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Victory is fleeting in the fast-changing world of live TV streaming services. Hulu Plus Live TV spent a couple of months in 2020 as CNET’s most recommended premium service, but that brief reign ended when the company raised its prices to $65 per month. That price is the same as YouTube TV, which we like better overall for its superior cloud DVR and channel count. Hulu Live is still an excellent premium cord-cutter choice, however, especially if you like having “regular Hulu” built in for the same price.
LikeSolid mix of channelsFull access to Hulu’s on-demand contentFun interface and zippy guide
Don’t LikeWorse live channel selection than YouTube TVDVR is quite limited without the $10 upgrade
At $6 a month, basic Hulu is one of the best deals in streaming, with gobs of current and past TV shows and movies. The hefty upgrade to Hulu Plus Live TV buys a healthy mix of live sports, news and local channels. That combination of live channels with Hulu’s deep on-demand catalog of network TV shows and original programming is something no other live TV service can match.
Things will inevitably change — they always do — but at the moment YouTube TV ($65 at YouTube TV) is the best service for the money while Hulu remains a solid second place choice for most viewers. If you want to save money though, you should opt for Sling TV Blue ($35).
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What do you get?
Hulu Plus Live TV expands upon the on-demand service with more than 60 live channels and throws in both a cloud DVR and program guide guide. Live TV is available via Hulu’s standard app on all the major platforms including computer browsers, iOS, Xbox One, PS4, Android, Apple TV ($180 at Best Buy), Fire TV ($34 at Amazon), Roku and Smart TV systems.
Hulu’s channel count is solid but has a handful fewer major cable channels than YouTube TV and FuboTV. Important channels missing from Hulu include AMC, BBC America, MTV and Comedy Central, and every one of Hulu’s competitors offer these. Also, in late 2020 Hulu dropped many regional sports networks, which was a further blow for sports fans. Check the channel lineup at the end of the article, to see if the Hulu Plus Live TV’s mix is right for you.
Read more: NBA streaming: Best ways to watch the 2021 basketball season live online without cable
Like its live streaming competitors Hulu has had a number of price increases since it debuted and currently costs $65 a month. On top of this, the service’s biggest gotcha is the $10-a-month charge for the Enhanced DVR. Without it, the standard, non-enhanced DVR on Hulu Plus Live TV lacks the ability to fast-forward and rewind through commercials on recorded content. In addition to allowing you to fast-forward through commercials, paying for the upgrade also increases storage from 50 to 200 hours. But with the DVR add-on, this becomes the most expensive of all of the services at $75.
Premium live TV streaming services compared
Premium services
YouTube TV
AT&T TV
Hulu Plus Live TV
FuboTV
Base price
$65/month
$70/month
$65/month
$60/month
Total number of top 100 channels
75
61
62
65
ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC channels
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Record shows for later (cloud DVR)
Yes (keep for 9 months)
Yes (20 hours, unlimited hours for $10/month)
Yes (50 hours, 200 hours plus commercial skip for $10/month)
Yes (30GB, 500GB for $10 a month)
Step-up packages with more channels
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Simultaneous streams per account
3
20
2 ($10 option for unlimited)
2 ($6 option for 3)
Many people see commercial skipping as a must-have for any DVR. All of the other premium services include cloud DVRs that let you skip commercials as part of their standard functions and the best, YouTube TV, has unlimited storage, too. In short, if you’re a heavy DVR user save yourself some money and get YouTube TV.
Read more: YouTube TV vs. Sling TV vs. Hulu vs. Philo vs. Fubo vs. AT&T TV Now: Live TV channels compared
What’s it like to use?
Ty Pendlebury/CNET
Hulu has been tweaking the live TV interface since it launched, and the most recent changes have been the best. Previously users could only see four and a half shows at a time in a large font with no descriptions, but this has changed to a large marquee and “cover” art for all the remaining shows now grouped by type. On the main TV streaming devices, the top of the interface has a simplified selection featuring Home, Live TV, My Stuff (favorites and DVR recordings), TV, Movies, Sports and Hubs (essentially “Channels”). In terms of user-friendliness Hulu Plus Live TV is now in line with its biggest competitor, YouTube TV, but even more friendly on the eye.
Hulu’s program guide was once one of the least usable in the category, but it’s also now eclipsed that of YouTube TV. The traditional grid offers guide data, which goes 14 days out, and scrolling through pages is zippy, especially on an Apple TV. In comparison, YouTube TV’s guide only displays programs up to eight hours in advance on set-top boxes, and though YT’s web interface offers seven days out, we found it painfully slow to navigate.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Recording to the Hulu DVR is a little bit of a pain — you can only do it from the guide. If you want to record the show you’re currently watching you need to exit to the guide first. Once there you need to either long-press the middle button (on Apple or Roku) or press the hamburger button and click record. Every other DVR-available service lets you record while you’re still watching a program.
