CuriosityStream is one of the best video streaming services for watching educational content and intriguing documentaries. But it’s not the only place to find great documentaries. There are several excellent CuriosityStream alternatives out there. In this guide, we’ll look at 9 of our favorites.
Kanopy
Kanopy is a documentary and entertainment streaming platform with content for the whole family. It was launched in 2008, initially to provide films and documentaries for academic institutions. Since then, it has expanded its offering to include more than 30,000 films that users can stream on a variety of platforms and devices.
Kanopy Pricing
One of the best things about signing up for Kanopy is that it’s completely free. You don’t need to pay any monthly or annual fees like many other streaming services. However, you will need a library card or university email address in order to create your account.
Kanopy Content
What can you watch on Kanopy? Well, there isn’t any Kanopy original content, but you’ll find an enormous range of documentaries from the likes of HBO and Paramount. There are also classic films from the likes of A24 and Samuel Goldwyn Films.
Hulu
Hulu is a popular online streaming service that is known for its original content and films. It’s also a great place to find documentaries, so it can work well as a CuriosityStream alternative if you’re looking for educational content. Other advantages of Hulu include its relatively affordable monthly price and its excellent cloud DVR features.
Hulu Pricing
Pricing for Hulu starts at just $6.99 per month, or $69.99 per year. For that price, you’ll get access to the full Hulu catalog of content, but you will have to watch ads. If you want an ad-free alternative, you can pay $12.99 per month, instead. This platform can also be easily bundled with other streaming services like Disney+ and ESPN+.
Hulu Content
Hulu is a super place to watch documentaries, especially those about celebrities and the world of entertainment. The platform features documentaries about The Beatles, for example, along with fashion designer Alexander McQueen. There are also documentaries about sport and nature, too.
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video is the major streaming service from Amazon. It’s a serious competitor to the likes of Netflix and Hulu, as well as a CuriosityStream alternative. Along with movies and original TV shows, subscribers to Prime can enjoy plenty of documentaries on this platform, with bonus features like easy offline downloads and three simultaneous streams.
Amazon Prime Video Pricing
In terms of cost, there are a couple of ways to pay for Amazon Prime Video. You can pay for the service as a standalone product, in which case you’ll need to pay $8.99 per month. Or you can opt for a full Amazon Prime subscription, which features Amazon Prime Video, for $14.99 per month. This gives you other advantages on Amazon, like free delivery.
Amazon Prime Video Content
Amazon Prime Video features an ever-expanding collection of documentaries. The company actually makes many of its own documentaries, some of which have proven very successful, like Generation Wealth and One Child Nation. There are also plenty of documentaries about politics on Amazon Prime Video, such as All In: The Fight for Democracy, and documentaries about entertainment, too.
Netflix
Netflix is one of the biggest and most successful streaming platforms of all time. It originally began as a DVD mailing and rental service, but has expanded enormously into a streaming platform that makes its own original content and can run on countless devices, with millions of subscribers worldwide. It’s a great CuriosityStream alternative due to its excellent array of documentaries.
Netflix Pricing
Prices for Netflix start at just $9.99 per month for the Basic plan, going up to $19.99 for the Premium plan, which offers more features and higher visual quality. This is more expensive than the $2.99 you have to pay for CuriosityStream, but Netflix does give you much more content for that price.
Netflix Content
Netflix is filled with all sorts of documentaries and educational content. Major true crime documentaries like Making a Murderer and American Murder are available on the platform, along with the likes of The Tinder Swindler and Seaspiracy. In addition to the documentaries, you can find countless hours of movies, shows, and original content on Netflix.
PBS Documentaries
PBS Documentaries is a documentary-oriented streaming platform, a lot like CuriosityStream. It was created by the PBS network and aims to offer users easy access to hundreds of hours of educational content on a wide range of subjects. It’s also one of the most affordable CuriosityStream alternatives out there.
PBS Documentaries Pricing
Users will need to pay just $3.99 per month for PBS Documentaries. This gives you full access to the platform’s content, without any adds or extras to worry about. The low price is one of the best aspects of PBS Documentaries.
PBS Documentaries Content
In terms of content, PBS Documentaries is 100% documentary-oriented. It offers over 1,000 hours in total of educational content, made up of documentaries that have been shown on PBS over the last 50 years. Studios like American Experience, Frontline, and Independent Lens are featured on this platform, as well as documentary directors like Ken Buns.
MagellanTV Documentaries
MagellanTV is another documentary streaming service that has emerged as a major CuriosityStream competitor. It offers over 3,000 documentaries on various subjects, and a lot of its content is in 4K resolution for the best possible quality. Plus, new shows are added to the service all the time.
MagellanTV Pricing
There are a couple of ways to pay for MagellanTV. You can either opt for a monthly fee of $6.99, or you can pay on a quarterly basis ($17.97 every quarter) or annually ($59.98 per year) to save a little bit of money.
MagellanTV Content
As stated above, there are over 3,000 documentaries on MagellanTV, with more being added all the time. Subjects covered include everything from nature to space to true crime and travel. You won’t find many of the biggest and most famous documentaries on MagellanTV, but it’s a good place to find more under-the-radar stories and lesser-known documentaries.
History Vault
History Vault is an online streaming service provided by The History Channel. It offers users a huge number of documentaries and educational shows to inspire, entertain, and inform. For those interested in history, this is a super CuriosityStream alternative to choose.
History Vault Pricing
If you want to subscribe to History Vault, you’ll need to pay a monthly fee of $4.99 or an annual fee of $49.99. The annual fee works out slightly cheaper than the monthly fee over the long-term, so it may be the best investment for users who plan on maintaining their subscriptions for a year or longer.
History Vault Content
On the History Vault, users will find thousands of hours of official History Channel documentaries and shows. Most of the documentaries on this platform refer to history, society, and culture in some way. There are many documentaries on famous conflicts and historical events like World War II, for example. Most content is available in 1080p, but not 4K.
GuideDoc
There’s also GuideDoc to consider when looking at CuriosityStream alternatives. GuideDoc is a documentary-oriented streaming service that offers quite a lot of content on a range of different subjects, with new content added daily and no ads to worry about.
GuideDoc Pricing
You’ll need to pay $7.99 per month for a GuideDoc subscription. This is quite pricey when compared to CuriosityStream, but one bonus of using GuideDoc is that 50% of all cash raised goes straight to the documentary filmmakers themselves. So, by becoming a GuideDoc subscriber, you can help to fund more great documentaries for the future.
GuideDoc Content
There are over 1,000 documentaries featured on GuideDoc, including many documentaries that have won awards and been featured at major film festivals like Cannes and Sundance. From true crime to military documentaries, there are lots of options here. GuideDoc also features a lot of classic movies from the 20th century.
