Find the right UK TV package for how you actually watch
Your one-stop hub for UK pay TV. Sky Stream, NOW, EE TV and Virgin Media compared, plus dedicated picks for movies, live sport and streaming-only viewers. From £9.99 a month, no dish required.
£9.99
Cheapest TV package (NOW Entertainment, no contract)
4
Main UK pay-TV platforms (Sky, NOW, EE TV, Virgin)
£174.50
Annual TV Licence (live channels + iPlayer)
100+
Free Freeview & ad-funded channels
The main UK TV packages come from four platforms: Sky (Sky Stream and Sky Glass, no dish), NOW (contract-free streaming from £9.99 a month), EE TV (the rebranded BT TV, on Apple TV 4K) and Virgin Media (cable TV 360 and the new Stream box). The best TV package for you depends on what you watch: pick a platform first, then layer on sport, movie or streaming add-ons. Most households end up paying between £25 and £55 a month once a couple of streaming apps are included.
Below we compare every major UK TV and broadband package side by side on price, platform, contract and channels, then break the choice down by how you watch. This hub also gathers every package, sport, movie and streaming guide on Selectra UK, plus shortcuts to the underlying TV & broadband providers and our interactive comparator.
UK TV packages compared
TV and broadband packages side by side
The main UK pay-TV platforms compared on entry price, contract, the box you get and what is built in. Tap a provider to see the full line-up and current deals.
| Provider | Platform | From (per month) | Contract | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sky | Sky Stream / Sky Glass (no dish) | from £15 | 18 to 24 months | Broadest catalogue; add Netflix, Sky Cinema, Sky Sports and TNT in one bill |
| NOW | Streaming stick or app | from £9.99 | No contract, rolls monthly | Cheapest way in; Entertainment, Cinema and Sports passes you can drop any month |
| EE TV | Apple TV 4K (formerly BT TV) | from £15 | 24 months | Best if you already have EE or BT broadband; TNT Sports and Netflix add-ons |
| Virgin Media | TV 360 cable box / Stream box | from £26 | 18 months | Gig broadband plus TV in one bundle; Netflix and Prime built into the guide |
| BT | Migrating customers to EE TV | from £15 | 24 months | Existing BT TV households; new sign-ups now go to EE TV on Apple TV 4K |
Entry prices are provider published rates verified August 2026 and exclude broadband and the TV Licence (£174.50 a year). Sky Sports or TNT Sports add roughly £30 to £36 a month on top.
Worth knowing first
Pros and cons of a TV package
A bundled TV package is not automatically the cheapest route. Here is where it wins and where stacking individual streaming apps can beat it.
Pros
- + One bill, one box and one remote for live channels, sport, films and apps;
- + Bundling TV with fibre often shaves £10 to £15 a month off the same parts bought separately;
- + Sky Stream, EE TV and NOW need no dish, so they work in flats and rentals;
- + Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video sit inside the same on-screen guide.
Cons
- - Headline prices usually run 18 to 24 months, with a mid-contract price rise built in;
- - Sport add-ons are pricey: Sky Sports or TNT Sports adds roughly £30 to £36 a month;
- - Any live channel or BBC iPlayer still needs a £174.50 TV Licence on top;
- - If you only want two apps, three NOW or streaming passes can undercut a full pack.
The four pillars
Start with the essentials
Four core guides cover the questions every UK household asks when picking a TV package. Begin with the closest match to how you watch, then drill into the related guides.
Best TV packages overall
Sky Stream, NOW, EE TV and Virgin Media side by side. Channel line-ups, contracts, hardware and the right pick for how you actually watch.
Read the guideBest movie package
Sky Cinema, Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+, Prime Video, Paramount+, MUBI and BFI Player compared on price, library, new releases and 4K quality.
Read the guideBest sports package
Sky Sports vs TNT Sports (ex-BT Sport), Premier Sports, Amazon Prime Video and DAZN: which bundle covers your team and league.
Read the guideCompare TV packages 2026
Our interactive comparator: tell it how you watch, get the right Sky, EE TV, Virgin, NOW or streaming-only combo with live monthly prices.
Read the guideEvery guide on one page
Filter all 12 TV package guides
Tap a category to narrow down by what you actually want: sport, movies, streaming-only, the cheapest route in or the full provider directory.
Best TV packages overall
Top picks
Sky Stream, NOW, EE TV and Virgin Media side by side. Channel line-ups, contracts, hardware and the right pick for how you actually watch.
Best movie package
Films & cinema
Sky Cinema, Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+, Prime Video, Paramount+, MUBI and BFI Player compared on price, library, new releases and 4K quality.
Best sports package
Football & more
Sky Sports vs TNT Sports (ex-BT Sport), Premier Sports, Amazon Prime Video and DAZN: which bundle covers your team and league.
Compare TV packages 2026
Recommender
Our interactive comparator: tell it how you watch, get the right Sky, EE TV, Virgin, NOW or streaming-only combo with live monthly prices.
Watch BT Sport on Sky
How-to
How to add TNT Sports (formerly BT Sport) to Sky Stream, Sky Glass or Sky Q, plus what bundle you actually need to watch every Champions League match.
Best sports streaming sites
Streaming
Legal UK streaming for football, F1, MotoGP, NFL, NBA, rugby and boxing: DAZN, Discovery+, Prime Video, NOW and Sky Sports compared.
Best streaming services in the UK
On-demand
Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Apple TV+, NOW and the rest ranked on library size, originals, price and what each one is genuinely worth.
Netflix UK
Streaming
Every Netflix UK plan, the latest price changes, the ad-supported tier, the password-sharing crackdown and the new releases worth a free trial.
Best free UK streaming
Free
BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4, My5 plus Pluto TV, Tubi, Samsung TV Plus and the other ad-funded apps that put 200+ free channels on any smart TV.
