Sling TV Review 2024: Is It Worth It? (Channels, Cost & More)

Sling TV is affordable and worth it

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The difference between Sling Orange and Sling Blue shakes out like this: Sling Orange is tailored toward sports and family channels (like ESPN and Disney); Sling Blue has more entertainment and news channels (like Syfy and MSNBC).

We like Sling Orange + Blue because it features a decent combined channel lineup for just $55 a month, which is at least $10 cheaper than close competitors YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV (but $30 more than Philo). But if either the Orange or the Blue plan alone covers your channel needs, go for it.

Only Philo ($25 monthly, 70+ channels) offers less-expensive live TV streaming than Sling TV. But, while Philo may have a few more channels, it can’t compete with Sling TV’s plethora of add-on options. And at least Sling TV streams sports and local channels; Philo has exactly zero.

Check out our Best Streaming Services guide for more on live TV streaming details and options.

Customize your experience with Sling TV add-ons

Here’s my favorite part: customization. Sling TV has 11 channel-pack add-ons and 44 premium and on-demand add-ons that you can add to any of Sling TV’s three plans. Unfortunately, HBO and CINEMAX aren’t among the premium channels offered (no Max^TM streaming service, either). That’d be a dealbreaker for me (Randy)—but maybe not for you.

What are the downsides of Sling TV?

I’ve already mentioned two of Sling TV’s downside: Its local channels problem and lack of HBO/Max and CINEMAX. I said the latter drawback would be a dealbreaker for me, but it’s worth mentioning that this problem is easily solved. If you really want to add either of these premiums, you can subscribe to them separately from Sling TV. You’ll have a separate bill, and you won’t be able to access them through the Sling TV app—but that’s no biggie. You won’t even break a sweat switching between streaming services.

There are a couple of other downsides to Sling TV. You can’t fast-forward through commercials on on-demand movies and shows. That’s common among streaming services, so it’s not a unique con to Sling TV. If anything, it’s just a mild pain in your couch cushions (if ya feel me). The other is that I used up Sling’s free 50-hour Cloud DVR storage in, like, a week. It’s probably by design, so they can get me to pay for the DVR upgrade.

You know what? There’s one more thing. Sling TV is missing some popular channels. We’ll tell you more about that in the next section.

Watch 45+ channels with Sling TV

If you’re switching from cable or satellite TV to streaming, Sling TV’s channel lineups will look skinnier than Machine Gun Kelly on a juice cleanse. Even the combined Sling Orange + Blue plan is missing several popular channels, like Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, and CBS Sports Network.

You can get those channels, and nearly a hundred more, with Sling TV’s Extra add-on packages, which range from $6 to $11 more a month. Click the button below to check out our Sling TV channel lineups and add-ons guide for the full picture (better hydrate first—it’s a big list).

To take a deeper dive into Sling TV channels, check out our Sling TV channel lineup guide.

How to watch live sports on Sling TV

Sling Orange has ESPN, ESPN2, and Stadium sports channels included in its plan, and Sling Blue has FS1, NBC Sports Network, and NFL Network. That’s not an impressive sports lineup, even when combined into the Sling Orange + Blue plan.

Fortunately, Sling TV’s add-on packages are here for you, sports fans: Sling TV’s Sports Extra package delivers 26 more sports channels, including NBA TV, Pac-12 Network, and beIN Sports. For just $11 a month, this bridges the sportsball gap nicely.

We’ve compiled a guide to Sling TV’s sports channels if you’re hungry for more color commentary and stats.

How to watch local channels on Sling TV

Sling TV would rather give or sell you an over-the-air antenna than pay for the rights to stream most local ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, The CW, or PBS stations. This keeps Sling TV’s costs down and, as they say in the pizza biz, they pass the savings onto you.

Sling TV does carry ABC, NBC, and FOX stations in some markets, but only in the Blue and/or Orange + Blue plans. However, with Sling TV’s AirTV setup, you can use an antenna to integrate over-the-air channels into your on-screen guide. It takes a little more effort but works seamlessly once hooked up.

What do customers think of Sling TV?

Sling TV specs and features

Sling TV has the usual live TV streaming features, like a cloud DVR and a simultaneous streams cap, and it’s compatible with most streaming TV devices, tablets, smartphones, and web browsers. Aside from its unique AirTV/antenna integration capabilities, Sling TV is a straightforward, meat-and-potatoes service (or quinoa-and-kale, if you prefer).

Sling TV supported devices

Sling TV supports tons of devices—but not all of them. Sorry, PlayStation, Nintendo, and Wii streamers—Sling TV’s got nothing for you.

Is Sling TV easy to use?

Sling TV FAQ

Why you should trust us

Our experts employed hours of hands-on testing with Sling TV, rating the streaming service on bang for your buck, reliability, features, and customer satisfaction. Then we matched up Sling TV with other on-demand streaming services head to head to give a clearer picture of its strengths and weaknesses. For more information on our methodology, check out our How We Rank page.