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I remember when The Disney Channel first launched in 1983 as a premium add-on to cable packages. For years, I watched it trail behind Nickelodeon in the ratings battle until finally claiming the top spot in 2012. Now I can stream my favorite Disney Channel shows like Bunk’d without the need for a cable subscription.
Seeing “not available in your area” or a blackout? Connect to another US location to unlock regional sports, news, and shows you already pay for. A streaming subscription is still required.
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In a hurry? The Disney Channel is not available via antenna but it is widely supported by streaming services. Here are our favorites:
All three services carry Disney. Pick based on your budget:
Best Overall
185+ channels including Disney, all major sports networks, and local channels. 7-day free trial – watch tonight, cancel anytime. Best if you want one service that “just works”, without piecing together bundles.
From $79.99/mo after free trial
Lowest Price
Carries Disney from $45.99/mo – roughly half the price of Fubo. Add channel packs if you want more. The lowest-cost route for Disney, if you are happy with a smaller bundle.
Most Channels
90+ channels including Disney – the closest thing to full cable without a contract. 5-day free trial, then from $59.99/mo.
Away from home? If your content is blocked, a VPN helps you keep streaming. Our top pick is ExpressVPN.
The Disney Channel has constantly updated its formatting and programming over the years to keep up with the times. Currently, its shows are aimed at 6- to 14-year-olds. The preschool-targeted Disney Junior is for the 2 to 7 set. And Disney XD goes for kids 6 to 11.
Their main rivals, of course, are Nickelodeon (and Nick’s sister-channels Nick Jr, TeenNick, and NickToons). Other rivals are Cartoon Network, Boomerang, PBS Kids, and Universal Kids.
The Disney Channel is a pay channel (as opposed to a “free-to-air” or “over-the-air” channel, like ABC or CBS). If you want to watch it, you need a subscription to a pay TV service. That used to be a cable company.
But these days you can just as easily (more easily, in fact) get your TV through the internet by signing up with a streaming live TV provider. You get all the same channels, but for less money and without any contracts or locked-in periods.
Which ones carry your favorite mouse’s channel? Check it out below.
The good news for Disneyphiles is that the Disney Channel is ubiquitous among TV providers. The only major live TV streaming service that doesn’t carry it at all is bargain service Philo. But don’t worry, you still have a lower cost option in Sling TV.
FuboTV is a sports fan’s dream, especially American soccer fans who are sadly neglected by a country that prefers football (the pigskin kind). Fubo has over 130 channels in its base Starter package (about a third of them are pure sports) for $79.99/month after a 7-day free trial.
All plans include unlimited cloud DVR storage, streaming on up to 10 screens at once, and over 100 events in 4K. On the other hand, they’re missing the WarnerMedia channels (including the Turner channels, which means missing some NBA and MLB playoffs games) and A&E (which also includes Lifetime and History). What they do have is all three Disney channels, Nick and Nick Jr, and Universal Kids all included in their base package.
For more, see our FuboTV review.
The big selling points of Sling TV are flexibility and affordability. The Disney Channel is included with Sling Orange. It is $45.99/month for over 30 channels, which you can only watch on one screen at a time.
Disney Junior and XD are both available in the Kids Extra, which is $6/mo additional and also has NickToons and TeenNick. This makes Sling a less ideal choice if you have multiple Raven-Symoné fans.
For more information, see our Sling TV review.
DIRECTV (formerly AT&T TV) is dedicated to making your transition to streaming live TV as painless and non-disruptive as possible by making it as much like cable as possible (but still contractless and cheaper).
The interface is tight, they have great local network coverage, and they have the biggest selection of regional sports networks around. Its base Entertainment tier has over 75 channels, including all three Disney channels, plus Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Freeform, and PBS Kids, for $59.99/month. Probably the best selection of kids channels in any base package, to be honest. Also, they throw in unlimited DVR storage and streaming on unlimited devices in your home at one time.
See our DIRECTV review for more information.
Hulu + Live TV is a solid all-around cable replacement service. It’s true that it’s one of the more expensive options, starting at $82.99/month, but, in addition to over 85 live channels and Hulu’s own on-demand library, you get Disney+ and ESPN+.
