Disney Plus: 6 tips to get the most out of the streaming service

Disney Plus has firmly found its footing in the streaming world after its launch last November. The ad-free subscription service garnered over 10 million signups on the first day by offering a niche collection of movies, TV shows and original programs that still caters to a wide audience. Less than two months later, it already had 28.6 million subscribers in the US alone. 

In addition to classic Disney movies, Pixar shorts, and the Star Wars and Marvel franchises, Disney Plus has delivered new cultural icons like Baby Yoda from its marquee original series, The Mandalorian. The streaming service seems to be moving full steam ahead, teasing upcoming Marvel shows about Loki (which just added Owen Wilson to its cast), the Scarlet Witch and Vision, and Falcon and the Winter Soldier. 

Now that we’ve spent some time exploring the streaming service, here are a few tips you may not know to help you get the most out of your Disney Plus subscription. 

Read more: Marvel teases Loki, WandaVision and Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney Plus

Get Disney Plus for free (or at least for less money)

Compared to its streaming peers, Disney Plus is priced pretty competitively at $6.99 a month or $70 a year.

Despite this, everyone likes “free” better. Verizon Unlimited customers can get a year of Disney Plus free, and US Mobile offers a free subscription when you sign up for at least three unlimited lines. With that same tier, US Mobile offers a Pandora Premium, Apple TV Plus or LiveXLive subscription, too.

Disney also offers a bundle option where you can get Hulu, Disney Plus and ESPN Plus for $13 a month. To swap to the bundle deal or change your payments from monthly to annual in the Disney Plus app, just click your profile character icon and click Account. 

Read more: Canceling Disney Plus isn’t a simple swipe. Here’s how to quit

Download content

If you’re going somewhere without Wi-Fi, you can download movies and show episodes from Disney Plus to watch on the go. To download a title, just select the downward arrow icon to start the process. You’ll find anything you downloaded by tapping the same downward arrow icon in the toolbar at the bottom of the menu of the app.

There are no restrictions on how many times you can download a title or watch a title you’ve downloaded. You just need to access Disney Plus at least once a month. Essentially, you don’t get to keep the movies you download if you get rid of Disney Plus. Deleting downloads is easy, too. 

Make a watchlist

Disney Plus’s watchlist option is a major benefit to those of us who found dozens of throwback movies and shows on the platform that we want to rewatch when we have the time. The watchlist works just like your Netflix queue. To add a title, just tap the + icon found next to the play button. You can find your list in the Disney Plus toolbar at the top of the screen, under Watchlist. 

Read more: Disney Plus: Every show, movie and original that’s coming

Search more effectively

Disney continues to add new content to Disney Plus, and if you’re not looking for a specific movie or show, the huge catalog available can be overwhelming. But the platform splits every film into categories, and everything is pretty easy to navigate. 

If you click the magnifying glass icon, it opens Disney Plus’ Explore feature. Instead of scrolling, you can choose from a number of different collections to narrow down your search, like the Spider-Man collection or The Muppets collection. The Disney Through the Decades collection starts with Steamboat Willie, the Mickey Mouse cartoon from the 1920s, and goes all the way up to the Avengers series.  

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Share links

While there isn’t a way to share Disney Plus content URLs within the app, you can do so if you’re watching on the service’s website. To share a specific episode of a show, start playing the video and copy the URL. Send it to your friend and save them some time searching for the Lizzie McGuire episode you’re referencing while emotionally preparing for the reboot. 

Request shows 

While there’s plenty to watch on Disney Plus, there are still many shows and movies that could be added. If you don’t see the show you’re looking for on the service, and you haven’t seen any news that it’s coming later, you can request that it be brought to the service. To pitch your favorite Disney flick, open Disney Plus’ Help Center in the app or on your computer browser. Click Give Feedback under the search bar and select Request a Film or Show. You can suggest up to three titles at a time.