If you’re considering cutting the cord in 2023, you may be wondering about the merits of YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV as cable alternatives.
Each is considered to be one of the top live TV streaming services on the market, and their base packages are priced similarly.
But is one better than the other?
In this article, I’ll compare the key features of these two streaming TV services to help you decide which is better suited for your household.
Table of Contents:
- Quick Facts
- Price
- Channels
- Cloud DVR
- Supported Devices
- Multiple Streams
- Pros and Cons of Each Service
Quick Facts: YouTube TV vs. Hulu + Live TV
| Hulu + Live TV | YouTube TV | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly Price | $69.99 | $72.99 |
| Free Trial | None | 10 Days |
| Local Channels Included | Yes | Yes |
| Simultaneous Streams | 2 | 3 |
| User Profiles Allowed | 6 | 6 |
| Cloud DVR Hours | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Number of Channels | 98 | 129 |
In this article, I’ll look at key factors including price, channel selection, cloud DVR, supported devices and concurrent streams to help you make a choice between these two live TV streaming services.
Price
| Hulu + Live TV | YouTube TV | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly Price | $69.99 | $72.99 |
Neither YouTube TV nor Hulu + Live TV has made many friends with their decisions to steadily increase prices over the last few years.
Though they haven’t moved in lockstep to get here, where we stand now is a pricing reality: You will have to pay at least $65 per month if you are going to use one of these services.
For perspective on how quickly this happened: YouTube TV was just $35 per month when it launched in 2017, and Hulu + Live TV was doubling that with its price increase to $70 per month by the end of 2021.
The pricing for both services is clear and simple, though. You can cancel either service at any time without penalty. And there are no junk fees like you’ve probably found with your cable company. (Note: Some customers may be subject to local sales tax for these services.)
It’s worth noting that a Hulu + Live TV subscription includes access to the Hulu on-demand library, a popular stand-alone subscription that starts at $6.99 per month. And with its latest price increase, it also added access to Disney+ and ESPN+ as part of its subscription cost.
YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV both offer add-on packages and premium channels for additional monthly fees. I’ll talk a little more about those later in the article.
If saving the most money possible is your goal with cutting the cord, it may be worth considering some of the other live TV streaming services on the market. Philo is just $25 per month, and Sling TV has a couple of different packages that start at $40 per month.
Settling this debate on price alone is a pretty tall — if not impossible — order. You’re going to have to dig a little deeper into the services each provides to see which will give your household the best bang for the buck.
Channel Lineup: YouTube TV vs. Hulu + Live TV
One of the more stressful parts of cutting the cord from your cable company is ensuring that you’ll still be able to get most of the content you want with a live TV streaming service.
That usually starts with a list of “can’t miss” channels for each person.
The good news is that both YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV offer a wide variety of some of the best “cable” channels out there. You’re going to get ESPN, CNN, TBS, TNT and many other mainstream options from each service.
Both streaming services offer access to local channels like ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX. You’ll want to check your ZIP code on each of their websites to get exact answers on which local channels and regional sports networks they offer you.
Again, it’s worth pointing out that access to the on-demand version of Hulu comes with a Hulu + Live TV subscription. There also is an option to bundle with ESPN+ and Disney+ for even more streaming options.
Below is a comparison of the YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV channel packages. If you want to compare those channel lineups to other streaming TV services, see our side-by-side chart or use our live TV streaming channel tool.
