YouTube TV Review

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YouTube TV offers a 7-day free trial. Your subscription is month-to-month and you can cancel at any time.

Review

We tested YouTube TV and other live TV streaming services for more than 100 hours. YouTube TV is compatible with Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Roku, iPhone/iPad, Web Browsers, Android Phone/Tablet, Android TV, Xbox, LG Smart TV, Samsung Smart TV, VIZIO Smart TV, and Amazon Fire TV.

Features

Unlimited Cloud DVR

YouTube TV has Unlimited DVR storage, allowing you to keep shows for up to 9 months. You cannot record individual episodes, only entire series, sports teams, or major events.

If you start recording after you tune into a channel, the recording will start from when you first started watching. You can watch the recording from the beginning while it is still recording.

Unfortunately, for some channels like CBS, you cannot skip commercials on shows that are also available on demand.

Up to 3 Devices

This service allows for three simultaneous streams (among smartphones, tablets, and computers).

35 TV Everywhere Apps

Similar to traditional cable and satellite subscriptions, YouTube TV includes “TV Everywhere” logins for various channels’ apps (including Watch ABC, AMC App, Bravo Now, DisneyNow, and Watch ESPN).

List of Compatible Apps

On Demand

A majority of channels offer on demand content, but you cannot skip or fast-forward through the content.

YouTube TV subscribers also have access to original content from YouTube Premium, like Cobra Kai, Buddy System, The Lazer Team, and Mind Field.

No Parental Controls

There are no parental controls for YouTube TV.

Only AT&T TV NOW, Hulu Live TV, and Sling TV have parental control features.

Family Sharing Feature

Family Sharing allows you to create profiles for up to 5 additional people at no cost, allowing family members to log in with their own Google account to access live TV.

YouTube Premium Feature

Your YouTube TV subscription also gives you access to YouTube Premium Originals, but—unlike an actual YouTube Premium subscription—you will still get commercials while watching YouTube.

Compatible Devices

YouTube TV is compatible with these devices:

YouTube TV is not compatible with PlayStation or Nintendo.

iOS 9.1+
5.0+
2016+ Models
Select SmartCast TVs
2016+ Models

Phone & Tablet Apps

YouTube TV has the best smartphone and tablet apps of any of the live TV streaming providers.

The mobile apps have various tabs:

Home: a live preview of shows currently on live TV. The home screen also has a list of recently viewed shows and recorded DVR content.
Library: your recorded DVR content and a list of scheduled recordings.
Live: a channel guide, showing what is currently airing on channels.

While you browse through the YouTube TV app, a live thumbnail of your most recently watched channel appears so you won’t miss anything. When you record sports, they will also let you jump between key highlights of games if you don’t want to watch the entire recording.

TV App

YouTube TV recently added support for Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast, and some Android TV devices like NVIDIA Shield. The interface is similar across devices, but seems to work best on Apple TV.

Computer

You can watch YouTube TV on Mac and Windows computers with Chrome.

Screenshots

Channels

Local Channels

YouTube TV offers local channels, including ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, Telemundo, and The CW.

YouTube TV

In most cases, you will have access to live (in major markets) and on demand content every. However, some local channels in smaller markets only have on-demand content or a national feed meaning you won’t get local news or sports.

For complete local availability, check our Channel Lookup tool.

Local Channel Restrictions

You can only access live local channels while you are in a market that YouTube TV is available.

If you are traveling, you will see the local channels of the market you are currently in (not your home market). If you are outside of a coverage area, you will only have access to national on demand content and your recordings.

Top Cable Channels

YouTube TV offers 25 of the top 35 cable channels, which is fewer than AT&T TV NOW, PlayStation Vue, and Hulu Live TV.

The top 35 cable channels are listed below. For a list of all channels, look at YouTube TV’s full channel lineup.

YouTube TV

Sports Channels

National Sports Channels

YouTube TV includes national sports channels, such as ESPN, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, and NBC Sports Network.

YouTube TV

Regional Sports Networks (RSNs)

YouTube TV gives access to regional sports networks (RSNs), which are generally from Fox and NBC/Comcast.

YouTube TV

Regional Sports Networks (RSNs)

RSNs in Other Markets

You should check the YouTube TV RSN channel list before subscribing, to make sure it has the regional networks you need.

YouTube TV

Pro Sports

Professional sports league channels MLB Network and NBA TV are available on YouTube TV. NFL Network, NFL RedZone, and NHL Network are not available on YouTube TV.

YouTube TV

College Sports

YouTube TV has one of the best services for college sports fans; it includes ACC Network, ACC Network Extra, Big Ten Network, CBS Sports Network, ESPNU, and SEC Network.

YouTube TV

Other Sports Channels

ESPNEWS, Golf Channel, Olympic Channel, and Tennis Channel are available on YouTube TV.

Fox Soccer Plus can be added for $15/month.

YouTube TV

Premium Channels

You can add Showtime ($11), Starz ($9), or Fox Soccer Plus ($15) to your YouTube TV account.

YouTube TV

Add-Ons

Tech Specs

High definition video is similar to other streaming services, most in 60fps
Live streaming is very stable, except when streaming to older Chromecast or Apple TV devices.
Very fast channel switching, so you can actually channel surf.

1080p

720p

720p HD

Video stream resolution is 720p at 60 fps for most channels. To reduce playback interruptions, YouTube TV will adapt the stream quality to match your network connection.

30 FPS

60 FPS

Most live TV streams are broadcast in 60 fps.

Stereo Sound

Stereo Sound

All live TV content has standard stereo audio.

Streaming Reliability

On Demand Reliability

Reliability

We rarely had issues with YouTube TV video playback freezing, pausing, or hiccups changing channels.

However, when using older Chromcast or Apple TV devices, we had issues with video buffering.

25 sec
Live Delay

Live Delay

Live content is about 25 seconds behind cable TV, which is slightly better than average.

1.5 sec
Channel Switching

Channel Switching

It takes about 1.5 seconds to switch between channels, which is the fastest of any streaming service.

User Experience

Video player will feel very familiar to YouTube users.
There is a standard channel guide with live previews, so you can see what’s playing before selecting a channel.
Search is excellent and includes related YouTube clips.

Home Screen

The smartphones and tablets, the YouTube TV app’s home screen has a live preview of shows currently on live TV. The home screen also has a list of recently viewed shows and recorded DVR content.

As you scroll, the app suggests popular movies and TV shows, YouTube Premium Originals, and trending YouTube clips.

TV Guide

The YouTube TV channel guide lists available channels in a vertically scrolling list, with a live preview of what’s currently airing. When your device is in a landscape orientation, the guide will also show what is scheduled to air next.

Search

As you would likely expect, YouTube TV has excellent search capabilities. The search tab suggests genres, channels, and trending shows before you begin searching.

As you type to search, the results area will suggest shows, channels, people, and sports teams. When you tap on a result, the app shows episodes and related and related clips.

Show Details

The show listing page is very clean, making it easy to find live, recorded, and on demand episodes; the page also shows related YouTube clips.

Playback

On most channels, YouTube TV allows you to pause, skip forward and backwards, and jump to what’s currently live.

When you exit a live broadcast, a floating PIP displays while you browse through app.