The cheapest live TV services for cord-cutting are the free ones: Pluto TV and Tubi. There are paid ones that cost very little, like Philo, Frndly TV, and Sling (especially the individual Blue or Orange plans). Below, here are the best cheap offerings so that you can cut the cord and make the biggest savings.
15 Cheapest Live TV Streaming Services for Cord-cutting
Sling’s appeal as a cost-effective streaming service with live TV for cord-cutters, and its considerably solid options for channels make Sling TV Orange one of the best affordable streaming services out there. For only $40 a month, you can customize and access more than 30 channels, as well as record shows and movies you love on a Cloud DVR. It also offers 6 channels that are not included in Sling TV Blue, including Disney Channel, CNN, and ESPN. Sling TV Orange’s only caveat is its single-stream option, as opposed to the multi-stream options for Sling TV Blue.
Price: $40/month
Device availability: AirTV, Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Cox, iOS, LG TV, Mi Box, Roku, Samsung TV, TiVo, Vizio, Windows 10, Windows 11, Xbox, Xbox One
Channel lineup: A&E, AMC, AXS TV, BBC America, BET, Bloomberg Television, Cartoon Network, Charge!, CNN, Comedy Central, Comet, Disney Channel, EPIX Drive-In, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, Food Network, Freeform, Fuse, HGTV, History, IFC, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, Local Now, MGM+, MotorTrend, Nick Jr., QVC, TBS, TNT, Travel Channel, Vice
Philo is a rising star as an affordable live TV and streaming platform you can get for $25 a month. With more than 60 channels to choose from across 3 devices simultaneously, watch series and shows from popular channels without breaking the bank. The only caveat is Philo’s limited options for local news and sports channel streaming and lineup, which would not be a problem for watchers of on-demand content. Philo’s easy-to-use interface, availability on a variety of devices, and unlimited DVR storage make it a sweet deal cord-cutters can’t resist.
Price: $25/month
Free Trial: 7 days
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, iPhone, Roku, Samsung TV
Channel lineup: A&E, AccuWeather Network, AMC, American Heroes Channel, Animal Planet, aspireTV, AXS TV, BBC America, BBC World News, BET, BET Her, Catchy Comedy, Cheddar News, Cleo TV, CMT, Comedy Central, Cooking Channel, Crackle, Crime-Investigation, Deck the Hallmark, Destination America, Discovery Channel, Discovery Family, Discovery Life, FETV, Food Network, FYI, Game Show Network, GetTV, Great American Family, Great American Living, Gusto TV, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Family, Hallmark Mystery, Heroes & Icons, HGTV, History, IFC, INSP, Investigation Discovery, KIN, Law&Crime, Lifetime, LMN, Logo, Magnolia Network, MeTV, Motor Trend, MTV, MTV Classic, MTV Live, MTV2, Nick Jr., Nickelodeon, Nicktoons, Oprah Winfrey Network, Paramount Network, PlayersTV, pocket.watch, Pop TV, RetroCrush, REVOLT, Revry, Ryan and Friends, Science Channel, Smithsonian Channel, Start TV, Story Television, Sundance TV, Tastemade, TeenNick, TLC, Travel Channel, TV Land, TV One, UPtv, Vevo 80s, Vevo 90s, Vevo Country, Vevo Hip-Hop, Vevo Holiday, Vevo Pop, VH1, Vice, WE tv
DirecTV Stream is the level-up Live TV streaming platform designed to substitute traditional cable and satellite services. With $79.99 a month (some savings if you add the Sports Pack), you can access live feeds of the most popular channels and you can even get a special box called "Gemini Air" with a custom remote for the service to compliment the enhanced viewing experience. Access at least 80 channels from its robust lineup that allows you to stream up to 20 devices from your home and up to 3 devices when you’re on the go. Plus, you get unlimited cloud DVR so you can watch your favorite shows whenever you want.
