Google TV Freeplay now has on-demand movies and shows, but it still trails rivals in one key category

Jon Fingas

Tue, August 11, 2026 at 6:36 PM UTC

Google TV Freeplay showing an on-demand movie — Google

Google's answer to free streaming services like The Roku Channel and Tubi is now much more appealing if you like control over what you watch. Google TV Freeplay now has on-demand movies and TV shows as well as an expanded live channel lineup.

The initial catalog includes over 10,000 titles. The movies come from studios like A24 and Lionsgate and include modern hits like Lady Bird , not just classics and minor releases. Google promises library updates "all year long," although it's not clear how the collection will change over time.

Google has also expanded Freeplay's live selection to over 300 channels touching on fields like news, sports, and reality TV. Some of the recent additions include Bloomberg TV+ , The Martha Stewart Channel , and Yahoo! Sports Network .

Freeplay is ad-supported and available from the home screen on any Google TV device, including the Google TV Streamer as well as TVs with the Android-based software built-in.

How does Google TV Freeplay compare to The Roku Channel and Tubi?

Google is catching up

Tubi homepage — Dan Girolamo/How-To Geek/Tubi

The addition of on-demand videos to Google TV Freeplay is effectively a necessity if Google wants to stay competitive with other free streaming services. The Roku Channel, Tubi, and others have long had the option in addition to their live channels.

Whether it's better depends on what you're looking for and how Google approaches catalog changes. Roku and Tubi both rotate their movie and TV show selections. This might keep you coming back but also raises the possibility of a show vanishing before you've seen it. Google isn't guaranteed to offer a more permanent library, so don't count on it filling the gaps left by its rivals.

Google's offering is relatively small. While it has more channels than Tubi (over 300 versus 260), it clearly trails rivals in on-demand video choices—Tubi has over 40,000 TV shows, while The Roku Channel has over 80,000 movies and TV episodes. Roku and Tubi also have original productions that will stick around where Google hasn't made its own content.

It's still early, however, and we'd expect Google to narrow the gap as it secures deals. As it stands, free is free—it won't hurt you to try TV Freeplay even if you ultimately come back to one of the more established options.

Check out Yahoo's latest streaming advice, based on hands-on testing.

About our ads

How does Google TV Freeplay compare to The Roku Channel and Tubi?

Google is catching up

Recommended articles