11 best legal Putlocker alternatives [Free or under $10]

Annoyed that Putlocker is constantly getting banned and changing web addresses? I’m not. This year alone, I’ve watched over 200 great movies and 30 shows — many on free, legal websites (I’ll drop a screenshot of my movie tracker below if you’re curious).

Spend just 10 minutes reading this article and bookmarking the platforms I recommend, and you’ll likely have all your movie needs covered. So, here’s my list of the best Putlocker alternatives — without the ad-filled, low-quality junk sites.

Free: Best legal Putlocker alternative sites

I promise: you’ll LOVE at least a few of the websites on this list. But first, let’s clear something up. Yes, I mentioned that these sites aren’t “loaded with ads,” but some level of advertising is usually unavoidable — it’s the trade-off for free content.

Sometimes, I use AdLock to block ads. It doesn’t work on every site (some won’t play movies if an ad blocker is on), but I try it each time; at the very least, it saves me from random pop-up ads across the web.

Also, free streaming sites tend to have a lot of retro content from the 2000s and 2010s. If that’s not your vibe, just filter by popularity, year of release, or genre to find something that suits your taste more easily.

Crackle: Latest movies and gold classic

Crackle is one of my favorite free streaming sites, offering thousands of movies, from recent hits to classics dating back to the 1930s. You’ll find a wide range of genres — rom-coms, horror, documentaries, anime, and more. Crackle is available only in the U.S., and while it has some ads, they’re minimal and don’t interrupt the streaming experience too much.

Gems: The Oath, Snatch, Everybody Hates Chris, Wilfred

Tubi: The biggest free library

A friend of mine once said that if Tubi offered a paid, ad-free version, she’d cancel all her other streaming subscriptions. And I totally get it. Tubi claims to be the largest free movie and TV streaming website in the U.S., with everything from anime to action movies and plenty of recent releases. You even get access to 200 TV channels. Personally, I love Tubi for its diverse selection of indie films and original true crime documentaries.

Gems: Wynonna Earp, The Nevers 

Roku: Top-rated movies + sports

You can watch The Roku Channel without registering, but I’d recommend signing up to easily watch movies across multiple devices. I love Roku for its originals and classics like The English Patient. You might love it for the free live streaming of the league’s Sunday Leadoff games.

Gems: The Reader, Home Alone, The Mentalist.

Amazon Freevee: Great for comedies

I usually turn to Amazon Freevee when I want to catch up on hits from the past few years. It’s where I watched Lost and Emma. The ads here can be more annoying than on other platforms, but at least Freevee shows you where they’ll appear and how many are left.

Gems: Desperate Housewives, Jury Duty, Deadpool

Pluto TV: Movies, live TV and realities

Pluto TV has plenty of legendary movies like Good Will Hunting, Shutter Island, and The Crow. But for me, it’s the best site for guilty pleasure binge-watching — I go here for reality shows like Judge Judy and Cake Hunters.  There are a fair amount of ads, but since I usually watch these shows in the background while cleaning or cooking, I'm ready to put up with them.

Gems: The Good Wife, Deep Water, Gladiator, Coraline, The Godfather

Plex: Great for watching and tracking your movies

I love Plex because every movie and TV show comes with a detailed overview, including an IMDb rating, trailer, and the option to bookmark the movie for later, mark it as watched, or add it to your personal collection. If you wish, you can also stream your own content, or it share with loved ones through Plex Media Server.

Gems: The Death of Stalin, Filth, Requiem for a Dream

Paid Putlocker alternatives for $9.99 or less

If you’re considering paid streaming services, I have two things to mention.

First, most major streaming platforms offer plans under $10 per month, which gives you unlimited content, HD quality, and access to apps for mobile devices.

Second, these lower-priced plans often include commercials. But! The ads are far less frequent than on free services. Sometimes it feels unfair, but then I remember we used to pay for cable and still had to sit through shampoo and detergent commercials!

So, here are my favorite streaming services — ones I’m currently subscribed to or have subscribed to in the past — that I think make a great alternative to Putlocker.

Hulu: For thought-provoking content

Hulu has great dramas, comedies, documentaries, and a kids' section. But I usually go there for something disturbing, deep, and thought-provoking. My journey with Hulu began with Handmade's Tale, and some of my favorites there are Severance, Little Fires Everywhere, and Dopesick.

Other gems: Kind of Kindness, Life & Beth, Nine Perfect Strangers, The Act.

Price: $9.99/month or $99.99/year (with ads)

Netflix: To stay on top of popular shows

Maybe it’s just my feed, but it seems like most of the shows and movies blowing up on TikTok and Instagram come from Netflix. Think Bridgerton, The Monsters: The Eric and Lyle Menendez Story, and Nobody Wants This, to name a few.

I also love Netflix for its local content; I've discovered some amazing European films that I wouldn’t have found anywhere else.

Other gems: 3 Body Problem, Decameron, His Three Daughters.

Price: $6.99/mo (with ads and 720p video quality)

Max (HBO Max): For cartoons, award-winning movies and TV series

If I had to pick one platform for cartoons, it’d be Max. And if cartoons aren’t your thing, remember that HBO Max i all about premium, high-quality content from top studios. Over the past decade, HBO series and movies have been consistently nominated as the best in various categories — and you can watch them on Max. 

