Best On-Demand Streaming Services 2025: Disney+, Netflix, and More

What is the best streaming service for on-demand television?

List of all streaming services and prices

Unfortunately, these prices will only continue to increase.

In recent years, streaming services have turned to new methods to improve viewer retention and subscriber numbers. But rather than investing in quality content and fostering trust with their viewerships, they turned to less-savory tactics. Namely, ad-supported plans, yearly price hikes, and password-sharing restrictions.

Beginning in 2025, we’re keeping track of which platforms allow password sharing. Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, and Max all restrict password sharing in some way, and we’re worried that more platforms will follow suit. Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels admitted that these crackdowns are just a veiled way of increasing prices yet again, and we agree.

Luckily, CableTV.com is here to wade through all of the corporate lingo and advertising and bring you real statistics about every major streaming service. Different people will have different needs, so we’ve broken up our annual awards into several categories focusing on different elements, like shareability, original content, and bang for your buck.

Award winners up close

For this year’s most sought-after award, we wanted to pick a service that provides the best overall experience. That means a large library of archival and original content, a wide spread of genres for different types of fans, and a super smooth interface.

Hulu, on its own, fulfills some of these requirements. Unfortunately, its user experience is one great, big flop. It’s never been very fun to navigate, but things have gotten worse in recent years as my family constantly has trouble logging into our account. Hypothetically, we just have the one Disney ecosystem username and password, but Hulu never accepts the same credentials that work for us on Disney+. I can’t guarantee you’ll also have this problem, but I know we’re not the only ones struggling with it.

That’s where the Disney Bundle comes in. While I can’t recommend Hulu as a standalone, it’s a much better experience when accessed through the Disney+ interface. Hulu and Disney+’s merger essentially doubles your library of content, and Disney+ provides a neat and orderly way to navigate releases by franchise.

Within the Disney Bundle ecosystem, I’d recommend the ad-free Duo Premium package as the best experience for most people. And if you really want to go big, add Max to the equation and experience some of 2025’s Best Exclusive Content.

Shareability:
Disney+ does not allow its users to share passwords outside of their main household. It doesn’t always enforce this rule, but it does allow accounts to add one extra member outside of their household for an additional monthly fee ($7.00–$10.00/mo.)

Exclusive content:
Most of Disney+’s originals come from Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar. It’s also the only place you’ll be able to watch Doctor Who episodes (produced after the 2023 reboot) in the U.S.

The downside of Disney+ is that original shows don’t always stick around. The service has a habit of removing canceled shows, so if you’re interested in something, watch it fast. But the upside is that with the Disney Bundle, you can access Hulu’s exclusive content through Disney+’s interface. So you’ll get “popcorn movie” originals from Marvel and Star Wars combined with prestige titles like The Bear and The Handmaid’s Tale.

Kids mode:
Disney+ provides a Junior Mode to quickly restrict access to the platform’s greater content library, but it lacks the customization of other platforms. You can enable a “Kid-Proof Exit,” which prevents a child switching to other profiles unless they can read four numbers, but this feature is only available in Junior Mode and is really only a deterrent to very young children.

If you want more specific content control, you’ll have to turn off Junior Mode and restrict access to other accounts by manually limiting access to each profile with a 4-digit PIN. It’s a very backward system, but even families with very young children will probably want to use this method over Junior Mode. Shockingly, Junior Mode omits lots of family-friendly titles, including Frozen.

Bundles and trials:
The factor that really gives Disney+ the edge this year is its bundle-ability. All Disney Bundles include Disney+ and Hulu, and you can choose whether you want to add ESPN+ or Max to the mix. Depending on the bundle, you’ll save 42%–$46% per month. That’s important as Disney continues to raise its prices at least once a year.

Unfortunately, Disney+ doesn’t offer a free trial. If you want to try it out, you’ll have to commit to at least a month.

✦ This section is about on-demand Hulu! Check out our Live TV roundup to see how Hulu + Live TV stacks up to the competition.

Shareability:
Since Hulu is owned by Disney, it also restricts password sharing.

