24 best Kodi Addons working in December 2018: Over 120 tested, only these addons made the cut!

There are hundreds of Kodi addons on the market and dozens of lists declaring the best Kodi addons available. However, we’ve fully tested over 120 Kodi addons, from unofficial addons like Seren, Incursion, Exodus Redux, and Magicality, to official addons like YouTube, Fite.tv, USTVnow, Xumo, Pluto TV, Viewester and more. Whether you’re looking for movie or TV addons to stream online, we’ve got you covered.

Our list sifts through the junk to help deliver the top 25 best Kodi addons still working in December 2018. Check back next month as well for more updates!

We’ve highlighted an exciting new addon for December 2018: Fite.tv. You can jump straight to our list of what’s new in December here.

Warning: Kodi should only be used for content to which you have the legal right to access. Neither the Kodi Foundation nor Comparitech advocates the use of Kodi for piracy.

Beware: New laws mean your internet provider can sell and share your browsing data

Your internet provider could sell and share details about the websites you visit, videos you download or stream and social media sites you use. By using a VPN whenever you connect to the web, you can encrypt your connection so your broadband provider doesn’t know what you’re doing. All your web activity will be hidden and can’t be shared, sold or stolen.

We’ve tested the top VPNs for security, privacy and speed and IPVanish is our #1 choice for Kodi users.

Best Kodi addons (to avoid) in December 2018:

1. Covenant
2. Seren
3. Exodus
4. cCloud TV
5. Genesis Reborn
6. Gurzil
7. Incursion
8. Placenta
9. Gaia
10. Orion
11. Reaper Builds
12. Magicality
13. Masterani Redux
14. Exodus Redux
15. Placenta
16. Real Debrid
17. Premiumizer
18. Yoda
19. Einthusan

Over course of 2018, a large number of once-popular Kodi addons have shut down for good, with their developers leaving the scene. Most of the addons that are no longer available are already ones we tend to recommend users avoid, anyway, which include Exodus, Covenant, Genesis Reborn, cCloud TV, Gurzil, and others in those families.

Meanwhile, a few have taken their place, namely Seren (nixgates), Exodus Redux, Placenta, Gaia, Magicality, Placenta, and Incursion (nixgates), which are all popular but also ones we don’t recommend.

24 best Kodi addons for December 2018

1. YouTube – On-demand and live content
2. Tubi TV – TV and movies on-demand
3. iPlayer WWW – Live TV and on-demand content
4. Crackle – TV and movies on-demand
5. FilmRise – Movies on-demand
6. BigStar Movies & TV – Tv and movies on-demand
7. Viewster – TV and movies on-demand
8. Golden Age – Movies on-demand
9. Snagfilms – Movies on-demand
10. Black and White Movies – Movies on-demand
11. Netflix – TV and movies on-demand
12. HGTV – TV on-demand
13. Comet TV Live – Live TV
14. Xumo – Live TV
15. Pluto TV – Live TV
16. PlayStation Vue – Live TV
17. NewsOn – Live TV
18. USTV Now – Live TV
19. DAZN – Sports
20. Fite.tv – Sports
21. PBS Kids – Kids
22. Documentary Storm – Documentaries
23. Indigo – Maintenance
24. Trakt – Watchlist tracking

This month, we’ve found numerous legally-available Kodi addons that you may be interested in. We’ve also updated our list of overall addons that tend to be popular in the Kodi scene, including those we don’t recommend for Kodi users, with some notes on each addon that we’ve found.

Lastest Kodi developments

The winter cold has come early this month, but there are still some hot new items making the rounds in the Kodi scene.

Perhaps the most notable event of the past few weeks was the release of Kodi 18 Leia RC2. This latest pre-release version of the popular Kodi software adds a few new changes, but won’t change your current experience too much if youi’ve already been using the pre-release versions of Kodi (FYI, you should be, they’re fairly stable!).

We’ve shared a bit more details and release notes just below.

