Best free option
Philo
Philo's free week covers History Channel with no sports or news tier attached, which is why it ends up the cheapest thing to keep afterwards.
Start free trial →
You don't need a cable bill to keep watching History Channel. Here's every way to stream it online, and how to do it for free.
Reviewed and updated October 2026 by our cord-cutting team · 5 options
History was originally a place for purely historical shows, but now it's more geared toward reality TV shows like Pawn Stars and Alone.
You can watch History on Sling TV Blue, Sling TV Orange, Philo, Hulu with Live TV, or Spectrum TV Stream.
The cheapest option to watch History is Philo for $25/month.
The fastest ways to watch History Channel without cable, at a glance
Philo's free week covers History Channel with no sports or news tier attached, which is why it ends up the cheapest thing to keep afterwards.
Start free trial →Philo is the cheapest live History, sitting next to A&E and Lifetime, the three channels that share most of the same audience.
Get Philo →
Hulu + Live TV carries History inside the widest lineup that has it, and the Hulu library covers the documentary catch-up on demand.
Get Hulu + Live TV →
Sling TV carries History Channel live.
Get Sling TV →
Spectrum TV Choice carries History Channel live.
Get Spectrum TV Choice →| Service | From | Free trial |
|---|---|---|
 Sling TV |
$45.99/mo | None |
 Philo |
$25/mo | 7 days |
 Hulu + Live TV |
$89.99/mo | 3 days |
 Spectrum TV Choice |
$53.19/mo | None |
We routinely follow over a hundred live TV and streaming services in the US, closely monitoring their plans, features, and channel lineups. All of that work is on our cord-cutting hub.
Beyond this, we have been reviewing the best on streaming services since 2013, recommending highly-rated but little-known movies and shows: we find the gems that you haven't yet watched, that you will probably like.
Sling Blue is the better option for History viewers who also want to stay updated on the history being made today. That’s because it streams more news programs than Sling’s other plan, Orange, on account of it carrying local channels. However, you do have to pay an extra $5/month if you do get local channels where you live.
Sling TV plans
With over 90 channels for as little as $28, Philo’s price is tough to beat. Sports fans or local TV viewers might not appreciate the narrow lineup, but those who love watching History would be happy to find it there along with other reality TV channels.
Philo plans
Hulu with Live TV is the fastest and most convenient way for Hulu users to get live TV channels without having to test out other unfamiliar streaming services. It offers a great mix too: along with channels like History, NatGeo, and Lifetime, users also get live sports from channels like ESPN and NFL Network as well as local channels like FOX, NBC, CBS, and ABC.
Hulu + Live TV plans
Our breakdown of Hulu + Live TV →
Spectrum TV Choice is exclusive to Spectrum internet users. It also comes with a $23.20 broadcast fee because it carries local channels. That said, TV Choice a nice enough cord-cutting option that lets you pick 15 channels and change them every month. Aside from History, you can choose between dozens of local, sports, news, and entertainment channels.
Spectrum TV Choice plans
Our breakdown of Spectrum TV Choice →
Yes, with the HISTORY Vault add-on. Add it through Prime Video Channels for $4.99/mo and you get the full HISTORY documentary and series library on demand without leaving the Prime app. It’s on-demand, so there’s still no live History Channel feed, and you need a Prime membership ($14.99/mo) or standalone Prime Video ($8.99/mo) underneath it.
Prime Video itself won’t have the live channel, but its Channels store rents the network’s own app as an on-demand add-on, billed through Amazon.
The honest way to watch History Channel for free is a free trial, and the trick is not to spend them one at a time. Start one, then start the next when it ends, and you can string together a few weeks of free live TV back to back, usually enough to cover a tournament or a playoff run without paying for a month.
History Channel and the US services that carry it are geo-locked to the United States, so your login stops working the moment you leave the country. A VPN fixes that: connect to a US server and the service sees a US address again. The catch is that streaming platforms actively block most VPN traffic, so the VPN you pick matters far more than the service does. These three reliably get back in:
A huge US server network (thousands of IPs across 15-plus cities) with SmartPlay DNS baked into every server, so streaming just works without extra setup. The best value of the top tier on a two-year plan.
Best for streaming History Channel with: Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, Philo
Get NordVPN →The budget pick, and the one to get if the whole household travels: it allows unlimited simultaneous devices on one account, plus a Smart DNS for TVs. Reliable with the on-demand and lifestyle services.
Best for streaming History Channel with: Hulu + Live TV, Philo
Get Surfshark →Whichever you pick, connect to a US city first, then sign in to History Channel or the service that carries it as normal. Choose a VPN with a money-back window so you can confirm it un-blocks History Channel before you commit.
No. History Channel is a cable channel and doesn't broadcast over the air, so an antenna can't pick it up. An antenna only gets the free broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, PBS, The CW), which pair nicely with one of the services above; check which of those reach your address here.
History is now better known for their unscripted shows like Pawn Stars and American Pickers, but once in a while, they go back to show actual history. Earlier this year, they aired a six-part series on Thomas Jefferson. History will be following that up with documentaries like the Wild West: Kevin Costner's The West and Sitting Bull, which is about the titular Lakota chief.
Some of the links on this page are affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you sign up through one. That money is part of how we pay writers and keep the site free to read.
The people who test, price-check, and update our cord-cutting coverage.
Five criteria, each scored out of 10. The overall score is their weighted average: content 50%, value 20%, apps 20%, streaming quality 10%. Live TV packages are also scored on customization and add-ons (20%), with the other four scaled to 40%, 16%, 16% and 8%.
Value for money
0The most expensive service of its kind.
10The cheapest service of its kind, with full content.
Content quality
0None of the 20 most-watched cable channels, or nothing from our recommended list.
10All 20 channels, or the deepest catalog of titles we recommend.
Apps and devices
0A one-star app that runs on none of the 12 major devices.
10Five-star apps on all 12 major devices.
Streaming quality
0Below 720p.
104K on the plan we price.
Customization and add-ons
0A live TV package with no add-on packs to build on.
10Eight or more add-on packs at $15 a month or less.