How many people can watch Hulu at once? This is one of the questions that may cross your mind if you are planning to get the service, especially if you want to share your account with someone. This article has the right answers.
Hulu is one of the biggest online movie and TV show streaming platforms in the US. There are a lot of options available to watch on it with its library of more than 1,600 shows, 2,500 movies, and counting! With this big of a library, it is no wonder you would want to share your account with the closest people to you. As would know, this account sharing has a limit, though; that doesn’t mean there’s no way around it.
Related: How to Get a Free Hulu Account
Inside This Article
How Many People Can Watch Hulu at Once?
Without any preambles, let us get to the meat of the story; how many people can watch Hulu at once on a single account? The answer to this varies depending on the kind of Hulu subscription you have. There are five Hulu subscription plans available: basic Hulu with ads and without ads, Hulu + Live TV with ads and without ads, and the Hulu Student Plan with ads. Aside from these base plans, Hulu also offers several “add-ons” that augment your watching experience. These include extra premium channels like HBO, Starz, and Showtime, as well as services like Español language support and the “unlimited screens” add-on.
Related: How to See Your Hulu Watch History
Basic Hulu and with Live TV (With or Without Ads)
What you can get with a basic Hulu plan, with or without ads, is the basic two screens. You can only stream shows on two devices at the same time. Those on the discounted Hulu Student Plan with ads are also locked to just two actively streaming devices at a time. Sadly, users subscribed to the Hulu + Live TV deal, with or without ads, are also locked into only having two streaming screens. This limitation is the same regardless of the additional channels you subscribed to.
Hulu + Live TV + Unlimited Screens Add-On
Getting the Unlimited Screens add-on is the only official way to watch on more than two devices on Hulu, simultaneously. This upgrade is only available for Hulu + Live TV subscribers, costing an extra $9.99 a month. The upgrade will allow subscribers to live stream Hulu on an unlimited number of supported devices. This is somewhat limited, though, as the “unlimited” devices only cover devices part of your “home network.” Those on the go can only watch live streams on up to three non-home networked devices.
Hulu + Live TV + Unlimited Screens Add-On With Additional Channels
Users who are also subscribed to additional Live TV channels like Starz, HBO, and Showtime while having the Unlimited Screens add-on also have some restrictions. Those wanting to watch these channels are limited to only five streaming screens. Three of these five devices can be non-home networked devices.
Hulu Screen FAQs
What Happens If I Stream from an Extra Device?
If you attempt to stream a video on another device after you reached your subscription’s screen limit, you will run into the “too many streams” error message. You will be unable to stream on this device until you have logged out or closed ongoing streams on your other registered devices.
How Many Devices Can I Save on My Hulu Account?
While you are generally locked to two devices when streaming, you register an unlimited amount of devices into your “home network.” This means that no matter how many devices you have registered, you can only have the maximum number of actively streaming screens at a time.
How to Watch Hulu on a Third Screen Without Add-On?
Similar to other streaming services, Hulu finally allowed ad-free subscribers to download and save shows to their devices. That said, if you are wondering “how many devices can stream Hulu,” this trick allows you to watch Hulu on three devices. The catch is that one of the devices should download the shows beforehand and watch them offline while the two other screens are online.
Hulu’s Screen Policy Compared
Now that we answered “how many people can watch Hulu at once on one account,” do not go and cancel your Hulu account just yet. Hulu has a few competitors like Netflix, HBO Max, and Disney+. Here is how their cheapest subscription plans compare according to the simultaneous streaming feature.
| Subscription Plan | Price | Number Allowed Screen at a Time |
| Hulu (Ad-supported) | $6.99/mo | 2 |
| Netflix (Basic) | $9.99 | 1 |
| HBO Max (Ad-supported) | $9.99 | 3 |
| Disney+ | $7.99/month | 4 |
Netflix
Netflix is, so far, the premiere online TV show and movie streaming platform worldwide. They offer three different tiers of subscriptions. These plans are the Basic, Standard, and Premium tiers for $9.99, $15.49, and $19.99, respectively. While the Basic plan only offers one screen and device, the Standard plan offers two screens and devices, and the Premium plan offers four screens and devices. We also have an article that goes into a more in-depth look into Netflix, its subscription tiers, and the Netflix app.
HBO Max
Another good Hulu alternative is HBO Max. While mostly focused more on movies instead of TV shows, it still offers a great library of titles to watch. HBO Max only offers two different plans, one with ads for $9.99 a month and another without ads for $14.99 a month. Similar to Hulu, HBO Max has a flat maximum streaming screen number. HBO Max subscribers can only watch three online streams at a time. They do allow downloading and watching videos offline without exceeding the screen limit.
Related: How to Get HBO Max for Free
Disney+
While Disney+ is aimed more at kids and teens, they also offer a good number of titles in their online streaming library. Disney only has one plan ($7.99/month) and a “Premier Access” add-on that lets you watch new Disney movies ($29.99 per movie) at the same time they release in theaters. The base plan lets you and your family watch up to four simultaneous screens ad-free. It also lets you download shows and watch them offline without counting them as part of the screen limit. Here is a quick guide to everything you would need to know about the Disney+ app and how to use it.
What Next?
There you have it, the answer to how many people can watch Hulu at once. Even with Hulu allowing downloads of their movies and shows, sometimes you need to have some mobile data available. We have a list of the best unlimited data plans on the market right now that you might want to look at. While Hulu is not that expensive yet, those that want a cheaper choice should know there are free TV streaming options out there as well.