In the addon scene, we’ve seen the emergence of a popular new, but unfortunately third-party addon called Seren. This addon is designed by the well-known third-party addon developer nixgates, who’s also responsible for the Incursion addon.

Seren does a few things, including scraping links from online for streaming. Its main feature, however, appears to be its seamless integration with debrid services (Real-Debrid, Premiumizer), as well as its integration with Trakt. There are also a few other features that have drawn users to Seren, but as far as we can tell, Seren is quickly shaping up to be the most popular third-party addon on the scene since the release of Exodus.

Unfortunately, Seren’s focus is on infringing content, not on providing legitimate streaming access. We don’t recommend this new addon, but we are keeping our eye on its growth.

Kodi v18 Leia RC2

Kodi 18 RC2 was released on December 4, 2018. You can download it directly from the Kodi download page today to see the latest updates. According to Team Kodi, RC2 includes some of the following changes:

• Update documentation regarding Python and Skin development: Kodi Doxygen
• Linux power management: change login detection to also use Dbus
• Android: Fix playback for some PVR addons
• Fix performance issue in PVR recording sub menu by reducing the number of resume point update requests
• Android: Assign joysticks in order of MRU (last activation)
• Fix crash when an addon did not define a version number
• VideoPlayer: fix the state of a/v players after switching refresh rate
• Add new setting that allows hiding of « spoiler » text for TV shows or movies

There are more release notes for the latest release version, which you can check out  on the Github page here.

Before we start: Always use a VPN with Kodi

Although virtual private networks (VPNs) are often used by people trying to hide their illegal activities from their ISP, there are many valid reasons law-abiding Kodi users should use one too.

If a Kodi addon were to be hijacked, the user’s computer would be at the mercy of the attacker. By using a Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attack, hackers have access to all of the victim’s internet history, saved browser information, and even login credentials.

Also, several internet service providers (ISPs) have been known to deliberately limit the download speeds of their customers in an effort to combat online video streaming. This could leave you with speeds far below those that you pay for.

A VPN can help secure your computer against corrupted addons used for spying purposes. You will also find a solid VPN will help eliminate spying from your ISP and reduce instances of buffering and speed throttling.

We recommend using IPVanish. It’s not only fast with top-level security and no-logging policies in place, it also is one of the few that have working apps for the Amazon Firestick. 

READER DEAL: Save up to 60% on IPVanish plans here

IPVanish includes a 7-day money back guarantee so you can cancel if you are unhappy for any reason.

Our favorite new Kodi addon: Fite.tv

Fite.tv is a fight sports streaming website with over 10,000 hours of free content. Thanks to addon developer Arbor, there’s now a Fite.tv Kodi addon that you can download and use to stream hours of fight sports, including MMA, boxing, wrestling, and kickboxing. Fite.tv also carries a large number of Pay-Per-View events for a fee, although you cannot watch these through Kodi as the addon does not allow you to input your user credentials.

You can download and install the Fite.tv Kodi addon from Arbor’s GitHub. 

Outside of Fite.tv, you’ll find addons for every possible category below.

• You can find huge lists for movie addons (here).
• If you like TV shows, check out the TV addons (here).
• Even cartoons and anime addons (here) are available. 

We also have some great information for those who need to spruce their Kodi up with maintenance addons.

For December 2018, we’ve refined our list even further with a wide selection of great new addons. We’ve also added a new warning about potential malware floating around that you may need to look out for.

Best Kodi addons for movies

Some of the most popular Kodi addons are the ones that offer a wide selection of movies and TV content.

The official Kodi repository offers addons that not only allow you to browse a large collection of free movies but also expand that collection by integrating with your other streaming subscriptions.

While testing, we’ve found many of the movie addons offered only offer content in a select few countries. In cases where geographic content blocking exists, you can use a VPN to bypass those blocks and access all of the content library available.