Exclusive content:
One of Hulu’s greatest strengths is its ability to air new episodes of cable shows the day after they air, but it’s also responsible for a lot of award-winning original content. The Bear, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Only Murders in the Building are all Hulu joints, after all.

Kids mode:
Hulu allows the creation of kids profiles that can be restricted using a PIN number. However, you cannot change a profile’s designation once you add a birthdate.

Keep in mind that Disney is trying to position Disney+ as its more kid-friendly service and has a tendency to move popular titles (like Gravity Falls) over to Disney+.

Bundles and trials:
Like we’ve mentioned, Hulu is best enjoyed when bundled with Disney+. You can also bundle it with ESPN+, Max, or Hulu’s Live TV service.

Unlike Disney+, Hulu does offer a free trial—up to 30 whole days!—but that’s only for the standalone service and doesn’t extend to the Disney Bundle.

Okay, now that we’ve got the best of the best out of the way, let’s dive into what I, your resident streaming expert, personally use. Yes, the Disney Bundle provides the broadest appeal, but I don’t use it nearly as often as I use Old Reliable: Netflix.

It’s no secret that I’m a fan of animation. Netflix has, by far, the best library of original animated shows for teens and adults. If I had to cancel my subscriptions and pick just one streaming service to get me through the year, I’d go with Netflix. As I’m writing this paragraph on a cold January afternoon, I’m thinking about the end of the day when I’ll be able to stream Castlevania: Nocturne’s recently released second season.

It’s also stellar for must-watch event shows like Bridgerton and The Witcher. Despite its reputation for prioritizing quantity over quality, Netflix has produced some great shows—that is, on the rare occasion they last past the first season.

Shareability:

Netflix was the first streaming service to make it big, and it was also the first streaming service to kill the vibe by restricting password sharing. It costs an additional $6.99–$8.99 per month to add an extra member outside of your household, and that number is also limited by what tier you subscribe to.

Subscribers at the Standard with Ads tier cannot add additional members to their accounts.

Exclusive content:

One of Netflix’s biggest draws is its library of popular original content. Squid Game, Stranger Things, Bridgerton—Netflix Originals dominate social media discourse and Funko Pop lineups. If you don’t want to be caught out of the loop, you’ll probably want to subscribe at least once a year to catch up on those big titles.

It’s also extremely hard to beat Netflix’s animation and anime lineups, with several new hits released every year.

Kids mode:

Netflix offers the most customizable kids’ mode of any service I’ve tried. In addition to restricting content by rating, you can also choose to hide specific titles from your child’s account.

The downside to using Netflix for your kids is the sheer number of Cocomelon and Cocomelon-like titles. You might be utilizing those title-restricting features more often than you think.

Bundles and trials:

Sometimes, internet or mobile service providers offer Netflix as a subscription perk. The two biggest ones we’ve seen have been Xfinity StreamSaver, which can save Xfinity Internet customers money on Netflix, Peacock, and AppleTV+, and Verizon’s mobile and home internet perk, which bundles Netflix and Max at a discounted rate.

Just keep in mind that most promotional third-party bundles like this only offer discounts on ad-supported plans, not premium plans.

Like Disney+, Netflix doesn’t offer a free trial.

So far, all of our choices have been pretty pricey. The cost of streaming rises more and more each year, and sometimes you just need one decently priced service.

MGM+, previously known as Epix, could be that service. At just $6.99 a month, it provides access to a decent movie library with plenty of classic and contemporary titles.

Historically, CableTV.com has overlooked MGM+ (and its predecessor) when it came to year-end awards. It just seemed like too small a fish. But 2025’s Customer Satisfaction Survey showed that customers actually really love the service, so we decided to look at it more carefully. And we were impressed with what we found.

I’m knocking hard on wood while typing this, but MGM+ is one of the few streaming services left that offers one no-nonsense, ad-free subscription tier. You don’t have to upgrade to get more simultaneous streams or fewer ads. Even its “live” movie channel experiences minimal interruptions between programs. And you can share it with whomever you want, regardless of whether you live in the same house.

MGM+ is also fleshing out its own lineup of exclusive original content, so you won’t be missing out on cultural touchstones, either. The intense psychological horror of From will have you coming back week after week.

