The best NFL streaming services
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For five months out of the year, football dominates the sports conversation — and TVs all over America. But in the age of streaming, figuring out what subscriptions to sign up for in order to catch as many games as possible can feel as complex as a Hail Mary pass.
Many streaming services now offer live NFL coverage, allowing you to pick from a variety of sports packages. This guide breaks down how to watch it all, including college football matchups, so you never have to miss any of the action.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
On This Page
How to watch Sunday Night Football
How to watch Sunday afternoon football
How to watch Monday Night Football
How to watch Thursday Night Football
How to watch college football
Best NFL streaming services of 2022
Frequently Asked Questions
Methodology
How to watch Sunday Night Football
Luckily, there are many ways to stream Sunday Night Football, which is prime-time TV's No. 1 show. All of the above services carry NBC, which airs the coveted programming.
How to watch Sunday afternoon football
Sunday afternoon NFL games typically air on CBS and Fox. The matchups available for you to stream depend on your ZIP code, meaning you won't be able to watch every single Sunday afternoon football game being played across the country.
How to watch Monday Night Football
Monday Night Football is exclusively shown on ESPN and its sister networks, including ABC, ESPN2, ESPN+, and ESPN Deportes. Sling TV provides the most affordable coverage, but Hulu's live TV bundle is the most comprehensive, combining every ESPN channel as well as ESPN+.
How to watch Thursday Night Football
Due to an exclusive deal with the NFL, Amazon Prime Video is the only place to watch Thursday Night Football, meaning even cable subscribers must venture over to a streaming platform if they want access to the full slate of games. The good news? If you already have a Prime membership, you don't have to pay any additional fees.
How to watch college football
College football games typically air on channels like ESPN, ABC, Fox, FS1, and CBS. You can watch additional games through college sports networks such as the ACC, Big Ten, and SEC networks, which are often offered through add-ons, like Sling TV's Sports Extra package ($11/month). However, Vidgo includes all of these channels in its base plan, making it one of the best options for college sports fans in general.
Best NFL streaming services of 2022
FuboTV
Base price: $69.99 per month
Free trial? Yes
DVR storage space: 1,000 hours
No. of concurrent streams: 3
As our pick for the best overall sports streaming service, we're happy to report that FuboTV has plenty to keep football fans entertained. With access to NBC, ABC, ESPN, CBS, Fox, and the NFL Network, viewers will be able to watch most in-market NFL games through the service, apart from Thursday Night Football matchups.
Fubo subscribers can customize their live TV plans with a variety of different add-ons, such as the Sports Plus package ($10.99/month), which includes NFL RedZone and several college conference networks.
Hulu + Live TV
Base price: $69.99 per month
Free trial? No
DVR storage space: Unlimited
No. of concurrent streams: 2
Hulu's awesome live TV bundle includes Disney+ and ESPN+, meaning you'll have access to NFL broadcasters like CBS, Fox, ABC, and NBC, as well as college games via ESPN's streaming service. To get even more coverage, subscribers can opt for the Sports add-on (an extra $9.99 per month), which comes with NFL RedZone.
The platform's dashboard allows you to track your favorite NFL teams and offers unlimited DVR storage for the games you can't catch live.
DirecTV Stream
Base price: $69.99 per month
Free trial? Yes
DVR storage space: Unlimited
No. of concurrent streams: 20
With DirecTV Stream, you'll be able to watch in-market NFL games airing on NBC, ESPN, Fox, and CBS. To watch college football via the SEC, ACC, and Big Ten networks, you'll need to upgrade to the platform's Choice, Ultimate, or Premier plans (starting at $89.99 per month).
DirecTV Stream offers free trials for each of its packages, unlimited cloud-based DVR storage, and up to 20 simultaneous streams, making it a great option for households with varying allegiances. One caveat is that DirecTV Satellite's NFL Sunday Ticket package, which allows subscribers to watch every regional Sunday afternoon NFL game no matter where they're located, isn't available through the Stream platform.
Sling TV
Base price: $40 per month
Free trial? No
DVR storage space: 50 hours
No. of concurrent streams: 1–3
Sling TV has two base plan options, but the best one for NFL coverage is the Sling Blue package ($40/month), which includes the NFL Network, Fox, and NBC. If you want to watch games on ESPN's suite of channels, you'll need to upgrade to the Sling Orange & Blue Plan (priced at $55 per month).
While Sling is more affordable than many of its live TV competitors, it doesn't offer a free trial and its DVR storage space is limited to 50 hours across all three plans. Still, the Sports Extra add-on ($11/month) will delight college football fans because it comes with many of the NCAA conference networks you'll need to watch your favorite teams. Local sports channels are also available to stream with an HD antenna.
