16 Best Streaming Services for Watching Old TV Shows

You don’t need to pay much—if at all—to watch classic TV. It’s the rare genre that’s found in greater quantity and quality in free services than in expensive ones. Roku TV, Tubi, and Pluto TV should be your go-to services if you want to dive deep into old dramas, mysteries, and sitcoms.

But if you’re looking for variety, we’ve also listed our favorite live TV and on-demand services that do classic TV best. For the former, we took a look at whether they carry classic TV channels like TCM, MeTV, and Grit, while for the latter, we studied how deep their catalog goes. To no one’s surprise, the Warner Bros-owned Max and Paramount-owned Paramount+ made the cut.

You can read more about these services in our breakdown below. 

Our top pick to watch without cable is DirecTV Stream:
Includes local channels and most major national networks. No commitment, cancel anytime.
Price: $86.99/month
Free trial: 5 days
Devices: Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV, Smart TVs and web browsers
Go to DirecTV Stream
16 Best Streaming Services for Watching Old TV Shows

Our pick for the most comprehensive live TV streaming service

$86.99
134
5 days

Best for: fans of classics and sports

$84.99
91
7 days

Best for: on-demand classics paired with live TV

$82.99
105
3 days

Best for: fans of old sci-fi and ‘90s sitcoms

$7.99
3
7 days

Best for: fans of late-night shows and sitcoms

$7.99
76
N/A

A great mix of new and old television

$9.99
N/A
30 days

An affordable way to watch classics on live TV

$8.99
51
7 days

Our pick for the most extensive classic TV library

free
86
N/A

Best for: vintage animation and modern classics

$9.99
4
N/A

Best for: doomscrollers, thanks to its endless classics catalog

free
35
N/A

A worthy alternative to Tubi and Roku

free
56
N/A

Best for: indie fans and cinephiles

free
N/A
N/A

Best for: Westerns

$31
6
7 days

Best for: viewers who prefer quality over quantity

free
N/A
N/A

Best for: early 20th-century classics

free
N/A
N/A

Best for: viewers with varied interests

free
23
N/A

2025 on Old TV Shows

The good news is old TV shows, for the most part, remain highly available on streaming services. Platforms like Tubi, Roku, and Pluto make them easier than ever to access, while paid services like Peacock and Max are dedicating hubs to make classic shows easier to find.

For better or worse, the remake trend among streaming services shows no signs of stopping this year. Paramount+’s Matlock and Star Trek, for instance, encourages viewers to watch the original versions of those shows, which are streamable on the same platform. Max does the same with The Pitt and Just Like That, which are reboots of ER and Sex and the City, also streamable on Max. Whether it's lazy or genius is debatable. What's undeniable is the move gives classics a well-deserved boost.