Today, viewers have a veritable buffet of choices when it comes to where they get their movies. Streaming services feature plenty of options at various price points. But viewers may not know that they have another great option that doesn't cost a thing, as long as they don't mind watching a few ads: YouTube.

YouTube's library of movies and TV shows is constantly growing and changing. From classic films, like Alfred Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes, to more recent hits, like Greta Gerwig's Lady Bird, the site has movies to satisfy audiences of all ages and tastes. Best of all, these movies are all currently available for free with ads.

Updated on May 2, 2024, by Michael Colwander: The list has been updated to reflect YouTube's current library of free movies.

20 The Terminator Is An Iconic And Thrilling Science Fiction Film

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%
• Metacritic Score: 84
• IMDb Rating: 8.1

It's tough to undersell the impact of James Cameron's The Terminator. It helped fully launch Arnold Schwarzengegger's career and became one of the films that future science fiction films strived for. It's one of a small handful of films to have a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is often considered among the best films ever made.

From quotable lines such as "I'll be back" to the intense chase sequences, The Terminator's legacy perseveres through its ever-growing franchise to modern fears of AI and technology taking over the world. As time goes on, The Terminator becomes more and more relevant.

19 Alien Is Everyone's Worst Extraterrestrial Fears

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 93%
• Metacritic Score: 89
• IMDb Rating: 8.5

Life beyond Earth is one of the most fascinating questions in mankind. While most hope that extraterrestrial life is kind, Alien plays deeply into everyone's worst fears. That extraterrestrial life is a destructive and monstrous force.

Ripley, Dallas, and the rest of their crew's struggle to survive on a derelict spaceship with a rampant xenomorph is terrifying, and few horror films have come close to matching the atmosphere and scares of Alien. Whether watching for the first time or looking to return to the beginning in anticipation of Alien: Romulous, Alien is a must-watch.

18 School Of Rock Is Jack Black At His Best

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92%
• Metacritic Score: 82
• IMDb Rating: 7.2

Many actors are best known for a single role. One that perfectly epitomizes who they are and what they bring to the table. For Jack Black, that film is School of Rock. School of Rock tells the story of Black's character, Dewey Finn – a rocker who was kicked out of his band and schemes to become a substitute at a prep school to make money.

Finn discovers that his class of fourth graders a musically talented and uses this opportunity to form his own band in order to win an upcoming Battle of the Bands. School of Rock is a fantastic and funny family film, one that spawned a Broadway musical, and is Jack Black at his absolute best.

17 Hoosiers Is One Of The Best Sports Films Ever Made

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91%
• Metacritic Score: 77
• IMDb Rating: 7.4

Anyone in need of an inspirational and feel-good story should look no further than sports films. Sports films are always full of triumphant underdog stories, and Hoosiers is no different.

Hoosiers tells the story of a small high school basketball team in Indiana, Hickory, with initially only seven players on their roster. Hickory, inspired by Milan High School's "Milan Miracle," overcame insurmountable odds to win their state championship. It may sound clichéd, but that doesn't change the fact that Hoosiers is a great sports movie anchored by a great performance by Gene Hackman.

16 Osmosis Jones Is A Funny Animated Film That's Surprisingly Educational

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 55%
• Metacritic Score: 57
• IMDb Rating: 6.3

Osmosis Jones is one of the rare mainstream children's films that also has some degree of educational value. The live-action and animated hybrid sees Osmosis "Ozzy" Jones, a white blood cell voiced by Chris Rock, team up with Special Agent Drixenol "Drix" Drixobenzometaphedramine, a cold pill voiced by David Hyde Pierce, on a buddy cop mission to eradicate a potentially deadly virus. The virus, Thrax voiced by Laurence Fishburne, lurks in the live-action body of Frank DeTorre played by Bill Murray.

Osmosis Jones is a surprisingly educational film, showing off some of the wonders of the human body and medicine alike, although in a very satirical and cartoony way. Even so, not long after Osmosis Jones was released, it became a staple in science classrooms in the early 2000s.

15 Chicago Is The Most Recent Musical To Win "Best Picture"

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 86%
• Metacritic Score: 81
• IMDb Rating: 7.2

Chicago is a musical film that continues to maintain relevancy for its cynical views of media consumption, sex appeal, and how easily people are enamored with criminal scandals and celebrities. Chicago, based on the 1972 stage musical which itself was based on a 1926 play, takes place in the 1920s Chicago, Illinois.

Roxie Hart, played by Renée Zellweger, has dreams of being a vaudevillian like her idol Velma Kelly, played by Catherine Zeta-Jones. Both Hart and Kelly are arrested for unrelated murders but compete for attention and fame while in the court system in order to stave off potential execution. In the process, Hart becomes a media darling and a sympathetic figure thanks to her lawyer Billy Flynn, played by Richard Gere. Unlike most Broadway film adaptations, Chicago isn't afraid of its stage roots and heavily plays into that for its musical numbers. It's a large reason why Chicago remains the most recent musical to win "Best Picture" at the Academy Awards, doing so in 2003, and the first to win since Oliver! in 1968.

14 Donnie Darko Is A Dark, Surreal Mystery

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 87%
• Metacritic Score: 88
• IMDb Rating: 8.0

From director-writer Richard Kelly, Donnie Darko follows a troubled young man who begins having mysterious visions of a man in a rabbit suit named Frank who tells him the world is about to end. Donnie must figure out what's going on and how to stop it as Frank's influence over him grows.

With its genre-blending and complex plot, Donnie Darko became a cult classic when it was released on DVD, and Kelly was able to make a director's cut a few years after the movie's initial release. Both versions are available to watch on YouTube. The movie also takes place in October, making it a perfect addition to an autumnal movie lineup.

13 Ghost In The Shell Is Beautifully Animated

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 95%
• Metacritic Score: 76
• IMDb Rating: 7.9

1995's Ghost in the Shell is based on Masamune Shirow's manga of the same name. The anime movie takes place in a future where humans can alter or even replace their bodies with cybernetic parts. When a dangerous hacker starts hijacking people's brains, cyborg Major Motoko Kusanagi must hunt them down and try to figure out who — or what — they really are.

With stunning animation and engrossing storytelling, it's no wonder Ghost in the Shell is considered one of the best anime movies of all time. There have been several adaptations of the manga, but it's easy to see why the 1995 version is still widely considered one of the best.

12 Great Expectations Is A Beloved Classic

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%
• Metacritic Score: 90
• IMDb Rating: 7.8

There have been numerous adaptations of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations, but the 1946 movie is among the most beloved. The classic coming-of-age tale follows a young boy who encounters criminals, grande dames, and more as he figures out what kind of man he wants to be and learns many life lessons along the way.

Starring John Mills and Valerie Hobson, Great Expectations is a largely faithful adaptation, apart from the ending, which is happier than the novel's conclusion. Even so, it remains the most praised version due to its stunning visuals and memorable performances.

11 Heathers Walked So Other Teen Comedies Could Run

• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 93%
• Metacritic Score: 72
• IMDb Score: 7.2

Directed by Michael Lehmann and starring Winona Ryder and Christian Slater, Heathers is a black comedy about a group of popular high school girls all named Heather and their new lackey, Veronica, who resents the popular crowd. Veronica develops feelings for a rebellious new guy called J.D., but soon, her so-called friends start dropping dead.

Heathers may not have done well at the box office, but it is well-remembered for venturing into dark subjects that most teen comedies stayed far away from. Even decades later, it ranks among the top teen comedies and has a palpable influence on the genre today. So much so that it found new life in a popular Broadway musical adaptation.

10 Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie Was One Of The First Good Video Game Adaptations