Start Hulu + Live TV Free Trial ↗︎
Hulu Live also includes unlimited cloud DVR, up to 9 months of storage and streaming on 2 devices at one time. AMC channels are missing from the lineup, but you get all your local network stations and pretty much everything else you can think of. All three Disneys are there, along with Nick, Nick Jr, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Freeform, and Universal Kids.
Read about all the details in our Hulu + Live TV review.
YouTube TV: A Hulu + Live TV-like service that costs slightly less but also doesn’t have near as much on-demand backup. It carries all three Disneys, though it was missing them for a few days in December, a victim of its third carriage dispute in 2021.
Hulu: Considering it’s owned by Disney, it doesn’t have as much Disney stuff as you’d expect. I’m guessing Disney doesn’t want Hulu competing too much with Disney+. It has a handful of shows from each of the three channels, but you are probably best getting the Hulu/Disney+/ESPN+ bundle for $14.99/month.
Disney Now is Disney’s app for its pay TV subscribers. It uses the TV Everywhere app to let you log in with your TV provider credentials to watch the live channels or on-demand episodes.
All of the above streaming services do support TV Everywhere for Disney, but it’s not free and it’s not a stand-alone subscription.
Disney+ is to Disney what HBO Max is to HBO/WarnerMedia. It has all the various properties Disney owns, in one place (which is a lot, including ABC, Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, FX/20th Century, and National Geographic). It also includes Disney+ exclusive originals like The Mandalorian, Loki, The Beatles: Get Back, and High School Musical: The Musical – The Series.
No live channels, but enough entertainment to keep you busy for months — maybe years.
The most popular streaming devices are supported by all the services:
Except for DIRECTV, all the services support Android TV-powered TVs. All support Samsung smart TVs. FuboTV, Sling TV, and Hulu + Live TV support Xbox gaming systems. Hulu also supports the PlayStation and Nintendo Switch.
See our streaming reviews for complete lists of supported devices.
For my money, the best way to get Disney is through Hulu + Live TV. It not only nails the Disney Channel basics with a crystal-clear picture, but it also throws in ESPN+ and Disney+ for free, which is a killer deal, especially if you’re into sports or want to binge classic Disney movies. I checked out a bunch of different services, and Hulu just felt the easiest to use – the menus are simple, and I could find what I wanted fast. Plus, it worked perfectly on my phone, laptop, and smart TV. The only thing to watch out for is that the DVR storage fills up kind of quickly, so you can’t save everything forever. But honestly, with so much to watch on demand, it wasn’t a huge problem for me. If you want Disney Channel plus a bunch of other great stuff, Hulu + Live TV is the way to go.
The Disney Channel is Disney’s live channel (also called a “linear” channel) on which it airs original first-run TV series, movies, and a few 3rd-party shows. In other words, it’s a mix of Mickey Mouse and friends, classic Disney movies, and the kind of live-action kid-focused shows that have terrible acting and ridiculous storylines. Usually screwball sitcoms where grown-ups are the butts of the joke or action sitcoms where the kids are the heroes, such as KC Undercover or Sidney to the Max.
Disney+ is Disney’s everything-but-the-kitchen-sink on-demand streaming service, encompassing every brand they own and a few they’re just licensing. Disney+ has Marvel superheroes, National Geographic nature specials, and Star Wars movies and shows for all ages alongside more traditional Disney/Pixar stuff like Encanto, Frozen, Soul, Onward, and Luca.
Nickelodeon is probably the other biggest producer of kids entertainment. Nick includes Nick Jr for the little ones and TeenNick for older kids, plus NickToons featuring just animated shows and NickMusic which is 24-hour kids pop music. PBS Kids tends to have a more educational bent, like the math-themed Odd Squad.
Freeform, formerly The Family Channel, specializes in content for parents and kids, and The Hallmark Channel has long been a haven on the dial for wholesome programming for the entire family.
Here are our options for watching other family and kids channels:
This page was revised 7 times between February 2022 and April 2023.
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