For those who have subscribed to Hulu before, you know that the never-ending on-demand library, as well as the vast 95+ channel list, makes it a great option for almost everyone. Watching live sporting events like NFL games, primetime shows, or even the news has never been easier thanks to a Hulu + Live TV subscription. New subscribers can sign up for the Hulu free trial to try out the service for three days.
All Hulu + Live TV customers can get ESPN Plus and Disney Plus with the Disney Plus bundle. With this type of value, your Hulu subscription will feel like it’s worth the monthly payment in no time. Continue reading to learn more about the channels offered in a Hulu + Live TV plan and the other factors you may need to weigh when deciding if this is the right live TV streaming service for you.
Hulu + Live TV basics
Hulu + Live TV’s basic plan includes ad-supported, on-demand content from Disney Plus and Hulu, as well as live sports and on-demand content from ESPN Plus. If you don’t want to deal with ads, like most of us, you can upgrade your plan and remove ads from Disney Plus and Hulu’s on-demand content. All live TV and ESPN Plus content will always come with ads regardless of the plan you choose.
There is a Live TV Only plan, which doesn’t include the Disney Bundle. You only save $1 per month and sacrifice your access to Disney Plus and ESPN Plus, making it a less ideal choice for most streamers. Add-ons for extra sports, entertainment, and news channels are a great way to customize your subsscription but will cost extra each month.
| Hulu + Live TV | Hulu (No Ads) + Live TV | |
|---|---|---|
| Channels | 95+ | 95+ |
| Cost per month | $82.99 | $95.99 |
| On-Demand content included | Yes | Yes |
| Ads for on-demand content | Yes | No |
| Free Trial? | Yes; 3 days | No |
Hulu Live TV channel list
| Channel | Hulu + Live TV | Hulu (No Ads) + Live TV |
|---|---|---|
| A&E | ✔ | ✔ |
| ABC | ✔ | ✔ |
| ABC Localish | ✔ | ✔ |
| ABC News Live | ✔ | ✔ |
| ACCN | ✔ | ✔ |
| Adult Swim | ✔ | ✔ |
| BET | ✔ | ✔ |
| Big Ten Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Bloomberg Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Bravo | ✔ | ✔ |
| Cartoon Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| CBS | ✔ | ✔ |
| CBS News | ✔ | ✔ |
| CBS Sports Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Cheddar News | ✔ | ✔ |
| CMT | ✔ | ✔ |
| CNBC | ✔ | ✔ |
| CNN | ✔ | ✔ |
| CNN International | ✔ | ✔ |
| Comedy Central | ✔ | ✔ |
| Comedy.tv | ✔ | ✔ |
| COZI TV | ✔ | ✔ |
| The CW | ✔ | ✔ |
| Dabl | ✔ | ✔ |
| Discovery Channel | ✔ | ✔ |
| Disney Channel | ✔ | ✔ |
| Disney Junior | ✔ | ✔ |
| Disney XD | ✔ | ✔ |
| E! | ✔ | ✔ |
| ESPN | ✔ | ✔ |
| ESPN2 | ✔ | ✔ |
| ESPNEWS | ✔ | ✔ |
| ESPNU | ✔ | ✔ |
| Food Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Fox | ✔ | ✔ |
| Fox Business | ✔ | ✔ |
| Fox News | ✔ | ✔ |
| Freeform | ✔ | ✔ |
| FS1 | ✔ | ✔ |
| FS2 | ✔ | ✔ |
| FX | ✔ | ✔ |
| FXM | ✔ | ✔ |
| FXX | ✔ | ✔ |
| FYI | ✔ | ✔ |
| Game Show Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Get TV | ✔ | ✔ |
| Golf Channel | ✔ | ✔ |
| The Grio | ✔ | ✔ |
| Hallmark Channel | ✔ | ✔ |
| Hallmark Movies & Mysteries | ✔ | ✔ |
| HGTV | ✔ | ✔ |
| HLN | ✔ | ✔ |
| History Channel | ✔ | ✔ |
| Investigation Discovery | ✔ | ✔ |
| Justice Central TV | ✔ | ✔ |
| Lifetime | ✔ | ✔ |
| Lifetime Movies | ✔ | ✔ |
| Magnolia Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| MotorTrend | ✔ | ✔ |
| MSNBC | ✔ | ✔ |
| MTV | ✔ | ✔ |
| NASA | ✔ | ✔ |
| National Geographic | ✔ | ✔ |
| Nat Geo Wild | ✔ | ✔ |
| NBC | ✔ | ✔ |
| NBC LX Home | ✔ | ✔ |
| NBC News Now | ✔ | ✔ |
| NewsNation | ✔ | ✔ |
| NFL Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Nickelodeon | ✔ | ✔ |
| Nick Jr. | ✔ | ✔ |
| OWN | ✔ | ✔ |
| Oxygen | ✔ | ✔ |
| Paramount Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| PBS | ✔ | ✔ |
| PBS Kids | ✔ | ✔ |
| Pop | ✔ | ✔ |
| QVC | ✔ | ✔ |
| SEC Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Smithsonian Network | ✔ | ✔ |
| Start TV | ✔ | ✔ |
| SyFy | ✔ | ✔ |
| TBS | ✔ | ✔ |
| Telemundo | ✔ | ✔ |
| TCM | ✔ | ✔ |
| TLC | ✔ | ✔ |
| TNT | ✔ | ✔ |
| Travel Channel | ✔ | ✔ |
| TruTV | ✔ | ✔ |
| TV Land | ✔ | ✔ |
| Universal Kids | ✔ | ✔ |
| USA | ✔ | ✔ |
| Vevo ‘80s | ✔ | ✔ |
| Vevo ‘90s | ✔ | ✔ |
| Vevo Country | ✔ | ✔ |
| Vevo Hip-Hop | ✔ | ✔ |
| Veho Holiday | ✔ | ✔ |
| Vevo Pop | ✔ | ✔ |
| VH-1 | ✔ | ✔ |
| Vice | ✔ | ✔ |
| Weather Channel | ✔ | ✔ |
Hulu’s available add-ons
You can personalize your Hulu + Live TV experience by paying extra for premium channels or additional channel packages. Sports fans may especially like the available sports add-on, which gives you NFL RedZone and allows you to watch out-of-market touchdowns.
