VRV Review: Plans, Prices, Channels, and More

Is VRV good?

Well, it was. VRV used to be an awesome service for fans of animation who want to keep up on the newest anime. In addition to offering a lot of shows you won’t find on Hulu or Netflix, VRV also had simulcast anime, with new episodes uploaded the same day they air in Japan.

Unfortunately, VRV is not long for this world. Crunchyroll began folding both VRV and Funimation’s content libraries into its own service in 2022 and recommends that VRV subscribers switch over to Crunchyroll as soon as possible. There’s a good reason for this—VRV no longer carries new episodes of currently running anime. So if you want those simulcasts, you should subscribe to Crunchyroll or Hulu.

For the time being, you can still technically subscribe to VRV, but a confounding pop-up on the site discourages you from doing so. But you should know that the service only offers a fraction of the content that it offered at its prime.

Right now, the anime-loving world is holding its breath as Crunchyroll slowly absorbs the entirety of its competition. For more information on the current state of anime streaming in the US, head over to our anime streaming guide.

VRV pros and cons

Jump to:

• Current Deals
• VRV vs. Crunchyroll and Funimation
• VRV plans and pricing
• VRV channels
• Best anime on VRV
• VRV specs and features

VRV free trials and deals

VRV offers a ton of free episodes from all sorts of series—we’re talking 20,000 hours here.

If you find yourself wanting a series that hides behind a paywall or just getting sick of commercials, you can try VRV Premium free for one month.

VRV vs. Crunchyroll and Funimation

Data current as of post date. Prices and features are subject to change.

How does VRV compare to the competition?

VRV, Crunchyroll, and Funimation used to be the big players in streaming, but now they’re all part of the same company. At some point in the future, VRV and Funimation will both be rolled into the same service: Crunchyroll.

You can also access some of Crunchyroll’s library with any Hulu plan. So if you’re just looking to watch some more mainstream, currently running anime like My Hero Academia and Spy x Family, Hulu offers the same pricing of $7.99 monthly with ads and $9.99 monthly without.

It all comes down to how devoted to anime you are: do you want a streaming service with some anime, some Western shows? Hulu is the way to go. You could even bundle with Disney+ and ESPN+ for a few extra dollars. Looking for just anime, and nothing but anime? Crunchyroll is your new best friend.

Looking for something outside of Crunchyroll’s growing sphere of anime power? For more of our fabulous anime insight, check out our article on the Best Anime Streaming Services.

VRV plan and pricing

Data current as of post date. Prices and features are subject to change.

The price of a commercial-free life

You can spend as long as you like basking in the free shows VRV has to offer. With a free account, you can keep track of your favorite shows and your progress in them.

But if you want to watch everything on VRV or if you’re getting tired of commercials, VRV Premium is what you want.

Imagine watching all three seasons of HarmonQuest without any interruptions to the epic journey—just as Dan Harmon intended. Now that’s top-tier geek culture.

So even though you can watch plenty of VRV shows without a premium membership, your viewing experience will be so much better if you pony up for a paid account. The premium version of VRV costs only $9.99 per month. If you just want to enjoy the archival VRV shows and not anything new, we say do it.

Just remember to cancel before the service officially goes under.

VRV channels

If you’re searching for a veritable potpourri of cartoons, VRV’s current lineup will serve you well. You’ll find some other nerdy delights here, too, especially old-school favorites.

Try not to get too attached to anything. VRV’s channel lineup is far from set in stone.

VRV’s current channels:

• Crunchyroll—Subbed anime
• Mondo—Adult cartoons
• VRV Select—Special collection of shows and movies

Crunchyroll is the star of the show here. Both Crunchyroll and VRV call Otter Media “daddy,” so nepotism may play a role in how much VRV hypes this channel up.

But of all VRV’s channels, Crunchyroll has the most robust collection of shows—including anime and dramas launched with subtitles the same day they come out in Japan.

Honestly, you could rename VRV “Crunchyroll and Friends,” and you wouldn’t be far off from the truth. But that title’s a mouthful for a streaming service.

We’re not really sure where Crunchyroll’s last surviving friends—Mondo and VRV Select—are going once the service disappears. Now would be a good time to catch up, if you’re worried about any of it going the way of Infinity Train. (Thanks, HBO.)

Former channels, fondly remembered:

• RiffTrax—Commentary from former stars of Mystery Science Theater 3000
• Ginx TV—E-sports
• Machinima—Gaming
• Seeso—Comedy
• Tested—Technology
• Mubi—Arthouse films
• DramaFever—Korean Dramas
• Funimation—Dubbed anime
• Geek & Sundry—Gaming lifestyle
• Nerdist—Fandom lifestyle
• Shudder—Horror
• CuriosityStream—Documentaries
• NickRewind (Previously NickSplat)—Old Nickelodeon shows
• Boomerang—Old Warner Bros. cartoons
• Cartoon Hangover—Original cartoons
• HIDIVE—Subbed and dubbed anime
• Rooster Teeth—Web series

Historically, VRV goes through channels faster than an adventure anime goes through two-bit villains. Some of the channels above died out, and VRV collected many of their hits—like Seeso’s My Brother, My Brother, and Me—into the VRV Select channel.

