Can you share Max with your friends and family?

The Netflix crackdown on account sharing has a lot of people considering an alternative streaming service. There are plenty to choose from, including one of the top contenders, Max. But how does Max (formerly HBO Max) compare to Netflix? Can you share a Max account with people outside your household to save on subscription spending?

Read on for a breakdown of how to share your Max account and what limitations to keep in mind. If you’re not already a Max subscriber, you can check it out by hitting the link below.

Can you share Max in different locations?

Max allows you to share your account with anyone within your household. If you live with family or roommates, you don’t need to pay for separate accounts to enjoy Max. You can all split one account.

There are limits on that, as only two people can be streaming separately at once, or four on the new Premium plan. If you have a large household and expect five or more people to want to be logged in and watching at the same time, it’ll be a good idea to invest in a second subscription.

Sharing Max outside your household is a different question.

According to Max’s terms of use, you are not allowed to share your password with anyone who doesn’t live with you. Max had been reluctant to crack down on sharing between households prior to 2025, but it recently announced that it would start enforcing the rules, following in the example of services like Netflix and Disney Plus.

Can you create multiple profiles in Max?

When sharing with your housemates, Max allows you to create multiple distinct profiles. That can be useful if you want your own watchlist or if when you’re watching the same shows as your roommates but you want to pick up from different episodes or seasons and watch at your own speed.

Even though you can only stream from two or four devices at once, you can create up to five profiles. They can’t all be streaming at once, but they can stream from their own profiles when it’s their turn to watch. And you can always delete profiles to swap them out for new ones.

Here’s how to share Max

There isn’t much to sharing your Max account. Within your household, just give your housemates your log-in credentials.

You can create profiles for them or let them set them up themselves. You also have the option to create kids’ profiles with parental controls to keep the younger members of your household away from adult content. Just click on the profile at the top of your screen, and you’ll find a prompt to either switch profiles or create a new one.

If you intend to share Max with people outside your household, going against the terms of service, it’s pretty much the same process. Just give your login information to whoever you want to share it with. If more than tw of you try to stream at once, you simply won’t be able to watch the shows you like. Just be aware that you’ll risk facing enforcement action from the service.

You can manage active devices and sign other people out; this can be done by going to the settings option as the account holder if you lose track of who has access.

Can you download titles to watch offline?

One way to share your account beyond the two- or four-screen maximum is to take advantage of Max’s offline downloads. If you download titles you want to watch ahead of time, you can watch them offline on your device while other people stream from the site.

FAQ