Summary
This is one of those comparisons that appears straightforward enough on paper. In the United States, Sling TV is the third-largest live streaming service. Hulu With Live TV ranks second and is considerably more expensive initially.
Sling TV vs. Hulu
Both are visually appealing. Both options might offer the desired channels at a price that meets your expectations. And this is without a doubt the most critical consideration when evaluating live-streaming services.
However, Hulu With Live TV possesses an additional advantage. A substantial one. There are, in fact, two. Possibly even three.
Let us examine the matter
Pricing and plans
Fundamentally, Sling TV and Hulu With Live TV operate marginally dissimilar to one another. Up front of Sling TV are a few categories of channels from which you may select. Sling Orange and Sling Blue are both available. They each cost $40 per month individually, or $55 when purchased together. A few dozen channels overlap, so Sling TV is essentially directing you in that direction. Then, a variety of Sling “Extras” add-ons will be available to you, allowing you to add channels from a variety of categories.
Live TV on Hulu is an entirely distinct species of animal. Commence using the name. You can obtain live channels on Hulu With Live TV for $77 per month. Additionally, you have access to Hulu’s extensive on-demand library, which features both updated classics and newly released films and series each month. This is a significant differentiator and probably explains why Hulu With Live TV is more than twice as popular as Sling TV.
However, the trump card in question is the Disney Bundle. Subscribing to Hulu With Live TV will grant you automatic access to ESPN+ and Disney+, which feature exclusive live sports programming, original series, National Geographic content, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars content, respectively.
This is a significant feature that is not available on any other live-streaming platform.
Channels As the saying goes, this is precisely where the rubber meets the road. Everything is irrelevant if a streaming service does not offer the channels you desire to view. Always verify with the service provider that all channels are accessible in your area of residence. The situation, however, is as follows as of early 2024:
Sling TV programming
Exclusive to Sling Orange are the following channels: Disney Channel, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, Motor Trend, and FreeForm.
Bravo, Discovery Channel, E!, FS1, FX, Fox News, HLN, MSNBC, NFL Network, National Geographic, SYFY, TLC, USA, and TruTV are channels that are exclusive to Sling Blue.
Charge!, CNN, Cartoon Network, Comedy Central, Comet, Food Network, Fuse, HGTV, History Channel, IFC, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, Local Now, MGM+ Drive-In, Nick Jr., QVC, TBS, TNT, and Vice are among the channels accessible via either track. However, the following are not.
With Live TV Channels on Hulu
Animal Planet, BET, Big 10 Network, Bloomberg Television, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CBS, CBS News, CBS Sports Network, Charge, Cheddar, CMT, CNBC, CNN, CNN International, Comedy Central, Comedy.tv, Comet, and Cozi TV are among the networks represented on A&E, ABC, ABC Localish, ACC Network, Adult Swim, and Animal Planet.
Disney Channel, Dabl, Discovery Channel, Disney Junior, and Disney XD
FX, FXM, FXX, FYI, Game Show Network, Get, Golf Channel, Great American Family, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Mystery, HGTV, History Channel, HLN, Investigation Discovery, Food Network, Fox, Fox Business, Fox News, Fox Soul, Fox Weather, Freeform, FS1, FS2, FX, FXM, FXX, FYI, Lifetime, Lifetime Movies, Magnolia Network, MotorTrend, MSNBC, MTV
Nick Jr., Nickelodeon, OWN, Oxygen, Paramount Network, PBS, PBS Kids, Pop, QVC, SEC Network, Smithsonian Channel, Start TV, SYFY, T2, TBS, TCM, Telemundo, The CW, The Grio, The Weather Channel, TLC, TNT, Travel Channel, TruTV, TV Land, Universal Kids, USA, Vevo, VH-1, NASA TV, Nat Geo Wild, National Geographic, NBC, NBC News Now, NBCLX, NewsNation, NFL Network, Nick Jr.
Regional Channels
Streaming subscribers place a high value on the capability of accessing local broadcast channels. Thus, Hulu With Live TV unequivocally emerges victorious in this regard.
Although regional variations are possible, Hulu With Live TV generally provides access to the following main broadcast networks: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, and PBS.
Local channels are available on Sling TV, but only in a restricted number of markets. Indeed, many of those markets are packed with a tremendous number of individuals. However, if you are not present in those markets, your chances are slim. Furthermore, to add to the complexity, certain channels are not accessible in those particular markets.
That is even before we discuss CBS, which is completely unavailable on Sling TV.
Conversely, you will frequently encounter Sling TV promoting AirTV, which is essentially an over-the-air receiver branded by Sling. After scanning for channels with an antenna attached, local broadcast networks will be displayed in addition to the streaming channels included in your Sling TV plan. Although we are huge proponents of over-the-air television, this demonstrates a significant gap between Sling TV and its competitors.
Additional Items
Sling TV and Hulu With Live TV both offer a variety of supplementary packages. Sling TV’s structure gives the impression of having a significantly larger selection, as the “Extras” available on the lighter Sling Orange and Sling Blue plans can be utilized to supplement the remaining channels.
A robust selection of premium channels and options for additional recording storage are also available through Sling TV.
Hulu With Life TV may offer a more limited selection of add-ons, but that is more than offset by the additional channels that are complimentary with your subscription. Additionally, Disney+ and ESPN+ are provided at no additional cost. Access to premium add-ons is restricted to STARZ, Cinemax, Max, and Showtime.
Additionally, Hulu offers the subsequent add-ons:
FanDuel TV, MAV TV, NFL RedZone, Outdoor Channels, Sportsman Channel, and Tennis Channel are all sports channels.
CNBC World, Cookie Channel, Destination America, American Heroes Channel, BET Her, Boomerang, Crime & Investigation, Discovery Family, Discovery Life, Hallmark Family, Military History, MTV Classic, MTV2, NickToons, Science, and TeenNick comprise the entertainment lineup.
CNN Español, Discovery en Español, Discovery Familiar, Hogar, Nat Geo Mundo, Universo, History en Español, and The Weather Channel en Español are all available in Español.
In sum, subscribers
Standing at the end of 2023 with 4.6 million subscribers, Hulu With Live TV is the second-largest live service in the United States. This places it at a magnitude slightly exceeding half that of YouTube TV and over two times that of Sling TV, which accumulated 2.06 million subscribers by the end of the year.
While Hulu With Live TV has a considerably larger subscriber base than Sling TV, it has also experienced a similar type of stagnation—albeit with a gradual upward trend. Hulu With Live TV had 4.4 million subscribers at the end of 2022, representing an increase of merely 400,000 subscribers from the previous year’s conclusion.
In contrast, Sling TV has not surpassed 2.5 million subscribers since the latter half of 2021.
