If you're the type of person who's always looking for something new to learn, you'll know how valuable PBS can be. The public channel has local stations all over the country and broadcasts educational (and often entertaining!) shows with topics ranging from art, history, science, nature, and music. A lot of people watch the channel via an antenna, but PBS is actually just as easy to watch if you're on a budget or want to cut the cord. For the former, we recommend taking a look at the standalone PBS app, which gives you access to your local station's live stream for free. For the latter, live TV streaming services are a great way to watch your favorite PBS shows along with a couple of other channels. You can read more about them in the list below.
3 Best Services to watch PBS Live Without Cable
| DirecTV Stream 5-day free trial.
|
$86.99/month | Watch | |
| YouTube TV 7-day free trial.
|
$82.99/month | Watch | |
| Tablo TV No free trial.
|
$129.95 /month | Watch | |
DirecTV Stream is a Live TV streaming platform with a twist: you can download the app on any of your existing devices, or if you choose, you can get a "Gemini Air" box with a custom remote control for the service. But without the box, DirecTV Stream functions like a Netflix or Hulu, allowing you to stream Live TV from anywhere by downloading the app. Within your home, you can stream on up to 20 devices (!), and from outside your home you can stream on up to three devices.
Price: $86.99/month
Free Trial: 5 days
Notable channels: ABC, AMC, Bravo, CNBC, CNN, CNN en Espanol, CNN International, ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN2, ESPNews, ESPNU, Food Network, FOX, Fox Sports 1, Hallmark Channel, HGTV, HLN, MSNBC, NBC, NBC local channels, TBS, TLC, TNT, WE tv
Other channels: ACC Digital Network, AccuWeather, Alien Nation, Anger Management, Animal Planet, Are We There Yet?, Ax Men, AXS TV, Baby First, BBC America, BET, Big 12, Bloomberg TV, Bob Ross, Boomerang, BUZZR, C-SPAN, C-SPAN2, Cartoon Network, CBS, CBS local channels, Cheddar News, Cleo TV, CMT, Comedy Central, Comedy Dynamics, Court TV, Crime 360, Curiosity Now, CW, Daystar HD, Declassified, Discovery Channel, Duck Dynasty, E! Entertainment, EarthxTV, Ebony TV, El Rey Rebel, FMC, Fox Business Network, Fox News Channel, FOX SOUL, Fox Weather, Freeform, FUEL TV, Fuse Music, FX, FXX, Galavision, Hallmark Mystery, HerSphere, Home Shopping Network, HSN, IFC, Investigation Discovery, ION, ion Television, Jewelry Television, MeatEater TV, MotorTrend, MovieSphere, MTV, MTV2, NBA TV, News Nation, Newsmax, Nick Jr., One America News, Ovation, Oxygen True Crime, Paramount Network, PBS, PBS Kids, PBS local channels, Poker GO, Pursuit Channel, QVC, QVC2, QVC3, Racing America, REELZ, REVOLT, RFD-TV, RSNs, Scientology Network, Scripps News, Shop LC, Somos Novelas, SportsGrid, Start TV, SundanceTV, SYFY, Tastemade Home, Tastemade Travel, TCM, TeenNick, Telemundo local channels, The First, theGrio, TNA, truTV, TV Land, TV One, Univision, Up TV, USA Network, VH1, Waypoint TV, Women’s Sports Network, Yahoo! Finance
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, iOS, Roku, Samsung TV
Youtube TV boasts a wide offering of almost every major channel, unlimited DVR, six accounts, and up to three simultaneous streams. It's the perfect option for families. The cost is a little steep, and there are cheaper options out there, but with a great interface (Live TV services are not known to always have the most intuitive interfaces) and wide availability across devices, it's fair to say that you'll get your dollar's worth.
