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Cutting the cord and severing ties with cable companies is becoming more and more commonplace as it’s easier than ever to stream movies, TV shows, and even live TV with just an internet connection.
This market of streaming services features both well-established products and new ones trying to compete.
Based on the number of subscribers each one has, here is a list of 15 of the largest streaming services in the US:
15 Largest Streaming Services in the U.S.
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Netflix. Los Gatos, California
Number of Subscribers: 203.7 million (January 2021)
Netflix is the household name of streaming services, but it started in 1998 as a mail-in DVD rental service. In 2007, the brand released its streaming platform and now has over 200 million users in more than 190 countries.
Netflix offers over 15,000 titles on its streaming platform. In 2013, the company started producing its content and now also offers over 1,500 original titles. Even though more and more streaming services are coming to the surface, Netflix still holds 19% of the world’s digital streaming subscriptions.
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Prime Video Amazon. Seattle, Washington
Number of Subscribers: 150 million (December 2020)
Prime Video is owned by Amazon, Inc. and is included with an Amazon Prime subscription. Users can pay for just the video streaming service as well, though.
The service began in 2006 as Amazon Unbox, and now it offers over 12,000 free movies, not to mention its catalog of TV and movie titles available for users to rent or purchase.
Prime Video also offers its own Amazon Original series of TV shows and movies.
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Disney Plus. Burbank, California
Number of Subscribers: 94.9 million (January 2021)
Launched in November of 2019, it didn’t take Disney Plus long to climb up the charts as far as the number of streamers goes.
This streaming service is ad-free and offers Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, and 20th Century Fox content. In just its first year, Disney Plus offered about 7,500 TV episodes and 500 movies.
Disney Plus also produces its exclusive TV shows and movies.
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Number of Subscribers: 38.8 million (December 2020)
Founded in 2007, Hulu was one of the first streaming services to offer live TV in addition to streaming movies and TV shows.
Hulu offers several subscription packages that vary in price depending on viewers’ choices about ad-free watching and getting access to live TV. Hulu also offers its original content as well as Premium Add-Ons that viewers can subscribe to. These include HBO and Showtime.
Since The Walt Disney Company became a majority owner of Hulu in 2016 when it acquired 21st Century Fox, users can get a bundle subscription to Hulu, Disney Plus, and ESPN Plus.
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Peacock. New York, New York
Number of Subscribers: 33 million (December 2020)
With streaming’s rise in popularity, networks have started to offer their streaming services that include all of their shows, and NBCUniversal did this through their streaming platform called Peacock.
Launched in July of 2020, Peacock already had 33 million subscribers by the end of that year. The platform offers limited access to its library for free and its entire library with a paid subscription.
Peacock provides live sports and news streaming and its movies and shows, and the platform is planning to produce original content in the future.
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YouTube Premium. San Bruno, California
Number of Subscribers: 20 million (February 2020)
Subscribers to YouTube Premium (formerly called YouTube Red) can watch videos ad-free, download them to watch offline, access exclusive original content, and use the YouTube Music Premium subscription that comes with it.
The program started in 2014 as Music Key, an ad-free music and music video streaming service. The platform shifted to YouTube Red in 2015, which offered ad-free access to all videos instead of just music.
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CuriosityStream. Silver Spring, Maryland
Number of Subscribers: 13 million (January 2020)
CuriosityStream is a streaming platform that offers non-fiction documentaries, shows, and feature films to its users. Some of its content is original and includes titles such as “The History of Home,” “Miniverse,” “Beyond the Spotlight,” and Stephen Hawking’s “Favorite Places.”
Curiosity Stream also offers access to titles from the BBC and NHK, and it adds content every week.
Subscribers can view a limited number of free titles or pay a fee to access the whole library.
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HBO. Burbank, California
Number of Subscribers: 12.6 million (December 2020)
HBO Max launched in May of 2020 and currently offers HBO’s shows and documentaries as well as Warner Bros. movies since its parent company is WarnerMedia. It even started launching new movie releases on its platform simultaneously when the films hit theaters.
The platform is also offering exclusive original content through the new label, Warner Max.