| Hulu + Live TV ($69.99) | YouTube TV ($72.99) |
|---|---|
| A&E | |
| ABC | ABC |
| ABC Localish | |
| ABC News Live | ABC News Live |
| ACC Network | ACC Network |
| Adult Swim | Adult Swim |
| AMC | |
| Animal Planet | Animal Planet |
| BBC America | |
| BBC World News | |
| BET | BET |
| BET Her | |
| Big Ten Network | Big Ten Network |
| Bloomberg TV | |
| Bounce TV | |
| Bravo | Bravo |
| Cartoon Network | Cartoon Network |
| CBS | CBS |
| CBS Sports Network | CBS Sports Network |
| CBSN | |
| Charge! | |
| Cheddar | Cheddar |
| CMT | CMT |
| CNBC | CNBC |
| CNBC World | |
| CNN | CNN |
| CNN International | |
| Comedy Central | Comedy Central |
| Comedy.TV | Comedy.TV |
| Comet TV | |
| Court TV | |
| Cozi TV | Cozi TV |
| Crime & Investigation | |
| Dabl | Dabl |
| Discovery Channel | Discovery Channel |
| Disney Channel | Disney Channel |
| Disney Junior | Disney Junior |
| Disney XD | Disney XD |
| Docurama | |
| Dove Channel | |
| E! | E! |
| ESPN | ESPN |
| ESPN College Extra | |
| ESPN2 | ESPN2 |
| ESPNews | ESPNews |
| ESPNU | ESPNU |
| Food Network | Food Network |
| FOX | FOX |
| FOX Business Network | FOX Business Network |
| Fox Live Now | |
| FOX News Channel | FOX News Channel |
| Fox Soul | |
| FOX Sports 1 | FOX Sports 1 |
| FOX Sports 2 | FOX Sports 2 |
| FOX Weather | |
| Freeform | Freeform |
| FX | FX |
| FXM | FXM |
| FXX | FXX |
| FYI | |
| Galavision | |
| Game Show Network | |
| GetTV | |
| Golf Channel | Golf Channel |
| Hallmark Channel | Hallmark Channel |
| Hallmark Drama | |
| Hallmark Movies & Mysteries | Hallmark Movies & Mysteries |
| HGTV | HGTV |
| History | |
| HLN | HLN |
| HSN | |
| IFC | |
| Investigation Discovery | Investigation Discovery |
| Ion | |
| JusticeCentral.TV | JusticeCentral.TV |
| LAFC | |
| Law & Crime | |
| Lifetime | |
| Lifetime Movie Network | |
| Local Now | |
| Localish | |
| Magnolia Network | |
| Military History | |
| MLB Game of the Week | |
| MotorTrend | MotorTrend |
| MSNBC | MSNBC |
| MTV | MTV |
| MTV Classic | |
| MTV2 | |
| MyNetworkTV | |
| NASA TV | |
| Nat Geo Wild | Nat Geo Wild |
| National Geographic | National Geographic |
| NBA TV | |
| NBC | NBC |
| NBC News Now | |
| NBCLX | |
| NECN | |
| NewsNation | NewsNation |
| NFL Network | NFL Network |
| Nick Jr. | Nick Jr. |
| Nickelodeon | Nickelodeon |
| Nicktoons | |
| Orlando City | |
| OWN – Oprah Winfrey Network | OWN – Oprah Winfrey Network |
| Oxygen | Oxygen |
| Oxygen True Crime | |
| Paramount Network | Paramount Network |
| PBS | |
| PBS Kids | |
| POP | POP |
| QVC | QVC |
| Recipe.TV | |
| Scripps News | |
| SEC Network | SEC Network |
| Smithsonian Channel | Smithsonian Channel |
| Start TV | Start TV |
| SundanceTV | |
| Syfy | Syfy |
| T2 | |
| Tastemade | |
| TBD | |
| TBS | TBS |
| TCM | TCM |
| TeenNick | |
| Telehit | |
| Telemundo | Telemundo |
| The CW | The CW |
| The Weather Channel | The Weather Channel |
| TheGrio | |
| TLC | TLC |
| TNT | TNT |
| Travel Channel | Travel Channel |
| truTV | truTV |
| TV Land | TV Land |
| TYT Network | |
| UniMás | |
| Universal Kids | Universal Kids |
| Univision | |
| USA Network | USA Network |
| Vevo Country | |
| Vevo Hip-Hop | |
| Vevo Holiday | |
| Vevo Pop | |
| Vevo ’80s | |
| Vevo ’90s | |
| VH1 | VH1 |
| Vice | |
| WE tv | |
| YouTube Originals |
Channel Add-On Packages and Premium Subscriptions
If you’re looking for more from these two services, you may find what you need on their list of add-on packages or premium subscription services that are, of course, available for an additional cost.
