17 Best Live TV Streaming Services Under $50

If you already have other streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime, Philo is the perfect option to get access to Live TV without spending too much money. At $28, it has an offer that beats much more expensive services. Plus, in terms of the channel lineup, it has a little bit for everyone, from news channels like BBC World News to the Discovery Channel, to Nickelodeon and Vice.

Frndly TV is a streaming platform focused on family-friendly live TV channels, with an attractive price starting at $6.99. There are three plans, Basic, Classic and Premium, which respectively cost the $6.99 starting price, $8.99, and $10.99. The Basic plan only allows for SD streaming, but both other plans allow for HD. The basic plan doesn't allow for DVR recordings, but the other plans allow for 3 months and 9 months respectively. And lastly, the basic plans allows for only one simultanious stream, but the Classic allows for 2 and the Premium allows for 4.

If you get the Sling TV's AMC+ extra, you're signing up for one of the most cost-efficient bundles of the cord-cutting era. For $8.99, you'll get AMC+ (which costs $6.99 as a standalone service), plus Shudder ($6.99 standalone), plus Sundance Now ($6.99 standalone), plus IFC Films Unlimited ($5.99). Name a better bundle deal. We'll wait.

Paramount+ with SHOWTIME (previously Paramount+ Premium) is mostly a Netflix-style streaming service, offering movies and TV shows on-demand like The Good Fight and Yellowstone. It gives you access to Live TV from CBS: CBS local channels, CBS News (CBSN), CBS Sports, ET live, and some live sporting events like NFL on CBS Live. It also offers on-demand access to programming from Comedy Central, MTV, BET, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., Paramount Pictures, and Smithsonian Channel. As of 2023, it increased its monthly price to $11.99, but with that comes a significant upgrade: members now have access to all of Showtime's content, which includes movies and shows like Billions, Dexter, and Yellowjackets, as well as live coverage on sports including boxing, football, and MMA. Since Showtime shut down its standalone service in early 2024, this Paramount+ plan is now one of the few ways to watch Showtime without cable.

Paramount Plus Essential is a video-on-demand service that replaces its predecessor, CBS All Access, and is currently available in the US, Canada, and parts of Latin America. This ad-supported tier costs $5.99, while Paramount's premium, ad-free tier costs $11.99 per month or $119.99 per year, with an optional 7-day free trial. Essential subscribers used to have the option to bundle the service with Showtime, but ever since the Paramount-Showtime merger in June 2023, the latter is now only available to Premium subscribers. But to its credit, Essential still has 40,000 episodes and movies to its name, plus live feeds on NFL on CBS and the UEFA Champions League. You can access Paramount Plus Essential via web browser, while the app is supported on a wide range of TV and mobile devices.

Now TV is the new cable alternative from Comcast (owner of Xfinity). For $20/month, you get over 40 live channels, 20 hours of DVR, and watch on up to three devices. It also doubles as a bundle since you get Peacock Premium included at no additional cost. No need to pay an extra $8/month. And of course, no minimum commitment and you can cancel anytime. To get it, you have to first subscribe or already be a subscriber to Xfinity Internet. You can then add it at checkout. At $20, it is one of the cheapest cord-cutting services out there, especially considering the channels that it offers. It's also one of the few services that offers Netflix in some of its bundles (for more on that, you can check this link).

YipTV provides viewers with the international content they’ve been missing, prioritizing TV and film from Latin America, the Caribbean, and Spain, with select content from the U.S.

Univision NOW is a premium streaming service that specializes in Spanish-language content, both live and on-demand. Because it is operated by the largest Latino-targeted network in the United States, Univision NOW boasts a wide and varied catalog of movies, TV series, reality shows, and sporting events (the streamer has exclusive rights to air many football matches, making it a favorite among football fans). Aside from hosting exclusive content, Univision NOW also makes its cable and daytime programs available online and on-demand the next day.

SportsLive is a streaming platform that covers both pro and amateur sporting events. This means you're able to stay updated on your favorite teams whether they're from the big leagues or high school. And aside from featuring nearly 20,000 live events, it also boasts a catalog of exclusive programming, interviews, and press conferences. This platform, powered by CBS Sports Digital, comes at a reasonable price and will surely satisfy even the most niche sports fan.

Sling TV’s Mandarin pack, priced at $15/month, comes with more than 20 channels from Mainland China. It has everything from big entertainment networks like CCTV, China Movie Channel, and Jubao to regional ones like Hunan TV and Zhejiang TV. There you can access Chinese dramas, variety shows, news, and sports  both live and on-demand. Like all of Sling’s international plans, Sling TV Mandarin allows up to 3 simultaneous streams and an 8-hour replay in case you missed anything live. And like all Sling plans, it comes with free cloud DVR, capped at 50 hours.

With Sling TV's Total TV Deal, you get all seven of the service's add-on packages, namely all the channels in its Comedy, Hollywood, Heartland, Kids, Lifestyle, News, and Sports extras. You'll also be getting the DVR plus, which gives you access to 200 more hours of storage. Getting all extras plus DVR storage normally cost almost $100, so this bundle from Sling is actually quite the steal.

Sling TV's 4 Extras bundle deal gives you access to the service's Kids, News, Lifestyle, and Comedy channels on top of your base Sling subscription. These four extras are among the service's most popular, and while each normally costs about $6 each as an add-on, you'll only be paying $13 for all additional 35 channels through this deal. The new channels include the likes of NickToons, BBC World News, MTV, and TV Land.

Peacock Premium Plus is the highest streaming tier Peacock offers, but it's still one of the cheapest packages you'll find right now. For just $14/month, you get access to a vast selection of TV shows (many from NBC and Bravo), movies, live channels, and of course, sports. Premium Plus subscribers also get offline downloads, ad-free viewing, and access to their local NBC channel.

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.

NFL+ is the league's official streaming service that gives you access to live and local regular season and postseason games, on-demand programs, and even tools for your next fantasy football game. As of 2023, NFL+ also offers the NFL Network and NFL Redzone channels in its plans, making it a solid option for true-blue football fans hoping to finally cut the cord.

A regular subscription costs $6.99/month and includes everything in the above, except for NFL Redzone and replays of full games, highlights, and all-22 coaches films, which are only available in NFL+'s premium subscription, priced at $14.99/month. Both plans offer free trials and are available on most major streaming devices, with the exception of live local and primetime regular season and postseason games, which can only be viewed on phones and tables. 

For the diehard soccer fan, Fanatiz is a streaming service dedicated to Latin American and Spanish soccer. Here, you'll get access to live and on-demand matches held by La Liga and Copa Libertadores, as well as complete coverage of Brazil's intense local competition Brasileirão. It's available in most countries worldwide, but North American viewers, in particular, will be glad to know that Fanatiz carries beIN and TyC Sports—vital channels that have exclusive rights to stream select leagues. Fanatiz has an $8 and $10 monthly tier, the latter of which gives you access to even more leagues and hours of VOD content. But we suggest you try the platform first (free for a week) to really test its quality and see how it stacks up to other similarly inclined services, like FuboTV.

CNBC+ is a business-centered streaming service that serves as an extension of the Comcast cable channel. Despite the "plus" on its name, it doesn't offer exclusive programs or new content. Instead, it gives users access to additional live feeds from its news stations in Asia and Europe, making it more global than ever. You can also download it on almost all devices, so you can stream programs like Mad Money and Sqwak Box on the go. A subscription is currently priced at a hefty $14.99/month, while a premium tier that claims to offer advanced market insight and investment tips is priced at $34.99/month.