Amazon Prime Video
Base price: $8.99 per month
Free trial? Yes
DVR storage space: Allows Thursday Night Football games to be recorded
No. of concurrent streams: 3
Amazon Prime Video is the exclusive home of Thursday Night Football, so you'll need an account to stream those games. Prime Video is included with a standard Amazon Prime membership, but if you just want a subscription to the Video portion, you can sign up for $8.99 per month.
If you can't catch a game live, Prime Video does allow Thursday Night Football games to be recorded, and they won't expire until the next season starts.
Vidgo
Base price: $59.95 per month
Free trial? No
DVR storage space: 20 hours
No. of concurrent streams: 3
Vidgo is really the best fit for a fair-weather NFL fan since you'll only be able to watch a few games each week via Fox, ESPN, and the NFL Network. Where it really shines is in the college football arena. Vidgo's base plan, referred to as the Plus Package, includes the Big Ten, SEC, ACC, Pac-12, and Longhorn networks for less than $60 per month.
One thing to note about Vidgo is that while there is a DVR option, you only get 20 hours of free recording space for the first 90 days of your subscription with the Plus plan. To retain those hours, you'll need to upgrade to either the Premium Package ($79.95/month) or the Ultimate Package ($99.95/month).
Peacock
Base price: $4.99 per month
Free trial? No
DVR storage space: No recording option available
No. of concurrent streams: 3
Peacock is NBC's own streaming service, so you'll have access to every Sunday Night Football game airing on NBC (about 20 matchups each season) along with the Football Night in America pregame show. At just $4.99 per month, it's one of the most affordable options for NFL coverage, though the programming is limited to Sunday evenings.
Although you can't record on Peacock, you'll be able to catch up on games after they air. An added bonus for Xfinity subscribers: You'll get access to Peacock Premium for free as part of your cable plan.
Paramount+
Base price: $4.99 per month
Free trial? Yes
DVR storage space: No recording option available
No. of concurrent streams: 3
Paramount+ is CBS' streaming service, so you'll be able to watch in-network NFL games that air on the channel for less than $5 per month. That only adds up to a couple of Sunday afternoon matchups each week, so this is not the service to sign up for if you're looking for wide-ranging coverage.
Still, take advantage of the platform's free trial to see if any of its other programming appeals to you. Paramount+ is certainly one of the cheaper streaming services on the market with lots of entertaining content.
ESPN+
Base price: $9.99 per month
Free trial? No
DVR storage space: No recording option available
No. of concurrent streams: 3
ESPN+ has slowly started to stream more NFL games, like simulcasting select Monday Night Football matchups that air on ESPN. Subscribers also have access to popular sports commentary shows, like NFL PrimeTime, and more than 500 college football games.
It's important to note that ESPN+ is not often purchased as a stand-alone streamer: Football aficionados will get more bang for their buck with Hulu's live TV bundle, which includes ESPN+ as well as Sunday afternoon and evening NFL matchups across network affiliates like CBS and Fox.
YouTube TV
Base price: $64.99 per month
Free trial? Yes
DVR storage space: Unlimited
No. of concurrent streams: 3
YouTube TV subscribers can stream games on CBS, Fox, NBC, ABC, and ESPN, which are all included in the platform's Base Plan. If you're unsure whether the service will work for your specific football-watching needs, YouTube TV's free trial allows you to test out the full range of coverage before committing to an entire month.
To unlock NFL RedZone, as well as a dozen other sports channels, you'll need to add on the Sports Plus package ($10.99 per month on top of the Base Plan price), but any tier you choose comes with unlimited DVR space. YouTube TV also has a convenient mobile app, so you can bring the game with you while you run errands.
Read our full YouTube TV review.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you stream NFL games airing on Fox?
You can stream NFL games airing on Fox via DirecTV Stream, FuboTV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, Vidgo, or YouTube TV.
Can I get NFL Sunday Ticket without DirecTV?
There are strict eligibility requirements, but yes, you can purchase NFL Sunday Ticket without a DirecTV cable plan or DirecTV Stream subscription. To check your eligibility, simply input your address on the Sunday Ticket homepage.
Is NFL football free on Amazon Prime?
Thursday Night Football games are included with an existing or new Amazon Prime membership. So while it doesn't cost extra to view Prime Video content, you are still paying a monthly subscription fee. A 30-day free trial is available for first-time subscribers.
Methodology
To find the best NFL streaming services, we reviewed nearly 45 platforms by looking at more than a dozen criteria points. Each service's football coverage was weighted most heavily, but we also considered its full list of features, including add-ons and discounted streaming bundles.
When researching a streamer, our data collection team noted the number of channels that air NFL or college games and the service's compatibility with a variety of devices. We also took into account subscription prices, whether or not the platform allows you to automatically record your favorite teams, and the amount of DVR storage space allotted.
Finally, we kept track of how many simultaneous streams each service provides and whether subscribers are made to sign a long-term contract.
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