Guide to Streaming Video Services

Service and Price

Who It's Best For

Latest News

Acorn TV

$5 per month or $50 per year

Lovers of British TV fare. Goodies include TV dramas ("A Place to Call Home"), mysteries ("Agatha Raisin"), and comedies.

Among the exclusives hitting the service are the classic '80s comedy series "Alfresco," which kick-started the careers of Hugh Laurie, Emma Thompson, Robbie Coltrane and Stephen Fry. Also in the mix: “The Witness for the Prosecution,” an original Agatha Christie movie with Kim Cattrall.

Amazon Prime Video

$99 per year or $11 per month with free shipping.

A video-only subscription costs $9.

Anyone who's already paying for an Amazon Prime membership. It now has a solid roster of original shows, including "Z-The Beginning of Everything" and "The Grand Tour." Amazon Prime has some exclusive series, such as "Downton Abbey" and "The Americans," plus HBO's back catalog of shows. You can add HBO, Showtime, and other premium channels for $9 to $15 per month.

Amazon just snagged the rights to a 10-episode anthology series, "Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams." Extra Prime perks include access to Prime Music and a free Kindle book each month.

CBS All Access

$6 per month with ads

$10 per month ad-free

Cord-cutters looking for major-network fare without using an antenna. The service provides full-length episodes of CBS programs, plus live programming streams of local CBS affiliates in 124 markets. CBS All Access also includes complete back catalogs of most of its current series.

In December, CBS All Access added NFL football games, including "Thursday Night Football." New exclusive original series include “Star Trek: Discovery” and "The Good Fight."

DirecTV Now

$35 per month

Anyone who wanted DirecTV, but not the satellite dish. Right now you get about 100 channels for $35 a month, but pricing could increase to $60 per month at any time.

You can add HBO for only $5 more each month. Right now it lacks CBS or Showtime, and live TV from several other networks is only available in certain cities.

HBO Now

$15 per month

HBO fans who don't want to pay for cable. Sign up to get all of the network's series, movies, specials, and documentaries. If you already get HBO through your cable package, remember that the HBO Go app lets you watch HBO on your phone, tablet, and other devices.

HBO Now just hit the 2-million-subscriber mark, and it's now available on more devices, including Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Microsoft Xbox, Roku, Samsung TVs, and PlayStation Vue.

Hulu

$8/month with ads, $12/month without ads

Cord-cutters who don't want to miss out on broadcast TV. Hulu has current shows from ABC, Fox, and NBC; older ones from CBS; plus the "Seinfeld" library. Original content includes "The Path" and "The Handmaid's Tale."

Hulu is reportedly close to launching a pay-TV alternative along the lines of Sling TV and DirecTV Now. It recently signed an exclusive deal with Magnolia Pictures to stream the company's films after their theatrical release.

Netflix

$8 per month for standard-def video on a single screen

$10 per month for high-def video on up to two screens

$12 per month for 4K UHD video on up to four screens.

Everyone. Netflix is still the king of binge. It has a vast library of movies and TV shows, plus now-classic original shows ("House of Cards," "Orange is the New Black"), and new hits ("Stranger Things"). It even has original movies ("Beasts of No Nation"). A deal with Marvel has spawned "Daredevil" and "Jessica Jones," and Netflix subscribers will get exclusive access to Disney titles within a year of their debut, starting with 2016 releases.

Netflix is luring Jerry Seinfeld away from Crackle, so in 2017 subscribers will get new episodes of "Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee," plus two exclusive stand-up shows. New movies range from Disney kid-friendly fare to raunchier works.

PlayStation Vue

$40 to $75 per month, depending on package

Those looking for a real cable TV-style programming package, and who are willing to pay for it. Packages range from basic channels (the $40-per-month Access plan) to a comprehensive package of about 90 channels that includes some premium channels (the $75-a-month Ultra plan). You also get local channels in many major markets—on-demand in others—plus a cloud DVR for recording shows.

Late last year Vue added several channels, including BBC America, NBA TV, and Vice, but lost Viacom stations such as Comedy Central, Spike, and MTV. It also added support for Apple TV last fall.

Showtime

$11/month, or $9/month when purchased through certain services, such as Amazon Prime and Hulu.

Showtime fans. Like HBO Now, this service lets you watch a cable network without the cable. You get all of Showtime's movies, plus original shows such as "Billions," "Homeland," and "The Affair." If you subscribe to Showtime through your cable provider, Showtime Anytime lets you watch Showtime fare on your phone, tablet, and other devices.

A new 18-part "Twin Peaks" is coming this spring. Also, Showtime Films is releasing an Eric Clapton documentary, "Eric Clapton: A Life in 12 Bars," theatrically in 2017. It will hit Showtime in 2018.

Sling TV

Sling Orange: $20 per month.

Sling Blue: $25 per month.

A combined package costs $40 per month. Add-on packs cost $5.

Cord-cutters. With Dish's Sling TV you don't get individual shows. You get channels. The basic Orange package comes with about 20 cable offerings, including A&E, Food Network, and TBS, but not broadcast TV. It's also one of only a few ways you can get ESPN without a TV service. Themed add-on packs cost $5 per month, and HBO costs $15 per month.

Sling started beta-testing a cloud DVR feature in December, but only for Roku users. It's now being rolled out to more platforms, including Amazon Fire TV, Android TV devices, and Android phones and tablets. Apple support is expected to follow. There's now also a $100 AirTV box from Sling owner Dish that combines Sling TV channels and free over-the-air broadcasts in one device.

Starz

$9 per month

Like HBO and Showtime, you can now get Starz without a pay-TV subscription. Content includes shows like "Outlander" and "Power," plus movies including "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

The Starz streaming service is newly available on DirecTV Now for $8 per month. The much-anticipated series, "American Gods," based on the Neil Gaiman book, is slated to debut in 2017.