Tubi, the free streaming app you didn’t know was hidden in your TV

This streaming app has exploded in popularity, beating some of its bigger competitors – and chances are, you already have it installed on your phone or smart TV.

We’re a lucky bunch of viewers here in Australia with all the giant streaming services at our fingertips. There’s Netflix, Stan, BINGE and Disney+, just to name a few.

But chances are, you may not be aware that you have another streamer called Tubi that is already installed somewhere on your phone, tablet, smart TV or gaming console.

Tubi is a 100 per cent free streaming service, owned by the Fox Corporation. It was first launched in Australia in 2019 with just 7000 movies and television series on the platform.

When it launched in the US in 2014, Tubi housed 15,000 movies and TV series.

Today, it has a larger content library than any other streaming service on the market with more 275,000 premium movies and TV episodes and 300 exclusive Tubi originals.

Tubi is a 100 per cent free streaming service that boasts 97 million active users a month in the US alone.

According to the New York Times, Fox bought Tubi for $US440 million in 2020 in an effort for the media company to get in on the streaming market. Fox was offered $US2 billion for it last year, but the offer was sensationally knocked back.

Good call as, according to a Nielsen poll, Tubi now consistently outranks Peacock, Max, Paramount+, Apple TV+ in total viewing time – and is soon set to close the gap with Disney+.

“We took what people thought were Tubi’s perceived weaknesses — older content, no stars, lower-budget movies — and we made it our strength,” Chief Marketing Officer Nicole Parlapiano told the New York Times last year.

“To be tied with Disney? That actually blows my mind. Their team is probably 100 times my size and I can’t imagine what their budgets are. But because we have those constraints, that’s where creativity wins.”

The only streamers ahead of Tubi are YouTube, Amazon, Hulu and Netflix.

Tubi has the largest content library than any other streaming service on the market with more 275,000 premium movies and TV episodes and 300 exclusive Tubi originals.

Last year, Tubi streamed 10 billion hours of content. Unlike other streamers, it doesn’t require an account to use as there is no sign-up required, so it’s likely some of us Aussies have unknowingly tuned in for free.

And, in a time where cost of living pressures are very real, using Tubi has no impact on your wallet. While streamers such as Netflix and Disney+ increase their monthly subscription fees regularly, Tubi promises to remain completely free, providing you don’t mind going old school and sitting through a few ads.

In May 2024, Netflix confirmed the price of its subscriptions for Aussie viewers would go from $22.99 per month to $25.99 per month.

Meanwhile, weeks ago Disney+ subscribers were informed that their fees would increase from $13.99 per month to $15.99 per month, effective from March 28.