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DirecTV Stream Channels: Entertainment, Choice, Ultimate & Premier Compared

John Finn Avatar
DirecTV Stream Channels plans

DirecTV Stream offers consumers a choice between an Entertainment, Choice, Ultimate and Premier plan. With four main live TV plans to choose from, the number of channels can range from over 65 to more than 140. As to be expected, the price of DirecTV Stream highly depends on the plan chosen. Furthermore, these are not the finite limits as each plan can also be further customized, at a price, to provide access to even more channels.

DirecTV Stream has been known by a variety of different names over the years. At launch, the service was originally branded as DirecTV Now. It then evolved into AT&T TV Now before simply becoming known as AT&T TV. In 2021, the service once again changed name to the current DirecTV Stream. While similar to the traditional DirecTV service, DirecTV Stream does differ in a number of fundamental ways and is best understood as the streaming version of DirecTV.

In spite of the change in name to DirecTV Stream the actual channel lineup hasn’t changed massively. Previously, AT&T TV offered a choice between the Plus and Max plans but these were then rebranded and expanded on, leading to a choice between the Entertainment, Choice, Ultimate and Premier plans.

Following the transition to DirecTV Stream, the same four plans remain available, albeit with some minor tweaks to the channel selection.

Entertainment, Choice, Ultimate & Premier Compared

Priced at $74.99 per month, the Entertainment plan is the cheapest and provides access to more than 65 channels. At $99.99 per month, the Choice plan increases the number of channels to more than 90.

From there, the Ultimate plan costs $109.99 per month and unlocks more than 130 channels. Those wanting the best DirecTV Stream experience possible can pay $154.99 per month for the Premier plan and get access to more than 140 live TV channels.

Entertainment, Choice, Ultimate & Premier Channels:

DirecTV StreamEntertainmentChoiceUltimatePremier
1+1 International
A&E
ACC Network
AccuWeather
AMC
AHC
Animal Planet
Aspire
AXS TV
BabyFirst
BBC America
BBC World News
BET
BET Her
BTN
BNC
Bloomberg TV
Boomerang
Bounce
Bravo
C-SPAN
C-SPAN 2
Cartoon Network
CBS SN
Cheddar News
Cinemax
Cinemax ActionMAX
Cleo TV
CMT
CNBC
CNBC World
CNN
Comedy Central
Comedy TV
Cooking Channel
Cozi
Destination America
Discovery
Discovery Family
Discovery Life
Disney Channel
Disney Junior
Disney XD
E!
ESPN
ESPN2
ESPNews
ESPNU
FM
Food Network
Fox Business
Fox News
Fox Sports 1
Fox Sports 2
Fox Weather
Freeform
Fuse
FX
FXM
FXX
FYI
GAC Family
Galavision
GSN
Golf Channel
Grit
Hallmark Channel
Hallmark M&M
HBO
Heroes & Icons
HGTV
History
HLN
Home Shopping Network
IFC
Investigation Discovery
ION
Jewelry Channel
Jewish Life TV
Justice Central
Lifetime
LMN
Logo
Magnolia Network
MLB Network
MotorTrend
MSNBC
MTV
MTV2
MTV Classic
National Geographic
Nat Geo Wild
NBA TV
NewsNation
NHL Network
Nickelodeon
Nick Jr.
Nicktoons
Olympic Channel
Ovation
OWN
Oxygen
Paramount Network
PBS Kids
POP
QVC
QVC2
Reelz
Revolt
RFD-TV
Science
SEC Network
Shop LC
ShortsTV
Showtime
Smithsonian Channel
Sportsman Channel
Starz
Starz Encore
Starz Kids & Family
SundanceTV
Syfy
Tastemade
TBS
TCM
TeenNick
Tennis Channel
The Weather Channel
TLC
TNT
Travel Channel
truTV
TUDN
TV Land
TV One
TVG
UniMas
Universal Kids
Universo
Univision
UPtv
USA Network
VH1
Vice
WE tv

Picking the right DirecTV Stream plan

The Premier plan is the best in terms of channels. It not only includes all of the channels available with the Entertainment, Choice and Ultimate plans, but also a number of channels that are only available with the Premier plan.

Even though it is significantly more expensive compared to the other DirecTV Stream plans, and live TV plans from other providers, it does also include some premium channels that households might already be paying for. As these premium networks are included in the monthly price, they may help to reduced the overall cost of a live TV subscription for some homes.

Outside of the Premier plan, things can become a little more complicated. For example, while each more expensive plan tends to include the same channels as the cheaper plans, that’s not always the case. A case in point is Ovation. Although the channel is available with the Entertainment plan, it’s not included with either of the more expensive Choice or Ultimate plans. Again, this is the exception rather than the rule, but it is still an example of why it’s important to not assume a more expensive plan automatically includes all of the channels available with a cheaper plan.

By the same token, just because a channel is not available with a certain plan that doesn’t mean it can’t be added on top. DirecTV Stream offers add-ons that can help to add missing wanted channels without having to upgrade to a more expensive tier. For example, Hallmark Movies and Mysteries is another channel that’s available with the cheapest Entertainment and the most expensive Premier plan, but not the middle Choice and Ultimate plans.

However, it can be added to either the Choice or Ultimate plan through the Movies Extra Pack add-on. While this add-on costs an additional $5 per month, that’s cheaper than upgrading to the next more expensive plan. Add-ons can be a useful way to improve a base channel lineup, but not every channel missing from a DirecTV Stream plan can be added via an add-on.

DirecTV Stream channels summary

DirecTV Stream provides access to more than 140 live TV channels if opting for the best Premier plan. As to be expected, this is also the most expensive DirecTV Stream package overall, and at $154.99 per month, it’s not exactly cheap. For those households that find the Entertainment, Choice or Ultimate channel lineup suits their needs, they will save on the cost.

Even at its cheapest price, DirecTV Stream is not the cheapest live TV service around. While DirecTV Stream is not necessarily any more expensive than fuboTV, some homes may find the selection of channels available through a different service to be a better fit.

DirecTV Stream is certainly a good option for those wanting the most channels possible, and are willing to pay for them. For other homes, it may be worth comparing the channel lineups of other live TV services before committing to DirecTV Stream.

John Finn

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