5 Reasons Why YouTube TV Is Better (And Worse) Than Hulu + Live TV

YouTube TV is a massive live TV streaming service and an essential app for cord-cutting fans. It offers a large selection of top channels and is available via most platforms, including your smart TV, gaming console, and mobile devices. A single YouTube TV subscription works with as many as six accounts, and you can save unlimited content to watch later. However, it's not the only game in town. Hulu + Live TV, which is often cited as one of the YouTube TV alternatives, is a major competitor and offers a similarly large selection of live TV channels and availability via all popular platforms.

Both cost similarly, with the YouTube TV base plan priced at $83 a month and Hulu + Live TV carrying a subscription cost of $90 a month. However, Hulu + Live TV includes ad-supported access to Disney+, ESPN Select, and even the regular Hulu streaming service. So, if you are in the market for a live TV streaming service in 2026, what are some reasons why YouTube TV is better than the Hulu offering, and why it would make sense to choose Hulu + Live TV over YouTube TV? Let's find out.

YouTube TV is an essential streaming app for any sports fan as it offers access to all major national sports networks. That includes ESPN channels, which had a brief scare due to a carriage dispute in late 2025. Regional sports network (RSN) access is not great, but you still get four NBC Sports RSNs. You also get various league channels and can purchase exclusive access to out-of-market NFL games on Sunday afternoons as part of the NFL Sunday Ticket subscription ($192 a year).

However, what really sets YouTube TV apart for sports is special features like Key plays view (AI-powered highlights to catch up on a game) and multiview (watch up to four games of your choice at once). There is also a Sports Plus add-on ($11) to include NFL RedZone, Tennis Channel, beIN SPORTS, Willow, and more.

While all major sports networks are also available via Hulu + Live TV, you miss out on NBA TV, the YouTube TV special features, and NFL Sunday Ticket. However, Hulu + Live TV has the benefit of having ESPN Select and ESPN Unlimited, which bring out of market NHL games, UFC Fight Nights, and college sports. ESPN Unlimited is said to be coming to YouTube TV in the fall, however.

One of the biggest changes introduced by YouTube TV in 2026 is the introduction of genre-specific lean plans that reduce your subscription cost by only offering what you need. It's still not à la carte; you can choose from over 10 plans, including Sports Plan, Sports + News Plan, Entertainment Plan, and News + Entertainment + Family Plan, all of which cost less than the main YouTube TV base plan. More importantly, if you choose any of these plans, you don't lose out on any of the YouTube TV features, such as unlimited DVR, access from six accounts, and three simultaneous streams. You can choose the add-on plans like NFL Sunday Ticket, NFL RedZone with Sports Plus, and 4K Plus over these leaner plans if you want. Keep in mind, these YouTube TV genre plans are slowly being rolled out and will be available to everyone over the coming weeks.

There are no such genre-specific plans available with Hulu + Live TV as of February 2026. You have to buy the base plan that costs $90 a month. Add-ons, of course, increase this cost, like with YouTube TV. The availability of genre plans is another reason why YouTube TV tops the Hulu offering.

Another advantage YouTube TV has over Hulu + Live TV subscription is support for three simultaneous streams in its base plan. You pay your typical subscription costs, and in return, you can watch YouTube TV on any three screens simultaneously. This is very helpful when different family members want to watch different things at the same time. In comparison, you only get two simultaneous streams as part of your base Hulu + Live TV subscription. That said, you can shell out for the Unlimited Screens Add-on with your Hulu Live TV subscription ($10 a month) to stream live TV on as many devices as you want, provided all are connected to the same internet connection. When you get out of the house or away from the home network, the add-on enables access on only three mobile devices, not more.

YouTube TV also gives you the ability to watch content on unlimited screens on your home Wi-Fi network; however, you need the 4K Plus add-on for that. This unlimited screen benefit is just a bonus feature of this add-on, which primarily enables 4K streaming for some of the live TV content, something you can't do on Hulu + Live TV for any live TV content, despite the add-ons.

4K streaming is available for select live TV and on-demand content from Discovery, ESPN, FOX Sports, FX, Nat Geo, NBC Sports, Tastemade, and NBA TV via YouTube TV.

If you're someone who is a fan of Disney+ and Hulu and likes to subscribe to these streaming services, going with Hulu + Live TV saves on the subscription cost of the two services, which will typically set you back $13 a month for the ad-supported plans. Both these streaming services have tons of on-demand content, including Marvel movies and TV shows, "Star Wars" movies and TV shows, Pixar movies, and National Geographic content. Hulu has its own popular originals, and let's not forget acclaimed FX shows. Hulu also gets lots of current season network TV shows a day after they are broadcast on TV.

YouTube TV's on-demand library is smaller and typically includes a rotating selection of TV show episodes and movies available on the channels in your subscription. Some networks offer entire seasons of TV shows. ESPN Select is another benefit that you are getting as part of a Hulu + Live TV subscription, which itself costs $13 a month if purchased separately.

Another little detail that some cord-cutters might find a deal-breaker for YouTube TV is the missing A+E Networks properties. Channels like A&E, History Channel, and Lifetime are not available on YouTube TV. If you really want them, you'll have to subscribe to another service, like Frndly TV, which costs $7 a month and requires using another app. A&E features a lot of true crime content and shows like "Storage Wars,"whereas the History Channel has survival shows and content around mysteries and myths. Lifetime is primarily known for drama and romance. You get all three as part of a Hulu + Live TV subscription, including their complete on-demand libraries.

Other notable omissions from YouTube TV include Cooking Channel and Science Channel. That said, Hulu + Live TV is not without its own set of missing channels. For example, it doesn't include AMC and BBC America.