Price: $82.99/month
Free Trial: 7 days
Notable channels: ABC, ABC News, AMC, Bravo, CNBC, CNBC World, CNN, ESPN, ESPN U, ESPN2, ESPNews, Food Network, FOX, Fox Sports 1, Hallmark Channel, HGTV, HLN, MSNBC, NBC, NBC local channels, NBC News Now, NBC Universo, NBCLX, NBCSN, NFL Network, TBS, TLC, TNT, WE tv
Other channels: ACCN, Adult Swim, Animal Planet, BBC America, BBC World News, BET, BET Her, Big Ten Network, Bounce, Cartoon Network, CBS, CBS local channels, CBS Sports Network, Charge!, Cheddar, Cheddar News, CMT, Comedy Central, Comedy TV, Comet, Court TV, Cozi TV, Dabl, Discovery Channel, Disney, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, Docurama, Dove Channel, E!, Fox Business, Fox News, FOX SOUL, Fox Sports 2, Fox Weather, Freeform, FX, FXM, FXX, Galavision, Game Show Network, Get TV, Golf Channel, Hallmark Drama, Hallmark Mystery, HSN, IFC, Investigation Discovery, ION, Justice Central TV, LAFC Channel, Law & Crime, Live Now, Local Now, Localish, MotorTrend, MTV, MTV 2, MTV Classic, My TV, Nat Geo Wild, National Geographic, NBA TV, NECN, Neon, News Nation, Newsmax, Nick Jr., Nickelodeon, Nicktoons, Orlando City Channel, OWN, Oxygen, Oxygen True Crime, Paramount, PBS, PBS Kids, PBS local channels, PC Mag, Pop, QVC, Recipe.TV, Scripps News, SEC Network, Smithsonian Channel, SNY, Start TV, Sundance TV, SYFY, Tastemade, TBD, Teen Nick, TeleHit, Telemundo local channels, Tennis 2, The CW, The Great Courses, The Walking Dead Universe, The Weather Channel, Travel Channel, Tru TV, Turner Classic Movies, TV Land, TYT, Unimas, Unimas local channels, Universal Kids, Univision, Univision local channels, USA Network, VH1, YouTube Originals, Zen channel
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Google TV Streamer, iOS, LG TV, PlayStation, Roku, Samsung TV, Sharp, Vizio, Xbox
Tablo TV is a free live TV streaming service that lets you watch local channels like ABC, NBC, FOX, and CBS, as well as 70 fast channels, including HSN, ION, Grit, MeTV, and CourtTV. It's exclusively available to those with a Tablo device—the latest already comes with a built-in indoor antenna—which itself requires a one-time payment of about $70 to $130, depending on what version you get. It's free in the sense that you don't have to pay a monthly subscription fee, as you would on usual live TV streaming services since it streams channels that are already airing for free via broadcast towers near you. A Tablo device lets you watch Tablo TV on up to 4 devices connected to your home Wi-fi and record shows while watching a different channel. If you're on the go, you can also control the DVR via the Tablo TV app. You can download the app on all major smart TVs and mobile devices.
Price: $129.95 /month
Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Google TV, iOS, LG TV, Roku, Roku TV, Samsung
Let's recap the streaming services that allow you to watch PBS without cable.
What is the cheapest way to watch PBS?
The most cost-efficient way to watch PBS content is to get a subscription to YouTube TV for $82.99/month.
How to get a free trial to PBS?
You can get a limited time free trial to PBS by subscribing to DirecTV Stream, or YouTube TV.
How to watch PBS for free?
Unfortunately there are no streaming services that offer PBS completely for free. That said, as we mentioned above you can get it for free for a limited time by subscribing to a service with a free trial. Here they are, this time ranked by which one offers the longest free trial:
- YouTube TV (7 days free)
- DirecTV Stream (5 days free)
How to get a PBS live stream?
The platforms that will get you a PBS live stream right now are: DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, or Tablo TV.
How to watch PBS outside the US?
You can watch PBS abroad by combining NordVPN and one of the streaming services above like DirecTV Stream, or YouTube TV.
How to watch PBS on Roku?
You can watch PBS on your Roku device by subscribing to DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, or Tablo TV.
How to watch PBS on an Amazon Fire TV?
PBS can be accessed on an Amazon Fire TV device by subscribing to DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, or Tablo TV.
How to watch PBS on an Apple TV device?
The streaming services that include PBS and are available on Apple TV are DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, and Tablo TV.
How to watch PBS on a computer?
On a web browser head to the websites of DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, or Tablo TV to start watching PBS.
How to watch PBS on iOS (iPhone or iPad)?
You can watch PBS on an iPhone or iPad by subscribing to DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, or Tablo TV.
How to watch PBS on an Android phone?
You can watch PBS on an Android device such as Samsung or Google Pixel by subscribing to DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, or Tablo TV.
How to watch PBS on an Android TV?
You can watch PBS on a Smart TV that runs on Android by getting a subscription to DirecTV Stream, YouTube TV, or Tablo TV.
>How to watch PBS on an Xbox?
You can watch PBS on an Xbox console through YouTube TV.
How to pay for a PBS subscription with Paypal?
The services that accept Paypal and carry PBS are: DirecTV Stream, and YouTube TV.
How to pay for a PBS subscription with Apple Pay?
The services that accept Paypal and carry PBS are: .
How to pay for a PBS subscription with Google Pay?
The services that accept Paypal and carry PBS are: YouTube TV.
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.