HBO Max costs $14.99 a month, but current HBO and HBO Now subscribers should be able to access it with their current credentials as well.
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Number of Subscribers: 12.1 million (February 2021)
A subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, ESPN Plus offers live sports streaming, game replays, sports analyses, features such as the “30 for 30” series, and original titles exclusive to the ESPN Plus platform.
Launched in 2018, ESPN Plus offers content that regular ESPN networks don’t offer, and it allows subscribers to purchase pay-per-view UFC events.
Since ESPN Plus is owned by Disney, subscribers can pay only for ESPN Plus or purchase a bundle subscription, including Disney Plus and Hulu.
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Discovery. Silver Spring, Maryland
Number of Subscribers: 11 million (February 2021)
Discovery Plus only launched in the U.S. on January 4, 2021, but it launched in India in March of 2020. Now, the platform is present in India, the U.S., and Europe.
In addition to original, exclusive content, Discovery Plus offers titles from every channel that falls under the Discovery umbrella, including Discovery, TLC, Animal Planet, Food Network, HGTV, AE, Lifetime, and History.
Like many other streaming services, Discovery Plus offers an ad-free subscription tier along with a less expensive option that still has ads.
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Apple TV Plus. Culver City, California
Number of Subscribers: 10 million (February 2020)
Launched in November of 2019, Apple TV Plus is the first all-original streaming service. It has, however, started offering a few shows and movies that aren’t Apple originals.
This focus on original content has resulted in a smaller library than most streaming platforms provide. However, many of the titles boast high budgets and big stars, including Oprah, Chris Evans, Tom Hanks, Reese Witherspoon, Ted Lasso, and Jennifer Aniston. New content is added every month.
Apple TV Plus costs $5 a month after the free one-year trial that comes with the purchase of a new Apple device. Subscribers can also purchase a subscription bundle called Apple One that includes Apple TV Plus, Apple Music, Apple Arcade, iCloud, Apple News Plus, and Apple Fitness Plus.
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CBS. New York, New York
Number of Subscribers: 8 million (January 2021)
CBS All Access, rebranded as Paramount Plus on March 4, 2021, was launched in 2014 and was the first over-the-top streaming service offered by an American broadcast TV network.
The platform offers titles from the ViacomCBS library, original content, and live TV from CBS’s main channel. Paramount Plus will also offer live CBS and CBS Sports channels and additional content from Nickelodeon, Comedy, Central, MTV, Paramount Pictures, and many others.
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YouTube TV. San Bruno, California
Number of Subscribers: 3 million (October 2020)
YouTube TV allows viewers to stream live TV channels to their internet-connected devices. It also offers on-demand video and DVR services.
YouTube TV provides access to various networks, including ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, Fox, CNN, and ESPN.
YouTube TV began in 2017 and currently costs $65 a month. Its goal is to remove the need for cable contracts and boxes, so its price point is comparable to other cable packages.
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Sling TV. Englewood, Colorado
Number of Subscribers: 2.5 million (December 2020)
Sling TV launched in 2015 and, similar to YouTube TV, is designed to be an alternative to cable. It offers channels such as CNN, ESPN, Food Network, FX, and Comedy Central.
Users can subscribe to packages with fewer channels at $30 a month or a combination package that includes all 53 channels for $45 per month.
Sling TV subscribers can also add on packages that contain more channels or even movies. They can also upgrade the amount of storage space they have to record shows.
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Philo. San Francisco, California
Number of Subscribers: 750,000 (December 2020)
Philo started in 2009 as a counter to traditional cable packages. Today, the company offers live-streamed TV channels as well as a library of on-demand content.
The company originally started in a Harvard dorm as a way for students to get TV signals since Harvard didn’t provide cable TV service.
Philo offers channels such as AE, AMC, Discovery, BBC World News, Hallmark Channel, and ViacomCBS.
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Author
Abby is a writer who is passionate about the power of story. Whether it’s communicating complicated topics in a clear way or helping readers connect with another person or place from the comfort of their couch. Abby attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she earned a degree in writing with concentrations in journalism and business.