Granted, MGM+ isn’t for everyone. Its original titles span from Roman drama to Arthurian drama to WWII drama—so if you’re looking for some serious historical fiction about Europeans going to war, you’ll be satisfied. But it doesn’t have “something for everyone” the way that Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and Netflix do.

Shareability:

MGM+ allows four simultaneous streams, which is pretty good for such a cheap service. It also allows password sharing and would be perfect for sharing if it allowed users to create multiple profiles. Maybe it doesn’t make so much of a difference if you’re watching movies all in one sitting, but it can be a pain to find which From episode you’re on if the rest of your family is sharing your account.

Exclusive content:

Most of MGM+’s library is made up of movies that you can find elsewhere, but it’s pretty sweet that they’re all in one place for a low monthly price.

As for originals, it does have a modest lineup of historical dramas, like Rogue Heroes, Domina, and The Winter King. It also has the DC series Pennyworth if you’re interested in the backstory of Batman’s butler.

Kids mode:

MGM+ does not have a kids mode. It does have a small “Kids and Family” movie section, but it’s more of a “watch together” platform than a “give your kid an iPad and walk away” platform.

Bundles and trials:

Amazon currently offers Prime members a seven-day free trial of both MGM+ and AMC+ combined, with a discounted monthly price after that.

Non-prime members can try a seven-day free trial of MGM+ on any platform.

If you’re into anime, you pretty much only have two options: Netflix and Crunchyroll. Crunchyroll ate its main competitor, Funimation, so it’s now the biggest catalog of anime on the web. And while Netflix does boast an impressive amount of stellar original animation, it still can’t compete with Crunchyroll’s lineup of Japanese imports and simulcasts.

85% of Crunchyroll subscribers are satisfied with the service’s exclusive content, placing it second among all streaming services. We think that’s pretty impressive for a niche streamer!

Ever the overachiever, Crunchyroll is also the best streaming service for password sharing. If you and your friends and/or family are looking to share a streaming account, there are a few key factors you’ll want to look for: password-sharing restrictions, profile management, and simultaneous streams.

Surprisingly, Crunchyroll performs the best in all three categories. You can share your password outside of your household without penalty and easily create individual profiles for you and your friends. The only catch is that while you can log in to your account on plenty of devices at the same time, you can only watch on one device at a time with its lowest-tier plan. If you want more simultaneous streams, you’ll have to upgrade to a higher tier.

Shareability:

Crunchyroll is great for sharing with friends and family. It doesn’t restrict password sharing based on location, and its premium tiers offer multiple simultaneous streams for long-distance viewing. If you’ve written Crunchyroll off in the past for its lack of user profiles, give it a second chance: The service finally added profiles as a Premium feature in 2024.

Better late than never, I guess?

Exclusive content:

Services like Hulu and Netflix also carry some of Crunchyroll’s most popular titles, but the vast majority of its content is exclusive. That’s exclusive, not original—Crunchyroll originals are another beast entirely. (They’re generally not as well-reviewed as the Japanese imports. You can’t win ‘em all!)

Kids mode:

Crunchyroll doesn’t have a kids mode, although it does have a content restriction setting with decent customization.

I should say this for any parents just in case: Animation does not necessarily equal “kid-friendly.” Lots of anime is aimed at teens and adults and is too raunchy for young viewers, so keep an eye on what your kid is watching.

Bundles and trials:

Crunchyroll offers a seven-day free trial.

In the past, we’ve considered Disney+ the best option for kids due to its sheer volume of classic movies and television, but this year Paramount+ really impressed us as the best experience for kids overall.

Paramount+ hosts a library of Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. titles, plus all the Sonic the Hedgehog content a kid could ask for. But it also has a pretty robust content restriction system, allowing parents to require a PIN number in order to exit kids mode (rather than putting a PIN on each individual adult profile). Parents can also choose whether to tailor content more towards older kids or younger kids, which is helpful if you’d rather your little ones embark on a Paw Patrol marathon without accidentally stumbling into the more intense Legend of Korra episodes.