Others dramatically walked off into the sunset, seeking new horizons. These mavericks have links in the list above so you can see where they are now.

It’s stressful not knowing which channels you can count on month to month. This writer left VRV soon after Funimation did (though, to be honest, it was Critical Role leaving Geek & Sundry that pushed me over the edge).

But if you really want those VRV Select and Mondo titles, VRV Premium is only $2 per month more than Crunchyroll. Some irregularity is a small price to pay for all the extra stuff you’ll get.

The best anime on VRV

While VRV offers more than just anime, Japanese animation is the big pull—everything else is just extra.

But the best stuff still comes from Crunchyroll. It doesn’t call itself “the world’s largest destination for anime” for nothing.

Most popular anime

• Akame ga Kill!
• Attack on Titan
• Bleach
• Blue Exorcist
• Boruto: Naruto Next Generations
• Dr. Stone
• Dragon Ball Super
• Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
• Fairy Tail
• Fire Force
• Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
• Hunter x Hunter
• JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure
• Mob Psycho 100
• My Hero Academia
• Naruto Shippuden
• No Game No Life 
• One Piece
• Parasyte: The Maxim 
• Sword Art Online

Or maybe you’re not interested in the most popular anime—or you’ve already watched them all. Well, you’re in luck because we watch a lot of anime here at CableTV.com, and VRV has a bunch of our favorites.

Our anime recommendations

• Fruits Basket (2019 version)
• Erased
• Mononoke
• Mushi-Shi
• My Hero Academia
• The Promised Neverland
• Yona of the Dawn

VRV specs and features

In addition to VRV’s curated suggestions, VRV’s technical features set it apart from the competition.

Multiple streams

Data current as of post date. Prices and features are subject to change.

How many simultaneous streams does VRV have?

Rather than giving you an exact number of streams, VRV plays by the honor code. Everyone in your home can use one account, as long as you’re comfortable sharing the password.

But that can cause problems for on-the-go viewing. If you travel across the country and want to unwind with some cartoons, the new IP address might send up red flags for VRV.

Its customer service team seems chill, so you could contact them and explain the situation. But having your account temporarily suspended due to a vacation sounds like a hassle.

Funimations two and five stream options offer some more peace of mind for travel or splitting an account with a friend in another town.

But as long as you’re mostly watching VRV at home, unlimited is a really good number.

Compatible streaming devices

If you’re into niche technology, VRV isn’t the most versatile. But it works on all the big name brands, so most people won’t have a problem streaming where they want.

This writer watches on a TCL Roku TV at home, and the VRV app works great. There are a lot of layers to it, with all the different channels and lists to choose from, but once you get used to navigating it, you’ll be happy you have such detailed sections to choose from.

Video quality

VRV makes the bold assumption that you want to watch TV in its highest possible quality without buffering, so it adjusts your video resolution based on your internet connection.

If you want to take control, you can make it play at any quality between 240p and 1080p. A lower quality won’t look as good (as you might imagine), but it will take less bandwidth so there’s less buffering. And if you notice the quality of your stream degrading past what you consider acceptable, you can switch from Auto to 1080p and endure the buffer.

But as long as you’ve got a strong internet connection, VRV will look great on all your devices. We watched a few episodes on a 55″ screen, and even at that size, the image never looked anything less than gorgeous.

The video player is very pretty to look at too. But it doesn’t give previews when you’re fast-forwarding or rewinding, so that can be a hassle if you want to skip over the intro.

But we’re sure that once you’re 100 episodes into Hunter x Hunter, you’ll intuitively know how long the theme songs take. (Not that this writer knows from experience or anything. Haha! Ha. Ha . . .)

A VRV show streaming on a desktop computer.

Interface and channel guide

VRV’s interface has one colossal leg up on Crunchyroll: recommendations.

You’ll get top picks based on shows you’ve watched recently, as you can see in the image below. (We really like cats, okay?)

VRV also puts together lists with names like “Sports is good actually” and “Historical figures but not really” These clever curations include shows from all of its channels, so you’ll never get stumped by “What do I watch now?” after you finish an amazing series.

VRV’s main page on a desktop computer.

Final take: Is VRV worth it?

If you pick VRV over Crunchyroll, you’ll miss out on anime simulcasts and any new content. But VRV’s the only place to catch great shows like HarmonQuest and Lastman.

And as every nerd knows, loving weird things doesn’t come without a cost.

But if you’re looking for a VRV alternative that won’t disappear at some unknown future date, check out our guide to everything anime.

VRV FAQ