Best Streaming Services 2024: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and More

Amazon Prime Video is our Editor’s Choice for best overall on-demand streaming service. For as low as $8.99 a month, Prime Video provides a vast library of content—including some pretty nice originals, like Good Omens, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and The Legend of Vox Machina—and that’s a bargain in today’s streaming landscape.

If you don’t mind some sponsored interruptions, Paramount+’s ad-supported plan is a great deal. For $5.99 a month, you’ll get access to a ton of CBS, Nickelodeon, and original content, including titles from the Transformers, Mission Impossible, and Star Trek franchises. Or you could upgrade to the $11.99 per month ad-free plan and get free access to SHOWTIME (previously a $10.99/month standalone service).

But the streaming service market is vast, and nearly every service has at least three different plans to choose from. Let’s break it all down.

Best on-demand streaming TV services

1. Amazon Prime Video: Editor’s choice
2. Netflix: Best original content library
3. Paramount+: Best value (SHOWTIME bundle)
4. Disney+: Best for families
5. Apple TV+: Most simultaneous streams
6. Hulu: Best for next-day streaming
7. Shudder: Best horror library
8. Crunchyroll: Best anime library
9. Discovery+: Cheapest ad-supported subscription
10. MGM+: Cheapest ad-free subscription

More top streaming TV services

• Max: HBO, DC, Studio Ghibli, Adult Swim, and Discovery content
• Peacock: Catch theatrical releases and next-day NBC, Bravo, USA
• AMC+: AMC, BBC America, IFC, and Sundance content
• ESPN+: Exclusive live sports
• STARZ: 880+ TV shows and movies

Compare on-demand streaming TV services

On-demand streaming is no longer the cheap cable substitute that it once was. Almost every major streaming service raised its prices at least once in 2023, and several streamers are trying to cut costs by removing original content and/or restricting password sharing. These constant changes make it much harder to definitively rank each service, but we’re always up for a challenge.

As of publishing, we think the best deal around is Amazon Prime Video. Its base $8.99-per-month price provides access to its entire library, although you’ll have to sit through some annoying ads unless you upgrade to a higher tier. You can also subscribe to most other streaming services through Amazon Prime Video as an add-on, making it a one-stop shop for the vast majority of streaming content.

The Paramount+ with SHOWTIME bundle is the next best deal. You’ll get access to two substantial streaming services for the price of one. Just be warned that Paramount+ and SHOWTIME have radically different libraries—the latter focusing on prestige drama and thrillers, and the former focusing on more family-friendly fare.

The Disney Bundle was once a great deal, providing access to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ in one subscription. However, those prices are increased substantially in October, and now the highest Disney Bundle tier costs $24.99 per month. The standalone prices also went up; ad-free Disney+ and Hulu each went up by three dollars per month. It’s a change that now puts standalone Hulu as the single most expensive streaming service—more so than the previous title holders, Max and Netflix.

Best on-demand streaming TV services in detail

We’ve given you a high-level rundown of the best streaming services. Now, let’s dig deeper into why we recommend these on-demand streaming services.

Again, if you’re looking for live TV streaming, check out our expert guide, Best Live TV Streaming Services, for more recommendations.

Editor’s choice: Amazon Prime Video

• Free shipping and other Prime benefits
• Great original content
• Other streaming services available as add-ons

• Clunky interface
• Some legacy content moved to Freevee

Our new favorite streaming service for 2024 is Amazon Prime Video. Hey, we’re as surprised as you are—but with every service committing to sky-high price increases, we think Amazon Prime Video is a pretty good deal.

Best original content library: Netflix

• Large original content library
• Free mobile games (PC and TV support incoming)

• No password sharing
• Few simultaneous streams
• Shows often canceled prematurely

Netflix, our old friend and greatest enemy. Many of us have subscribed to Netflix since its DVD days and look back fondly at Netflix originals like The Witcher and Castlevania. We’ve even enjoyed new additions to the service, including Netflix’s impressive library of mobile games like Oxenfree and Moonlighter.