YouTube TV offers a sports add-on package for $10.99 that includes NFL RedZone.
| Sports Plus Add-on ($10.99) |
|---|
| Fight Network |
| FOX College Sports |
| FOX Soccer Plus |
| Impact Wrestling |
| MAVTV |
| NFL Redzone |
| Stadium |
| Tennis Channel |
| TVG |
In May 2022, YouTube TV added a Spanish language standalone package. It is $35 per month and includes:
- 28+ Spanish networks of live sports, telenovelas, shows, and more
- Unlimited DVR space
- 6 accounts to share with your household
Hulu + Live TV, on the other hand, has three add-on packages that range from $4.99 per month to $9.99.
| Entertainment Add-on ($7.99) | Español Add-on ($4.99) | Sports Add-on ($9.99) |
|---|---|---|
| American Heroes Channel | ||
| BET Her | ||
| Boomerang | ||
| CNBC World | ||
| CNÑ | ||
| Cooking Channel | ||
| Crime & Investigation | ||
| Destination America | ||
| Discovery en Español | ||
| Discovery Familia | ||
| Discovery Family | ||
| Discovery Life | ||
| ESPN Deportes | ||
| FOX Deportes | ||
| Great American Country | ||
| Hallmark Drama | ||
| History en Español | ||
| Magnolia Network | ||
| MAVTV | ||
| Military History | ||
| MTV Classic | ||
| MTV2 | ||
| NBC Universo | ||
| NFL Redzone | ||
| Nicktoons | ||
| Outdoor Channel | ||
| Science Channel | ||
| Sportsman Channel | ||
| TeenNick | ||
| TVG | ||
| TVG2 |
In addition to add-on channel packages, YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV also provide the opportunity to sign up for premium subscription services within their respective ecosystems.
For example, you can opt into paying for an HBO Max subscription as a part of your monthly YouTube TV or Hulu+Live TV bill. That content would be available to stream on your service’s app alongside the content from your base subscription.
As mentioned earlier, the Hulu Live subscription already includes on-demand streaming access to three popular services: Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+.
Cloud DVR: YouTube TV vs. Hulu + Live TV
| Hulu + Live TV | YouTube TV | |
|---|---|---|
| Cloud DVR Hours | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Next to pricing and channel selection, cloud DVR functionality is probably next on the list of importance for streamers.
Being able to record what you want and watch it when you want to is a huge perk. And for years, YouTube TV held a clear advantage in this area over Hulu + Live TV.
But thanks to a change Hulu made in April 2022, the playing field here has been leveled. Both services now offer unlimited storage for cloud DVR recordings.
That means you can record as much live TV as you want with either service and watch it at your leisure. You can also fast-forward through commercials on your recordings with both services, which is a real time saver.
Both services will let you keep your records for up to nine months.
While YouTube TV has had an “unlimited cloud DVR” policy since its inception, Hulu + Live TV included only 50 hours of storage and charged fees for additional storage and the ability to skip commercials on cloud DVR until the April 2022 policy change.
We used to score this area of the comparison as a clear win for YouTube TV, but now things are pretty much equal. That’s good news for consumers!
Supported Devices for TV
If you’re new to the cord-cutting game, you may be wondering how you’ll be able to survive without your trusty cable box. Truth be told, getting rid of those monthly fees for each TV that you want to connect with the cable company is where both services can really save you some cash.
Instead of paying the cable company for a box, you’ll have to provide your own means to connect these livestreaming TV services to your television.
