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No single streaming service offers the same deal, and it’s likely that one of the services below is better suited you your lifestyle than others. So sit back and relax as we guide you through the treacherous landscape of sneaky data charges, exorbitant pricing, and inferior libraries to find the right option for you.
Compare the major streamed TV providers head-to-head below
| Name | Service | Content | Price Per Month | Contract Type | Purchase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | On-demand streaming | TV and movies | Prime Instant Video: £79 per year | Subscribe monthly/annually | Go to site |
 | On-demand streaming | Reality TV | £4.99 per month | Subscribe monthly | Go to site |
 | Live and on-demand streaming | TV, movies, sports and news | Free to Sky TV customers | Subscribe annually | Go to site |
 | Streaming | TV and movies | Basic: £5.99 Standard: £7.49 Premium: £8.99 | Subscribe monthly/annually | N/A |
 | On-demand streaming and Live Sports | TV and movies and sports | Entertainment: £6.99 p/month Movies: £9.99 p/month Sports: £6.99 p/day or £10.99 p/week | Subscribe monthly/annually | Go to site |
 | Live and on-demand streaming | TV and sports | £5.99 per month £59.99 per annum | Subscribe monthly/annually | 1 Month Free Trial |
 | Live and on-demand streaming | TV, movies, sports and news | Free to BT customers | Subscribe annually | Go to site |
 | On-demand streaming | Movies and critique | £4.99 per month or £3.33 a month on a 12-month commitment. | Subscribe monthly/annually | N/A |
 | Pay-per-view streaming | Movies | Rent – £3.49 (SD) or £4.49 (HD) Buy – £10.99 (SD) or £13.99 (HD) | No lock-in | N/A |
 | Downloading and renting | TV and movies | Streaming – £5.99 per month New movies – £3.49 (Rent) or £10.99 (Buy) TV – £5.99 (older shows) or £9.99 (new shows) | No lock-in | Go to site |
 | On-demand streaming | TV and movies | Rent – £3.99 (SD) or £4.99 (HD) Buy – £9.99 (SD) or £10.99 (HD) | Subscribe monthly/annually | N/A |
 | Downloading and renting | TV, movies and music | Rent – £3.49 Buy – Between £9.99 and £13.99 | Subscribe monthly/annually | N/A |
 | Downloading and renting | TV and movies | Rent – new releases: £3.49 (SD) £4.49 (HD), back catalogue: £2.49 (SD) £3.49 (HD)Buy – new releases: £11.99 (SD) £14.99 (HD), back catalogue: £6.99 (SD) £8.99 (HD) | Subscribe monthly/annually | N/A |
 | Downloading and renting | TV, movies and music | Rent – £3.49 (SD) £4.49 (HD)Buy – £9.99 (SD) £11.99 (HD) | Subscribe monthly/annually | N/A |
| Name | Hardware | Devices | Streams |
|---|---|---|---|
|
| 2 | 2 |
|
| 2 | 2 |
|
| 4 | 4 |
 |
| 4 | 3 |
|
| 1 | 1 |
|
| 5 | 5 |
|
| Not specified | 3 |
|
| 5 | 1 |
|
| 10 | 10 |
|
| 3 | 3 |
|
| 10 | 10 |
| Name | Closed Captions | Quality | Data Usage | Content | Content Hours | Affiliates | Most Popular |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | SD and HD | SD – Approx. 600 – 900MB per episode, HD – Approx. 1.2 – 1.5GB per episode | Over 50,000 titles | Data not available | HBO, LoveFilm, Epix, EasyCinema. Tesco DVD Rental | Almost Famous, Django Unchained, Under the Skin, Community, The Good Wife, The Expendables 3, American Sniper, Transparent, Alpha House, Betas. |
| Yes | “High quality” and “Low quality” | Good Connection, Low-Quality Video: 336 MB/hour, Good Connection, High-Quality Video: 468 MB/hour, Fast connection, High-Quality Video: 687 MB/hour | Streams scheduled content from Sky TV | Data not available | As a Sky TV subsidiary, NowTV streams similar content from Fox, ABC Studios, Dosney, Discovery Channel, Comedy Central, Sky (obviously), Nickelodeon, MTV and ITV Encore | Key and Peele, Workaholics, Inside Amy Schumer, Catfish, Broad City, Awkward, Teen Wolf |
| Yes | SD to 4K ultra | SD – 1GB/hr, HD – 3GB/hr, Ultra HD – 7GB/hr | 220 TV shows, 900 movies | 5,000 | Netflix USA, Disney, Warner Bros, BBC Worldwide, 20th Century Fox, NBC Universal, Village Roadshow, ABC Commercial | House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, Daredevil, Grace and Frankie, Sense8. |
| No | SD | SD – Approx. 750MB per hour, HD- Approx. 1.5GB per hour | Over 800 movies | Data not available | As a Sky TV subsidiary, NowTV streams similar content from Fox, ABC Studios, Disney, Discovery Channel, Comedy Central, Sky (obviously), Nickelodeon, MTV and ITV Encore | Better Call Saul, Wolf of Wall Street, Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, Scandal, True Blood |
