With Hulu’s offline features, you can download episodes and movies to watch when you’re away from an internet connection. Hulu’s offline capabilities are particularly useful when you’re on the go. Whether you’re on your daily commute, out camping, stuck on a plane or wherever, you can now watch your favorite Hulu titles. In past years Hulu fell behind other streaming giants like Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, who are notorious for their relaxed offline features. Now, Hulu offline lets you download select episodes. However, there should be an emphasis on “select.”
Even though Hulu downloads are open to anyone with an ad-free subscription, there are a few caveats. We cover that much and more below.
To read more about Hulu, visit our Hulu review and Hulu Live review.
How to watch Hulu offline
To watch Hulu offline, there are a few things that you’ll need to keep in mind. First, as noted above, you’ll need an ad-free version of Hulu. Hulu offers two packages with offline capabilities — Hulu No Ads ($11.99/mo.) and Premium + Live TV ($60.99/mo.). Unfortunately, Hulu + Live TV doesn’t come with an ad-free on-demand experience. So, you’ll need to upgrade to Premium to download your favorite titles for on-the-go. Also, Premium + Live TV lets you download select titles from Hulu’s on-demand catalog, but Live programming isn’t available offline.
How to download Hulu shows
Here’s a list of step-by-step instructions for how to download Hulu movies and shows.
Step One:
Log into your Hulu app with one of Hulu’s supported mobile devices. These devices include Amazon Fire (5+) tablets, Android (5.0+) devices and iOS (12.0+) devices like iPads and iPhones.
Step Two:
To identify a video that can be downloaded, look for the Download icon on the Details page. The Download icon looks like an arrow pointing down towards a horizontal line.
Note: When you download a video, you’ll need a stable internet connection. Otherwise, you’ll use your cellular data.
Step Three:
Navigate to available offline titles. If you’re searching for every show you can download, then tap the Search icon. The Search icon has the appearance of a magnifying glass.
Step Four:
Navigate to the Browse menu and click on Downloadable. From there, you can choose from the list of downloadable titles.
Step Five:
Select the Details page. Simply click the icon to download.
How to access and manage Hulu downloads
Since you can only download up to 25 videos at one time, you’ll want to manage your download list. But there are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind. For instance, the 25 download limit applies to each account, not the device. So, you won’t be able to download over 25 titles on numerous devices. Also, you have a period of 30 days to watch the titles you download. After that time has passed, your downloaded videos will automatically delete. Once you start watching a video, you have 48 hours to finish, or it will also expire and delete.
Step One:
To access your downloaded Hulu videos, first, open the Hulu app on your mobile device. Even if you’re using multiple Hulu profiles, they’ll all be available on the same downloads list. So, click on your Downloads and view the A-Z list.
Step Two:
If any of your titles have expired, you may still have an opportunity to renew them. You’ll need to access your Downloads from the menu bar. Then, click on the Alert icon (which is an exclamation point) and select Renew Download.
Step Three:
If you need to re-download any of your expired downloads, simply navigate to your Downloads from the menu bar. Then, select Edit located at the top of your screen and choose all the videos you want to delete. Once all the videos are selected, click the Trash icon, and a prompt will appear. Confirm your decision, and you’re all set.
Step Four:
When you download the titles you want, you have the option to pick Standard or High-Definition (HD) quality. And if you don’t want to worry about selecting the right video quality for every title, then you can opt to set the video quality for future downloads. The process varies between Android and iOS devices.
For Android devices, you’ll need to access your Hulu account. From there, navigate to your Settings and Downloads. Then, select Video Quality and pick either Standard or High video quality.
It’s a little different for iOS devices, but not by much. Go to your Downloads (as you would in previous steps) and click on the Settings (gear-shaped) icon. Then, simply tap Video Quality and decide between Standard and High quality.
FAQs
What is a Hulu VPN?
If you like to travel outside the U.S., then a VPN is useful in maintaining access to Hulu. That’s because Hulu is only available within the U.S. So if you’re traveling outside the country, your Hulu account is essentially rendered useless. That’s unless you have a VPN. There are plenty of VPNs out there like CyberGhost, ExpressVPN, IPVanish and NordVPN.
How do I download the Hulu app?
Whether you’re looking to download the Hulu app on your game console, smartphone, smart TV or tablet, the process is easy. Head to the App Store or Google Play and search for “Hulu.” Once the Hulu app populates, select Download and start your subscription. Or, if you already have an account, sign in to your existing one.
How do I download Hulu shows on Android?
Simply follow the steps above to download your favorite shows like The Handmaid’s Tale to your Android device. Just be sure to select the Download icon from the show’s Details page. If there’s no download icon, then, unfortunately, the show isn’t available for download.
Can I download away from Wi-Fi?
If you want to download using cellular data, you’ll first want to make sure that your Android device enables downloads. Access your account and navigate to your Settings and then Downloads. From here, you can toggle Cellular Downloading On or Off.
Want to learn more about Hulu and what it offers? Hulu offers a few packages, including on-demand and live TV options. For more on Hulu, we recommend that you check out our Hulu review. We also have a Hulu + Live TV review you can take a look at for more information about the service’s live TV offerings.
