Everything you need to know about getting an Apple TV Plus free trial.
(Image credit: Apple)
Signing up for a 7-day Apple TV Plus free trial is a great way to check how Apple's subscription service compares with other screening options. Seven days might not be long, but it should be long enough to let you know what you're getting, and perhaps even long enough to binge watch a few Apple originals in their entirety.
Apple TV Plus offers ad-free 4K content and over 80 Apple Originals, such as The Morning Show, Severance, Slow Horses and See. It doesn't have the amount of content of the likes of Netflix, Disney Plus and Hulu, but the price after the Apple TV Plus free trial is very competitive at $6.99 / £6.99 per month.
If you decide during the trial that Apple TV Plus, or Apple TV+, isn't for you, it's pretty easy to cancel before you get charged anything. If you don't cancel, you'll start to be charged for a subscription after the seven-day trial ends. Learn all about pricing below, where we'll also answer from of the most common questions about Apple TV plus.
Starting an Apple TV Plus free trial is super easy. Just follow the links below to go to the Apple TV Plus site for your area and click 'Start free trial' register for a trial. The trial lasts seven days, so make a note of the date and remember to cancel before the seven days are up if you decide you don't want to continue with a paid subscription.
What is Apple TV Plus?
Apple TV Plus is Apple's television streaming service. It's a little different to other steaming platforms because it was created with the aim to show only original content, so there's no massive library of old films and series from third parties like there is on Netflix.
New Apple Originals shows and films are added every month and there are now over 80 titles. The platform's available in around 107 countries and is expected to expand further coming years.
Apple TV Plus focuses on original content (Image credit: Apple)
How do I watch Apple TV Plus?
You can Watch Apple TV+ on the Apple TV app on an Apple device. Simply open the app, and click or tap Apple TV+. You can also watch Apple TV+ on several streaming platforms, smart TVs and AirPlay-enabled TVs with the Apple TV app, or you can watch online at tv.apple.com.
What Apple TV Plus shows can I watch?
The main focus of Apple TV Plus is its Apple Originals, which includes a wide range of comedy and drama series, feature films, documentaries, and kids' shows. This means that it's library is much smaller than those of Netflix or Hulu (see how to get a Hulu free trial if you're interested in that), but some Apple Originals have won huge acclaim.
The football comedy series Ted Lasso won a haul of Emmy awards, picking up Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series. Another series that won widespread acclaim was the intriguing futuristic thriller Severance, while The Morning Show has scooped several awards with an all-star cast including Jennifer Anniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carell. A third season has been commissioned.
Other successful Apple TV Plus shows include the animated musical series Central Park from Loren Bouchard (Bob's Burgers), the Peabody Award-winning comedy Dickinson with Hailee Steinfield, and the Ronald D. Moore (Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica) science-fiction drama For All Mankind.
Apple Originals films include Palmer featuring Justin Timberlake, The Banker starring Anthony Mackie and Samuel L. Jackson, and Spike Jonze-directed The Beastie Boys Story. To look forward to soon we have the Martin Scorsese Apple Original movie Killers of the Flower Moon, starring Robert De Niro, Leonardo di Caprio, and Lily Gladstone, and the Shrinking starring Harrison Ford.
Is there an Apple TV Plus free trial?
Yes! There is a seven-day Apple TV Plus free 7-day trial that's available to everyone, but there are also ways to get a longer free trial. A new Apple One bundle comes with one month of Apple TV Plus free and certain qualifying Apple devices, such as iPhone 14, come with three months of Apple TV Plus for free when bought from an authorised retailer. In all cases, the trial will automatically pass to a standard monthly subscription priced at $6.99/£6.99 unless you cancel it ahead of time.
What about Apple TV channels?
You can supplement Apple TV Plus with Apple TV Channels, which are premium networks availablein the Apple TV app. The cost of Apple TV Channels varies from $3 to $11 per month. Most of these channels also have seven-day free trials, while Showtime, A&E Crime Central and History Vault offer one-month free trials.
Can I watch Apple TV Plus for free?
The only way for most people to watch Apple TV Plus for free is with an Apple TV Plus free trial – either the standard 7-day free trial or a free trial that you receive with the purchase of an Apple device or Apple One plan (see below).
If you're a university student, you can also watch Apple TV Plus for free if you purchase an Apple Music Student plan, which costs $4.99 per month. That deal is good for up to four years provided you remain a student with a valid .edu email address (find our more about Apple student discount).
How much does Apple TV Plus cost?
After the Apple TV Plus free trial, the service costs $6.99/£6.99 per month. This gets you ad-free content in 4K, HDR, and Dolby Vision and the ability to stream on up to six devices simultaneously.
For those who want to use other Apple services, it can be cheaper to go for an Apple One package, which has three subscription tiers: Individual, Family, and Premier.
Apple One Individual gets you Apple TV Plus, Apple Music, Apple Arcade, and 50GB of iCloud storage for $16.95/£16.95 per month. Apple One Family costs $22.95/£22.95 per month and can be shared with up to five people and bumps the iCloud storage up to 200GB.
Apple One Premier costs $32.95/£32.95 per month for up to five people, 2TB of iCloud storage and the addition of Apple News Plus and Apple Fitness Plus.
Is Apple TV Plus worth it?
Apple TV Plus may not have as much content as pricier platforms like Netflix and Disney Plus, but we think the quality of the content and the lower price of just $6.99/£6.99 per month for no commercials and original 4K and HDR content on up to six devices is a good deal.
And Apple TV Plus is steadily building up its library of original content with quality productions featuring big names, so it seems it's only going to get more attractive. You can also easily expand your Apple TV Plus experience with Apple TV Channels, but the lack of bundle deals can make this an expensive option.
Joe is a regular freelance journalist and editor at Creative Bloq. He writes news, features and buying guides and keeps track of the best equipment and software for creatives, from video editing programs to monitors and accessories. A veteran news writer and photographer, he now works as a project manager at the London and Buenos Aires-based design, production and branding agency Hermana Creatives. There he manages a team of designers, photographers and video editors who specialise in producing visual content and design assets for the hospitality sector. He also dances Argentine tango.
