Do you love true crime and investigation television? Then Investigation Discovery (ID) is perfect for you. You can watch some of the most shocking TV with stories pulled right from the headlines. And cord-cutters don’t need to worry because ID is widely available from streaming services.
In a hurry? If you just want to start watching ID and not go through all the pros and cons of your options, here are our three favorite options:
- Fubo: With 150+ channels, it offers something for everyone. Fubo allows you to try out its service with a free trial!
- Philo: Super inexpensive live TV streaming service with 7-day free trial.
- Sling TV: Probably the best streaming service in terms of customization with a 50% discount your first month.
If you can’t watch your favorite sports, TV and movies because of your location, try ExpressVPN to get access to the content you deserve. Signup now.
Table Of Contents
Investigation Discovery, or ID, as it goes by these days, is Discovery’s foray into the true crime genre. It’s not hard to understand why true crime stories are so popular: they’re real-life mystery stories that beg for resolution.
True crime’s roots go back to Jack the Ripper and beyond, but the current surge in popularity is widely credited to the runaway success of the 2014 podcast Serial, the 2015 HBO documentary miniseries The Jinx, and the 2015 Netflix series Making a Murderer. Since 2016, ID’s ratings have soared and it’s become one of the most popular cable channels.
Read on to find out how you can catch the next episode of Detective Diaries and not get (financially) murdered by your cable bill.
How to Watch Investigation Discovery Live Without Cable
ID, as its name implies, is owned by Discovery Inc, which also owns Animal Planet, Discovery, Food Network, HGTV, Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), TLC, Travel Channel, Cooking Channel, Destination America, Discovery Life, Discovery Family, and DIY Network.
ID fans may also be interested in several other channels dedicated to crime, true or fictional: A&E’s Crime + Investigation, Law & Crime, Oxygen, and Start TV.
Although the term “cable channels” has stuck, you don’t need a cable company anymore to watch these channels. Several services stream the same channels over the internet, which you can watch just like a cable service.
Unlike a cable service, however, streaming services require no contracts, no installation visits, and no long-term commitments. And they generally cost less. Which services carry ID? Take a look below.
Unblock Your Favorite Movies and Shows With a VPN
If you can’t watch your favorite movies and shows because of your location, a VPN will allow you to get the access you are entitled to, plus extra security and unequalled privacy. Check out our VPN Guide for everything you need to know, including our top pick ExpressVPN.
Other brands worth checking out include Hotspot Shield and CyberGhost.
Streaming Services with Investigation Discovery
All the major streaming services carry ID, so you’ve got options. Discovery either makes its channels irresistibly low-cost to license, or makes a lot of deals, because every service also carries the core Discovery brands — Discovery, Food Network, HGTV, and TLC — in its base package.
Read on to see what other channels might interest you.
Fubo
Fubo (formerly FuboTV) is a great service for the hard-core sports fan, but it’s got a lot more than just sports. Fubo’s Pro plan provides well over 130 channels for $79.99/mo. This includes ID and Discovery, all your local networks, Animal Planet, OWN, Oxygen, and Travel Channel.
Go for the Elite plan for $89.99/mo and you’ll get 170+ total channels including Discovery Life, Discovery Family, Cooking Channel, Destination America, DIY Network, and Dan Abrams’s Law & Crime Trial Network.
All plans come with 1000 hours of cloud DVR storage and simultaneous streaming on up to 10 devices.
Read our Fubo review for more information.
Philo
Philo is only $25/mo, but it saves money by passing on expensive affiliate markets (your local broadcast networks), WarnerMedia channels (HBO, former Turner channels), and NBCUniversal networks (E!, Bravo, Oxygen). It’s light on news channels and has no sports networks at all. But if it has what you’re looking for, it’s a great deal.
Philo’s 60+ channels include ID and the core Discovery channels, Animal Planet, Cooking Channel, Crime + Investigation, Destination America, DIY Network, Law & Crime, OWN, and Travel Channel. It features unlimited cloud DVR storage and streaming on up to 3 screens at a time.
For more information see our Philo review.
Sling TV
The Sling Blue package is $40.00/mo for 40+ channels, streamable on up to 3 screens at one time with 50 hours of cloud DVR. It includes ID, Discovery, and Travel Channel. You can find Destination America in the Heartland Extra, Law & Crime and Newsmax in the News Extra, and Start TV in the Hollywood Extra — each for $6/mo or less if you get a bundle.
Sling TV has, by far, the fewest Discovery channels of any of the streaming services; it doesn’t carry Animal Planet, Discovery Life, Discovery Family, or OWN at all. But it does offer a great channel selection for a very low price.
Our Sling TV review lays out all your options.
DIRECTV STREAM
DIRECTV STREAM (formerly AT&T TV) is a good “gateway” service for people who want the benefits of streaming but with as little major change to their setup as possible. It’s the only service that offers its own proprietary device, similar to a cable box, complete with voice-activated remote control.
