Yes, Tubi is free, but there is a different kind of cost to using this service

There’s nothing better than free, but is there even truly such a thing? You might not be paying with your dollar, but there are other costs. While Netflix dominates the world of subscription streaming services and competitors like Disney+ and Max try to keep up, there’s one streaming service that’s been quietly catching huge masses of eyeballs: Tubi.

Tubi is just one of many so-called FAST services, which stands for “free ad-supported television,” with other popular examples including Pluto TV and Roku Channel. Tubi, though, is top of the heap, with a reported 80 million active users. That is, in part, thanks to the service’s incredibly wide-ranging library of films and TV shows, all available to users for free.

Unfortunately, despite my admiration for Tubi, I hate watching it. All because of the feature that keeps it free: the ads.

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What makes Tubi the best FAST streaming service

Content is king, and Tubi is the king of content

Unsplash / Dario / Erol Ahmed / Erik Mclean / Pocket-lint

Different FAST services offer different appeals. Pluto TV, for example, is built around channels that run 24/7, offering users an experience similar to cable, but even more focused on specific genres, and sometimes even specific shows.

Tubi has its own page of live-streaming channels, but its real killer app is the library itself. With over 23,000 movies and 700 TV shows, Tubi really has something for everyone. That includes everything from huge Hollywood hits like Shrek, to original low-budget horror movies.

In fact, among many pop culture hounds and historians, the depth of the library has unearthed content that in many cases hasn’t been readily available for decades, like forgotten TV movies from the ’80s, or European exploitation movies from the ’70s. Tubi is a perfect playground for people in search of obscure media.

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The reason I hate watching Tubi

It’s all about those ads

LG 

I grew up before the streaming takeover — before DVRs, even. That means I grew up watching TV with commercials, which was completely normal. Every show or movie aired on TV would feature numerous interruptions. TV scripts were structured to accommodate ad breaks, and at worst, I might use that time to go to the washroom or grab something from the kitchen. But the ads were there, and I never liked them.

When DVR came into the picture, my whole world shifted. Suddenly, even when something I recorded did feature ads, I could skip past them. It was still annoying, but it was a massive improvement. And then streaming entered the picture. Suddenly, ads didn’t take up the majority of my content, all thanks to Netflix and other services.

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In fact, it’s gotten to the point where I outright avoid watching shows on network TV or cable specifically, so I won’t have to suffer through commercials. Sometimes I’ll avoid a show I might otherwise want to watch simply because it’s not easily available to me in ad-free form.

To put it simply, I hate ads. Which means, I kind of hate Tubi, too. Or, at least, I hate watching Tubi despite loving everything else they do. That rare old kung-fu movie might sound great, but the idea of it being interrupted by ad breaks on Tubi will keep me from watching.

Tubi is the future of streaming

Ads aren’t going anywhere

Crackle/Pluto TV/Tubi/Pocket-Lint

I may hate watching anything with ads, but 80 million other viewers clearly don’t feel the same way. Tubi is popular because it’s free, and the ads are an acceptable part of the bargain for many people.

And it’s not just Tubi, either. FAST services are now a major part of the streaming game, and even the big subscription streamers have taken note. In recent years, Netflix, Disney+, Max, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and Paramount+ have all introduced lower-priced subscription tiers featuring ads. Peacock is actually free to watch with ads, and users can buy a subscription to get rid of them.

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In each case, the move has proven successful, offering streamers a more diversified source of revenue while offering lower priced or even free options for consumers. Despite my personal hatred of ads, even I have to admit, ad-supported services like Tubi might just be the future of streaming.