| Add-on Channel or Package Name | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|
| Max | $9.99 |
| Cinemax | $9.99 |
| Paramount Plus with Showtime | $12.99 |
| STARZ | $9.99 |
| Entertainment Add-on | $7.99 |
| Sports Add-on | $9.99 |
| Español Add-on | $4.99 |
Entertainment Add-on
The Entertainment Add-on adds 16 channels to your plan for $7.99 per month, featuring a range of entertainment to suit a variety of viewers.
- American Heroes Channel
- BET Her
- Boomerang Channel
- CNBC World
- Cooking Channel
- Crime and Investigation
- Destination America
- Discovery Family
- Discovery Life
- Hallmark Family
- Military History Channel
- Nicktoons
- MTV2
- MTV Classic
- Science
- TeenNick
Sports Add-on
Fans who want to maximize their sports coverage can opt for the Sports Add-on, which adds eight sports channels to your subscription for $9.99 a month.
- NFL RedZone
- FanDuel TV
- FanDuel Racing
- MAVTV
- Outdoor Channel
- Sportsman Channel
- MLB Strikezone
- Tennis Channel
Español Add-on
The $4.99 Español Add-on expands your Hulu channels lineup to include 10 Spanish-language channels.
- CNN en Español
- Discovery en Español
- Discovery Familia
- ESPN Deportes
- Fox Deportes
- History Channel en Español
- Hogar de HGTV
- Nat Geo Mundo
- NBC Universo
- The Weather Channel en Español
Local channels on Hulu + Live TV
Hulu + Live TV includes local channels in all its plans. In fact, it’s one of the few streaming services to include PBS and The CW on top of the big four of ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC. Local affiliates for these channels are available in all markets at no additional charge.
Unfortunately, Hulu doesn’t offer most regional sports networks in its plan. If you want to watch Bally Sports, you’ll have to turn to Fubo or DIRECTV STREAM or get an over-the-top Bally Sports subscription in your region. Hulu is also lacking NBC Sports Channels in most markets, though customers in the San Francisco Bay Area and Chicago can get NBC RSNs in their lineups.
Sports channels on Hulu
If you want to make sure you retain access to collegiate and professional sports action before you cancel cable, you’ll be happy to know that the live Hulu plan has a lot of channels carrying games. For starters, the basic plan has coverage on local affiliates for ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC. Plus, you’ll get 12 sports channels, including ESPN, ESPN2, Fox Sports 1 (FS1), TBS, TNT, and NFL Network. Hulu + Live TV also features college sports on ACCN, Big Ten Network, ESPNU, and SEC Network. You’ll even find European soccer on CBS Sports or USA and pro golf on Golf Channel.
There’s even more coverage on ESPN Plus, an over-the-top streamer with extra live coverage. You can use ESPN Plus to watch NFL games, some MLB games, European soccer leagues, mixed martial arts, tennis, and college sports. The app also has documentaries and original shows offering sports commentary.
Hulu + Live TV’s competitors compared
| Service | Monthly Cost | Number of Channels | Free Trial |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hulu + Live TV | $82.99+ | 95+ | Yes |
| Fubo | $79.99+ | 175+ | Yes |
| DIRECTV STREAM | $86.99+ | 90+ | Yes |
| Sling TV | $40+ | 32+ | No |
| YouTube TV | $82.99 | 100+ | Yes |
Is Hulu the best service for sports fans?
Hulu is lacking RSNs in most areas, meaning it’s not the best service for many sports fans. However, you will have a dozen sports networks plus local coverage for in-market games. Given that Hulu offers a sports add-on and ESPN Plus, it’s a decent choice for sports lovers. If you want to catch every game of your local team, however, there might be a better alternative with RSNs.
Is Hulu the best service for families?
Hulu + Live TV is a good choice for people with kids. The platform has PBS Kids, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., and other good family-friendly options. You can also create a kid’s profile in your Hulu account and set parental controls to limit the type of content younger viewers are able to access.
FAQs
What channels do you not get with Hulu?
Hulu’s channel list lacks some major networks, including AMC and PBS. You’ll also find NBA TV and MLB TV missing for those who are looking for extra sports coverage. As far as local channels, these will depend on your region so make sure to check before signing up. You’ll always be able to catch majority of these network shows on-demand the following day.
What are the downsides to Hulu?
Hulu is a good streaming service for people who already have Hulu for its on-demand library, but it may not be the best for every customer. The platform lacks some popular channels, including NBA TV for sports lovers, and it doesn’t have as many add-ons as some competitors to customize your lineup. Other platforms, including DIRECTV STREAM, also offer more channels.
Is Hulu or cable cheaper?
Hulu + Live TV can be cheaper than regular cable, depending on your local provider. At $82.99 per month, Hulu is at least competitive with most local cable providers. And, you won’t have to pay for equipment rentals like receivers that often drive up the cost of cable.
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