After two and a half years, a partnership between NBCUniversal’s flagship streaming service Peacock and Hallmark officially ended on Thursday, May 1. Since November 2022, the streamer has been home to a rotating library of on-demand titles from Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Mystery, including all of the cable channels’ original films the day after they aired on their respective linear homes. In addition, Peacock carried live simulstreams of Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Mystery, and Hallmark Family, meaning that fans of the cabler’s feel-good series and movies could stream titles as they aired without a live TV streaming subscription. However, now that Hallmark content is no longer available on Peacock, cord-cutting rom-com lovers will have to find a new way to watch Hallmark’s year-round movie releases.

Here’s how to stream Hallmark shows and movies:

Why aren’t Hallmark movies on Peacock anymore?

In relationship terms, it seems like the two sides had simply grown apart, like a big-city business executive and his girlfriend who decides to move back to her small hometown to save her family’s general store. Even though the partnership only lasted two and a half years, a lot has changed in the streaming industry since Hallmark started streaming its content on Peacock in November 2022. When it comes to the rationale behind this breakup, it likely has more to do with the rebranding of (and refocusing on) Hallmark’s own streaming service than anything else.

In September 2024, Hallmark unveiled a nearly completely overhauled streamer, going from Hallmark Movies Now to Hallmark+. Hallmark Movies Now had been mostly a repository for older cable movies that had very little original content and, in most cases, took months to welcome the brand’s most recent cable movies.

However, with the launch of Hallmark+, those films are now streaming on the company’s platform the day after their cable premieres, just as they had previously done on Peacock. In addition, Hallmark+ is going all in on original and streaming-first content, including unscripted shows like “Finding Mr. Christmas” and scripted series like “The Chicken Sisters.”

By attempting to make its own streamer a more attractive option for fans of its brand, Hallmark inherently devalued its relationship with Peacock. If the NBCU streamer was no longer the only way to watch new Hallmark films the next day, then that likely significantly undermined the draw from Peacock’s perspective.

“Hallmark and Peacock have enjoyed a successful partnership since 2022,” the two companies said in a joint statement sent to The Streamable. “As Hallmark has since launched its own standalone streaming service, Hallmark+, we evaluated how each of our services provides added value to our subscribers, and to that end, the decision was made to sunset Hallmark programming on Peacock. Peacock and Hallmark will continue to respectively entertain their viewers year-round with exclusive, feel-good content they love.”

Can you stream Hallmark Channel live on Hallmark+?

In addition to being the next-day home of Hallmark movies, and boasting a substantial library of the channels’ films and series, Peacock also allowed rom-com fans to stream all three of Hallmark’s cable networks around the clock at no additional charge. This meant that for cord-cutters who still wanted to be able to watch new Hallmark movies and episodes as they initially aired, they would not need to sign up for a live TV streaming service.

However, now that this option is no longer available, you might be wondering if that functionality is going to be integrated into the Hallmark+ platform; unfortunately, the answer is no.

“There are no plans to add linear live feed components to Hallmark+,” Hallmark’s director of corporate communications, Megan Van Tine told The Streamable. “Viewers can catch Hallmark’s linear original premieres (movies and series) on the streaming platform next day.”

This decision is almost certainly not about technical capabilities, but instead about Hallmark trying to find the balance between both sides of its business. While all media companies have an eye on a streaming-focused future, Hallmark perhaps more than any non-sports entity still has immense power in the world of cable TV.

For the 11th straight year, the Hallmark Channel finished 2024 as the most-watched entertainment cable channel in total viewers, viewers 18 years old and older, and women 18+. While that is obviously a notable accomplishment, if there are streaming avenues available that could pull viewers away from watching Hallmark channels on cable, satellite, and live TV streamers, that could drive down the prices these distributors are willing to pay in carriage fees.

So, Hallmark appears to be attempting to thread the needle by bulking up its in-house streaming service while also allowing its linear channels to exchange live exclusivity for more profitable contracts.

What is the best streaming service to watch Hallmark channels live?

This is a difficult question to answer, because all three of the Hallmark channels are available on all seven of the major live TV streaming services. So, there are plenty of options, and it’s just about finding the one that meets your needs.

The cheapest way to stream Hallmark channels

Without a doubt, the cheapest way to stream all three of Hallmark’s channels is with Frndly TV. With plans starting at just $7 per month that include all of Hallmark’s offerings, that is even cheaper than a Peacock subscription, and you get other channels like A&E, Lifetime, Great American Family, Dove Channel, and more.

Frndly offers three basic subscription plans that all carry the same channels, but vary in DVR access, video quality, and simultaneous streams. Despite the discrepancies, the top-tier Premium plan only costs $10 monthly. Frndly also offers a seven-day free trial.

The most cost-efficient way to stream Hallmark channels

If you like the idea of keeping the cost down to watch Hallmark, but Frndly doesn’t offer nearly enough channels for you, Philo is a great option. The service’s lone subscription tier runs $28 per month and offers far more top cable channels than its cheaper competitor. In addition to the Hallmark channels, you will also get A&E, AMC, Discovery, Great American Family, HGTV, Lifetime, TLC, and more.

Just like Frndly, Philo offers a full week at no cost, so that you can try out the service before having to pay for it.

The best value to stream Hallmark channels

While Frndly and Philo are considered skinny bundles, Sling TV is a happy medium between the limited lineups that the smaller platforms offer and the more robust offerings of the completist services that we’ll discuss next. Unlike Frndly and Philo, Sling only offers the Hallmark Channels via a $6 add-on. That means that to watch them on the service, you will need to pay at least $52 per month.

However, that price gets you far more than either of the other two streamers that we’ve discussed. While Philo and Frndly only focus on entertainment-focused cable and free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels, Sling also offers sports and news channels and, depending on your market, national broadcast networks and their local affiliates.

Sling offers two different base plans, Sling Orange and Sling Blue, that have different channel lineups. Each one costs $46 per month, but you can bundle them together for just $61, since there is some channel overlap. Also, while Sling does not have a free trial, it is currently offering 50% your first month of service, meaning that you could try it out for as little as $23.

The service with the most perks to stream Hallmark channels

As we move into the more cable-like streamers, there are two that stand out. Both have similar channel lineups with practically all of cable channels you could possibly want, and all of the national and local stations in nearly every market in the country. However, what separates Hulu + Live TV from the rest is the fact that it comes with the Disney Bundle.

In addition to the live TV aspect of the service, it also grants access to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ at no additional cost, bringing so many more entertainment options that you would have to pay more for with any other service. While Hallmark Family is only available via an $8 add-on, it is the one channel that does not currently offer original programming, so that is not the worst option.

Hulu + Live TV comes with a three-day free trial and base prices begin at $83 per month.

The biggest service to stream Hallmark channels

Finally, DIRECTV is the streaming option for viewers who don’t want to miss out on anything. The service has the largest collection of channels available in streaming, and mirrors everything offered by the company’s satellite service. DIRECTV offers a five-day free trial and plans that include the Hallmark channels begin at $85 per month.