| No | SD and HD | Data not available | Streams a library of 30 films at a time. | Data not available. Accepts content submissions and suggestions. | World Cinema Foundation, Celluloid Dreams, Dazed and Confused, Picturehouse, Everyman, The Criterion Collection, Berlin International Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival | There Will Be Blood, Raging Bull, The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, Playtime, Landscape in the Mist, Playtime. |
| Yes | SD and HD | SD – 1GB per hour, HD – 2GB per hour | Data not available | Data not available | Channel 4, HBO, BBC Worldwide, Disney, Warner Bros., Universal Studios, 21st Century Fox and Aardman Animations | Fifty Shades of Grey, American Sniper, Taken 3, Ex-Machina, Still Alice, The Wedding Ringer, It Follows. |
| No | SD and HD | Data not available | Data not available | Data not available | Lionsgate, Microsoft, Netflix. | Home, Chappie, The Clangers, Game of Thrones, Jupiter Ascending, Arrow, Homeland, Gone Girl, Despicable Me 2, Paddington |
| Yes | SD and HD | SD – 1GB per hour | More than 4,000 titles | Approx. 8,640 hours | 20th Century Fox, ABC News, Endemol, Lionsgate Entertainment, MGM, Miramax, NBC Universal, Paramount Pictures and Sundance. | The Americans, Fury, Guardians of the Galaxy, Big Hero 6, Clockwork Orange, Axe Cop, Lord of the Rings. |
| Yes | SD and HD | Movies downloads are generally 1.4 – 1.8GB | Data not available (it’s huge) | Not specified | Focus, Kingsman: The Secret Service, Magic Mike, Wild, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad. | |
| Yes | SD and HD | Data not available | Data not available | Zune, A&E, Anime, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CBS, Discovery Communications, E!, Fox, G4, GamerTV, History Channel,Marvel, MLB, NBC, Paley Center, PBS, Spike, Starz, SyFy, TNA, USA Network, and Viacom. | American Sniper, Fast and the Furious, Star Wars, Unfinished Business, The Duff, Run All Night. | |
| Yes | SD and HD | Data not available | Data not available | E! Entertainment, Comedy Channel, BBC, HBO, AMC, ABC, ABC Kids, USA, Warner Bros, Fox and FX | Archer, Rick and Morty, Orphan Black, Outlander, I am Cait, Another Period, Legends, Halt and Catch Fire. |
| Name | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| One of the most comprehensive film and television libraries on the market with some premium content. | Annual fee payment is not very flexible. Your two registered devices can’t watch the same movie at one time– not a deal breaker, just odd |
| Streams live sports.Free if you’re already a Sky TV user. | …but Sky TV is quite expensive. |
| Fantastic exclusive content. Recommendations algorithm is tried and tested. | Somewhat limited selection. |
| More Sports! Loads of fantastic movies. | Quite expensive for a streaming service. Poor audio. |
| High-quality selection of cinema classics.Editorial section caters to film buffs everywhere. MUBI have promised not to stream Legally Blonde. | Downloads only last 24 hours. Only 30 movies a month (though there seems to be a quality standard in place) |
| Massive selection of movies. A diverse range of compatible devices. Allows for five devices at a time. | …but rentals can only stream on one device at a time. No deals or subscriptions. |
| You aren’t tied in to a monthly payment, and you’ll pay only for what you use. | Your purchases are deleted after 3 years. Sub-par quality. Sub-par library. |
| Large selection of compatible apps.Very generous offering of films. | …unless you’re looking for a new release. Premium or mainstream movies are rarely offered under the subscription. |
| Everything you know and love about iTunes. Secure purchases. Compatible with any Apple Devices. | No discounts or subscriptions.TV Seasons can often be more expensive than a physical copy. |
| Fantastic for Xbox users who use their console as a media center, Xbox SmartGlass compatibility. | No subscription or streaming options. |
| Great quality new releases and a wealthy selection of back catalogue titles. | Works out pricier than signing up for a streaming service. |
What is a catch-up service?