Price: $79.99/month
Free Trial: 5 days
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, iOS, Roku, Roku TV, Samsung TV
Channel lineup: ABC, AMC, Animal Planet, AXS TV, Baby First TV, BBC America, BET, Bloomberg Television, Boomerang, Bravo, C-SPAN, C-SPAN2, Cartoon Network, CBS local channels, CMT, CNBC, CNN, CNN en Espanol, Comedy Central, Discovery, Disney Channel, Disney Jr, Disney XD, E! Entertainment, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, FMC, Food Network, FOX, Fox Business Network, Fox News Channel, FOX SOUL, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 1, Freeform, FX, FXX, Galavision, Gem Shopping Network, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Mystery, HGTV, HLN, Home Shopping Network, Investigation Discovery, MotorTrend, MSNBC, MTV, MTV2, NBC, NBC local channels, NFL Network, One America News, Ovation, Paramount Network, PBS local channels, Pursuit Channel, QVC, QVC2, ReelzChannel, REVOLT, RFD-TV, RSNs, SundanceTV, SYFY, TBS, TCM, TeenNick, Telemundo local channels, TLC, TNT, truTV, TV Land, Univision East, USA Network, VH1, WE tv
When it comes to robust channel options, Sling TV Blue takes the crown for more than 40 channels offered on its platform versus other plans on Sling TV. With its base package of $40 per month, you can access their live and on-demand content and even record your favorites on a Cloud DVR. It offers 17 channels that are not offered in Sling TV Orange, including Premier League live streams, NBC, and NBC Sports Network, among others. Sling TV Blue offers a multi-stream option where you can access channels for up to 3 devices simultaneously, and even record up to three shows at once while you’re away.
Price: $45/month
Device availability: AirTV, Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, LG TV, Roku, Samsung TV, Xbox
Channel lineup: A&E, AMC, AXS TV, BBC America, BET, Bloomberg Television, Bravo, Cartoon Network, Charge!, CNN, Comedy Central, Comet, Discovery Channel, E!, EPIX Drive-In, Food Network, Fox News Channel, Fox Sports 1, Fuse, FX, HGTV, History, HLN, IFC, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, Local Now, MGM+, MSNBC, National Geographic, NFL Network, Nick Jr., SYFY, TBS, TLC, TNT, Travel Channel, truTV, USA, Vice
Sling TV Orange + Blue is Sling TV’s ultimate stream service cord-cutters can access for only $55 a month. As one of the most affordable options, Sling TV Orange + Blue offers the best of both worlds with 53 channels, where you can stream or record your favorite series and shows from both local TV and cable channels on a cloud DVR. You may also customize your channels and include those not included in the base plan or subscribe to additional packages like HD antenna and AirTV. Sling’s premium service lets you stream for up to 4 devices simultaneously.
Price: $60/month
Device availability: AirTV, Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Cox, iOS, iPhone, LG TV, Mi Box, Roku, Samsung TV, TiVo, Vizio, Vizio Smart TV, Windows 10, Windows 11, Xbox, Xbox One
Channel lineup: A&E, AMC, AXS TV, BBC America, BET, Bloomberg Television, Bravo, Cartoon Network, Charge!, CNN, Comedy Central, Comet, Discovery Channel, Disney Channel, E!, EPIX Drive-In, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, Food Network, Fox News Channel, Fox Sports 1, Freeform, Fuse, FX, HGTV, History, HLN, IFC, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, Local Now, MGM+, MotorTrend, MSNBC, National Geographic, NBC local channels, NFL Network, Nick Jr., QVC, SYFY, TBS, TLC, TNT, Travel Channel, truTV, USA, Vice
Frndly TV is a streaming platform focused on family-friendly live TV channels, with an attractive price starting at $6.99. There are three plans, Basic, Classic and Premium, which respectively cost the $6.99 starting price, $8.99, and $10.99. The Basic plan only allows for SD streaming, but both other plans allow for HD. The basic plan doesn't allow for DVR recordings, but the other plans allow for 3 months and 9 months respectively. And lastly, the basic plans allows for only one simultanious stream, but the Classic allows for 2 and the Premium allows for 4.
Price: $6.99/month
Free Trial: 7 days
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, Roku
Channel lineup: A&E, AccuWeather, BabyFirst, Bounce, BYUtv, Catchy Comedy, Circle, Court TV, Cowboy Way Channel, Crime-Investigation, Dove Channel, Dove Family Movies, Dove Kids, FETV, FMC, FYI, Game Show Network, GetTV, Great American Family, Great American Living, GRIT, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Family, Hallmark Movies Now, Hallmark Mystery, Heartland TV, Heroes & Icons, INSP, ION, ION Mystery, JusticeCENTRAL.TV, Laff, Lifetime, Lifetime Movie Network, Local Now, MeTV, Military HISTORY, Movies!, Outdoor Channel, PixL, Pursuit, QVC, Recipe.TV, Sportsman Channel, Start TV, StoryTV, The History Channel, The Weather Channel, UPtv, VICE TV, Waypoint TV
Paramount Plus is mostly a Netflix-style streaming service, offering movies and TV shows on-demand like The Good Fight and Yellowstone.
The premium plan of Paramount Plus gives you access to Live TV from CBS: CBS local channels, CBS News (CBSN), CBS Sports, ET live, and some live sporting events like NFL on CBS Live. It also offers on-demand access to programming from Comedy Central, MTV, BET, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., Paramount Pictures, and Smithsonian Channel.
