Luke Pensworth
If you’re like a lot of Americans and are ready to cut the cord, we’re guessing you’re doing it to save money. You certainly aren’t cutting the cord because you hate TV. (We just gave Homer Simpson a minor panic attack with that phrase.)
Without question, our Philo TV review shows the cheapest way to stream dozens of live TV channels is with Philo channel lineup. Try the Philo free trial and their affordable packages, and you may find it’s just right for you and your budget.
We have taken advantage of nearly all streaming service free trials, watching multiple hours of good TV, bad TV, and incredibly sappy TV. (We’re looking at you, Lifetime holiday movies.) We’ll break down what is Philo TV and determine whether it’s worth your time and money.
What Is Philo TV?
Philo is a streaming television service. The signal for Philo TV channels will arrive on your screen through your home Internet connection. This differs from DISH or DIRECTV, where the signal arrives via satellite, or AT&T U-Verse or Xfinity TV, where the signal arrives over a cable TV signal.
Best TV Service Providers
If Philo doesn’t have your favorite channels in its lineup and you want a different pay-TV service, we have compiled a list of the best TV service providers.
Philo Prices and Packages
With the Philo packages, you can watch live programming from multiple networks, all for a low monthly price.
And our Philo TV review shows that this streaming service keeps things extremely simple. It has one package of 58 channels for $20 per month. This means Philo does not have any add-on packages for HBO, for example. Additionally, there are no Philo local channels add-on packages.
You do not have to sign a contract to use Philo. It operates on a month-to-month basis, and you can cancel Philo TV at any time.
At one time, Philo had a $16 per month channel package, but it recently canceled that service for new subscribers.
Philo Channels
Philo’s 58-channel list for $20 per month:
- A&E
- AMC
- American Heroes
- Animal Planet
- AspireTV
- AXS TV
- BBC America
- BBC World News
- BET
- BET Her
- Cheddar Business
- Cheddar News
- CLEO TV
- CMT
- Comedy Central
- Cooking Channel
- Destination America
- Discovery Channel
- Discovery Family
- Discovery Life
- DIY Network
- Food Network
- FYI
- Game Show Network
- Hallmark Channel
- Hallmark Drama
- Hallmark Movies and Mysteries
- HGTV
- History
- IFC
- Investigation Discovery
- Law and Crime
- Lifetime
- Lifetime Movies
- Logo
- MotorTrend
- MTV
- MTV Classic
- MTV Live
- MTV2
- Nick Jr.
- Nickelodeon
- NickToons
- OWN
- Paramount Network
- PeopleTV
- Revolt
- Science Channel
- Sundance TV
- TasteMade
- TeenNick
- TLC
- Travel Channel
- TV Land
- UPtv
- VH1
- Viceland
- We TV
Considering its low price, you might be a bit surprised by the channel lineup for Philo. Some of the most popular shows you can watch on Philo include:
- The Walking Dead on AMC
- Fear the Walking Dead on AMC
- Better Call Saul on AMC
- Love & Hip-Hop Atlanta on VH1
- RuPaul’s Drag Race on VH1
- Teen Mom (and Teen Mom II) on MTV
- The Curse of Oak Island on History
- Vikings on History
- SpongeBob SquarePants on Nickelodeon
- PAW Patrol on Nick Jr.
However, if you’re a sports fan or a fan of Disney programming, the Philo TV guide is probably not for you. Philo does not carry any channels that offer sports, including the major broadcast networks (ABC, FOX, CBS, or NBC), ESPN, TBS, or FS1.
Philo is also missing several popular cable networks, including SyFy, E!, Bravo, USA, Cartoon Network, and FX.
If you want to pay for six months of Philo in advance, you’ll receive a Philo TV on Firestick 4K hardware package as an extra bonus.
Philo TV DVR
The Philo cloud DVR service is impressive, especially considering it is offered as part of the Philo package with no extra cost.
With the cloud DVR, you can store as many hours of programming as you want, but it is only available for up to 30 days. So if you are a TV watching procrastinator, you may lose some of your DVR-stored shows before you can watch them.
Philo TV Performance and User Experience
We really liked how the Philo TV interface and channel guide looked in a web browser. It was easy to navigate.
When using the Philo TV app on a mobile device, though, the experience isn’t quite as good. There’s no channel guide on mobile, which is exceedingly frustrating for those who are used to an extensive pay-TV channel guide.
Philo TV in Competition
If you’re curious how Philo stacks up to other streaming services, we’ve put together the following comparisons in our Philo TV review.
Sling TV vs Philo
Sling and Philo both offer very inexpensive streaming options. In the Sling TV vs Philo comparison, Philo has more channels for the price. But Sling does a better job of providing sports programming, particularly the Sling Orange package.
Philo vs YouTube TV
With Philo vs YouTube TV, the Philo service is far less expensive than YouTube TV per month, a nearly $30 savings. YouTube TV gives you plenty of live sports programming, where Philo does not. With the YouTube TV cloud DVR, you can save shows for up to nine months, where Philo only saves shows for 30 days.
fuboTV vs Philo
The primary difference in the fuboTV vs Philo comparison is that fuboTV is built around sports, while Philo offers no sports. Consequently, Philo costs about one-third as much as fuboTV. Philo has 58 channels, while fuboTV has more than 90 channels, including Showtime.
Philo vs Hulu Live
When considering the Philo vs Hulu Live streaming services, the biggest difference between the two is the price. Hulu Live TV costs more than double what Philo costs. Hulu Live has sports programming, where Philo does not. Hulu Live also allows you to add on packages like HBO for an additional cost.
Xfinity Instant TV vs Philo
XFinity Instant TV is almost the opposite of Philo. It has multiple add-on packages for local channels, sports, and HBO, where Philo has none of those. Philo offers just one package. But Philo is far cheaper than Xfinity Instant TV, especially after you select multiple packages.
Q&A
Is Philo TV compatible with your streaming devices?
Philo’s streaming service will work with many different streaming hardware devices. Philo Roku and Philo Chromecast are among the most popular options, but the full list includes:
- Mobile devices running Apple iOS
- Mobile devices running Android
- Web browsers
- Amazon Fire TV
- Android TV
- Apple TV
- Chromecast
- Roku
Understand that you cannot stream Philo on your PS4 or Xbox One gaming consoles.
Does Philo TV have local channels?
Unfortunately, no. You would need to purchase an over-the-air antenna to receive your local channels (and, consequently, the major networks) separately from Philo. And this means you cannot use the Philo TV DVR for those shows.
Can I use Philo on more than one TV?
You will have the ability to stream on three devices simultaneously with your Philo account. This is a great feature for the family that cannot agree on what to watch.
How does the Philo free trial work?
Just visit the Philo web site to begin the free trial period, which lasts seven days. You can sign up without a credit card to start. However, after the first two days of the free trial, you will need to enter a credit card to continue. As long as you cancel the service before the seven days are up, you will not be charged.
Philo TV is made for those who:
- Want to save as much money on a streaming service as possible.
- Like lifestyle programming.
- Do not want to watch sports.
- Are able to access local channels over an antenna.