Its base Entertainment plan is $79.99/mo for roughly 80 channels, including ID and Discovery plus Animal Planet and your local broadcast channels and comes with unlimited DVR as long as you sign-up online. The next tier, Choice, is $108.99/mo and you get all the Entertainment channels and Cooking Channel, Oprah Winfrey Network, Travel Channel, and regional sports networks.
Destination America, Discovery Life, Discovery Family, DIY Network, and Oxygen are all on the Ultimate tier ($119.99/mo). Crime + Investigation is available as an add-on.
To see all your options, read our DIRECTV STREAM review.
Get DIRECTV STREAM Free for 5 Days
Hulu + Live TV
Hulu’s on-demand library is arguably the best because of its next-day availability of many of your favorite shows. Hulu + Live TV adds over 85 live channels to that for $76.99/mo. This includes ID and Discovery, all your local broadcast network affiliates, Animal Planet, ESPN+, Disney+, Oxygen, Start TV, and Travel Channel.
Sign up for Hulu Live’s Entertainment Add-on for $7.99/mo and you’ll also enjoy Cooking Channel, Crime + Investigation, Destination America, Discovery Life, Discovery Family, and DIY Network.
Hulu offers unlimited cloud DVR (9 months of storage) and streaming on up to 2 devices at the same time. See our Hulu + Live TV review for details.
Vidgo
Vidgo is a two-tiered service aimed at families and college sports fans. Their base plan, Vidgo Plus, is $69.99/mo for over 100 channels, including ID, Discovery, Animal Planet, DIY Network, Law & Crime, OWN, and Travel Channel. Vidgo Premium is $84.99/mo and adds Discovery Family, Discovery Life, Cooking Channel, and Destination America, among others.
You can stream on up to 3 screens at a time, but there is no DVR functionality or on-demand content. Broadcast networks are limited to Fox and ABC.
Check out our Vidgo review for more information.
Other Ways to Stream Investigation Discovery
There are other ways to get the ID live stream or just the on-demand content:
- Hulu: The base on-demand plan for $7.99/mo has back seasons of a half-dozen ID shows, most notably Homicide Hunter and Deadly Women. (Black Friday details)
- YouTube TV: Similar to Hulu + Live TV, features 85+ channels for $72.99/mo, including ID and Discovery.
- ID Website: Some shows/episodes require a TV provider login (eg, streaming service), like the most recent episodes of On the Case with Paula Zahn. But there’s a lot to watch for free, like the entire seven-season run of American Monster.
- Discovery+: Discovery’s on-demand streaming subscription service, with exclusive series as well as classic shows and specials from across all the Discovery brands. Plans start at $4.99/mo with a 7-day free trial.
Superpower Your Live TV Streaming With a VPN
You can’t beat a VPN for privacy, security, and access. We have used them for years as an important part of our streaming toolkit and we recommend ExpressVPN. Other brands worth checking out include Hotspot Shield and CyberGhost.
| i | See our VPN Buyer’s Guide for complete information on how to choose the best VPN for your needs. |
TVs and Devices to Live Stream ID
You’ll need a streaming device to watch ID. Fortunately, the streaming services we’ve discussed support most that are currently in use. For example, they all support the “stick” devices: Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Roku.
Android and iOS mobile devices are similarly supported. And you can use them (and some web browsers) to cast ID to your TV via Chromecast.
Other than DIRECTV STREAM, all services support smart TVs that are based on Android TV.
Other than Philo and Vidgo, the services support Samsung smart TVs. Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, and Sling TV support LG and Vizio smart TVs. Fubo also supports Hisense TVs. Fubo, Hulu, and Sling support the Xbox One. Hulu also supports the PlayStation.
These are just the most popular devices. Our streaming reviews have complete lists.