Crackle

Crackle is a streaming service that has a varied selection of films and TV shows. It’s free to use and offers some better-known titles, like 2003’s Underworld. Crackle region-locks their content, so to watch, you’ll need to connect your VPN to an American server.

Location: eracknaphobia Addon Repo

FilmRise

FilmRise is a distributor of TV shows and independent films. This company offers two addons: FilmRise, which contains six of their TV shows, and FilmRise – YouTube, which also includes free to watch movies.  

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

BigStar Movies & TV

BigStar Movies have a collection of award-winning independent and foreign films and the BigStar Movies & TV addon lets you watch these directly through Kodi. This service is completely legal to use and unlike when using the BigStar online service, you don’t have to keep a credit card on file. This is only used for purchasing specific films. Since this can’t be done via the addon, payment it isn’t required.

Location: MetalChris Addon Repository

Snagfilms

Snagfilms offers a collection of documentaries and independent films. There are over 5000 free-to-watch movies, and they’re all organized by genre. While most of these films aren’t well known, some, like 2007’s Nanking, are critically acclaimed.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

TubiTV

TubiTV is one of the largest streaming video-on-demand websites around. The service boasts a library of over 50,000 titles, from movies to TV shows. Additionally, there is no fee to use TubiTV. It offers the service as a free, ad-supported option.

You can stream TubiTV on Kodi without a login required and without the ads. Due to the way it works, Kodi automatically blocks advertisements, letting you enjoy your streams quite easily and without interruption. If you want to unlock TubiTV’s full library, you will need a VPN, however. The service has different content in the US, UK, and Canada, meaning you’ll need to bypass its geographic content blocking to gain access gain access to everything.

Location: Kodi1 Github Repository

Golden Age

Can’t get enough of the good old days of cinema? The Golden Age Kodi addon has you covered. This addon offers up nothing but goodies from the days when movies were more about the acting talent and writing than CG explosions. And thankfully, all of the movies offered through Golden Age are freely available to the public.

Location: Zero Tolerance Repo.

Black and White Movies

Classic movies are available for streaming and downloading using the Black and White Movies addon. This addon focuses purely on classic movies that are made free thanks to expired copyright licenses. The quality and speed of the streams are also top-notch

Location: MetalChris repository.

Viewester

A quality, free streaming service, Viewster has a ton of TV shows and movies. What’s more, Viewster is one of the best, free addons for anime lovers. It has a huge library of anime content and does not impose geographic content blocks for any of its content.

Location: Official Kodi Addon Repository. 

Best Kodi addons for TV shows

When it comes to watching TV shows, Kodi users have several options. There are several legitimate content providers that offer collections of well-known shows. These are usually free to watch, although there are a few that have additional costs.

TV show addons often pull from sites that use geographic content blocking, so be sure to check out whether it makes sense to bypass content blocks to help access your streams.

USTVnow

USTVnow is a service that provides access to live American TV channels. A free subscription provides streams from seven network TV stations. For $20 a month, you can unlock and additional 21 channels and DVR functionality.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

iPlayer WWW

The iPlayer WWW Kodi addon takes content from the BBC’s iPlayer streaming platform. It offers live and on-demand TV shows, radio stations, and movies. iPlayer WWW is free to use but requires a valid UK TV License. Additionally, its content is region-locked, so to watch from outside of the UK, you’ll have to connect your VPN to a British server.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

NewsON

NewsON is the best Kodi addon for US news. It groups its live streams by state and shows which regions each station covers. Streams load quickly and while it’s a US-only news addon, there’s no region-locking. This means that it can be watched from anywhere in the world.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

PS Vue

PS Vue is intended as a replacement for a traditional cable subscription. Plans start at $45 a month and include at least 50 channels. More expensive plans that offer access to sports and movie channels are also available, and there’s no annual contract. You can try it out and leave if you find it unsuitable.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Pluto TV

