This protocol presents a simplified approach for purification of viral strains directly from plaques without the need for preparation of dilutions. Using the 'Tube-free agar overlay' approach viruses are 'picked' directly from source plaques with a toothpick and streaked into molten host lawns in a manner directly analogous to re-streaking based colony purification of bacteria. This approach requires less time and material than dilution based approaches and yields equivalent purification of viruses. Formation of plaques along streaks also offers further confidence that plaques selected for further purification derive from an isolated phage particle rather than a splash containing multiple viruses or a prophage induction event. A video demonstrating the approach is available as supplementary material with the original publication (direct link here).