Best value: Paramount+ (with SHOWTIME)

• Money-saving SHOWTIME bundle
• Local CBS live TV stream

• Unskippable Paramount+ ads
• Can remove originals with little warning

Paramount+ leveled up in 2023 by adding SHOWTIME to its premium tier. Subscribers can now get two streaming services for the price of one—a phenomenal deal compared to competitors like Max and Disney+.

Best for families: Disney+

• Near-complete Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar collections
• Next-day Disney Channel premieres

• Huge price hikes
• Pricey ad-supported plan
• Notorious content-remover

Disney+ comes with a pretty hefty price tag for what it is, and that’s only somewhat softened by the Disney Bundle, which offers Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ for a slightly lower price. If you want the most affordable option, you’ll have to settle for one of its ad-supported plans.

Most simultaneous streams: Apple TV+

• Award-winning originals
• Plenty of streams
• One low price

• Comparatively small library
• Only original content

Apple TV+ really surprised us. You wouldn’t expect Apple—the company that thrives on planned obsolescence and charging its customers an arm and a leg for every accessory—to provide a good value, but here we are.

Best for next-day streaming: Hulu

• Next-day streaming for cable shows
• Bundle with Disney+ and ESPN+

• Very expensive
• Clunky interface
• Most expensive ad-free standalone service

Hulu is a cornucopia of content. It’s is a great way for cord-cutters to catch next-day releases from channels like ABC and FX. Just keep in mind that other channel libraries may not be comprehensive as more companies claim content for their own streamers.

Best horror library: Shudder

• Low price
• Hand-curated horror library

• Not great as an add-on
• Resolution only up to 720p

If you’re into all things horror and supernatural, Shudder is the streaming service for you. Shudder carries 600+ nail-biting movies and TV series and even a handful of podcasts. From vintage slasher flicks to foreign imports to current releases to the culty-ist of cult obscurities, it’s a scream-geek’s paradise.

Best anime library: Crunchyroll

• Huge anime library
• Simulcasts air one hour after Japan
• Customizable watchlists

• No captions on English dubs
• Awkward transition from Funimation

Crunchyroll has the best anime library of any streaming service by far. We’ve been running our anime simulcasts guide for a while now, and Crunchyroll always has the biggest section on the page. If you’re an anime superfan, Crunchyroll is the definitive experience for you.

Cheapest ad-supported subscription: Discovery+

• Great archive of reality TV
• New episodes air simultaneously
• Super cheap

• Only reality TV
• Not The One to Watch for HBO

Yes, Discovery+ still exists after the HBO Max merger fiasco. If you’re all about reality TV, you won’t do better than Discovery+. Its ad-supported plan is the cheapest on the market, and its ad-free plan is decent as well, although not the cheapest.

Cheapest ad-free subscription: MGM+

• Lots of movies
• Cheap
• Ad-free

• Only a few original releases per year
• No 4K or Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound

MGM+’s main thing is movies. If you want a large, ad-free library of movies at your fingertips, MGM+ (previously EPIX) is the service for you. It’s rare to see a service with only one, low-price, ad-free plan in 2023, but MGM+ and Apple TV+ are both practitioners of The Old Ways. Unfortunately, MGM+ is also behind the times in terms of quality, and has yet to integrate 4K or Dolby 5.1 support.

Other top providers

These streaming services might not have won any awards this year, but they’re good to have on your radar. Let’s hear it for the runners-up:

HBO, DC, Studio Ghibli, Adult Swim, and Discovery content: Max

• Near-complete HBO and Discovery libraries
• Great for DC and Studio Ghibli fans

• Extremely expensive
• Awkward blend between Max and Discovery+
• Technical issues and branding woes

HBO Max used to be the cream of the crop, our favorite streaming service to recommend to all of our friends. But then the service started cutting off pieces of itself to sell to free, ad-supported television (FAST) platforms like The Roku Channel and Tubi, raised its prices, and merged with Discovery+ in the worst branding fiasco of the decade.

Catch theatrical releases and next-day NBC, Bravo, USA: Peacock

• Universal Pictures theatrical releases
• Live NBC channels

• Small original content library
• No longer the cheap option

Peacock may not have a ton of original content, but it’s an excellent choice for sports and movie-lovers. Most Universal Pictures movies end up here, either soon after their premiere in theaters or, in some cases, simultaneously.

