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Full HD + 5.1 sound + 3 streams add-on

NOW Boost in 2026

Boost is the £6/month bolt-on that turns standard NOW streaming into a proper living-room experience: 1080p Full HD, Dolby 5.1 sound and three simultaneous streams instead of 720p stereo and two. Whether that is worth £72 a year depends entirely on how, where and with whom you watch.

Standard vs Boost Add Boost on NOW

At a glance

£6/month, monthly rolling 1080p HD instead of 720p Dolby 5.1 surround sound 3 streams instead of 2

Side-by-side

Standard NOW vs NOW + Boost

Every difference Boost makes in plain language. Anything not in this table (catalogue, channels, contract length) is identical with or without Boost.

Feature Standard NOW NOW + Boost
Video resolution 720p HD 1080p Full HD
Sound Stereo Dolby Digital 5.1
Simultaneous streams 2 devices 3 devices
Ads on on-demand Some Removed
4K Ultra HD No No (NOW does not support 4K libraries)
Price on top of pass £0 £6 / month

Honest read

Who NOW Boost is worth it for, and who it is not

£6/month is £72 a year. For the right viewer, that is the best £72 they will spend on streaming. For the wrong viewer, it is money on something they cannot see.

Worth it for

  • Family watching on a 55"+ TV

    On a big screen, the jump from 720p to 1080p is genuinely visible. Boost is hardest to justify on a phone or 24-inch monitor and easiest to justify on a modern living-room TV.

  • Households with three viewers

    If three people in the house want to watch something different at the same time, the 3-stream allowance pays for itself in avoided arguments.

  • Sports viewers

    Football, F1 and cricket benefit from the higher bitrate. Picture stays sharper in fast motion and the Dolby 5.1 mix on Sky Sports is closer to the satellite experience.

  • Sky Atlantic / Sky Cinema fans

    HBO dramas and Sky Cinema premieres look noticeably better in Full HD with surround sound. If you already have a soundbar, you are leaving most of it on the table without Boost.

Skip it if

  • Solo casual viewer on a phone

    720p on a 6-inch screen is already past the point where most eyes can tell the difference. Save the £6.

  • Single user with one device

    You will never use the 3-stream allowance. The picture and sound upgrade alone is rarely worth £72 a year for one person.

  • Slow broadband (under 25 Mbps)

    Boost streams at a higher bitrate (~12 Mbps). If your line is already buffering at 720p, paying for 1080p will not help. Fix the broadband first.

  • 4K obsessives

    NOW does not stream true 4K Ultra HD on a wide library, even with Boost. If you specifically want 4K, look at Netflix Premium or Disney+ Premium instead.

Selectra verdict on Boost

Independent read

Boost is one of the better-value streaming add-ons on the UK market if you watch on a big TV with someone else in the house. The 720p default on NOW genuinely is a step behind Netflix Standard or Disney+ Standard, and Sky’s 1080p stream with 5.1 audio closes most of that gap.

The case for Boost falls apart the moment you become the only viewer on a phone or laptop. The picture and sound upgrade is much harder to perceive on a small screen, and you will never touch the third stream. Try Boost for one month, watch a film and a live football match on your main TV, and decide. NOW lets you turn it off again at the next billing cycle with one click. There is no penalty for testing it.

Verdict last reviewed 19 May 2026.

FAQ

NOW Boost, your questions answered

How much is NOW Boost in 2026?

NOW Boost is £6 a month on top of any NOW pass. It is monthly rolling, you can turn it on for one billing cycle to test the difference and turn it off again at any time, the change takes effect at the end of the current billing period with no exit fee.

Does Boost give me 4K?

No. Boost lifts standard streaming from 720p to 1080p Full HD. NOW does not currently offer true 4K Ultra HD across its library, with or without Boost. If 4K is a deal-breaker, Netflix Premium, Disney+ Premium and Amazon Prime Video all offer it; NOW is a Full HD service at best.

Does Boost work on every pass?

Yes. Boost is a single add-on that applies to all your active passes at once (Entertainment, Cinema, Sports, Hayu, Kids). You only pay £6 once, not £6 per pass. If you cancel every pass, Boost is automatically cancelled too.

Will Boost help with buffering?

No. If anything, the opposite: Boost streams at a higher bitrate, around 12 Mbps for 1080p, so it is more demanding on your line. If you are already buffering at 720p, Boost will buffer more. The fix is to check your broadband speed (Selectra recommends at least 25 Mbps stable for Boost). On a fibre line of 50 Mbps or more, Boost almost never buffers.

Can I get a NOW Boost free trial?

NOW frequently includes Boost free for a short window when you sign up for a new pass (typically 3 months free Boost with a fixed-term Entertainment offer). The promotion is not always live, so check the offer page on nowtv.com at the moment you sign up. After the free window, Boost rolls on to the standard £6/month unless you cancel it in account settings.