Choosing a streaming service isn’t as straightforward as it once was. With the leading streaming services offering a blend of classic favorites and new original content, viewers have more options than ever. Hulu + Live TV and Sling TV provide an excellent experience among the numerous live TV streaming services.
While both may feature the channels you want at a price you’re willing to pay, they each have their own advantages. Sling TV is noticeably the more affordable option, offering a variety of add-ons to its channels, allowing for some customization of your viewing experience. Conversely, Hulu + Live TV has a key advantage due to the bundles it offers.
Let’s take a closer look.
Plans and pricing
Sling TV offers a few different base plans:
Watch the latest movies and TV shows via Sling. Score your first 3 months for $99.99, $140 off. Channels available include ABC, NBC, and Fox as well as ESPN, Bravo, FX, National Geographic, and even TNT.
Sling Orange: This plan is typically priced at $46 per month. It includes a different set of channels, focusing more on sports and family content, and allows streaming on one device at a time. It includes channels like ESPN, ESPN2, CNN, TNT, TBS, A&E, Food Network, HGTV, History Channel, Lifetime, and Disney Channel. You also get 50 hours of DVR storage included.
Sling Blue: This plan is also typically priced at $46 per month. It offers a different channel lineup with a focus on news and entertainment and allows streaming on up to three devices simultaneously. It includes channels like FOX, NBC (in select markets), USA, Bravo, FX, FS1, Discovery Channel, TLC, CNN, MSNBC, and NFL Network. This plan also includes 50 hours of DVR storage.
Sling Orange + Blue: This combines the channels from the Orange and Blue packages for $61 monthly. It offers the most comprehensive channel selection from Sling and allows streaming on up to four devices. It also includes 50 hours of DVR storage.
It’s worth noting that Sling frequently offers promotional pricing, especially for the first month of service. For example, you might see offers for 50% off your first month. Additionally, you can often find deals where prepaying for a few months of service can result in a lower monthly cost or even a free streaming device like an AirTV Mini.
Beyond the base plans, Sling TV offers a variety of add-on “Extra” packages that allow you to customize your channel lineup based on your interests. These Extras typically cost between $6 and $11 per month and cover categories like sports, comedy, news, lifestyle, kids, and movies. For sports enthusiasts, the “Sports Extra” add-on is popular and offers channels like MLB Network, NBA TV, NHL Network, and more, depending on whether you have the Orange or Blue base plan.
Sling also offers premium channel add-ons like Max, Paramount+ with SHOWTIME, STARZ, and MGM+, each with a monthly fee. You can upgrade your DVR storage to “Unlimited DVR” for $5 monthly.
Sling provides Latino packages and other international channel options for those interested in global content.
Meanwhile, Hulu + Live TV offers several plans with different pricing and features:
Hulu (With Ads) + Live TV, Disney+ (With Ads), and ESPN+ (With Ads): $82.99 per month. This plan includes 95+ live TV channels, Hulu’s ad-supported on-demand library, Disney+ with ads, and ESPN+ with ads. You also get unlimited cloud DVR (recordings saved for 9 months).
Hulu (No Ads) + Live TV, Disney+ (No Ads), and ESPN+ (With Ads): $95.99 per month. This plan includes the same live TV channels and ESPN+ (with ads) as the previous plan, but with ad-free streaming for Hulu’s on-demand library and Disney+. You also get unlimited cloud DVR.
Hulu (With Ads) + Live TV, Disney+ (No Ads), and ESPN+ (With Ads): $87.99 per month. This plan is no longer available for new subscribers or plan changes, but existing subscribers can keep it. It includes 95+ live TV channels, Hulu’s ad-supported on-demand library, Disney+ without ads, ESPN+ with ads, and unlimited cloud DVR.
Live TV Only: $81.99 per month. This plan provides access to 95+ live TV channels and unlimited cloud DVR but does *not* include Hulu’s on-demand library, Disney+, or ESPN+.
By default, all Hulu + Live TV plans allow streaming on two screens simultaneously. For an additional $9.99 per month, you can upgrade to unlimited screens.
