In the digital world, users require a platform where they have access to numerous functionalities in one single place. The best competitors in this category are YouTube TV and Hulu Live TV, as they both provide an immersive movie streaming experience. However, on the web, there is an active YouTube TV vs. Hulu Live debate about which platform offers better services.
To help you with this, our team of experts tried and tested both platforms and provided honest feedback. So read till the end, as we have broken down all the parameters of Hulu Live TV vs. YouTube TV and examined which one has top-notch streaming capabilities.
If you are looking to upgrade your streaming experience with movie streaming and trying to choose the best one between YouTube TV vs. Hulu Live, then mentioned-underneath is a detailed list of the key differences between these platforms.
| ASPECT | Hulu Live TV | YouTube TV |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | $82.99 | $72.99 |
| Free Trial | 3 Days | 7 Days |
| Device Support | Web browsers iOS iPadOS Android Android TV Google RV Roku Amazon Fire TV Apple TV Chromecast Xbox Smart TVs Nintendo Switch PS4 PS5 More | Chrome Firefox Safari iOS 12 or Later iPadOS 12 or Later Android L or Later Android TV Google TV Roku Amazon Fire TV Apple TV Chromecast with Google TB Xbox One or Later Smart TVs (Selected Models) PS4 PS5 TiVo Stream 4K Xfinity Flex |
| Channels | 95+ | 100+ |
| Simultaneous Streams | Two (Minimum) | Three (Minimum) |
| Advertisements | ✅ | ✅ |
| DVR | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| On-Demand | ✅ | ✅ |
| Original Programming | ✅ | ❌ |
| Personalization | Content Recommendations My Stuff Library Like and dislike content DVR Library | Content Recommendations DVR Library Personalized Channel Lineup |
| Anime | ✅ | ✅ |
| Offline Downloads | ✅ | ✅ |
| Profile Limits | Seven | Six |
| Parental Control | Kids Profile PIN Protection | Rating Filter |
| Traveling within the US | Available on mobile (Unless updated on the website.) | Available anywhere |
| Benefits | Disney+ and ESPN bundle | Excellent user experience |
The table provides an overview of the entire difference between the specifications of the watching experiences.
YouTube claims that they have more than 100 channels, while Hulu boasts that it provides 95 top and prominent channels. Some are common between the two; however, they both miss out on some very important and notable channels. Such as Hulu offers History and Lifetime, whereas YouTube doesn’t offer A&E and ACC ESPN.
For this reason, we have listed a detailed Hulu vs. YouTube TV channel list. So you can check whether your preferred channel is offered by the service or not.
| Channel | YouTube TV | Hulu Live TV |
|---|---|---|
| A&E | ❌ | ✅ |
| ABC | ✅ | ✅ |
| AMC | ✅ | ❌ |
| BET | ✅ | ✅ |
| Bravo | ✅ | ✅ |
| CBS | ✅ | ✅ |
| CNN | ✅ | ✅ |
| CNN | ✅ | ✅ |
| Comedy Central | ✅ | ✅ |
| ESPN | ✅ | ✅ |
| ESPN 2 | ✅ | ✅ |
| FETV | ✅ | ❌ |
| Food Network | ✅ | ✅ |
| Fox | ✅ | ✅ |
| FS1 | ✅ | ✅ |
| FX | ✅ | ✅ |
| Grit | ❌ | ❌ |
| Hallmark Channel | ✅ | ✅ |
| Hallmark Movies and Mysteries | ✅ | ✅ |
| HGTV | ✅ | ✅ |
| History | ❌ | ✅ |
| HISTORY | ❌ | ✅ |
| Investigation Discovery | ✅ | ✅ |
| Ion | ✅ | ❌ |
| Lifetime | ❌ | ✅ |
| MeTV | ✅ | ❌ |
| MSNBC | ✅ | ✅ |
| MTV | ✅ | ✅ |
| National Geographic | ✅ | ✅ |
| NBC | ✅ | ✅ |
| Nick at Nite | ✅ | ✅ |
| Oxygen | ✅ | ✅ |
| Paramount Network | ✅ | ✅ |
| REELZ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Syfy | ✅ | ✅ |
| TBS | ✅ | ✅ |
| Telemundo | ✅ | ✅ |
| The CW | ✅ | ✅ |
| The CW | ✅ | ✅ |
| TLC | ✅ | ✅ |
| TNT | ✅ | ✅ |
| TV Land | ✅ | ✅ |
| Univision | ✅ | ❌ |
| USA Network | ✅ | ✅ |
| USA Network | ✅ | ✅ |
| WE TV | ✅ | ❌ |
*As of November 2024*
The above-mentioned list suggests that YouTube TV has more channel options to offer than Hulu TV.
Picture quality is another big aspect to look out for when it comes to streaming, especially in today’s digital age. It includes the color and clarity of the videos. In this factor, both platforms offer a moderate yet decent level of image quality.
They offer 720p to 1080p range, which is very low for such big streaming platforms. The brownie point YouTube score in this comparison is that they offer their users to switch the video quality midstream with their on-screen menu. On the other hand, Hulu Live TV doesn’t provide any such option.
| HULU+ LIVE TV | YOUTUBE TV |
|---|---|
| 1080p/ 60fps | 1080p Enhanced (selected shows) |
| 720p/ 60fps | 1080p |
| 4K (on-demand content) | 720p |
| 4K (Extra charges) |
However, YouTube does allow users to get 4K videos with an additional charge. People on the internet complain about how Hulu + Live TV has a lower resolution than YouTube TV.
When it comes to kids, parental control is an essential prospect. This feature allows adults to control and monitor the content that is consumed by their children digitally. It is a very essential component that mostly all platforms are integrating with time.