Cheapest broadband deals
Budget
The cheapest UK broadband plans this month plus the social tariffs for households on Universal Credit and Pension Credit, often paired with TV bundles.
No-contract broadband
Flexible
30-day and rolling-monthly broadband from Cuckoo, NOW Broadband, Virgin Flex and 4G/5G home options. Pair with a NOW TV pass for a fully no-contract setup.
All TV & broadband providers
24 ISPs
Every UK TV and broadband provider on one page: Sky, BT, EE, Virgin Media, NOW, TalkTalk, Vodafone, Plusnet and 16 more, with deals and login links.
Top TV providers
Pick a provider, see the deal
Every major UK TV provider on one row. Tap any tile for the platform, channel line-up, contract terms and current monthly prices.
Tailored to how you watch
TV packages by viewer type
Sport, movies, streaming-only or the full live-channels experience. Pick the closest match to how you actually watch and we point you at the right bundle.
Sport fans
Premier League, Champions League, F1 and rugby. Sky Sports + TNT Sports covers everything live; NOW Sports Day Pass is the cheapest one-off.
from £14.99
NOW Sports Day Pass
Movie buffs
Sky Cinema (with Paramount+ thrown in), Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+ and Prime Video. Stack the two that genuinely fit your watch-list.
from £5.99
Netflix ad-supported
Streaming-only
No live channels, no contract, no TV Licence (if you skip iPlayer and live broadcasts). Pick three streaming apps and call it a day.
from £9.99
NOW Entertainment
3 steps to the right package
How to pick a UK TV package
Forget the marketing names. The choice always comes down to three questions about how you actually watch, then a quick broadband check to make sure the box will work.
List what you actually watch
Premier League? Sky Sports or TNT. Champions League? TNT. Latest films? Sky Cinema or Netflix. Kids? Disney+. Write the channels and shows down first, packages second.
Pick your platform
Sky Stream for the broadest catalogue (no dish), NOW for no contract, EE TV if you already have EE broadband, Virgin Media for cable + gig speeds, streaming-only if you can skip live TV.
Check broadband & contract
Sky Stream, EE TV and NOW all need at least 25 Mbps of working broadband. Virgin Media ships its own. Match the contract length to your plans: 18 to 24 months for the headline price, monthly NOW for flexibility.
Live monthly prices, August 2026
What does a UK TV package actually cost?
Live TV plus a few streaming apps lands most UK households between £25 and £55 a month. The line-up matters more than the headline figure. Compare these benchmarks against your current bill.
£9.99
NOW Entertainment, no contract
£15–£26
Sky Stream / EE TV / Virgin TV
+£30–£36
Sky Sports or TNT Sports add-on
Source: provider published rates, verified August 2026. TV Licence (£174.50/year) sits on top whenever you watch live or iPlayer.
TV packages FAQ
The Selectra expert answers your questions
It depends on what you watch. Sky Stream (from £15/month) is the best all-rounder, with Netflix, Disney+, Paramount+ and Apple TV+ available as add-ons in one box. NOW Entertainment (£9.99/month, no contract) is the cheapest way in. EE TV is the strongest pick if you already have EE broadband and want TNT Sports baked in. See the full breakdown in our best TV packages guide.
No. Sky Stream (the puck-style streaming box) and Sky Glass (the integrated TV) both stream over your broadband - no dish required. Sky Q (the legacy satellite service) is still supported for existing customers but Sky now steers all new sign-ups towards Stream and Glass.
BT rebranded its TV service to EE TV in 2023, and the box is now Apple TV 4K rather than the old YouView set-top. The packages, branding and customer experience are now EE; BT-branded TV is being phased out. The full migration timeline and what changes for existing customers is covered on our EE provider page.
NOW Entertainment at £9.99/month is the cheapest mainstream pay-TV option in the UK. It rolls monthly with no exit fee and includes Sky Atlantic, Sky Max, Sky Witness, Sky Comedy and a library of box sets. For free options, see our best free UK streaming guide.
Sky Sports as a Sky Stream or Sky Q add-on costs around £36/month for the complete sports pack. The cheapest way to access Sky Sports is the NOW Sports Month Membership at £34.99 with no contract, or a Day Pass at £14.99 for 24 hours. Full breakdown in our best sports package guide.
Yes. Sky Stream and Sky Glass have Netflix included in the Sky Ultimate TV plan and let you add Disney+, Paramount+ and Apple TV+ to a single bill. EE TV runs on Apple TV 4K, which natively supports every major streaming app. Virgin Media TV 360 integrates Netflix, Prime Video and Disney+ into its on-screen guide. Compare on price in our best movie package guide.
You need a TV Licence (£174.50/year) to watch any live TV as broadcast (Sky, EE TV, NOW Live, Freeview live, terrestrial) and to watch BBC iPlayer on demand. You do not need one for Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Apple TV+ or any other on-demand-only service that is not iPlayer.
Yes. Sky, EE TV, Virgin Media and BT all sell combined TV and broadband packages on a single bill, which usually works out cheaper than buying the two separately. NOW can pair a no-contract TV pass with NOW Broadband for a flexible setup. Check the broadband side first, for example our Sky broadband and BT and EE TV pages, then add the TV tier that matches what you watch. Our cheapest broadband guide lists the current entry prices.
Sometimes, but not always. Bundles save money when you genuinely want every component: BT/EE's combined fibre + EE TV + Netflix/Discovery+ is usually £10 to £15 a month cheaper than the same components bought separately. NOW + Netflix + Disney+ stacked individually is often cheaper than Sky Stream's broadest pack. List what you actually watch, then price both routes for that exact list - our TV comparator does it for you.