Channels
This really is where the rubber meets the road, as they say. If a streaming service doesn’t have the channels you want to watch, everything else is moot. As always, you’ll want to check with the service to make sure all channels are available where you live. But here’s how things break down as of Autumn 2024:
Sling TV channels
Sling Orange offers a channel lineup geared towards sports and family entertainment, featuring networks like ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN3, alongside Disney Channel and Nick Jr. For general entertainment, it includes CNN, TNT, TBS, AMC, A&E, History Channel, HGTV, Food Network, Lifetime, and IFC. CNN and Bloomberg TV provide news options, while movie enthusiasts can find content on IFC and MGM+ Drive-In.
On the other hand, Sling Blue leans more towards news and entertainment with channels such as FOX and NBC (in select markets), USA, Bravo, FX, FS1, Discovery Channel, TLC, CNN, MSNBC, and NFL Network. It also shares some channels with Sling Orange, including A&E, AMC, BBC America, BET, Cartoon Network/Adult Swim, Comedy Central, HGTV, History Channel, Lifetime, TBS, TNT, Travel Channel, and truTV.
While Sling Blue often offers more simultaneous streams (up to three), Sling Orange typically includes ESPN channels, making it a popular choice for sports fans. Both plans also include local channels ABC, FOX, and NBC in select markets.
Hulu + Live TV channels
Hulu + Live TV offers a comprehensive channel lineup encompassing over 95 channels, providing a broad range of content. For news, subscribers can access major networks like ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC (in many markets), alongside dedicated news channels such as CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, and CNBC. Sports enthusiasts will find a strong selection with ESPN, ESPN2, FS1, FS2, NFL Network, and, depending on the plan and location, regional sports networks like ACC Network and Big Ten Network.
Entertainment and lifestyle channels are well-represented with options like A&E, Bravo, Comedy Central, Discovery Channel, Food Network, FX, HGTV, History Channel, Lifetime, MTV, National Geographic, TBS, TNT, TLC, and USA Network. The lineup includes Cartoon Network, Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, and more for families and kids. Hulu + Live TV also typically includes local channels for ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC in most areas.
Furthermore, subscribers gain access to Hulu’s extensive on-demand library, Disney+ and ESPN+, making it a robust option for various viewing preferences.
Local channels
One feature important to a lot of streaming subscribers is the ability to watch your local broadcast channels. In that sense, Hulu + Live TV definitely wins out here.
While things can occasionally vary depending on where you live, Hulu + Live TV should have the major broadcast networks available: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, and PBS.
Sling TV does have local channels, but they are available only in a limited number of markets. Many of those markets have a great many people in them, yes. But if you’re outside of those markets, you’re out of luck. And complicating things further is that not all channels are available in those markets.
And that’s before we even get to CBS, which isn’t available at all on Sling TV.
Instead, you’ll find that Sling TV often will push you toward something called AirTV, which essentially is Sling’s branded over-the-air tuner. You attach an antenna and scan for channels, and then your local broadcast networks will appear alongside all the streaming channels on your Sling TV plan. While we’re big fans of over-the-air TV, this highlights a pretty big discrepancy between Sling TV and its competitors.
Add-ons
Both Hulu + Live TV and Sling TV have a number of optional add-ons. Sling TV will appear to have far more because of its structure, with the lighter Sling Orange and Sling Blue plans bolstered by the “Extras” that can be used to flesh out the rest of your channels.
Sling TV also has options for additional recording storage and a healthy slate of premium channels.
The add-ons available for Hulu With Life TV perhaps are a bit more meager, but that’s balanced by the fact that you get more channels up front with your subscription — and don’t forget about Disney+ and ESPN+, which are included for free. Premium add-ons are limited to Cinemax, Max, Showtime, and STARZ.
Also available on Hulu are the following add-ons:
Sports: FanDuel TV, FanDuel Racing, MAV TV, NFL RedZone, Outdoor Channels, Sportsman Channel, Strike Zone, & The Tennis Channel
Entertainment: American Heroes Channel, BET Her, Boomerang, Crime & Investigation, CNBC World, Cooking Channel, Destination America, Discovery Family, Discovery Life, Hallmark Drama, Military History, MTV Classic, MTV2, NickToons, Science, TeenNick
Español: CNN Español, Discovery en Español, Discovery Familia, ESPN Deportes, Fox Deportes, History Channel de Español, Hogar de HGTV, NBC Universo, The Weather Channel en Español.
