Features included in a Pluto TV account

Key findings

• Pluto TV offers over 250 content partnerships for free live entertainment.
• When you sign up for a Pluto TV account, you’ll unlock features like viewing history, favorite channels, and watchlists.
• Pluto TV allows users to watch future shows instantly and receive curated content recommendations.

Free streaming services are often overlooked. People don’t really think much about it unless you are someone without cable or someone with a HD TV antenna who gets their TV this way. If you use a streaming device, such as a Roku or if you have a Smart TV, you can easily download the streaming service’s free apps.

But for those who use them, there are many that don’t show many current shows or movies, and you take what you can get. It’s free, after all. But there are some that do everything they can to pamper the consumers who know about them. Pluto TV is definitely one of them. Pluto TV has over 250 Content partnerships to offer consumers special programs, from traditional television to current sports broadcasts.

There is one major advantage to using the Pluto TV app over signing up for an account. Even though it is completely free to sign up, you don’t have to create an account to use it. However, if you do, there are plenty of features available to you. You only need to invest a few seconds of your time and they will be unlocked automatically. Here are some of the features you get when you sign up for a Pluto TV account.

7 Registration doesn’t take long

All you need to do is use your email address

If you haven’t created an account yet, you can just open Pluto TV and start using the service. However, if you want to create an account, all you need to do is enter your email address and a password and you’re done. That’s all you need to start using the Pluto TV subscription. Other than sharing your email address with another service, there aren’t many downsides to using it. Plus, you’ll have to remember another password.

6 See what you’ve recently viewed

You will be reminded of what you have viewed

If you’ve been using Pluto TV to watch shows, you can see what you’ve recently watched if you have an account. The shows you’ve recently watched will appear on your home page when you open the app. They’ll be displayed above the main titles that Pluto TV recommends to you.

You can click back into these channels and shows and, in some cases, pick up where you left off. Once the show ends, you may not be able to go back to it. However, if you left the show and came back and it’s still playing, you’ll be taken right back to where you left off. For some content, you can also restart the show and start watching from the beginning.

5 Watch a show or movie from the beginning

This only works for certain content

When you click on a channel that is showing a movie or TV show, you have the option to jump right in and watch the program wherever it is currently playing. This is similar to watching cable TV where you go to the program guide and select a channel. You are forced to watch the program wherever it is currently playing while it is being broadcast.

However, Pluto TV offers other options for some of its channels and content. Much like when you use cable and watch a movie or TV show that’s available on demand, users with an account can start some content from the beginning. This means that if you come to a channel while it’s in the middle of a show or movie, you don’t have to pick up from where it is. Pluto TV lets you restart the content and experience it in its entirety. While this doesn’t work for every channel or show, it’s incredibly helpful for those who use this platform frequently.

4 Mark a channel as a favorite

Make your search easier

If you have an account, Pluto TV can save what you’re watching so you can more easily find similar content in the future. But you can also take control of this yourself by marking a channel as a favorite. When you’re watching a channel, select the heart icon in the bottom menu bar. This will instantly add the channel to your favorites list where you can easily find it in the future.

Pluto TV has over 200 channels, so scrolling through them all can be a pain. Luckily for users, Pluto TV breaks them down into categories like Drama, True Crime, Comedy, Movies, and more. However, if you mark a channel as a favorite, your preferred channels will appear at the top of the program guide, making it easier to get to the channels you frequently visit.

3 Add a show to your watchlist

How to find out when it plays

Finding out that you like a show can be difficult. But once you realize it’s something you want to watch again, Pluto TV makes it easy to save it. Right next to the heart icon on a channel is a more icon with three dots. Clicking it will reveal the Watchlist button, which lets you create a custom watchlist of your favorite shows.

When you access the watchlist, you will be shown the shows you have selected and you can play them whenever you want. Basically, your on-demand titles are curated according to your preferences. You can select which shows you have been interested in in the past and start watching them immediately.

2 Check out future shows now

This is different from other features

Let’s say you’re watching a channel and you want to switch channels to see what’s on next on that channel. Much like a cable TV program guide, Pluto TV lets you see what shows are on for the next few hours. But unlike cable TV, you can actually watch some of those shows right away instead of having to wait.

This is a unique feature because you no longer have to wait for a specific time to watch a show. This is not the case for every channel and show. It only works for older shows or programs that are not as current. However, if you are watching a channel and there is a Watch Now icon on an upcoming show on that channel, you can flick over and watch that option instead.

If you spend all day looking in the manual, you might not see this often. But it exists and you can do it if you have an account. If you see it as an option, it’s worth trying out even just for the novelty.

1 Enjoy curated content from Pluto TV

This happens after you have used other functions

After you’ve used Pluto TV for a while, the service learns your habits and suggests content you might like. This is a relief for those who don’t like searching through the program guide, watchlist, favorites, etc. Pluto TV offers you these suggestions as soon as you open the app, so they’re the first thing you see. It’s helpful for finding shows you may not know but that are similar to ones you’ve already seen and enjoyed.