Watch The CW Online: How to Start Streaming Primetime TV Without Cable Now

I watch The CW regularly even though it’s not as well-known as the Big Four networks. The channel offers lots of fun content, and my local station broadcasts sports and news. Like many viewers, I pick up the channel with an antenna, but when that’s not possible, I access The CW through streaming services without needing a cable contract.

In a hurry? If you want a well-rounded cable replacement service that also provides The CW, these plans will work great:

Why You Need a VPN Today

However, first you need a VPN to unblock US streaming services from . Our favourite is ExpressVPN. It’s definitely not the cheapest option at $6.67/month, but it just works – and across all your devices.

They have servers in 25+ US cities/states and 105 countries, which unblock access to premium streaming platforms available only in the US, as well as free “on demand” TV services worldwide.

You’ll have access to local platforms as if you were in the country, meaning you can watch BBC iPlayer as if you were in the UK, CBC Gem as if you were in Canada, plus hundreds more worldwide.

Sign Up for ExpressVPN

Hotdog users get three months free at ExpressVPN, so it’s a “no-brainer” for us. Decide for yourself with their 30 day money-back guarantee.

IMPORTANT: Once you’ve installed your VPN and connected to a US server, you’ll still need to subscribe separately to access premium streaming services.

The CW: Warner Entertainment and Paramount Global’s supernatural teenage drama baby. Ok, maybe not every show on The CW features superpowered teens or twenty-somethings — whether they’re witches, superheroes, vampires, angels, demons, or fighting them — but a lot of them do. It is a theme going all the way back to its roots in The WB.

But you don’t have to succumb to frustrated adolescent angst at the cost of your cable bill just because you’re a major Legends of Tomorrow fan. Read on to find out how you can get your Riverdale fix without cable.

Sign Up for a Free Fubo Trial

How to Watch The CW Live Without Cable

The CW, as mentioned, is a joint venture between what are now Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS) and the AT&T-owned WarnerMedia (more on that in the FAQ), which leads to some weird family relations.

Sister-stations on the WarnerMedia side include HBO, Cinemax, TNT, and TBS; on the Paramount Global side, broadcast network rival CBS, Showtime, Paramount Network, and MTV. Also popular with the 18-49 crowd are Bravo, USA, ABC, NBC, Fox, Discovery, and TLC.

As an over-the-air (OTA) station, The CW is free to whoever is in range of a signal. For the price of an antenna, you can watch it on your TV totally free, just like other networks.

But if you don’t want to go that route, you still don’t need a cable company. OTT (over-the-top) streaming services provide all the same channels and features as cable subscriptions, for less money and hassle. Which ones carry The CW? Let’s find out.

Streaming Services with The CW

So the bad news is that because OTT streaming services are relatively new, they don’t always have quite the clout (or the money) to negotiate the networks into line. This means that some services have better network coverage than others.

What does this mean for you and your All American obsession? We’re happy to tell you that four of the biggest streaming services carry all the OTA networks, including The CW, assuming you’re in the coverage area. If not, don’t panic. We’ll go into other options further down.

FuboTV

FuboTV has got the sports. All the sports. Seriously, try to find a sport this service doesn’t cover.

Sign Up for a Free Fubo Trial

So if you like your dark fantasy sulking and moping with a side of football, or baseball, or basketball, or, really, any kind of ball — this is the service for you. It has a large number of sports channels including ESPN, ESPN2, FS1, FS2, and CBS Sports Network as well as multiple beIN Sports and TUDN channels.

The one downside is that Fubo doesn’t carry WarnerMedia channels. We guess half-Warner is ok, but HBO, Cinemax, TBS, and TNT are just straight out. This is particularly unfortunate since HBO Max has exclusive rights to on-demand streaming of several popular CW shows, including Superman & Lois and Stargirl. You can, of course, get the standalone HBO Max service.

FuboTV is $79.99/month for well over 110 channels. You also get unlimited cloud DVR storage and you can stream on up to 10 devices at a time. But, unless you are a hardcore sports fan, you’re probably better off with Hulu + Live TV.

Our FuboTV review has all the details.

DIRECTV STREAM

The base package from DIRECTV STREAM (formerly AT&T TV) offers over 75 channels of pure entertainment — so much, that’s what they call it: the Entertainment package.

Get DIRECTV STREAM Free Trial

They’ve got it all: network stations (including The CW), popular “basic cable” channels (such as AMC, Discovery, Paramount Network, Bravo, MTV, TBS, TLC, TNT, and USA), and premium options (Cinemax, HBO, and Showtime, among others).

All plans come with unlimited cloud DVR storage as long as you sign-up online. They allow streaming on unlimited devices in your home at the same time — and 3 away from home. All this, for just $79.99/month.

