How to Break Hulu Download Limits

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Grace
November 28, 2024

Hulu, a popular video streaming platform in the US, offers an affordable base plan with ads ($9.99/month) and access to new shows shortly after they air. It also provides a download feature. However, the ability to download content for offline viewing on Hulu comes with limitations and restrictions. In this guide, we will explore these limitations and provide solutions to overcome them.

Contents

Part 1. What are the Hulu download limits?

  1. Hulu No Ads subscription
  2. Compatible devices required
  3. Not all content is downloadable
  4. Limit of Hulu download amount
  5. Downloaded title expiration
  6. Accessible only from the Hulu mobile app

Part 2. How to get around Hulu download limits?

Part 1. What are the Hulu download limits?

1. Only Hulu No Ads users can download videos on Hulu.

Hulu offers the option to download movies and TV shows, but this feature is available only to Hulu (No Ads) subscribers. If you are currently on the Hulu (With Ads) plan, you can upgrade your Hulu subscription to one of the following ad-free plans.

  • Hulu (No Ads) for $18.99/month
  • Hulu (No Ads), Disney+ (No Ads) – Disney Bundle Duo Premium for $19.99/month
  • Hulu (No Ads), Disney+ (No Ads), and ESPN+ (With Ads) – Disney Bundle Trio Premium for $26.99/month
  • Hulu (No Ads) + Live TV,  Disney+ (No Ads) and ESPN+ (With Ads) for $95.99/month

2. Use the compatible devices to download from Hulu.

Hulu’s download feature can be used only with supported mobile devices.

Supported iPhones and iPads

 Hulu download supports iPhones and iPads running iOS 13.4 and above.

  • iPhone 5S or later
  • iPad 5th generation or later (iPad Air, iPad Air 2, iPad Pro, and iPad mini 2, 3, and 4)
  • iPod Touch 6th generation

Supported Android mobile devices

You can download Hulu titles on Android phones and tablets that meet the criteria below:

  • Most models running Android 5.0 and above
  • Screen size of at least 800×480 pixels

Supported Amazon Fire tablets

Hulu supports Amazon Fire Tablets capable of running Fire OS 5 or higher as follows:

  • Fire HD 6 (4th generation)
  • Fire HD 7 (4th generation)
  • Fire HDX 8.9″ (4th generation)
  • Fire (5th generation or higher)
  • Fire HD 8 (5th generation or higher)
  • Fire HD 10 (5th generation or higher)

3. Not all content is downloadable.

Only shows and movies that are part of the Hulu streaming library can be downloaded. Content from Premium Add-ons is not downloadable, and neither is the additional on-demand content that comes with a Live TV subscription.

To check for download availability, look for the  Download icon located next to the video.

4. There is a limit on the number of Hulu downloads.

Hulu allows you to have up to 25 downloads across 5 supported mobile devices at one time. These limits are applied at the account level, not for each individual profile or device. If you surpass any of these limits, a pop-up alert will appear, providing guidance on the next steps.

If you have reached the 25 download limit on Hulu and try to add new downloads, you will need to delete some old ones from your device and try again.

To delete old downloads on Hulu, follow these steps:

  1. In the Hulu app, tap Downloads from the navigation bar to find all your downloaded items.
  2. Tap Edit in the upper right corner and select the episode(s) you want to delete.
  3. Tap the Delete icon (the trash can icon) at the right bottom to delete.
  4. Confirm your decision by pressing Delete on the pop-up menu.

5. Downloaded titles can be expired.

30 days to start watching a Hulu download

You’ll have 30 days to access unwatched downloads unless the episode or movie expires from Hulu’s streaming library before that.

2 days watching period of Hulu downloads

Once you start playing a downloaded title from Hulu, you’ll have 48 hours to finish watching before the download expires.  

To renew expired Hulu downloads

If a download expires before you’ve watched it, you may be able to renew it with the following steps.

  1. On your Hulu app, go to Downloads from the navigation bar.
  2. Tap the alert icon next to an expired download.
  3. Tap Renew Download, if available.

6. Downloads are only accessible through the Hulu mobile app.

Hulu only permits downloads on its mobile app, restricting the download feature to mobile devices. As a result, you can only stream Hulu videos from a web browser on your computers. Furthermore, you can only watch the downloaded content within the Hulu app installed on that specific mobile device.

Part 2. How to bypass Hulu download limits?

Now you are familiar with the Hulu download limits with our introduction. If you’re seeking a way to bypass these restrictions and freely download Hulu content, consider using the professional Pazu Hulu Video Downloader.

Pazu Hulu Video Downloader allows you to download any Hulu movies and TV shows from both Hulu’s (With Ads) and (No Ads) plans. This smart tool works on both Windows and Mac, enabling you to convert Hulu titles to MP4. Once downloaded, you can transfer the content to other devices using a USB drive for offline viewing. In addition, Pazu Hulu Video Downloader comes with a built-in Hulu web player, so you don’t need to install the Hulu app. This solution offers the ultimate offline entertainment experience with Hulu, and you won’t need to worry about expiration dates anymore.

Follow the steps below to learn how to get around all Hulu download limitations and download Hulu movies and TV shows as MP4 files:

Step 1. Run Pazu Hulu Video Downloader on your Mac or Windows.

Download, install and launch Pazu Hulu Video Downloader on your Mac or Windows. Log in your Hulu account and choose hulu.com, hulu.jp or hulu.jp/store.

Hulu Downloader

Select a profile.

choose Hulu profile

Step 2. Search Hulu movies/TV shows to download.

Enter the movie/TV show title in the search field.

search Hulu videos

Or copy and paste the link of the movie/TV show from the Hulu website. Then click the Search icon.

copy and paste the link

Step 3. Choose video format/quality

Click the Settings icon to change:

  • Video format: MP4 or MKV
  • Video codec: H264 or H265
  • Audio language: English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, Chinese
  • Subtitle language: English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, Chinese
  • Subtitle type: Embedded subtitles, Independent subtitles, Hardcoded subtitles
  • Interface languages: English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, Chinese
Hulu to MP4

Step 4. Start to download Hulu videos

Click the Download icon next to the show to choose any season and episodes you want to download.

download Hulu TV show

Then click the Download button in the bottom right corner to start downloading the Hulu title to your computer.

download Hulu TV show to MP4

Step 5. Find your Hulu downloads

Click the History menu to view all downloaded videos. Click the folder icon to quickly locate the Hulu videos in MP4 or MKV format. From there, you can use a USB drive to transfer and play them on any other supported device, even without the Hulu app.

find hulu downloads