How to Watch Live TV on Paramount Plus

What is Paramount Plus?

CBS All Access rebranded to Paramount+ at the beginning of March 2021. The new streaming service from ViacomCBS includes an extensive on-demand library. Paramount Plus aims to entice subscribers with "a mountain of entertainment" that draws from flagship networks like BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, and Nickelodeon. 

Paramount Plus also includes 2,500 on-demand movie titles, as well as a live TV feature with over 1,000 live sporting events throughout the year, 24-hour news, and local CBS access. In an already crowded market, Paramount+ seeks to offer subscribers a little bit of everything to compete with more established streaming services. 

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How much does live Paramount Plus cost?

Paramount+ offers two different plans. Both plans include full access to everything the service has to offer, and both come with a seven-day free trial. The main difference between the two plans pretty much comes down to how many commercials you want to watch.

The Limited Commercials plan costs $6 per month or $60 annually. If you buy a year plan, you save $12 on monthly subscription fees. All content streamed with this plan, either live or on-demand, is subject to advertisements. 

Later this year, the Limited Commercials plan will change. The new version of this plan will cost $5 per month instead of $6. The new version will also drop access to live stream your local CBS channel. Subscribers of the $6 plan will be grandfathered in and will not lose live access to their local CBS channel. 

The second option is the Commercial Free plan. It costs $10 per month or $100 for a year. If you pay for a year upfront, you save $20 on monthly subscription fees. This plan removes most advertisements from the on-demand library. But you'll still see advertisements with live TV streaming. The Commercial Free plan also allows you to download movies and shows to watch offline.

How to watch live TV on Paramount Plus

To stream live TV on Paramount+, sign in to your account on paramountplus.com or use the Paramount+ mobile app on your device. Keep in mind that accessing content on Paramount+ requires a paid subscription to the service, but you can try it first free for a week. 

In the home screen, navigate to the "Live TV" option listed on the menu. This will allow you to select which live TV station you want to watch. 

The four options Paramount+ offers right now are your local CBS network, CBSN, CBS Sports HQ, and ET Live. Select the station you want to watch and you'll immediately access the live feed with the station's current programming. Here's a full list of the local CBS stations accessible using Paramount+.

Ways to watch 

You can watch Paramount+ using your web browser, smartphone or tablet, or with various streaming devices. Most of the popular ways people watch streaming services will work with Paramount+, so you should have no trouble tuning in. Here's a quick list of all of the different ways you can watch Paramount+.

• Apple TV

• iPhone and iPad

• Android TV

• Android phone and tablet

• Chromecast

• Fire TV

• Portal TV

• PlayStation 4

• Samsung TV

• Vizio TV

• LG TV

• Roku

• Xbox

• Xfinity Flex

What to watch live on Paramount Plus

Paramount+ is looking to compete--not only with on-demand services like Disney+ and Netflix--but also with live TV streaming services like Sling TV and Hulu + Live TV. To this end, Paramount+ has included a few live TV stations that you'll be able to access on top of their on-demand library.

Right now, both of the plans Paramount+ offers include access to live TV, but the Limited Commericals plan will lose access to local CBS networks when the plan changes later this year. Here are the four options all subscribers have right now to watch live TV with Paramount+.

Local CBS station

Using Paramount+, you can access your local CBS station. You'll get the standard broadcast schedule, which includes your local news coverage, as well as live sports. Depending on where you live, you'll be able to watch coverage of SEC and NFL on CBS, as well as golf, hockey, and women's soccer. If other pro leagues broadcast games on CBS, they should also show up here. However, there may be a few areas around the U.S. where subscribers won't be able to access any local CBS station. 

CBSN

CBSN is a digital network offering national and global news streaming 24 hours a day from the CBS Broadcast Center in New York. Keep in mind that the content from CBSN will not necessarily be the same as what you see on your local CBS news channel, but there may be some overlap. Coverage includes news on topics like sports, entertainment, and finance. CBSN streams live events and regularly scheduled shows. You'll be able to watch top news shows from the regular CBS network like Face the Nation and CBS This Morning, as well as CBSN original documentaries and the daily Red & Blue show.

CBS Sports HQ

CBS Sports HQ is another digital network broadcasting news 24/7. But this one features programming focused solely on sports. It's a collaboration between CBS Sports and CBS Interactive, with access to tons of news and analysis from all of the major sports. You'll get breakdowns of games and top stories from around the country. But it's important to note that CBS Sports HQ does not include access to any live sporting events. To see live games, you'll have to watch on your local CBS station. 

ET Live

ET Live is the third digital news network that subscribers can live stream using Paramount+. This one is a collaboration between CBS Interactive and the long-running newsmagazine Entertainment Tonight, and it's all about entertainment news. While the network is associated with the Entertainment Tonight brand, ET Live is seperate from the ET television show. ET Live features round-the-clock broadcasts from the world of entertainment, including the latest trends in fashion and lifestyle. You'll be able to catch breaking news, interviews with celebrities, red carpet coverage at award shows, and other content exclusive to the ET Live digital network. 

Our final take

Paramount+ is a good option for people who want a little bit of everything with their streaming service but don't want to pay premium subscription fees. At $6 per month for the ad-supported plan, Paramount+ competes with the likes of ESPN+ and Hulu in terms of affordability.  

The large on-demand library of movies and shows from Paramount+, as well as the original programming, puts this streaming service in the same league as top services like Netflix, although Paramount+ is still rolling out their originals, so you won't find as many right now as you will with Netflix, Disney+, and Hulu. 

When it comes to live TV, Paramount+ offers your local CBS station and three digital channels focused on general, sports, and entertainment news. So if you're looking for extensive live TV coverage to watch live sports or see your favorite shows when they air, Paramount+ may not be for you. 

Instead, we recommend checking out fuboTV or Hulu + Live TV to better fit those particular needs. Both of these streaming services feature a range of live networks to choose from, and you can customize your package with add-ons. However, both of those live TV streaming services start at $65 per month. So you can save quite a bit with Paramount+.