AMC, BBC America, IFC, and Sundance content: AMC+

• Live AMC, IFC, SUNDANCE TV, and BBC America channels
• Only one (ad-free) plan

• Not a lot of originals
• Poor user experience

If you’re a cord cutter, AMC+ is the best place to watch, you guessed it, AMC content. The service also has a few exclusives of its own, including Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, Anne Boleyn, and Kevin Can F**K Himself, although these make up a very small percentage of the platform.

Exclusive live sports: ESPN+

• Rich on-demand library
• Plenty of live soccer and college sports

• No regular NFL or NBA games
• No popular ESPN shows

ESPN+ isn’t a streaming replacement for ESPN, but it’s a great addition to it. ESPN+ carries live content that its cable counterpart doesn’t, including UFC, NHL, MLB, international soccer, boxing, golf, tennis, and college sports events—all for 11 bucks a month.

880+ TV shows and movies: STARZ

• Big movie library
• Can bundle with MGM+

• Small original content library

Its competitors HBO and SHOWTIME have hitched themselves to Max and Paramount+, respectively, but STARZ has a different strategy. STARZ is the only one of the big three premium channels still available as a standalone subscription, although it is also available in a thrifty bundle with MGM+.

What to look for in an on-demand streaming TV service

Does it have the content you’re looking for?

If you’ve quit cable and are looking for a replacement, check what channels each streaming service carries. For example, Discovery+ and Max carry shows from Food Network, TLC, HGTV, HISTORY, and Discovery, while Peacock carries shows from NBC, Bravo, Hallmark, and Telemundo.

But maybe original streaming series are your thing. You’re not alone on that one. Most original streaming content only sticks to its own platform (unless it gets sold off to a FAST service like Tubi). So if you’re looking for Stranger Things and Castlevania, you should go for Netflix, and if you’re looking for Ted Lasso and Severance, you should go for Apple TV+.

There are also a number of niche services that only air one type of content. Check out our anime, horror, and sports hubs for more information on how to watch your favorite niche content.

Does the service offer a free trial?

One of the best perks of streaming TV services is the free trial period. The trial windows are brief (seven days is common) but offer enough time for a dedicated viewer to pull off a marathon or two. Unfortunately, not every service allows this, and most require credit card information, so you’ll have to be quick about hitting that cancellation button.

How many users does it allow?

When we talk about simultaneous streams, we mean how many users can be watching content on the same account at the same time. This isn’t the same thing as the number of devices that can be logged in simultaneously, and a good plan will usually allow three or four. Some services offer budget plans with fewer streams.

In 2023, Netflix began restricting simultaneous log-ins based on location. If you live in a different household from the account holder, you’ll have to pay a steep fee or get booted. We haven’t seen too many other services follow suit yet, but it’s a big drawback to look out for.

And some services don’t allow for more than one profile at all, which is a bummer if you’re sharing an account with someone else. You’ll just have to keep a mental note of which One Piece episode you’re on if you share a Crunchyroll account.

Does it have ads?

While the whole point of streaming was originally to escape cable’s relentless ads, many services now offer a cheaper ad-supported alternative plan to their subscribers. It’s an obvious excuse to raise the price of the ad-free or premium tier, which used to be the norm and much cheaper. We don’t love this practice, but it might be worth it to you if you need to save some cash. Those Disney+ price hikes aren’t messing around.

Streaming service ads can be super annoying, though, especially on content that was never supposed to have ad breaks.

What’s the best streaming platform?

We think the best streaming platform in 2024 is, surprisingly, Amazon Prime Video. It offers a vast library of ad-free content for a reasonable price, and has avoided some of the more frustrating cost-cutting tactics used by its competitors (we’re looking at you, Netflix and Max). And its growing library of original content is nothing to sneeze at, either.

We’re also really into niche streaming services lately. Horror fans will love Shudder, and Crunchyroll is a must-have for anime fans. And if you can’t get enough reality TV, Discovery+ will be your new best friend.

On-demand streaming TV FAQ