Best Streaming Services for Families
When you’re a couple and one of you is more into sci-fi movies and TV shows while the other is all about sports and crime dramas, it can be difficult to decide what to watch. Throw in a couple of older kids along with a new toddler and picking the right streaming service to subscribe to can feel like taking a shot in the dark. You want everybody to get along and find easy ways to entertain themselves, but you also want to make sure parental controls are on when they need to be and that you and your partner don’t have to be consigned to watching only kid-friendly content for the next five years.
Here are our picks for the top best streaming platforms for families.
Best for Families
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The Streamable’s Choice
Paramount Plus
Paramount+ is our choice for best family service because it has so much variety and it does everything well.
On the TV front, you’ll get nearly all the best hits from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, and Smithsonian Channel. If you get the ad-free plan, you also get your live local CBS feed.
For kids, that means thousands of hours of “PAW Patrol,” “Spongebob Squarepants,” “Digby Dragon,” “Rugrats,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” “Peppa Pig,” and much more. Only Disney+ comes close on the kid-friendly front.
For big kids, Paramount+ offers up Star Trek and Transformers, alongside action franchises like Indiana Jones and Mission: Impossible.
Adults will love the Taylor Sheridan series like the “Yellowstone” spinoffs “1883” and “1923” with Harrison Ford. There’s also “Tulsa King” with Sylvester Stallone and “Mayor of Kingstown” with Jeremy Renner.
Pros:
- Lots of variety
- Generous free trial
- Can add Showtime for even more adult content
- Less expensive tier available if you don’t mind ads
Cons:
- Movie library not as robust as other services
- Not much current pop culture for teens
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Netflix
Tried and true, Netflix is still a great contender for the best overall streaming service. Like our top choices, Netflix also houses original content, allows for multiple profiles, and can be viewed absolutely commercial-free from multiple devices.
Netflix shines against most competitors with arguably better material for teens, such as “Stranger Things” or “Wednesday,” both of which are exclusive to Netflix. If you’re worried about your younger kids stumbling upon something questionable, there’s also a kids profile you can set up.
The kids’ library is missing some of the marquee IP you’ll see over on Disney+, but Netflix is pushing hard to bolster that area. There’s no shortage of content for children, but it’s hard to identify quality since so much of it looks the same as you scroll by.
Because Netflix has the most robust production schedule (and budget) of any streaming service, they are working feverishly to appeal to audiences of all ages around the world. In some cases, it feels like a firehose of content. But that firehose occasionally shoots out a gem.
Pros:
- Wide variety
- Original programming
- Kids section
- Excellent UI across devices
Cons:
- Losing content to other services
- Slim library of blockbuster IP
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Disney+
When it comes to family entertainment, Disney+ is extremely strong. It’s home to all classic Pixar and Disney movies that young kids will enjoy (and that might tickle your own nostalgia), along with Marvel TV shows and movies (with more to come), and, of course, Star Wars shows such as “The Mandalorian” and “Andor.”
Where Disney+ might fall flat is for adults who want more mature content. You won’t find much adult language or violence or sexuality in this library. Disney deliberately pushes those titles to Hulu. That said, you can bundle Disney+ with Hulu and ESPN+ to save money. But it is frustrating to need another service for a gritty, adult drama.
Pros:
- Multiple profiles
- Family-friendly content
- Save with optional package including Hulu and ESPN+
- The Streamable’s choice as best for kids.
Cons:
- Less overall content than some services
- Not worth it if you don’t like Disney-owned content
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Max
Our previous pick for best family service, HBO Max has fallen a few notches as it’s turned its back on children. It’s still a fantastic service for adults, however.
For parents, you have award-winning, thought-provoking miniseries like “Watchmen,” “Band of Brothers,” and “Chernobyl.” There are groundbreaking series like “The Last of Us,” “The Sopranos,” “Game of Thrones,” and “The Wire.”
For young adults, you have the movie and TV superhero adventures of Batman and Superman. There are also series like “Euphoria” and “Girls” that aim to capture the experiences of younger people.
The edgy animation category is filled by “Rick and Morty,” “South Park,” and “Adventure Time.”
Children won’t find much for them on HBO Max - the service’s new owners have largely abandoned kids’ programming.
Beyond this, there is a solid movie library covering all genres. From the groundbreaking foreign cinema of Studio Ghibli and Akira Kurosawa to dazzling titles from Stanley Kubrick to sci-fi classics like “Blade Runner” to Charlie Chaplin masterpieces and everything in-between, HBO Max can scratch almost any itch, no matter your mood, age, or interest.
Pros:
- Enormous movie and TV library
- Ability to restrict content for kids
- Option for lower price if you’re willing to watch ads
Cons:
- Higher price point than other services
- Weak children’s library
- New content slower to arrive than other services
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Amazon Prime Video
This one is easy on the wallet. If you’re a Prime member, you already get this service for free, which means it’s an easy winner for the most convenient option. Even if you’re not a Prime member, the video service is only $8.99 a month.
