Hulu is a go-to streaming platform in the US, known for its affordable plans and next-day access to many network shows. You can always bundle it with Disney+ to save big. Hulu also offers a download option for ad-free users to watch offline. However, this feature comes with certain restrictions on what you can download, how many titles you can store, how long the downloads last, etc. This guide will explain these limitations in detail and provide a practical workaround to maximize your Hulu offline experience.
Related: Why Can’t I Download 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’re on the Hulu (With Ads) plan and want to watch offline, you’ll need to upgrade your Hulu subscription to Hulu (No Ads) or an ad-free bundle plan with it.
Here are the prices of the Hulu (No Ads) plan and bundles:
For your reference, here are the Hulu ad-supported plan and bundle prices. You may also consider a subscription among them if offline watching is not a priority.
Hulu downloads are supported on mobile devices. You cannot download Hulu content with the web player or on TV devices. Keep your device’s operating system and Hulu app up to date to have the best download performance.
You can download movies and shows with the Hulu app on the following devices:
With an Hulu ad-free subscription, you can only download shows and movies that are part of the Hulu streaming library. This means content from Premium Add-ons (such as HBO Max, Paramount+, etc.) and the on-demand content included with Hulu + Live TV cannot be downloaded.
To see if a show or movie on Hulu is available for download, look for the Download icon under the title of a movie or next to the episodes of a show. Or you can go to the Download section at the bottom of the Hulu app and tap “See What’s Downloadable.”
Hulu allows a maximum of 25 downloads across 5 supported mobile devices at a time. These limits are set for the entire account, applying to all profiles and devices associated with the account. If you try to download more than 25 titles, you’ll receive an on-screen alert. You may need to delete watched downloads for new ones.
Downloaded titles on Hulu do not always last. They have two major expiration dates:
If a download expires before you’ve watched it, you can renew it with the following steps:
As mentioned earlier, Hulu downloads are exclusively available on the mobile app. Downloading is not supported on the Hulu website or TV devices.
Additionally, downloaded content is tied to the mobile device it was downloaded on and cannot be transferred to other devices. You cannot play the downloads with other media player either.
Keep in mind that logging out of the Hulu app will delete all downloaded content on that device. When your subscription ends, you will also lose all the downloads.
If you’re on the Hulu With Ads plan or you’re bothered by the download limitations, here is an alternative solution to watch offline without the Hulu app.
Professional downloaders like Pazu Hulu Video Downloader can download movies and TV shows with both Hulu ad-supported and ad-free plans. It works on Windows and Mac, converting titles to MP4 and MKV formats. These files can then be transferred to other devices for offline playback. This tool allows for more flexibility and gets around the Hulu download limitations. You can download Hulu videos and watch them on any supported device, without expiration dates.
Here’s how to use Pazu Hulu Video Downloader to download Hulu movies and TV shows as MP4 files:
Download, install and launch Pazu Hulu Video Downloader on your Mac or Windows. Click the HULU icon, choose hulu.com or hulu.jp, and log in to your Hulu account.
Click the Search tab at the top and enter the title of a show/movie in the search field.
Or copy and paste the link of the movie/TV show from the Hulu website. Then click the Search icon.
Click the Settings icon (the three-lines icon on the top right corner) > “Preferences” to change the video format, codec, audio and subtitle languages, output folder, Interface language, and more.
Click the Download icon next to a title. For a movie, it starts downloading right away. For a show, choose the season and episodes you want to download.
Then click the Download button in the bottom right corner to start downloading the show to your computer.
Click the History menu to view all downloaded videos. Click the folder icon to quickly locate the Hulu videos in MP4 or MKV format. You can transfer and play them on any supported device, without worrying about the expiration date or other Hulu download limitations.
Download Hulu Video movies and TV shows to MP4/MKV on your PC/Mac