On some smart TVs, that’s as simple as downloading the YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV app to your television.
If your television doesn’t support that method, you’ll need to purchase a streaming device to plug into one of your television’s HDMI ports. These devices can be purchased for a modest one-time investment and will support streaming from multiple apps for years to come.
Both YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV are compatible with most of the major streaming devices on the market.
YouTube TV Supported Devices
YouTube TV’s list of supported devices for TV includes:
- Apple TV (4th generation) and Apple TV 4K
- Amazon Fire TV products
- Chromecast with Google TV devices
- Android TV (Note: TVs running a mobile version of Android may not be supported)
- Vizio SmartCast TVs
- Samsung & LG smart TVs (2016 models and newer)
- HiSense TVs
- Xbox: Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One X, Xbox One S, and Xbox One
- PS5 and PS4
- TiVo Stream 4K
- Roku
Hulu + Live TV Supported Devices
Hulu + Live TV’s list of supported devices for TV includes:
- Android TV
- Apple TV (4th gen or later)
- Chromecast with Google TV
- Fire TV and Fire TV Stick
- LG TV (select models)
- Nintendo Switch
- PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5
- Roku and Roku Stick (select models)
- Samsung TV (select models)
- Xbox 360 and Xbox One
Multiple Streams
| Hulu + Live TV | YouTube TV | |
|---|---|---|
| Simultaneous Streams | 2 | 3 |
| User Profiles Allowed | 6 | 6 |
For households that want to use a live TV streaming service on multiple devices at once, YouTube TV has an advantage over Hulu + Live TV.
You can stream on three screens at a time with YouTube TV but only two with Hulu + Live TV.
Hulu + Live TV does have an option to upgrade to unlimited screens connected to your home network for an extra $9.99 per month. With this add-on, you can also stream from up to three separate mobile devices outside of the home network.
This is another instance where Hulu + Live TV requires that you pay for an upgrade to either match or surpass the base offering from YouTube TV.
Pros and Cons: YouTube TV vs. Hulu + Live TV
Now that I’ve walked you through all the specifics of each of these services on the key issues that may affect you as a cord cutter, let’s summarize what we like and dislike about them.
| Pros | Cons |
| Great overall channel lineup filled with sports and news | Monthly price now at $65 after being as low as $35 |
| Unlimited cloud DVR storage included | Many regional sports networks are unavailable |
| Up to 6 user accounts and 3 simultaneous streams |
| Pros | Cons |
| Access to local channels included | Cost of add-ons can really add up! |
| Hulu’s on-demand streaming library included | Many regional sports networks are unavailable |
| Includes access to Disney+ and ESPN+ | Only two screens at once unless you upgrade |
Bottom Line: Which is Better?
At $65 per month for the base package, YouTube TV has a slight price advantage over Hulu + Live TV in 2023.
Both services are among the more expensive options for cord-cutters looking to switch to a live TV streaming service. But when you weigh some of the factors that are most important to streamers (price, channels, cloud DVR, supported devices, etc.), you’ll find that both of them generally grade out pretty well when compared to their peers.
That makes both of them viable cable alternatives.
To me, the decision comes down a couple of things:
- Are some of your favorite channels available on one service but not the other?
- Are you a Disney+, ESPN+ or Hulu on-demand customer who could save money by bundling with Hulu + Live TV?
It’s my opinion that the base package from YouTube TV offers just a bit more than the base package from Hulu + Live TV. So as a standalone choice, I’d give a slight advantage to YouTube TV.
However, I do think there are some streaming consumers who could be better served by Hulu + Live TV including The Disney Bundle with its subscription. That could save you a few bucks per month versus buying YouTube TV and paying for one or more of those services separately.
If the price of these services is an issue, you may be better off checking out Sling TV. And if sports and local channels don’t matter to you at all, Philo may be your most cost-effective cable alternative.
Is YouTube TV better than Hulu + Live TV? Share your opinion in our Clark.com Community!
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