Get more details in our DIRECTV STREAM review.

Hulu + Live TV

Hulu + Live TV starts with the outstanding Hulu on-demand library. It adds 85+ live TV channels to that for $76.99/month. This includes The CW pretty much everywhere. Hulu Live comes with unlimited cloud DVR and 9 months of storage. And you can stream on up to 2 devices simultaneously.

Get Hulu + Live TV for $59.99 Monthly

Note that most premium subscriptions through Hulu — like HBO, ESPN+, Disney+, Cinemax, Showtime, and Starz — give you access to all six to eight multiplexed linear channels.

So, for example, you don’t just get HBO and HBO2 when you get HBO Max through Hulu — you also get HBO Comedy, HBO Family, HBO Latino, HBO Signature (for the ladies), and HBO Zone (for the millennials). DIRECTV STREAM, by contrast, only offers HBO and HBO2.

See our Hulu + Live TV review for more details.

Other Ways to Stream The CW

Another option for streaming The CW is YouTube TV. It offers 85+ channels for $72.99/month and is generally similar to Hulu + Live TV.

But maybe you live in a rural area like the Kents in Smallville and there isn’t an affiliate of The CW. Or your city ought to have an affiliate but just hasn’t gotten around to finding one. No worries, check out these other options:

• The CW’s official site actually streams a lot of shows, including new ones, free with no subscription required. There will be ads, but the latest episodes of current shows are available on cwtv.com the next day– something we haven’t seen from any other channel.
• HBO Max: The exclusive streaming home of most newly Warner-produced CW content, which is to say, pretty much all of the most popular stuff, and anything that takes place in the DC universe, which is all the various superhero dramas. You can pick up a subscription direct from HBO starting at $9.99/mo. This doesn’t give you access to a live CW channel and locally-produced content, but it’s the next best thing; new episodes will be available the day after they air, or sooner.
• Netflix: Any show that isn’t on HBO Max
• CW Seed: The CW’s experimental new free web-channel contains almost all original Seed-exclusive shows, but we did spot Whose Line Is It Anyway?, so they have at least one broadcast crossover. You can watch it and other shows for free on The CW app. Note that it does not include The CW live stream.

TVs and Mobile Devices to Live Stream The CW

The services above allow you to watch on most TVs and other devices. All the popular “stick” devices are supported: Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Roku.

Recent model Samsung smart TVs are also supported. FuboTV and Hulu + Live TV also support smart TVs from LG, Vizio, and Android TV-based systems.

You can also stream on Android and iOS smartphones and tablets. And you can cast from these devices (also some web browsers) to your smart TV with Chromecast built-in or external.

Fubo and Hulu both let you watch on the Xbox One. Hulu also supports the PlayStation and Nintendo Switch.

If you don’t see your device, look in our streaming service reviews. They each have complete lists.

Wrapping Up

So whether you prefer your young protagonists to battle their inner demons or actual demons, you can banish your hell-beast of a cable bill from your life completely.

Just sign up for one of the services above and enjoy the new season of Walker, without the cable bill drama.

FAQs

What happened to The WB and UPN?

Way back in 1995, two major media companies, Time Warner and Paramount Pictures, each launched their own little over-the-air networks, The WB and UPN. Fox, launched about a decade earlier, showed that a new network could, in theory, compete with the Big Three. Sadly, both of the baby networks’ success was predicated on being the only newcomer on the network field. The divided viewership doomed the fledgling channels from the start.

Eleven years later, both networks were still hemorrhaging money from their parent companies. So Time Warner and CBS, which had gained ownership of UPN, hashed out a plan to close down their respective networks and go in 50-50 on a new one that would broadcast the most successful TV shows from both former channels.

The new network was christened The CW (CBS-Warner) and launched on September 18, 2006. That’s what happened to The WB and UPN and how we all got to watch Supernatural for fifteen years.

Does The CW show sports?

The CW network itself does not broadcast much in terms of sports. But many local affiliates of The CW do. Of particular note is WPIX (PIX11) in New York. Although it is part of The CW network, it is also a big broadcaster of both Yankees and Mets games. Check out the schedule of your local affiliate. Note that most games will appear on YES Network and SportsNet New York.

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Alanna Baker

Alanna Baker was the Streaming Content Editor at Hotdog.com, specializing in comprehensive streaming coverage across various genres, with a particular focus on sports and Sling TV offerings. With a background in literature and education, coupled with extensive experience in media and law, Alanna brings a unique perspective to the streaming industry.

Her expertise stems from being an early adopter of various entertainment technologies, from mail-order Netflix to modern streaming platforms. Alanna's in-depth knowledge of Sling TV's modular service and her ability to cover diverse streaming content make her a key expert in navigating the complex landscape of modern streaming options, especially in sports and entertainment.

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