As of 2023, it increased its monthly price to $11.99, but with that comes a significant upgrade: Premium members have access to all of Showtime's content, which includes movies and shows like Billions, Dexter, and Yellowjackets, as well as live coverage on sports including boxing, football, and MMA.
Price: $11.99/month
Free Trial: 7 days
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, LG TV, PlayStation 4, Portal TV, Roku, Samsung TV, Vizio, Xbox, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, Xfinity Flex
Channel lineup: CBS local channels, CBS Sports HQ, CBSN, ET Live
Peacock is a streaming service owned by NBC, with options for paid subscriptions as well as a free plan. The free plan offers about 13,000 hours of ad-supported content, with the option to upgrade to premium for more access to content. The premium options include two plans: $5.99 a month or $60 a year for ad-supported; $11.99 a month or $120 a year for ad-free. With both premium plans, you'll get access to the full catalog of 2,000 movies and shows, including every episode of the original NBC series. You'll also get next-day access to all the new episodes of ongoing NBC shows, and early access to talk shows such as Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on the air night. You can stream Peacock on Apple devices like the iPhone and Apple TV, Google devices like Android phones and Chromecast, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles. But there is still no app available for Roku or Amazon platforms.
Local Now is a free streaming service from The Weather Channel that offers up localized content geared to where you're using it from. That means you can get local news, weather updates, and even restaurant reviews that are specific to where you, the user, are from. Aside from the convenience of getting local coverage, Local Now also provides thousands of movies and live TV channels to choose from, perfect for when you're relaxing or on the go.
Price: free for 1 channels available
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Fubo TV, iOS, Roku, Sling TV
Channel lineup: Local news channels
Now TV is the new cable alternative from Comcast (owner of Xfinity). For $20/month, you get over 40 live channels, 20 hours of DVR, and watch on up to three devices. You also get Peacock Premium included. And of course, no minimum commitment and you can cancel anytime.
To get it, you have to first subscribe or already be a subscriber to Xfinity internet. You can then add it at checkout.
At $20, it is one of the cheapest cord-cutting services out there, especially considering the channels that it offers.
Price: $20/month
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, iOS
Channel lineup: A&E, ABC, Afro, AMC, Animal Planet, BBC America, BBC News, CBS, Comedy TV, Cooking Channel, Crime+Investigation, Discovery Channel, Discovery Life Channel, Food Network, FOX, FYI, GetTV, Great American Family, Great American Living, GSN, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Family, Hallmark Mystery, HGTV, History Channel, ID, IFC, Justice Central TV, Lifetime, LMN, Magnolia Network, Military History Channel, MotorTrend, NBC, OWN, PBS, Pursuit, Recipe.TV, Science Channel, Sony Movies, Sundance Channel, The Weather Channel, TLC, Travel Channel, Vice, WEtv
Pluto TV is a modern take on traditional cable: it has hundreds of channels streaming live, a huge library of on demand content, and it’s supported by ads. But the key difference from the competition? It’s totally free.
Price: $free/month
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Roku, Virgin Media, Vizio SmartCast, webOS, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Channel lineup: BBC Food, BBC Home, Bein Sports XTRA, Bloomberg Television, CBS Sports HQ, CBSN, Check with Pluto TV for the full channel lineup, Cheddar News, CNN, ET Live, Food TV, Fox Sports, Hallmark En Espanol, Hip Hop Family, Hip Hop Family VH1, Love & Hip-Hop VH1, Major League Soccer, MLB, MotorTrend FAST TV, NBC News Now, Newsmax, NFL Channel, NFL Super Bowl Classics, Nosey, People TV, PGA Tour, Pluto Channels, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Sky News, Smithsonian Channel, Stories AMC, TBN, Today, TV Land Drama, WeatherNation, WPT
Spectrum Internet subscribers can enjoy a more trimmed-down, affordable live TV streaming service with popular cable channels with Spectrum TV Choice that you can avail $53.19 a month. It offers more popular cable channels from Spectrum’s basic cable plan, including HBO Max, Showtime, Starz, and more. Access more than 15 channels and save up to 50 shows for 90 days with Spectrum TV Choice for half the price of the Spectrum TV package as well as other streaming services out there.
Price: Varies depending on your location and account history.
Dubbed "The Free Netflix," Tubi is one of the best options for streaming quality movies and TV shows online. The completely free, ad-supported service has one of the most extensive title lineups, plus it's compatible with most devices, making it an extremely popular option for cord-cutters. Though it has been noted to have a less than stellar resolution, most viewers don't mind due to its easy interface, constantly updated library, and of course free titles. Parents will also be glad to know that the service has parental control features.
