Netflix has never joined Apple TV Channels. HBO tried it and left.
The first major streaming service to seriously commit to the feature in years is an anime platform. Crunchyroll officially launched as a channel inside the Apple TV app on March 26, 2026, giving users in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia direct access to its full anime library without needing a separate app or login.
That context matters. Crunchyroll has been the home of simulcasts for shows like Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 and Frieren Season 2 — series that drove enormous streaming traffic this past winter. The platform arriving inside Apple’s aggregation layer is not just a convenience story. It is a signal about where anime stands in the broader streaming power structure right now.
What the Apple TV Channel Actually Includes
GettyThe practical upgrade is real. Subscribers get access to nearly 25,000 hours of content and over 50,000 episodes, including current Spring 2026 simulcasts, at $9.99 per month with a 7-day free trial, billed entirely through Apple with no separate Crunchyroll account required. The channel also uses Apple’s native video player, which early users have consistently described as smoother and more reliable than the standalone Crunchyroll app.
The lineup includes returning heavy hitters like Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 and Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Season 2, alongside the Spring 2026 premiere of Witch Hat Atelier on April 6. For fans building an Apple-first viewing setup, this removes the last major friction point in the anime streaming experience.
The launch is notable beyond the anime audience because it is the first significant new channel added to the Apple TV app in a long time. Apple introduced the Channels feature in 2019 to become a single subscription interface for all streaming services. The vision stalled when Netflix declined to participate, and HBO eventually exited. Crunchyroll joining in 2026 is the clearest sign in years that the feature still has momentum.
The One Catch Every Existing Subscriber Needs to Know
The Apple TV channel and the standalone Crunchyroll app are entirely separate products. Existing Crunchyroll subscribers cannot link their current account to the Apple TV channel. Switching would require canceling the existing subscription and starting fresh through Apple. That is a meaningful friction point, particularly for anyone on an annual plan.
There is also a tier gap worth understanding. The Apple TV channel offers only the Fan level at $9.99 per month. The Mega Fan tier at $13.99 per month, which includes offline viewing, up to four simultaneous streams, and exclusive store discounts, as well as the Ultimate Fan tier at $17.99 with access to the Crunchyroll Manga app and a yearly swag bag, are only available through direct Crunchyroll subscriptions. Manga readers and multi-device households will want to factor that in before switching.
For fans who have navigated platform differences before, the tradeoff is familiar: simplicity versus access. The Apple TV channel wins on convenience. Crunchyroll wins on depth.
Anime pulling off what Netflix would not is its own kind of milestone.
The Spring 2026 season is already stacked. There has never been a better moment to try the channel free for seven days.
