The 46 Best Shows on Hulu Right Now (April 2025)

While Netflix seemingly led the way for other streaming networks to create compelling original programming, Hulu actually beat them all to the punch. In 2011, a year before Netflix’s Lilyhammer and two years before the arrival of House of Cards, the burgeoning streamer premiered The Morning After, a pop-culture-focused news show that ran for 800…

Read More

The DOGE Axe Comes for Libraries and Museums

The Trump administration, working in coordination with Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, has gutted a small federal agency that provides funding to libraries and museums nationwide. In communities across the US, the cuts threaten student field trips, classes for seniors, and access to popular digital services, such as the ebook app Libby. On…

Read More

Best and Worst Phone Plan Providers

In our most recent survey, 51,858 CR members shared their views on their providers’ offerings, including the value of the service they use, customer support, data service (cost, reliability, and speed), cellular reception, and consumer experience. Note that our methodology for scoring providers has changed a bit. The tweaks prevent a carrier from receiving an…

Read More

Most Reliable Heat Pump Brands of 2025

Using a heat pump can be one of the most efficient ways to cool and heat your house. In cooling mode, it works like an air conditioner, extracting heat from the air inside and releasing it outside. In heating mode it does the opposite, extracting whatever heat is present in outside air (even cold outside…

Read More

Democratic Senators Call for Privacy Act Reform in Response to DOGE Takeover

The arbitrary ways in which the government applies the “routine use” exemption have been drawing criticism since at least 1977, when a blue-ribbon commission established by Congress reported that federal law enforcement agencies were creating “broad-worded routine uses,” while other agencies were engaged in “quid pro quo” arrangements—crafting their own novel “routine uses,” as long…

Read More

Best Budget Office Chairs

What did we learn? That it’s indeed possible to find a reasonably priced office chair that’s comfortable to sit in, easy to adjust, and outfitted with plenty of support for your back, butt, and arms. In fact, we found three—all priced at $200 or less. While many chairs are marketed as being ergonomic, keep in…

Read More

Best High-End Dishwashers

Consumer Reports’ test engineers spend about 30 hours testing each dishwasher. To evaluate cleaning performance, dishes are put through a proprietary test that uses photo imaging to determine precisely how clean they are after a standard cycle full of dishes with baked-on food. While previously we only evaluated how well dishwashers cleaned dishes on the…

Read More