.
Note that you will have to agree to email marketing when you sign up, but you can turn this off later by going to your account settings. After you sign in, you'll see a huge list of movies and TV shows from different streaming services.
Your JustWatch dashboard will default to have movies and TV shows from Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney Plus. You can add more platforms or get rid of any of the ones that are already there.
Exploring the JustWatch App Tabs
JustWatch tames streaming chaos with a search engine that finds legal content from today's most popular services.
When you first launch the app, you will choose your favorite providers. This way, you'll only see results from places where you shop or have subscriptions. However, you'll still be able to see all the services on the detail pages.
Tabs across the bottom let you sort content by what's new, what's most popular, what's been discounted recently, and what's on your wish list.
What Are the Other Tabs on the JustWatch App?
You can filter from the first three tabs by movies, TV shows, and many other things, like picture quality (SD or HD), year of release, or genre. You can use the magnifying glass button in the upper right corner to search by title, cast, or crew.
Tap a result to see a list of services where your choice can be streamed or rented/owned, along with a description and photos (but oddly, no cast and crew details).
You can't watch full movies or episodes on JustWatch, but each listing has links to relevant trailers or featurettes on YouTube if there are any. The app uses real brand icons. On the other hand, most subscription-based services will open in their apps, so you can watch them immediately.
What Are the Features of the JustWatch App?
JustWatch gathers content from more than 100 different sources. When looking for a title, you can search all these platforms or just one or two. For example, if you only use Netflix and NEON, you can look for only available content on these two services.
The Home page of JustWatch has a list of movies and TV shows that may be of interest, broken down into several categories.
The "New" page, lets you see a vertical list of the most recent movies and TV shows organized by date and provider. You can use the release year, genre, IMDB rating, price, types (free, ads, subscription, buy, rent), age rating, and quality to narrow your search for new books (SD, HD, and 4K) filters.
The Popular page sorts movies and TV shows by their popularity. It has the same layout and filters as the New page.
What Is the Watchlist Feature of the JustWatch App?
On the Watchlist page, you can see all of the movies you've added and TV shows you're following. You can mark episodes and seasons as seen to keep track of how much you've watched.
There's a watchlist feature, like the ones in Netflix and Disney+, that lets you mark titles you want to keep track of or remember to watch later. You don't even need to log in for this since the information is stored in your browser's cookies.
Even More Features of the JustWatch App
Each title also has a "Watch Now" button that takes you directly to the right platform, so you can start streaming immediately. With the "Watch Now" button, you can start streaming movies or TV shows on the platform of your choice.
You can like or dislike movie and TV show titles, and the Watchlist page shows your likes and dislikes. This can help you curate all your beloved and favorite shows in just one page, which will be helpful as a future reference.
You can also set up a notification to inform you when a title becomes free, another feature worth pointing out. When you search for a title, JustWatch will tell you if it can be watched for free. If it can't, you must click "Notify me when I can watch it for free."
Where Is JustWatch Available?
JustWatch is a guide to streaming services worldwide. It is offered in more than 100 countries worldwide. In the Americas, JustWatch can be used in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Uruguay, and Peru.
It is sold in 34 countries in Europe, including the UK, Spain, France, Germany, Russia, Portugal, Belgium, and Switzerland. JustWatch is available in 19 African countries, like Nigeria, Algeria, South Africa, Morocco, Kenya, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast.
It is also available in the Middle East, Asia, and Oceania.
Conclusion
JustWatch isn't a TV streaming service, so you can't stream anything from it. However, it is a convenient place to look through everything available to stream elsewhere, so you don't have to check each app or service to find what you want.
