Comparison

Kanopy vs The Criterion Channel

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Kanopy

Access a vast library of films and documentaries for free with your library card. Enjoy ad-free streaming of award-winning movies, The Criterion Collection, and curated content for children, with new titles added regularly.

Highlights
  • Free film streaming
  • Ad-free viewing
  • Library card required
  • Festival award-winning films
  • Documentaries
  • The Criterion Collection
  • Kanopy Kids with parental controls
Features
Read full description

Stream thousands of films for free without ads through your library. Sign up with your library card and start watching festival award-winning films, thought-provoking documentaries, The Criterion Collection, and more with new titles added weekly. Browse Kanopy Kids for unlimited age-appropriate shows and movies with access to parental controls. Available on mobile, web, and living room devices.

About

The Criterion Channel

Stream a curated collection of classic and contemporary films from around the world. Discover Hollywood, international, art-house, and independent movies with special features and exclusive series. Enjoy daily refreshed selections and in-depth film analysis.

Highlights
  • Criterion Collection streaming library
  • Thematic film programming
  • Director and star retrospectives
  • Guest-curated film series
  • Supplemental film features
  • Original Criterion Channel series
Features
Read full description

A movie lover’s dream, the Criterion Channel offers classics and discoveries from around the world, thematically programmed with special features, on a streaming service brought to you by the Criterion Collection. With constantly refreshed selections of Hollywood, international, art-house, and independent movies, plus access to Criterion’s entire streaming library of more than 1,000 important classic and contemporary films, there’s something new to choose from every day of the week on the Criterion Channel. Start with Sunday Spotlights on directors, stars, genres, and themes; Tuesday’s Short + Feature; or the Friday double bill. Try out our 15-minute-a-month film school, Observations on Film Art, or choose from suggestions by friends like Barry Jenkins, Guillermo del Toro, or Mira Nair. Go deep with the Criterion Collection’s archive of special features for context that no other service can match. FEATURES - The Criterion Collection’s streaming library, including many complete editions released on Blu-ray and DVD, as well as unreleased titles - Ongoing programs of Hollywood, international, art-house, independent, documentary, and short films, including thematic programming, director and star retrospectives, and guest-curated series - Original Criterion Channel series such as Observations on Film Art, Adventures in Moviegoing, and Art-House America - Supplemental features to deepen your appreciation of the art of film, including audio commentaries, behind-the-scenes footage, scholarly analyses, introductions, new and archival interviews, and trailers To access all features and content you can subscribe to The Criterion Channel on a monthly or yearly basis with an auto-renewing subscription right inside the app.* Pricing can vary by region and will be confirmed before purchase in the app. In app subscriptions will automatically renew at the end of their cycle. * All payments will be paid through your iTunes Account and may be managed under Account Settings after the initial payment. Subscription payments will automatically renew unless deactivated at least 24-hours before the end of the current cycle. Your account will be charged for renewal at least 24-hours prior to the end of the current cycle. Any unused portion of your free trial will be forfeited upon payment. Cancellations are incurred by disabling auto-renewal. Terms of Service: https://www.criterionchannel.com/tos Privacy Policy: https://www.criterionchannel.com/privacy

Screenshots

Kanopy4 screens
The Criterion Channel3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Kanopy at none against The Criterion Channel's 2. Kanopy also leads on ratings volume (150K vs 13K) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 weeks). The Criterion Channel's advantage is review sentiment (91% vs 72%). On price, rating, ads and chart position there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. The Criterion Channel sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $10.99 per month. Kanopy asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Kanopy against 4.8 for The Criterion Channel. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Kanopy has 150K ratings behind it against 13K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 72% of Kanopy's written reviews are positive against 91% of The Criterion Channel's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Kanopy ships an update every 2 weeks, The Criterion Channel every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Kanopy versus The Criterion Channel: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKanopyThe Criterion Channel
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (150K ratings)4.8 (13K ratings)
Positive reviews72.1% of reviews91.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings150K — better13K
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterSubscription
Best chart rank#136#80 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, Apple TV
Requires iOS14.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size103 MB71 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperKanopyThe Criterion Collection, Inc.

Customer experience

Kanopy

All ratings150,233 ratings
Positive95.9%
Neutral2.1%
Negative1.9%
Written reviews782 reviews
Positive72.1%
Neutral7.9%
Negative19.9%

The Criterion Channel

All ratings13,348 ratings
Positive94.9%
Neutral1.4%
Negative3.8%
Written reviews1,285 reviews
Positive91.1%
Neutral2.3%
Negative6.6%

User reviews

Kanopy

From 150K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎥 Eclectic and engaging selection of films and series
  • 🎬 Great movies and documentaries
  • 🏆 Excellent content and thoughtful entertainment
  • 🌍 Wide selection of various international material
  • 🧠 Fantastic educational content like The Great Courses

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes, freezes, and has stability issues
  • 🔍 Difficult to search and navigate, poor user experience
  • 🕰️ Losing credits just for resuming a movie
  • 🔇 No way to turn off closed captions
  • 📺 Chromecast and TV integration problems

The Criterion Channel

From 13K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎥 Excellent collection of films
  • 🎨 Great curation and themed collections
  • 🔍 Ability to discover new and classic films
  • 🎬 High-quality film viewing experience
  • 🤓 Educational and informative supplementary content

Room to improve

  • 🔍 Difficult to browse full catalog
  • 🔍 Limited search and filtering options
  • 🐛 Playback issues and interruptions
  • 🔌 Problems with offline viewing and downloads
  • 🤖 Lack of personalized recommendations

Bugs and requests

Kanopy

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App crashes and freezes frequently
  • Login issues, unable to sign in or access account
  • Chromecast and TV streaming problems
  • Video playback issues, including blurry or out of sync
  • Inconsistent behavior when resuming or rewatching movies

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add ability to pause, rewind, and resume movies without using credits
  • Improve search and browsing functionality
  • Provide more content filtering and parental control options
  • Add support for offline viewing and downloads
  • Enhance Chromecast and TV integration
Show 1 more
  • Improve video quality and playback stability

The Criterion Channel

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Frequent playback interruptions and freezing
  • Unreliable offline viewing and download issues
  • Inconsistent app performance across devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to view full catalog of available titles
  • More advanced search and filtering tools
  • Improved playback stability and offline functionality
  • Personalized recommendations based on viewing history
  • Ratings and user reviews system

In-app purchases

None

Kanopy

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

The Criterion Channel

Subscriptions2
  • Criterion Channel Subscription7 Days trial$10.991 Month
  • Criterion Channel Subscription7 Days trial$99.991 Year

Questions

Is Kanopy free?
Kanopy is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is The Criterion Channel free?
The Criterion Channel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Kanopy or The Criterion Channel?
Kanopy and The Criterion Channel are both rated 4.8 out of 5 on the App Store, from 150K and 13K ratings respectively.
Do Kanopy or The Criterion Channel have ads?
Neither Kanopy nor The Criterion Channel shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Kanopy or The Criterion Channel?
Kanopy ships an update every 2 weeks, and The Criterion Channel every 6 weeks. Most recently, Kanopy was updated on September 24, 2026 and The Criterion Channel on September 23, 2026.
Which is more popular, Kanopy or The Criterion Channel?
Kanopy currently peaks at #136 in the App Store charts, and The Criterion Channel at #80. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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