Amazon’s premium membership program is an all-in-one bundle that includes access to the streaming platform Prime Video, more commonly referred to in this publication as “Amazon Prime.” A subscription entitles you not only to Amazon Prime’s thousands of films and TV shows, but also to Amazon’s delivery benefits, which include discounted fees, free shipping, and same-day delivery on select items. 

Depending on where you live, access to Amazon Prime might differ. If you live in the US, UK, or Germany, you have the option of paying a yearly or monthly subscription fee for an Amazon Prime account. Users from the US, UK, France, and Brazil likewise have access to Amazon Prime’s sports content which, depending on the season, may include live and on-demand coverage of basketball, football, and baseball events. Meanwhile, people in countries where Amazon is not operating may only be able to access it from a browser only.  

In addition to on-demand streaming, you can rent or buy titles that are not on the service or purchase add-on channels like HBO, Starz, and MLB.TV to watch on the Amazon Prime platform. And apart from Amazon devices, the app is available on any mobile device, including iOS, Android, or Windows. The app also works on Apple and Windows computers, a wide range of TVs, mobile devices, and gaming consoles.

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: $4.99 a month or $50 a year for ad-supported; $9.99 a month or $100 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.

Founded by the Texas-based cinema chain Alamo Drafthouse, Alamo on Demand is a streaming service that lets you rent or purchase a good mix of mainstream and obscure films. Here, you’ll find blockbusters and indies, new releases and cult classics, grindhouse as well as arthouse. In Alamo’s own words, it’s the “Staff Picks section of a video store,” a curated set of films carefully handpicked by the people behind it. And this is apparent in how the streaming service is organized. You can sort the movies by directors, genres, and categories like “Weird Wednesday” and “Ozploitation.” If you feel like exploring even more, they have movie playlists made in collaboration with filmmakers like Paul Thomas Anderson and Edgar Wright, which follow different themes and moods. As of this writing, the platform doesn’t recognize credits and passes you may have collected with your Alamo Drafthouse membership, but it’s working on it. In the meantime, film lovers and patrons will find much to like in Alamo’s on-demand counterpart. 

If you’re subscribed to DirecTV’s satellite or internet plans, you can choose to rent and buy from the platform’s wide library of titles. Here, you’ll find the latest blockbusters, indies, cult favorites, and even beloved TV shows and previous hits that might be difficult to view elsewhere. Prices can range from $3 to $20 per title, but that will depend on its popularity and how recently it was released. You’re free to watch them on the go via the DirecTV app, but do note that you can’t transact on the app itself. And while concurrent streams for purchases (which are yours for as long as you remain a DirecTV customer) are limited to three devices, the limit for rented titles is two. 

Hoopla is a digital library that partners with public libraries across the US to grant their patrons free access to the wealth of media they have online and on the go. This includes movies and television shows, but Hoopla also has a vast collection of ebooks, audiobooks, podcasts, and albums it offers members. You can check their website to see if your library card is valid, and if it is, you can continue on to registration (with no extra fees) and start viewing their available titles. Hoopla rotates its selection every week or so, but generally, it has a good mix of old films, cult classics, past hits, and foreign movies. Occasionally, it will also have the latest blockbusters. For television, it’s recently partnered with the BBC and a couple of manga publishers to deliver content from around the world. 

Microsoft is most known for its computer and gaming services, but the tech corporation also has a streaming service under its belt. Microsoft’s media store allows you to rent or purchase a host of films and TV shows, many of which are still up in theaters or being broadcast on network TV. The good news is that Microsoft often puts up sales and specials that slash prices up to half, and the even better news is that Xbox Game Pass holders are entitled to many of these discounts. So for instance, a Game Pass holder can pay just $7 for a film that costs $20 to rent. Now, the not-so-good news is that Microsoft’s rental store is only available for Xbox and PCs and mobile devices that run on Windows. Anything outside of these devices, unfortunately, won’t be able to access the store. 

Despite its wobbly start in the streaming sphere, Peacock now has a growing and respectable catalog of titles to its name. It’s home to critically acclaimed shows like Poker Face and movies like Tar, not to mention a whole host of reality shows and sports events. But perhaps the greatest edge Peacock has over its competitors is that along with its on-demand content, it also features a solid lineup of live TV channels, many of them for free.

Peacock’s premium tier, often referred to as Peacock Premium, has channels like Hallmark, Fallon Tonight, SNL Vault, NBC News, Premier League TV, WWE, Dateline 24/7, and Below Deck.