Blessed be the streaming services that provide us with twisty dramas that keep us at night. Lately, the show fueling my nightmares is Season 3 of The Handmaid's Tale, but given this golden age of plentiful television, not everyone can fit several streaming subscriptions into their budget. In case you need to catch up on what's happening in Gilead, let's break down the ways to stream The Handmaid's Tale without a Hulu subscription.
In recent months, the price of a basic Hulu subscription dropped from $7.99 to $5.99 a month, while the price of its ad-free plan remained at $11.99 a month. While the price change is slight, streaming plans becoming more affordable is rare but welcomed. $6 for current shows, throwback series, and movies? I've never loved my Hulu account more. But even if you can't swing that cost right now, there are ways to stay up-to-date with June, Emily, and Serena Joy without breaking the bank.
However, unless you resort to illegal means (which you shouldn't), there are limited ways to watch the new Handmaid's Tale season or start from the very beginning without spending a cent. At the end of the day, do what's right for you and your lifestyle, but here's hoping these options help you complete a healthy binge watch.
The first month of any Hulu plan is completely free, but as Handmaid's Tale episodes are debuting weekly after the June 5 premiere of the first three episodes, it'd be best to sign up for your trial once the season has finished airing or nearing the end. If you've never watched the show, Season 1 and Season 2 consist of 10 and 13 hour-long episodes, which is a tall order to binge through but not impossible. If you have a month's worth of free content, why not go hard with getting through The Handmaid's Tale and cancelling the subscription ASAP?
Expiring on June 30, the Spotify Premium for Students plan offers access to Spotify Premium, Showtime, and ad-free streaming of Hulu. Although the plan's regular price is $4.99 a month, the current offer asks users to pay only $0.99 for the first three months. That means you'll pay a total of only $2.97 for essentially the whole summer and the entire length of Season 3 of The Handmaid's Tale. Sounds like a bargain to me.
As Season 3 is still currently airing, other services don't have the newest episodes yet. But if you're watching the show for the first time or picking up from a previous point, you can dig into the archives of these platforms for older episodes. Amazon Prime and iTunes offer high-definition episodes for $2.99 each, while iTunes also has standard-definition episodes for $1.99 each. Vudu also has both seasons available for $1.99 per episode. YouTube and Google Play also offer episodes for $1.99 each, but the latter seems to not have The Handmaid's Tale at the moment. Regardless, there are actually plenty of streaming options if you need to catch up on the series before delving into the newest story.
Happy streaming, thrifty viewers!