Should you get it?
If you enjoy the mix of channels and don’t need a DVR with commercial skipping, then Live TV could be what you’re looking for. Its biggest trump card is its tight integration with the Hulu service — if you like Hulu, you’ll like Live TV. The interface is now a dressing on what was already a lovely window, especially with the zippy 14-day guide.
That said, for the same money YouTube offers a better service overall, and if you don’t need as many channels or streaming locals (ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox), Sling TV Blue offers a much cheaper rate at $35 per month.
Channel comparison
Below you’ll find a chart that’s a smaller version of this massive channel comparison. It contains the top 100 channels from each service. Some notes:
Yes = The channel is available on the cheapest pricing tier.No = The channel isn’t available at all on that service. $ = The channel is available for an extra fee, either a la carte or as part of a more expensive package or add-on. Not every channel a service carries is listed, just the “top 100” as determined by CNET’s editors. Minor channels such as AXS TV, CNBC World, Discovery Life, GSN, POP and Universal Kids didn’t make the cut.Regional sports networks — channels devoted to showing regular-season games of particular pro baseball, basketball and hockey teams — are not listed.
Top 100 channels compared
Channel
Sling Blue ($35)
Fubo TV ($60)
YouTube TV ($65)
Hulu with Live TV ($65)
AT&T TV ($70)
Total channels:
38
65
75
62
61
ABC
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
CBS
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
NBC
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
PBS
No
No
Yes
No
No
CW
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
MyNetworkTV
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Channel
Sling Blue ($35)
Fubo TV ($60)
YouTube TV ($65)
Hulu with Live TV ($65)
AT&T TV ($70)
A&E
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
ACC Network
No
$
Yes
Yes
$
AMC
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Animal Planet
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
BBC America
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
BBC World News
$
$
Yes
No
$
BET
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Big Ten Network
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Bloomberg TV
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Boomerang
$
No
No
Yes
Yes
Bravo
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Channel
Sling Blue ($35)
Fubo TV ($60)
YouTube TV ($65)
Hulu with Live TV ($65)
AT&T TV ($70)
Cartoon Network
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
CBS Sports Network
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Cheddar
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Cinemax
No
No
$
$
$
CMT
$
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
CNBC
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
CNN
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Comedy Central
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Cooking Channel
$
$
No
$
$
Destination America
$
$
No
$
$
Discovery Channel
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Disney Channel
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Disney Junior
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Disney XD
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
DIY
$
$
No
$
$
E!
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
EPIX
$
No
$
No
$
ESPN
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ESPN 2
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ESPNEWS
No
$
Yes
Yes
$
ESPNU
No
$
Yes
Yes
$
Channel
Sling Blue ($35)
Fubo TV ($60)
YouTube TV ($65)
Hulu with Live TV ($65)
AT&T TV ($70)
Food Network
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox Business
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox News
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox Sports 1
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox Sports 2
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Freeform
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FX
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FX Movies
$
$
Yes
Yes
$
FXX
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FYI
$
Yes
No
Yes
$
Golf Channel
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Hallmark
$
Yes
No
No
Yes
HBO/HBO Max
No
No
$
$
$
HGTV
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
History
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
HLN
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
IFC
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Investigation Discovery
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Lifetime
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Lifetime Movie Network
$
Yes
No
Yes
$
Channel
Sling Blue ($35)
Fubo TV ($60)
YouTube TV ($65)
Hulu with Live TV ($65)
AT&T TV ($70)
MLB Network
$
$
Yes
No
$
Motor Trend
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
MSNBC
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
MTV
$
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
MTV2
$
$
No
No
Yes
National Geographic
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Nat Geo Wild
$
$
Yes
Yes
$
NBA TV
$
$
Yes
No
$
NBC Sports Network
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Newsy
Yes
$
Yes
No
No
NFL Network
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
NFL Red Zone
$
$
$
No
No
NHL Network
$
$
No
No
$
Nickelodeon
No
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Nick Jr.
Yes
Yes
No
No
$
Nicktoons
$
$
No
No
$
OWN
No
Yes
Yes
No
$
Oxygen
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Paramount Network
$
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Channel
Sling Blue ($35)
Fubo TV ($60)
YouTube TV ($65)
Hulu with Live TV ($65)
AT&T TV ($70)
Science
$
$
No
$
$
SEC Network
No
$
Yes
Yes
$
Showtime
$
$
$
$
$
Smithsonian
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Starz
$
No
$
$
$
Sundance TV
$
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Syfy
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Tastemade
$
Yes
Yes
No
$
TBS
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
TCM
$
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Telemundo
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Tennis Channel
$
$
No
No
$
TLC
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
TNT
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Travel Channel
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
TruTV
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
TV Land
$
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
USA Network
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
VH1
$
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Vice
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Weather Channel
No
Yes
No
No
$
WE tv
$
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
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