Spectrum TV Choice Review 2024: How it Works & Pricing

Spectrum/Charter may be known for their cable and internet plans but they have a little-known and little-advertised cord-cutting offer called “Spectrum TV choice”. There is little online about this plan. In fact, you can’t even subscribe to it online. You have to either call Spectrum or visit a local branch.

Summary:

Price: $29.99 per month + $23.20 local channels fee
Channels: Choice of 15 from the list below including ESPN, can be changed once a month
How to sign-up: in-person

Who can get Spectrum TV Choice?

Spectrum TV Choice is available only if you are in a Spectrum “serviceable” area. You can know if your zip code is eligible for Spectrum by visiting spectrum.com and then typing your address. If your household is not in a Spectrum service area, you simply cannot get Spectrum TV Choice. It might be possible to get a friend or a relative who lives in a Spectrum area to subscribe, and then you can download the app from a non-service area and use the service.

How much does Spectrum TV Choice cost?

The listed price for Spectrum TV Choice is $29.99, but there is an additional mandatory “flat tax” of $23.20 for local channels. This means that the price of Spectrum TV Choice is exactly $53.19 per month. DVR is extra and costs $5/month

Can you get Spectrum TV Choice without local channels?

No, Spectrum TV Choice comes with local channels, and you can't unbundle them from the 15 channels. This means that you have to pay the "flat tax" for local channels of $23.20, even if you don't want any local channels.

Channel lineup

With Spectrum TV choice, and on top of local channels, you can choose 15 channels from the following list:

A&E
AMC
ASPiRE TV
Animal Planet
BBC America
BBC World News
BET
BeIN SPORTS
Bravo
CNBC
CNN
CNN en Español
Cartoon Network
Cleo
Comedy Central
Discovery Channel
Disney Channel
E!
ESPN
ESPN Deportes
ESPN2
FOX Business Network
FOX Deportes
FOX News Channel
FOX Sports 1
FOX Sports 2
FX
Food Network
Galavisión
Golf Channel
HGTV
HISTORY
HLN
Hallmark Channel
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries
Investigation Discovery
LMN
Lifetime
MSNBC
MTV
NFL Network
National Geographic
Nickelodeon
OWN
Oxygen
Paramount Network
REVOLT
SYFY
Smithsonian Channel
TBS
TCM
TLC
TNT
TV Land
TV One
The Weather Channel
Travel Channel
USA Network
Univisión
VH1
truTV

Can you change the 15 channels you watch on Spectrum?

You can change the 15 channels you have picked an unlimited amount in the first 30 days of signing up, and then only once every 30 days.

How to subscribe to Spectrum TV choice?

There is no way to subscribe to Spectrum TV Choice online, you have to call Spectrum Charter or visit a branch.

Which local channels are available on Spectrum TV Choice?

Depending on your area, Spectrum TV Choice is likely to come with Fox, NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, and Telemundo.

What is the difference between Spectrum TV choice and Spectrum TV essentials?

The main difference is that Spectrum TV Choice is an “à-la-carte” service whereas Spectrum TV Essentials is more of a “basic” cable subscription. With Essentials, you get about 75 channels, basically everything except for local channels and sports. With TV choice, you have to get local channels and you can pick 15 channels including sports channels like ESPN and TNT.

What is Spectrum Xumo?

Xumo is a box similar to Roku or Amazon Fire TV. The Spectrum agent I spoke to on the phone said that Xumo is in fact better than them because of something called “content-based search”, Xumo will search within the apps for content. So if you type “Denzel Washington”, it will bring out all movies starting the Hollywood legend, without having to go into each streaming app to look.

Do I need to have Spectrum internet to get Spectrum TV Choice?

You don’t have to have Spectrum internet to get Spectrum TV Choice, but you do have to be in a Spectrum serviceable area.

Do I have to get Xumo to get Spectrum TV Choice?

No, you don’t have to get Spectrum Xumo to get Spectrum TV Choice. Instead you can get the streaming service “boxless”, meaning without the Xumo box.

Does Spectrum TV Choice have a trial period?

Spectrum TV Choice includes a trial of 7 days, but they told me over the phone that the lenght of the trial will depend on your account history, standing, and area. Make sure to check with them when you're signing up to get the trial.

How do you change the 15 channels selection on Spectrum TV Choice?

Go here: spectrumtv.com/Choice, and login. Then Click "Settings" and "Edit Channel Lineup".

Can you bundle Spectrum TV Choice?

Spectrum offers the option to bundle it with Max, Paramount+ with SHOWTIME, STARZ, STARZ ENCORE, and THE MOVIE CHANNEL for an extra $40/month.