Pluto TV’s free true crime channel may keep you up until 3 a.m. (and it’s worth it)

Pluto TV on a phone with popcorn nearby — (Image credit: Shutterstock)

We've all fallen down a true crime rabbit hole at some point. Maybe it started with a podcast, a "Dateline" episode or that one docuseries all your friends were talking about. For me, it started as background noise while I recovered from a broken ankle. What was supposed to be a quick glance while attempting to work turned into a full-blown obsession, and it's all thanks to the Pluto TV's true crime channel.

If you haven’t heard of it, Pluto TV is one of the best free streaming services out there. It offers live channels and on-demand content across genres, from reality TV to movies, classic sitcoms, and yes, a whole channel dedicated to true crime. Best of all, it's totally free, supported by ads, and you don't even need to create an account to start watching. Just download the app or go to the website, pick a channel, and start streaming. There are dozens to choose from, but here's why I'm locked into the true crime channel.

Why I can't get enough of Pluto TV's true crime channel

Forensic Files — (Image credit: MedStar Television)

There are over a dozen reasons that I can't stop watching, and they mostly stem from the kinds of content on rotation with this channel. There’s a steady rotation of episodes from shows like "Forensic Files," "Cold Case Files," "Dominick Dunne’s Power, Privilege, and Justice" and "Unsolved Mysteries." You might start watching one to kill time, but before you know it, you've watched six in a row and have very strong opinions about forensic luminol. It’s that always-on format that makes it so easy to leave it running, so that's what I do.

There’s something deeply nostalgic about binge-watching on Pluto TV. Unlike Netflix or HBO Max, where you select specific titles to watch, it feels more like flipping through cable channels in the early 2000s, when I grew up watching whatever was on TV — which usually included true crime series and documentaries.

Whoever programmed this channel knows exactly what kind of viewers they're attracting. These aren't slow-paced crime procedurals. The shows here get straight to the point: There's a dead body. There’s a detective. There’s a suspect who “wasn’t acting quite right.” And soon enough, there’s a lab technician saying something chilling like, "It turned out the fibers matched." And all of those elements add up to a satisfying story that you want to follow, even when it's late at night.

Watch on Pluto TV's true crime channel

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Brittany Vincent has been covering video games and tech for over 13 years for publications including Tom's Guide, MTV, Rolling Stone, CNN, Popular Science, Playboy, IGN, GamesRadar, Polygon, Kotaku, Maxim, and more. She's also appeared as a panelist at video game conventions like PAX East and PAX West and has coordinated social media for companies like CNET. When she's not writing or gaming, she's looking for the next great visual novel in the vein of Saya no Uta. You can follow her on Twitter @MolotovCupcake.

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