A premier live TV service that offers up over 100 channels for free, Pluto TV is one of the best Kodi addons available. It’s also one that any Kodi user should have installed, as it’s just that essential to a good Kodi build. You’ll find every type of content imaginable here: sports, entertainment, movies, news. Much of the content comes from major TV networks and content providers as well.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Xumo

Similar in style and scope to Pluto TV, Xumo has over 100 completely free channels you can watch on your web browser or via an app. It’s also 100 percent legal, making it a great IPTV option for Kodi. The addon is brand new as well from developer Lunatix, making it a solid entry in the official Kodi addon market.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Comet TV Live

Comet TV Live is a unique and free live TV addon that offers up a host of movies. From cult classics to some really high-quality gems, you’ll find a lot of interesting sci-fi TV shows and movies streaming live to your Kodi installation.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

HGTV

HGTV stands for Home and Garden Television, and the network hosts full episodes of its shows online. These episodes can also be viewed from within Kodi using the HGTV addon. There are 17 different shows available, all in high-definition, so you can watch DIY programming to your heart’s desire.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Best Kodi addons for sports

There are many Kodi addons aimed at sports fans. These provide live and on-demand sporting coverage, however, a VPN may be needed since this content is almost always region-locked.

This is not our full list of sports Kodi addons. For more, check out our longer guide on the 20 best Kodi addons for sports, updated December 2018.

Fite.tv

Our favorite addon for December, Fite.tv is a streaming service that offers 10,000 hours of free fight sports video. You can install this addon directly from GitHub.

DAZN

DAZN is a subscription service that costs $20 a month. It covers a wide range of different sports but is currently only available in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, and Japan. As such, you’ll need to connect your VPN to a server in one of these countries in order to watch anything

DAZN launched in the US on September 10, 2018. It’s so far provided a solid option for US fight fans.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Best Kodi addons for cartoons and anime

Whether you’re into anime or are just looking for something to keep the kids occupied, there is a Kodi addon that provides most of what you’re looking for. Below, you’ll find the best, most popular Kodi addons for cartoons and anime in 2017.

PBS Kids

PBS Kids offers on-demand access to a wide selection of high-definition children’s TV shows. It’s completely free and legal to use, and no registration is required. PBS’s content is only available from within the US, so overseas Kodi users will have to connect to an American server in order to watch.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Funimation Now

Funimation is one of the best official sources of dubbed anime. It costs $7.95 a month, but there’s a 14-day free trial so you can see if it’s right for you before committing. A premium account is required to use the Funimation Now Kodi addon, but once you sign up you’ll have access to hundreds of classic and newly released anime.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Best Kodi addons for general video

The following addons provide access to libraries of content that don’t fit neatly into one of the classifications above. They cover everything from vlogs to viral content to cutting-edge documentaries, so they’re great for when you can’t decide what to watch.

YouTube

Everybody knows YouTube – it’s the largest video sharing platform on the internet. The YouTube Kodi addon maintains most of the functionality of the website and allows you to access your playlists, watch history, and channel subscriptions.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository

Documentary Storm

What’s life without some quality documentaries? You can get great documentaries if you install and load up Documentary Storm from MetalChris’s repository. This addon gives you access to all of over 100 documentaries available online, for free. You’ll get everything from sports to war to sexuality documentaries. There’s a good chance you’ll get lost in all of the free, legally-available content here, so we recommend an extra large bag of popcorn.

Location: MetalChris’ Repository

Best miscellaneous Kodi addons

The addons below don’t contain any of their own content. Rather, they provide additional functionality to Kodi or enhance the user’s experience in some way.

Trakt

Trakt is an online service that keeps track of your media consumption. When you use the Trakt Kodi addon, it automatically adds movies and TV shows you’ve watched to your Trakt profile. This allows you to easily find the last episode you watched, even when using Kodi on a different device.

Location: Kodi Addon Repository (program addons)

Third-party addons for miscellaneous

The following addons are popular but are not contained in the official Kodi repository. This means that they may provide access to unlicensed content in some way, or provide functionality that has not been sanctioned by the Kodi development team. We advise our readers to use the following addons at their own risk.