More gems: Adventure Time: Fionna & Cake, Scavengers Reign, Station Eleven.

Price: $9.99/month or $99.99/year (with ads)

Prime Video: Top-rated originals in various genres

Amazon Prime Video can be bought separately or as part of an Amazon Prime subscription, which also includes special shipping benefits, podcasts, e-books, and photo/video storage. As a bundle, it’s a pretty good deal.

Prime Video offers a variety of HD movies and shows, including great originals (Amazon's focus) like The Boys, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

More gems: Fallout, The Wheel of Time.

Price: $8.99/mo for Prime Video only. 14.99/mo ($139/year) for Amazon Prime.

Peacock: Sports + all our favorite comedies and dramas

Peacock can be very profitable if you know a few secrets.

To be honest, I watched Peacock when it was free and I haven't gotten around to the paid version yet. But if I had to pick one place to watch sports (Olympics, EPL, WWE), it’d be Peacock. It also has a bunch of Bravo shows, Chicago Fire, etc.

Now for the money-saving tips. Peacock is included in the Instacart+ subscription and comes free for 2 years for Xfinity Internet customers. There are also discounts for American Express cardholders. And recently, a friend of mine found out that if you attempt to cancel your Peacock subscription, they may offer you a discount to stay.

More gems: Law & Order, New Girl, Brave New World.

Price: $7.99/mo ($79.99/year)

What is Putlocker: Quick overview

For those who were simply looking for good streaming websites to watch movies and don't understand what Putlocker is, here’s a quick rundown.

Putlocker started as a basic movie site focused on free file hosting and streaming media, originally based in the UK (original Putlocker: putlocker.com). By early 2012, as the popular site Megaupload was shut down for copyright issues, Putlocker’s daily traffic surged to nearly a million visitors, doubling soon after.

In 2016, the Motion Picture Association of America labeled Putlocker a piracy threat, leading to its block in the UK by a High Court order. Today, Putlocker and sites like Putlocker operate in a decentralized digital world. Since their content is user-generated and the site’s hosting locations shifts often, it’s difficult for law enforcement to find a party to blame. It’s where many movies and TV shows are hosted, but those files are all considered stolen content as the people uploading, downloading, and online streaming them have no legal ownership of the content.

Is Putlockers safe?

Safety should be paramount when you stream or download content, and sites like Putlockers make it difficult to stay safe online. You simply don’t know what other content may be attached to a file you stream or download, and asking yourself “is Putlocker safe” is both advised and reasonable.

These types of movie sites are playgrounds for hackers looking to infest your computer with malware. You think you’re downloading a movie just released in theaters – but you also get malware.

Streaming and torrenting sites like Putlockers can be detrimental.

Is Putlockers legal?

The legality of Putlocker is unclear. It really depends on where you try to access it from. Remember the UK blocked the Putlocker URL, but a simple web search for Putlocker will show you just how many sites have sprung up in its place with the Putlocker name attached, hoping to attract traffic. 

I should also point out that in 2018, a man in California was convicted of violating federal copyright law for downloading the movie Deadpool from Putlocker and uploaded it to Facebook, where it was seen over six million times.

Putlocker alternatives: Are they worth it?

I sincerely believe that this list of legal alternatives to Putlocker can provide most people with high-quality, engaging content. Free resources get new releases with a delay (but are you sure you've watched all the great movies of the last 1-4 years?). 

Paid platforms feature new movies, and in most cases, you can access top streaming platforms for $10 per month or even less if you choose an annual subscription.

For movie fans like myself, here are some additional tools to enhance your viewing experience:

• PullTube, Downie — to download movies for offline watching.
• JustStream — to stream movies from your laptop on a big-screen TV.
• Movie Explorer Pro — to keep track of the movies you've watched.
• VidCap — to generate subtitles with AI (for a downloaded movie).

I get them on Setapp for $9.99 a month. New members get a 7-day free trial.

FAQ

Is 123Movies a safe alternative to Putlocker?

123Movies, like Solarmovie, Fmovies, Yesmovies, Gomovies, Moviesjoy, and AZ movies, can be considered an analog of Putlocker. Much of its content is copyright-infringing, and this site is blocked in many countries.

What happened to Putlocker?

Putlocker is constantly being banned for copyright infringement. As a result, the site changes addresses, creates clones and mirror sites, and can potentially be a source of malware. If you decide to visit it anyway, protect your internet connection with ClearVPN, one of the best VPNs out there.

Why is Putlocker not working?

Putlocker website hosts copyrighted movies and TV series, so it’s often banned and restricted due to copyright violations. It is often banned and restricted, so it may not work. Try legal alternatives to Putlocker, such as Crackle, Roku, Tubi, Plex, etc.

Is Popcornflix legal?

Popcornflix was a legal movie site and one of the best alternatives to Putlocker, but it was shut down in 2024, probably due to bankruptcy. The Popcornflix YouTube channel, however, is still available and offers a good selection of movies.