Many UK channels, like BBC and Channel 4, offer online catch-up services where you can watch recently aired programs you may have missed. Here are just a few examples of catch-up services available in the UK:
- BBC iPlayer
This service is aimed directly at the BBC’s biggest fans. Didn’t make it home in time for the latest Eastenders? No need to be a Beale about it, just catch up at a later time on just about any device. Seriously, from Linux to Windows Phones, from Roku to Amazon Fire TV, you’d be stretched to find a device that BBC iPlayer doesn’t stream on.
- ITV Player
Catch up with the latest ITV content, like Good Morning Brittain, This Morning and The X Factor, itv.com. As well as offering its service on PC and Mac, ITV also offers an app for PlayStation 3,iOS, Android, Windows Phone 8 (and above), and selected Smart TVs, set-top boxes and streaming media players.
- 4Seven
Created after many Brits complained they were constantly missing out on Channel 4 content because of scheduling conflicts, 4Seven offers content from Channel 4 and its related channels the day after they’ve aired. You can access 4Seven through the Freeview website.
- Demand 5
Make sure you’re all caught up with the soapies from Down Under, like Neighbours and Home & Away, with Channel 5’s catch-up service, Demand 5. The Channel 5 family offers a diverse range of channels and content, from guilty pleasures like Big Brother to gritty dramas like Sons of Anarchy, and they can all be viewed for free on selected smartphones, tablets, smart TVs and other devices
Back to topWhat should you consider when choosing an Internet and Pay TV service provider?
The price variations amongst the providers are indicative of a number of features that you should investigate and consider before making a choice:
- Shows offered.
Sure, Game of Thrones is exciting and all, and Breaking Bad is addictive as hell, but does your streaming service offer national treasures like Corrie or EastEnders? These are the important questions we have to ask ourselves when choosing an Internet TV service.
- Compatible devices.
Most providers will offer their services on PC and Mac But most of the time Roku and Linux users are left for dead. If you possess a colleciton of odd and unusual gadgets, there’s likely to be a service out there that caters to you.
- Portable device capability.
The same above can be said for portable devices. Did you know that some streaming services allow you to stream from your Nintendo 2DS and 3DS? Knowing what devices under your roof can be used for streaming helps you make the most of a service.
- Quality.
Quality is often subjective. Which services offer “better” movies is often up for debate. Some services, like MUBI, focus solely on revered cinematic gems and cinema culture, whereas others, like Sky, offer the bulk standard. However, one aspect that’s not up for debate is image quality. Does your service offer high-definition stream, or just standard definition? Did you know your service offers 4K streaming? Can your television even play something so crisp? If quality matters to you, check out our guide above.
Matthew Boyle
Matthew Boyle is a publisher at finder.com for mortgages and utilities. He has a 7-year history of publishing helpful guides to assist consumers in making better decisions. In his spare time, you will find him walking in the Norfolk countryside admiring the local wildlife.
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