Amazon Prime Video is an excellent pick for the younger members of your family, offering limited episodes of the most popular kids shows, such as “Sesame Street,” Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants and “Paw Patrol,” or PBS Kids’ “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.”
You can also add inexpensive subscriptions to various services like PBS Kids to bolster your viewing options and gain more episodes of the shows your family loves.
Prime Video caters to adults with titles like “The Boys,” “The Underground Railroad,” “Reacher,” “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.”
Amazon Prime Video’s user interface is notoriously terrible, however. You’re just as likely to stumble on a low-budget hyper-partisan “documentary” as you are to find an Oscar-winner. Because there’s so much clutter, it can be hard to find the best content on the service.
Prime Video is also slow to spin out new, original content. The series and films they do roll out seem focused only on adults, so teens and kids aren’t going to see much growth for them.
Pros:
- Strong original series
- Free if a Prime member
- Optional free trial
Cons:
- Clunky UI
- Largely poor original programming
- Limited content for teens
- Poor quality control
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Peacock
Peacock has a very solid library, but it’s the kind of service that will likely appeal more to parents than teens or kids.
With Peacock, you’ve got some big mainstream TV hits like “Yellowstone,” “The Office,” “Parks and Recreation,” “This is Us,” “Friday Night Lights,” and “30 Rock.” Original titles are beginning to find success here as well. “Bel-Air,” “Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin,” and “Poker Face” have all been picked up for renewal.
Peacock’s movie library does rotate, so you don’t always have access to NBCUniversal films like the “Fast and Furious” or “Jurassic Park” franchises. For sure, there are some great movies on Peacock, but until they are exclusive to the service, the quality may vary, depending on the timing of your subscription.
The options for children are extremely weak. You will find some Dreamworks films like “Shrek,” “Madagascar,” and “How to Train Your Dragon,” but Peacock is lacking the endless hours of kid-approved hits you’ll find on some other services.
If your family loves wrestling, however, Peacock’s WWE access is hard to beat.
Subscribers to Peacock’s most expensive tier will get free access to their live NBC affiliate, which is a nice perk.
Pros:
- Big TV hits, especially comedies
- Some blockbuster movies
- WWE events and programs
- Live NBC access
Cons:
- Very weak children’s content
- Movie library rotates
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Hulu
Similar to Netflix, Hulu is a dinosaur of a streaming service - old, formidable, and still able to give the other contenders on this list a run for their money. Also similar to Netflix, Hulu users can create a kids profile and access a wide variety of disparate content (great if everyone in your family has different tastes).
For adults, great series like “Fargo,” “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “The Shield,” and “The X-Files” provide dark, compelling content. The movies are also solid for grown-ups, with titles like “Parasite,” “Gone Girl,” and “Prisoners.”
“Only Murders in the Building” and “What We Do in The Shadows” are comedy favorites for adults.
Kids will enjoy titles like “The Princess Bride,” but a big negative is that Disney puts most of its child-focused content over on Disney+. Without the optional bundle, Hulu itself doesn’t offer much for kids. Teens may also prefer the Disney+ adventures of Marvel and Star Wars.
If you go with Hulu’s live TV option, you will get free Disney+ and ESPN+, which makes a nearly unbeatable lineup for families.
But unless you have the on-demand Disney bundle or Hulu Live, standalone Hulu really only appeals to adults.
Pros:
- Tons of content
- Option for Hulu Live TV along with on demand catalog, free Disney+ and ESPN+
Cons:
- Commercials on live TV or ad-supported tier
- Limited original content
- Most content aimed at children is on the sister service, Disney+
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Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is still too small to appeal to most families. The benefit, however, is that the content on the platform is very high quality.
Children may enjoy “Fraggle Rock” and its 2022 reboot. It’s also home to titles like “Harriet the Spy,” “Helpsters Help You,” and “Slumberkins.”
Adult content is where Apple TV+ really shines. Standouts like “Ted Lasso” and “Severance” enjoy critical and popular praise. Other hits include “Shrinking,” “Black Bird,” “The Morning Show,” “Servant,” “For All Mankind,” and “The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy.”
The Apple TV+ library is a plus for every TV fan, but it’s more of a supplement than a standalone solution for now.
Pros:
- Content looks and sounds great
- Top quality marquee titles
- Some beloved franchises like “Fraggle Rock” and “Peanuts”
Cons:
- Library still small
- Content slow to arrive
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discovery+
A quick trial of discovery+ will reveal whether this service will work for your family. If you’re the kind of crew who likes niche reality shows and nature documentaries, it might be the perfect option. But if you’re looking for action or comedy or science-fiction, you’re unlikely to find much worth watching here.
A service like this is more likely to appeal to some of your family, but it’s not a one-stop shop for regular entertainment.
Pros:
- Solid nature documentaries and shows
- Inspiring science content
Cons:
- Content may feel repetitive over time
- Lots of “junk food” reality shows can overwhelm
- No content specifically for young children
We should note that many live streaming options like DIRECTV STREAM or Sling TV also offer a wide array of channels that can appeal to the whole family.