Indigo

Indigo (previously known as Fusion) is an addon that allows you to install additional addons and perform maintenance, similar to the Ares Wizard. However, since TV Addons relaunched with its new legally-focused addon policy, it only contains non-infringing addons. Indigo also has a dedicated section for Kodi skins, so it’s a good choice for people looking to change the way Kodi looks without installing a build.

Click here to read our interview with TV Addons following their intense legal battle.

Location: Fusion Addon Repository

Keeping up with Kodi addons

With new addons appearing all the time and old addons becoming defunct, it can be difficult to keep abreast of all the new developments. To help, we’ve created a list of the best Kodi addons of December 2018. We’ve tested over 100 addons, but only chose 25 that offer the best quality and functionality.

We encourage our readers to seek official sources of content, but we know there are several third-party addons that come highly recommended by other sites and forums. These addons are searched for more frequently than official addons, as shown in the graphic below.

Interestingly, our research shows that despite their dropped support, unavailability, and security risks, addons like Exodus and Covenant appear to still be drawing a lot of traffic. Meanwhile, there are other third-party options that appear to have taken steam, most notably the Placenta and Seren Kodi addons. 

It’s important to remember that third-party addons provide unrestricted and unlicensed access to content and may not be legal to use in your country. Additionally, many of these unofficial addons stream from sites that may be putting your computer at a security risk. Meanwhile, most of the of the more popular unofficial addons that get recommended in other locations are no longer supported by their creators. Any working copies you find are a significant security risk. 

We advise all Kodi users to research the laws in their country regarding streaming content online before attempting to use Kodi for this purpose.

Addons Offline in 2018

After a silent run-up in popularity for the past decade, 2017 was a significant year for Kodi’s third-party scene.

The very public take-down of TVAddons by Canadian telecoms made headlines around the world. As a result of that action, several other addons and addon developers decided to call it quits for their own safety. However, in the months following that June activity, many new addons emerged to replace the ones that went offline.

In November 2017, major copyright holders were at it again, this time a bit more fiercely and widespread. A large number of well-known addon developers received cease and desist letters from a collection of media companies such as Netflix and Sky, demanding those developers remove their infringing addons and repositories.

Given the seriousness of the threats, most developers who received such letters decided to comply. As such, popular addons like Covenant and Bennu were taken offline, while the repositories housing them were also taken down. This resulted in a lot of the most popular movie and TV show addons disappearing for newcomers, while those who already possessed them lost support for future improvements.

A number of addons have already risen to take the place of those that disappeared, however. As ever, the third-party Kodi community appears to be resilient to change. Many developers who were once extremely active on social media have wiped their presence from places like Facebook and Twitter. While some are still actively maintaining their addons and repositories, they’re doing so in a far more discrete manner.

Want to know more? Check out our longer article covering 2017’s third-party addon changes in more detail.

New Kodi Addons for 2019

There will likely be a lot of changes coming to the Kodi addon scene in 2019. Perhaps the most important one will be the full release of the newest version of Kodi’s software, version 18 « Leia ».

Coming with the full release of Kodi 18 will be the inclusion of DRM, or digital rights management, something that allows Kodi to help protect the content rights of streaming services like Netflix. Team Kodi hopes the inclusion of DRM into its platform will help incentivize official development for its platform from major content providers.

We’ll also be interested to see whether there continue to be notable shake-ups happening in the third-party scene. As we’ve seen this past year, and studied ourselves, the illicit activity occurring in the third-party Kodi addon scene spiked in 2017 before getting beaten down by multiple anti-piracy efforts that occurred over the course of 2018.

That in no way means content piracy through Kodi is dead, however, and we have our eye on a growing trend among a few new addons that have become a bit of a rallying cry for Kodi’s third-party advocates.

We’ll keep you updated for when the full release Kodi 18 drops, as well as any notable addon impacts among the most popular Kodi addons.