Of course, Paramount+ (and its SHOWTIME add-on) offers plenty for adults, too. But you can read all about that in our Paramount+ review.

Shareability:

Paramount+ is pretty good for sharing with friends and family. It doesn’t restrict password sharing and allows three simultaneous streams across both of its plans. It also allows users to create multiple profiles.

Exclusive content:

Paramount+’s premium tier has the benefit of combining Paramount+’s archival and original content with SHOWTIME’s full exclusive library. Your kids can watch Knuckles while you’re in another room, catching up on Yellowjackets and your favorite CBS comedies.

Kids mode:

Paramount+ allows the creation of kids profiles, which can require a PIN number to return to the rest of the app.

Bundles and trials:

Paramount+’s premium tier is a bundle in disguise, combining Paramount+ with SHOWTIME.
It usually offers a seven-day free trial, but you can often extend that trial with the promotional code du jour.

We’ve been disappointed in how Max has evolved since its short-lived HBO Max days when we had such high hopes for Warner Bros.’s ambitious streaming service. Sometimes, it feels like Max and Netflix are in an arms race to see who can raise their prices higher.

But we can’t deny the sheer quality of HBO’s exclusive and original content. Max may have dropped the “HBO” from its title, but fans still adore the premium cable TV brand. Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon continue to capture fans’ imaginations year after year, and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver is a must-watch after every major current event.

And this isn’t just anecdotal—CableTV.com’s 2025 Customer Satisfaction Survey found that Max customers are more satisfied with their service than almost any other. (Max tied for first place in Overall Satisfaction with its sister platform, Discovery+).

BTW, we’re changing our verbiage in 2025 to consider “exclusive content” rather than “original content.” These days, streaming services trade shows like Pokemon cards and are weird about which titles get the “original” tag, so we had to change strategies. It’s never a dull moment in the streaming biz!

Shareability:

Like Netflix, Max restricts how many households can share the same password, although it’s unclear how this is enforced. However, there’s no option to add extra members to your households like you can with Netflix; your extended family will need their own accounts.

Exclusive content:

Max subscribers get both HBO Originals (like Succession and House of the Dragon) and Max Originals (like Harley Quinn and Hacks). What’s the difference? It’s anyone’s guess!

Kids mode:

Max doesn’t have a “kids mode,” but it does offer ratings preferences and PIN restrictions for individual profiles.

It’s not our top pick for kids. Lately, it’s been pulling Cartoon Network titles from the platform, so you might be better off searching for them on Hulu. And while it does have some cute originals for little kids, Warner Bros. Discovery recently decided to defund Sesame Street.

So maybe this is a good time to donate to your local PBS station and get that tote bag you’ve always wanted …

Bundles and trials:

Amazon Prime Video offers its members a discounted Max/STARZ bundle, and Max was recently added to the Disney Bundle lineup of streaming services.

HBO is also a popular cable add-on, and you’ll find it as a subscriber perk at a lot of internet and cable companies.

You can sign up for a seven-day Max free trial, but only through Hulu or Amazon Prime.

We may not have been able to find enough Shudder users for our 2025 Customer Satisfaction Survey, but we don’t need statistical significance to tell you that Shudder is a pretty darn good app for horror lovers.

Our horror expert, Randy Harward, is super impressed with its hand-curated watchlists and impressive horror library. He’s been a loyal subscriber for five years and never gets tired of Shudder’s “exceptionally well-curated” lineup.

Shudder also gets bonus points from us for being completely ad-free and offering a smooth user experience.

Shareability:

While Shudder doesn’t restrict password sharing, it’s not the best when it comes to shareability. Shudder only provides one simultaneous stream, which is pretty dismal for a modern streaming service, especially when compared to the extravagant five streams from, AMC+’s Shudder’s parent company’s app. It also could use the option to create extra user profiles, which most modern services have.

But then again, isn’t it fitting to have to experience The Horrors alone?

Exclusive content:

We think that Shudder’s original titles are pretty good, including the V/H/S series, Late Night with the Devil, Exhuma, Fried Barry, and The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs. It’s also incredibly prolific for a niche streamer—Randy estimates that about 200 out of 650 titles currently on the service are original.