Today’s Investigation Discovery Schedule
Here is today’s schedule in Eastern Time:
| Very Scary People – The Black Widow The cops wonder if a series of deaths means a black widow is spinning her web. |
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| Evil Lives Here – I Raised a Sociopath Robert Foust contemplates killing his son, Aaron, as the only way to prevent Aaron from becoming a murderer; instead, Robert chooses to put himself and his son in God's hands, and God's plan makes him question everything. |
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| Evil Lives Here – Why Did I Let Him In? People recount their horrifying true stories about living side-by-side with sociopathic friends or family who go on to commit heinous crimes. |
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| Evil Lives Here – I Don't Know Why He Spared Me Sharon is amazed to be alive after learning about her ex's twisted crimes. |
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| Evil Lives Here – He Pretended to Save Me The story of Morgan Metzer, a woman who fell victim to an elaborate assault and rescue drama orchestrated by her ex-husband. |
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| Evil Lives Here – He Was a False Prophet As a child, Benjamin Risha believes Tony Alamo when he preaches he is a prophet of God; as Benjamin gets older and realizes that the prophet is a liar, he fears for his life because he sees what happens to others who doubt Tony. |
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| Evil Lives Here – She Called To Say I Killed Them Ron Youngblood always dreamt of having a family; when he meets Veronica, he thinks his dreams are coming true; instead, it's a nightmare; she's cold, cruel, and unfaithful; when Ron tries to leave, she destroys everything he cherishes. |
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| 48 Hours on ID – Unmasking the Zombie Hunter The murders of two young women of Phoenix, Arizona, killed 10 months apart in 1992 and 1993, go unsolved for more than two decades; thanks to time and new technology, police find a person of interest. |
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| 48 Hours on ID – The Dexter Killer Just over a decade after Mark Twitchell was convicted of murdering Johnny Altinger, who prosecutors say he lured into a garage, stabbed and dismembered, Troy Roberts takes a rare look inside Twitchell's mind through his writings. |
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| Evil Lives Here – She Called To Say I Killed Them Ron Youngblood always dreamt of having a family; when he meets Veronica, he thinks his dreams are coming true; instead, it's a nightmare; she's cold, cruel, and unfaithful; when Ron tries to leave, she destroys everything he cherishes. |
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| 48 Hours on ID – Unmasking the Zombie Hunter The murders of two young women of Phoenix, Arizona, killed 10 months apart in 1992 and 1993, go unsolved for more than two decades; thanks to time and new technology, police find a person of interest. |
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| 48 Hours on ID – The Dexter Killer Just over a decade after Mark Twitchell was convicted of murdering Johnny Altinger, who prosecutors say he lured into a garage, stabbed and dismembered, Troy Roberts takes a rare look inside Twitchell's mind through his writings. |
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| Evil Lives Here – He Was a False Prophet As a child, Benjamin Risha believes Tony Alamo when he preaches he is a prophet of God; as Benjamin gets older and realizes that the prophet is a liar, he fears for his life because he sees what happens to others who doubt Tony. |
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| On the Case With Paula Zahn – Capable of Murder As police investigate the gruesome murder of a mother and child, they realize all the evidence indicates the killer is someone the victims knew and trusted. |
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| On the Case With Paula Zahn – A Needle in the Mud A young mother vanishes, leaving behind nothing but puzzling clues and disturbing questions; a needle in the mud may reveal the truth behind her disappearance. |
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| The Killer Beside Me – Living a Lie Bob Peterson invites himself over to his co-workers Gene and Jaye-Jaye Thurnau's new home to give them a housewarming present; later, Jaye-Jaye leaves the guys alone to run an errand, during which time they vanish. |
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| The Killer Beside Me – Flowers in the Lake Afer Leesa Nascimento is shot dead, a recently fired coworker, Lorenza Sam, is tied to her murder and arrested. |
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| The Killer Beside Me – The Evil Inside Kerri Harris and her friend discover a camera secreted in the restroom at work; while police examine the evidence, Harris is stabbed to death in her office with her co-workers just a few feet away. |
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| Fear Thy Neighbor – Desperate Times, Deadly Measures An Appalachian couple is delighted when their neighbors return home after disappearing for 10 years, but they've changed for the worse, unleashing a campaign of endless intimidation and harassment that ultimately ends in a bloodbath. |
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| Fear Thy Neighbor – Games of Homes New neighbors disrupt the harmony that has existed between residents for years; alliances change and terror reigns until a winter storm puts a bloody end to the feud. |
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| Fear Thy Neighbor – Philly Fallout The building of a backyard shed destroys a yearslong, close relationship between two neighbors and ignites a vicious conflict that sees property destroyed, pets killed, and finally two people shot to death in cold blood. |
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| Fatal Vows – Second Chance at Death While mourning the death of his wife, Julian falls hard for his much-younger coworker, Teresa; for a time, Teresa's spunk lifts Julian's spirits until a sordid affair plunges him into an abyss. |
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| Fatal Vows – Drowning in Tears When Tim meets Maryann at a Catholic mixer, it's a match made in heaven, but while the future looks bright, a dark cloud gathers on the horizon in the person of Tim's ex-wife. |
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| Fatal Vows – No Harmony in Polyamory Rebecca Murray falls for Lee Mikael Cawthon and soon exotic dancer Allite Franks and best friend, Thad join the relationship as a third and fourth partner, but this open-minded foursome soon discovers there's no harmony in polyamory. |
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| Fatal Vows – Death Outranks Love It's a military match made in heaven for Roger and Margorie, but a tangled web of financial secrets and twisted lies ruins the young couple's future; while the rise of their careers and romance seems meteoric, the ensuing fall is deadly. |
Wrapping Up
As you can see by this list, there is no need to live in terror from your cable bill. And you don’t need Paula Zahn to close this case!
Just sign up for one of the streaming services discussed in this article and you can enjoy ID while making sure your predatory cable bill never targets you again!
FAQ
Where did Investigation Discovery come from?
ID launched back in 1996 with the ridiculously cumbersome name “Discovery Civilization Network: The World History and Geography Channel.” It was part of a four-channel bundle together with what would become Destination America, Science, and Discovery Family. From 2002 to 2006, The New York Times and Discovery ran the channel together, first as Discovery Civilization Channel and then as Discovery Times. They experimented with focusing on current events and modern history, then on US culture.
The Times left the venture in 2006, but the name didn’t change until the 2008 relaunch as Investigation Discovery with a newly appointed focus on true crime stories. The now-popular network rebranded as simply ID in 2020, with a brand new logo.
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