Best Overall Streaming Service
Paramount Plus
Pros Champions League and European soccer games Excellent for sports fans The best overall selection of content Cons Not the best for older content
Paramount Plus has only improved since launching in the spring of 2021. The app features CBS content, which means access to some of the great sporting events, from Champions League soccer to the Super Bowl. The price is a value given what’s provided and the terms and conditions aren’t aggressively deceptive or sneaky.
You get live tv — a plus with the NFL season here — and the app is even bundled with Showtime, affording access to a even more worthwhile stuff. The stream is generally strong no matter how much traffic there is in the household or what device you’re watching from. “Men’s Health readers love Taylor Sheridan’s work, and his shows, outside of the main Yellowstone series, live here” says Romano. For those unintiated, that means Tulsa King, Special Ops: Lioness, Lawmen Bass Reeves, 1922, 1883, and Mayor of Kingstown, starring our cover guy Jeremy Renner. “Plus, let me hit you with three words—Mission: Impossible Series.”
It’s also important to point out that you get a clean mix of material, from animated movies and original content to some old classics and guilty pleasures like Beavis and Butthead. Paramount Plus does it all without overwhelming the user with unnecessary extras or an app that needs a manual. Access to stations like BET and MTV offers additional enticement.
Throughout our run with the app, we were constantly amazed by the breadth of selections and broad spectrum of content, excellent if you have trouble deciding on something to watch or like to pivot often, even mid-show.
Read more: NFL Players’ Fitness and Strength Secrets
Cost $7.99/month intro plan Live TV Some Sports NFL, Champions League, PGA, NWSL, Big 10, Europa League Trial One week free
Best Streaming Service for Drama
Max
Pros Access to many of the best new movies Good mix of shows Tremendous original drama content Cons Can be prone to buffering issues
Max makes most reviewers’ short lists and for good reason. This app is loaded. You get the biggest movies and some solid original stuff alongside news programming straight from the source. With stations like HBO and discovery in the mix, you get pleasing options for the drama nerd and adventurer alike. The experience is pleasant and the homegrown shows, like GOT, The Sopranos, and The Wire, are some of the best in TV history.
“Top to bottom, Max has the best catalogue of any streamer,” says Romano. “The entire HBO library, from new movies like Horizon to old TCM classics.” Admittedly, the stream can be glitchy and we liked the older version of the app. However, the sea of good content coming in monthly is impressive.
Cost $9.99/month intro rate Live TV Some Sports NBA, USMNT and USWNT soccer, MLB, NHL, March Madness Trial Occasional promo offers
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Best Network Streaming Service
Peacock
Pros Full access to many shows can cost more Premiere League soccer Olympic coverage Cons Lots of ads with basic subscription
Fans of longstanding must-watch television like SNL and The Office, folks simply can’t do without Peacock. The app has what is arguably the best soccer league in the world (EPL) with some excellent color commentary in that department. The stream is strong and the experience is good, especially if you’re drawn to all things NBC.
If you’re a Sunday Night Football fan, given NBC’s long-standing deal, this might be the service for you. There are also a large selection of original series produced for Peacock, including the anticipated Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist series starring Kevin Hart, Don Cheadle, and Dexter Darden.
The intro r ate is attractive but can cut corners around entire show catalogues, limiting the experience. There’s not a whole lot of good live TV outside of the sports, but you do get access to some real-time news and front-of-the-line status with shows like Dateline and Law & Order.
Cost $7.99/month intro rate Live TV Some Sports NFL, Premier League soccer, college football, Olympics and Paralympics, Tour de France, WWE Trial No, but there are student rates and other discounts
Best Live TV Streaming Service
YouTube TV
Pros Good trial options Great for those accustomed to cable Ideal for sports fans Cons Too many channels (yes, there’s such a thing)
While it’s easy to roll your eyes at the price tag for Youtube TV, one does get a lot for the dough with a proper subscription. For live streaming, there’s hardly a better route. The streaming strength is through the roof and if you like to do a split or quarter screen (multiple games at once), it’s a righteous platform to do so with. The app is efficient and works like a dream and the cloud capacity for recordings is strong, to say the least.
If you’re a hardcore football fan, YouTube TV delivers all the games that are locally and nationally televised because of their sponsorship of the NFL. They also have NFL Sunday Ticket, which includes out-of-market games, but that costs an additional $94.75. But then again, if you’re a hardcore fan who doesn’t like missing a game, for fun or your fantasy league, that’s the pick for you.
Outside of the price, the only thing we didn’t dig was being drowned by options, with more than 100 channels and all those ads (however, for channel surfers, there’s nothing better).
Cost Starts at $72.99/month Live TV Tons Sports Pretty much everything, including live sports channels like ESPN, NBA TV, NFL Network Trial Yes, several options
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Best Family-Friendly Streaming Service
Disney+ and Hulu Subscription
Pros Extensive library of classic movies and shows (Pixar, Star Wars, National Geographic) Strong bundling options Ultra-high def streaming options Cons Navigating within shows could be more intuitive
For family-friendly streaming, Disney Plus is impossible to beat. You get all of those iconic movies you grew up on, along with the newest waves. Users also gain access to full libraries of remarkable shows like The Simpsons and an interface that’s a breeze to use. There’s a lot of cool related content and extras associated with a lot of Disney movies and there’s a general wholesomeness to much of the content.
“This first time my daughter picked up the remote, she tried subscribing to Disney Plus,” says Fitness & Commerce Editor Charles Thorp. “And being a Star Wars and Marvel fan myself, I didn’t need much more convincing to sing up.” And because this specific bundle is so strong, we suggest going this route, which incorporates Hulu and its solid family of shows (FX wonders like Shogun) and animated series, along with an increasing amount of college sports.
Cost $10/month intro rate Live TV No Sports If you bundle Trial No
Best Streaming Service for Original Content
Apple Apple TV+
Pros Exceptional original shows MLS soccer No ads Cons Limited older content
While Apple TV+ is barely five years old, the platform has already introduced us to a number of outstanding original shows, like Severance, Slow Horses, and Lessons in Chemistry. If you want to be ahead of the curve with the next trending series, this one is for you. You’ll be the coolest person at the filtered water cooler (or on your thread if you work from home).
Romano calls this the “most underrated service” around because of their big shows and big stars, like Colin Farrell in Sugar, Vince Vaughn in Bad Monkey, or Cate Blanchett in Disclaimer. That’s just the start though, with great movies and television shows currently being made just for the platform. “Being a MonsterVerse fan, I was a huge fan of the first season of Monach: Legacy of Monsters,” says Thorp. “They also have MLB and MLS games.”And like most things Apple, the service is slick and ahead of its time.
Cost $9.99/month intro rate Live TV No unless paired up with other subscriptions like ESPN+ Sports MLB, MLS Trial 7-day
Evan is the culture editor for Men’s Health, with bylines in The New York Times, MTV News, Brooklyn Magazine, and VICE. He loves weird movies, watches too much TV, and listens to music more often than he doesn’t.
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