How to Extend Your Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, or Netflix Free Trial Life
Free trials are a convenient way to check if you really want to pay for the streaming service or just watch a specific show every season and then post a deposit.
Many offline streaming services like Hulu and Netflix offer free 30-day trials, but you can double (or even triple) the length of that free period if you really want to avoid paying for a subscription. Even the Amazon Prime 30-day trial can be extended with a little effort.
There is no proven strategy that applies to all services other than creating a new account with a different email address and billing information (more on that in a minute), but you can get a longer free trial by simply requesting one.
For example, you can contact customer support at Hulu , Netflix, or Amazon and say that you weren’t able to take full advantage of your trial period and can they suggest you another one? They want your business, so they can say yes. This has reportedly worked for some users , but don’t expect it to happen every time.
Another option is to cancel your account before the free trial ends and wait for the company to contact you. Again, they want your business, and some users were offered a second or third trial period in the days and months after they canceled their membership. Follow these trial offers in your inbox.
The last, most reliable and slightly controversial way to force-renew your free trial is to simply create a new account. Amazon, for example, only requires a new email address to qualify for the Prime trial . If you’re ready to re-create a new account and enter your billing information, you can renew your free trial indefinitely. Just remember to cancel your subscription before you are charged for a paid membership.
Again, this is … a less enjoyable way to renew your free trial, but it works.
If your several trial periods have come to an end and you still haven’t seen everything you want, try sharing your streaming account with a friend or family member. This brings the cost down to very little or free (depending on the generosity of the friend in question) – and depending on the service, you can create a separate viewer profile so you basically have your own account.
This article was originally published in November 2017 and was updated by Emily Long on June 16, 2020. We’ve rewritten the article to reflect our current recommendations, added new links to resources, and changed the lead image.