Hulu allows users to create a separate profile dedicated to kids, where they will only produce and show content that is for the kids. Moreover, one can actually set up passwords in PINS for adults and regular profiles.
On the other hand, YouTube TV lets their users create a profile and put a certain rank to them into one of the three categories, that is, 1. Allow up to PG, 2. Allow up to TV-14, or 3. Allow all content. Upon doing that, you will be able to manage the kid’s content, and their profile will not come across any inappropriate content.
Ahead, we have also listed the channels that are available on the platform for young audiences to enjoy.
| Channel | Hulu+ Live TV | YouTube TV |
|---|---|---|
| Animal Planet | ✅ | ✅ |
| Boomerang | ✅ | ❌ |
| Cartoon Network | ✅ | ✅ |
| Disney Channel | ✅ | ✅ |
| Disney Junior | ✅ | ✅ |
| Disney XD | ✅ | ✅ |
| Freeform | ✅ | ✅ |
| Smithsonian Channel | ✅ | ✅ |
| Universal Kids | ✅ | ✅ |
| Nick@Nite | ❌ | ✅ |
| Nickelodeon | ❌ | ✅ |
| PBS’s Thirteen | ❌ | ✅ |
According to this Hulu vs. YouTube TV Kids channel list comparison, YouTube clearly beats Hulu.
From following the favorite games to recording the available ones, both YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV. This acts like a great way to interest your kids in sports, which means they will get to learn about numerous informative things about games.
| YouTube TV | Hulu Live TV |
|---|---|
| Score and menu on a tab. | Offers the NFL network, and not NBA TV, or MLB Network. |
| Multiview (Four screens) | Sports Add-ons included. |
| Sports Add-ons included. |
If you are into watching the YES, NESN, MBL, and Bally Sports channels, then you’ll have to find other platforms. Moreover, you can see the scores and statistics in the menu on the YouTube TV tab, which isn’t available on Hulu+ Live TV.
Other than this, on YouTube, in the Multiview feature, users have the option to view as well as watch four games at the same time for selected sports.
In this comparison of YouTube TV vs Hulu Live, when we take DVR’s performance into consideration, both platforms offer the same facility to their users. On YouTube TV, users get cloud-based DVR specs, where they can use an unlimited amount of recordings for a nine-month period.
Once the period is exhausted, the recording automatically gets deleted from the platform, which is space-saving and nice. However, on Hulu + Live TV, users get a storage limit of 50 hours in DVR recordings, which stays in the storage as long as they maintain their subscription.
Add-ons are a fantastic element that enhances the overall streaming experience, the best thing about both of these streaming services is that they offer a bunch of add-ons. This feature enables the end user to get more out of their basic subscription. Let’s take a look at all the major add-ons provided by these platforms.
| Hulu+ Live TV | YouTube TV |
|---|---|
| Max | NFL Sunday Ticket |
| Paramount+ with SHOWTIME | 4K Plus |
| Unlimited Screens Add-on | NFL Sunday Ticket + NFL RedZone |
| STARZ | WNBA League Plus |
| Español Add-on | Max |
| Cinemax | Spanish Plus |
| Entertainment Add-on (Includes MTV Classic, Nicktoons, etc.) | Sports Plus |
| Sports Add–on (Includes NFL RedZone, Tennis Channel, etc.) | NBA League Plus |
| Entertainment Plus (Includes Max, Paramount+ with SHOWTIME and STARZ ) |
There are more add-ons available on both platforms; however, there are many more on YouTube TV than Hulu+ TV. So if you are someone who loves to elevate their streaming experience with these additional features, then you should definitely go for YouTube TV.
On-demand content is the multimedia programs that you wish to listen to and has a wide collection of current and past shows as well as movies. It includes programs that people have grown up watching and treasure, or movies that haven’t launched on other OTT platforms.
When we take into consideration both of these factors for comparison of Hulu Live TV vs. YouTube TV, none of those two services hit the bull’s eye.
This is because, despite these services offering a multitude of content, the audiences are required to buy and give an additional buck to purchase the program by going to the setting option.
Our most efficient, tech-savvy team members took it upon themselves to find the best application and end the whole debate of Hulu Live vs. YouTube TV. Here is a detailed list of things they have noticed:
Given the abovementioned, one can tell that YouTube TV offers much better and more efficient services, making it a better option than Hulu+ Live TV.
In the end, the major point still remains the same: which streaming platform performs better and has more valuable things to offer? For this reason, we have summed up the entire article in precise pointers, so you get a much better perspective of the specific pros and cons of Hulu Live vs. YouTube TV.
Depending on the information provided above, you can select which platforms suit you more.
The whole debate related to YouTube TV vs. Hulu Live TV is a matter of what feature you want more in your streaming service. However, from our perspective, we believe that YouTube clearly defeats Hulu+ Live TV, especially with its intuitive interface, along with offering more channels in a lot of categories.
Moreover, on YouTube TV, you don’t have to update your location again and again while traveling, unlike Hulu+ Live TV, where users get to switch locations to access their profiles while traveling.
Hulu+ Live TV claims to offer more than 95 channels, but it misses on some of the important channels like AMC, FETV, Grit, Ion, MeTV, REELZ, Univision, Nick@Nite, Nickelodeon, PBS’s Thirteen, and WE TV.
YouTube TV has its own brownie points, like it has an intuitive interface that allows users to surf and navigate with ease at a much better price than the other. On the other hand, Hulu+ Live TV enables users to put PINS as passwords and kids’ profiles with a decent quality of channels.
Some of the biggest complaints related to YouTube are that there is limited quality customization, you cannot delete things off the DVR, and it saves DVR a lot more than needed.
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