Price: free for 78 channels available
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Sony, TiVo, Vizio, Website, Xbox One
Channel lineup: 21 Jump Street, ABC Localish, ABC News, ACC Digital Network, AFV Family, All Real, Baywatch, Bein Sports XTRA, bein Sports Xtra en Espanol, Bloomberg, Bloomberg Quicktake, Brat TV, BUZZR, Caught in Providence, CBC News, Cheddar, CINEVAULT: 80's, CINEVAULT: Classics, CINEVAULT: Westerns, Circle, Comedy Dynamics, Cosmos, Deal or No Deal, Dove Channel, El Rey, Estrella News, EuroNews English, Fear Factor, FilmRise Classic TV, FilmRise Westerns, Forensic Files, FOX, Fox Deportes, FOX SOUL, Fox Sports, Fox Weather, fubo Sports Network, Game Show Central, Gordon Ramsay, Heartland, Johnny Carson TV, live now from Fox, LOL-Network, Lone Star, Masked Singer Channel, MLB, Moviesphere Free, My Time Movie Network, Mystery Science Theater 3000, NBC News Now, Newsy, NFL Channel, NHRA TV, Nosey, Pac-12 Insider, Pattrn, People TV, Real Madrid TV, REELZ, So Real, Sports Wire, Stadium, Supermarket Sweep, The Biggest Loser, The Bob Ross Channel, The Carol Burnett Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Grio, the NFL Channel, The Only Way is Essex, TMZ, TODAY All Day, Tubi Originals, Unsolved Mysteries, USA Today, Vice, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Weather Nation, Wipeout Xtra
This newcomer to cord-cutting quietly launched in April 2024. It's about 90 channels for $39.99, without any additional fees like a local channels surcharge, because there are simply no local channels. What you won't find either are sports channels. And some of the channels are Spectrum channels like Spectrum Originals and Spectrum News.
With Philo having a similar channel lineup but costing $15 less, you probably need a very good reason to go for Spectrum TV Stream. But, it's always nice to have another option.
Price: Varies depending on your location and account history.
An appealing choice for sports enthusiasts, Vidgo TV is one of the recent players in the ever-growing online streaming market. It offers unrivaled streaming of collegiate and professional sports, with more than 25 sports channels (including 12 channels dedicated to college sports) you can choose from. With more than 110 live channels on its belt, get access to a wide range of shows for $59.95 per month with Vidgo TV English Plus with 20 hours of free DVR for the first 3 months, and $79.95 per month for Vidgo TV English Premium with 40+ additional channels and 20 hours of free DVR. Vidgo TV also caters to its Spanish-speaking audience, with more than 45 live channels of Latino Sports, News, and Entertainment with 20 hours of free DVR for the first 3 months valued at $29.95 per month.
Price: $69.99/month
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android, Android TV, Apple TV, iOS, Roku
Channel lineup: A&E Network, ABC, ABC News Live, ACC Network, Aspire, AWE, Baby TV US, Bandamax, BET, Big Ten Network, Bloomberg TV, BYUtv, Cheddar News, CineLife, Classic Reruns TV, CMT, Comedy Central, Curiosity Stream, Disney Channel, Disney Junior US, Disney XD, ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN2, ESPNews, ESPNU, Family Movie Classics, FETV, ForoTV, Fox, Fox Business, Fox Deportes, Fox News Channel, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, Fox Weather, Freeform, FX, FX Movie Channel, FXX, FYI Channel, Galavision, Game Show Network, Get TV, Great American Family, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Family, Hallmark Mystery, History, i24 News English, Impact Network, INSP, Lifetime, Lifetime Movies, Longhorn Network, MavTV, MLB Network, Motor Trend, MTV - Music Television, National Geographic, National Geographic Wild, Newsmax, NewsNation, NFL Network, NHL, Nick Jr., Nickelodeon, OAN, Paramount Network, QVC, SEC Network, Sony Movies, Sports Grid, Teen Nick, TeleHit, Telehit Musica, Telenovelas, Tennis Channel, TUDN, TV Land, TVOne, Unimas, Univision, UPtv, VH1, Viceland
Ready to cut the cord? Here are the 14 live TV streaming services that offer a free trial.
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The streaming services on this page were chosen by our editors. If you choose to subscribe to a streaming service we recommend as a result of our research, analysis, and curation, our work is sometimes (but not always) supported by an affiliate commission from the streaming service when you make a purchase.