Shudder offers a horror experience you won’t find anywhere else.

Kids mode:

This probably isn’t the streaming service to give your iPad kid. But if it needs saying, Shudder doesn’t offer a kids mode.

Bundles and trials:

Technically, you’ll get most of Shudder’s library with an AMC+ subscription. It’s a pretty good deal, but the AMC+ app doesn’t function as well as the Shudder app, so you’ll be missing out on some of its cooler features.

Shudder offers a seven-day free trial.

Honorable mentions: Other top streaming services

Besides Crunchyroll, the only other service that offers six simultaneous streams is Apple TV+, but adding new profiles is such a hassle that we can’t quite call it the best. Each member needs to have their own Apple ID, so forget about giving your kids access. It’s a shameless bid to induct more people into Apple’s ecosystem and it makes the service stand out (in a bad way) among its competitors.

But Apple TV+ is still a pretty good streaming service if you’re looking for premium television like Ted Lasso and Severance. It’s just not one that you need to subscribe to all the time.

Amazon Prime Video was our favorite streaming service of 2024 for its no-nonsense plans and ad-free policies, but they proved us wrong by the end of the year. It’s still pretty good, but it’s kind of insulting to sit through ads on a previously ad-free service. And the interface isn’t always super clear about which titles will cost extra money and which titles are just carry-overs from Amazon’s now-defunct FAST service, Freevee.

But if you don’t mind back-to-back unskippable ads, you’ll probably be happy with the content that Amazon Prime Video has to offer. Its original shows are great for fantasy and animation fans, which are the genres this writer cares about the most. If you like Netflix, you’ll probably like Prime Video.

Peacock has been working hard over the last few years since its inception to grow its content library and be more than just a nice-to-have scrappy little service.

To this writer, the best Peacock perks are the Universal Pictures films that stream soon after they premiere in theaters. I feel like I can stay up-to-date with theatrical releases in a way that its competitors don’t allow. It’s also popular for next-day NBC, Bravo, and USA shows on demand and marquee NBC Sports coverage. It’s a must-have during Olympics years!

If you can only pick one streaming service, it probably won’t be STARZ. It’s a bit of a pain to find your watchlist, and it doesn’t have the quantity or quality of original content that its competitors have. But like MGM+, it’s a decent place to find a collection of popular movies, and it tends to carry a lot of more-recent titles.

We really want to like AMC+ since it provides a library of AMC, BBC America, and Shudder content, which several CableTV.com team members love.

However, we’ve also had too many technical problems with AMC+ to truly recommend it. Our managing editor, Mike Strayer, frequently experiences problems with the app crashing on his Apple TV, which can be very frustrating!

But if you luck out and get a functioning app on your streaming device of choice, give AMC+ a try—especially if you love spooky content featuring vampires (Interview with the Vampire), zombies (The Walking Dead), or all manner of creepy ghouls.

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 watch 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 streams. Some services offer budget plans with fewer streams.

In 2023, Netflix began restricting simultaneous logins 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. Other platforms, like Disney+, Hulu, and Max, have begun to follow suit.

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 Severance episode you’re on if you don’t want to deal with Apple TV+’s weird profile system.

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?

The best streaming platform in 2025 is the Disney Bundle, which combines Disney+ and Hulu on demand through Disney+’s interface. 2025 is a complicated year, so we couldn’t pick a simple answer!

We recommend getting at least the Duo Premium plan for the best ad-free experience, but you could add ESPN+ or Max to the deal if you’re big into sports or premium television. With the Disney Bundle, you’ll get content from several different production companies and channels. Sort of like cable TV! Time is a flat circle.

Our other favorite streaming services include Netflix, Crunchyroll, and Shudder. If you have the money, you really can’t go wrong with any of them!

On-demand streaming TV FAQ

Why take our word for it?

This year, our staff of TV and movie experts tested over 25 on-demand streaming services to bring you the best of the best, rating them on value, reliability, features, and customer satisfaction. For more information on our methodology, check out our How We Rank page.