Sling Orange vs. Sling Blue: Which Video Streaming Plan Is Better?

Do you know the difference between Sling Orange and Sling Blue? Read our guide to find out whether either video streaming plan is worth a subscription.

By Ben Moore

Sling TV’s Orange and Blue plans undercut most other video steaming services, but there are some notable variations and limitations in their respective channel lineups. Our comparison details exactly what they offer. However, you may find that neither one covers all your needs, in which case you should consider paying for the combined Sling Orange + Blue plan or subscribing to a different service altogether. We suggest alternate video streaming options in several sections.

What Are Sling Orange and Sling Blue?

Sling TV offers two tiers: Sling Orange and Sling Blue. You get different channels with each plan, but their offerings don’t neatly fit into any one category. In other words, Sling Orange doesn’t target sports fans and Sling Blue is not tailor-made for entertainment aficionados. In fact, you need to go channel by channel to determine whether either plan suits your live TV needs. If neither has all the channels you watch-a likely case for some audiences-you can also subscribe to the combined Sling Orange & Blue plan, which gives you every channel from both plans.

The Orange and Blue plan are each $25 per month and the combined Sling Orange & Blue plan costs $40 per month. You can purchase Extras and Premium channels for an additional monthly fee with any plan, but those add-ons can drive up costs considerably. If you discover that you need to get several add-ons in order to watch everything you want, you should consider other live TV options, such as Editors’ Choices YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV. Though they cost more than Orange & Blue, both of those services include more channels, better interfaces, and value-adding features (Hulu’s on-demand library and YouTube TV’s 1080p content streams).

Don’t confuse Sling TV with a Slingbox. Sling TV is an internet-based live TV streaming service that does not require any additional hardware. A Slingbox is a hardware device manufactured by Sling Media that works in tandem with your existing cable box or satellite system to stream live and recorded TV to other devices via the Slingplayer apps. Sling TV and Sling Media are distinct subsidiaries of Dish Network Corporation.

Channel Lineups

When evaluating Sling Orange and Sling Blue’s respective news, entertainment, and sports content, a common theme of fragmentation emerges. You may also find deal-breaking coverage gaps, since Sling TV is missing some channels entirely. For example, the service lost all Fox affiliates and cable channels as a result of a contract dispute and also does not offer local CBS affiliates. You can set up an indoor antenna to get these channels in some locations, but doing so defeats the purpose of subscribing to a live TV streaming service in the first place.

Starting with news content, both Sling Orange and Sling Blue offer BBC America, Bloomberg Television, Cheddar Business, Cheddar News, CNN, Newsy, and Local Now. Sling’s Blue plan has an advantage in that it offers NBC affiliate channels. This lineup is fairly consistent with competitors’, but other live TV services offer additional channels such as BBC World News, CNBC, and MSNBC.

In terms of entertainment, both plans include A&E, Adult Swim, AMC, AXS TV, Cartoon Network, Comedy Central, Comet, Epix Drive-In, Food Network, HGTV, History, IFC, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, TBS, TNT, Travel Channel, Tribeca Shortlist, and Viceland. Sling Blue provides entertainment channels that the Orange plan does not, including BET, Bravo, Discovery, E!, FX, FXX, Nat Geo, Nat Geo Wild, Nick Jr, Paramount Network, SYFY, TLC, truTV, and USA. Sling Orange does have a few exclusive channels though, such as Disney Channel, Freeform, and MotorTrend. If you only care about entertainment content, consider the entertainment-focused Philo instead. It includes many of the same channels listed here, but it’s only $20 per month.

Streaming sports with either of Sling TV’s separate Orange and Blue plans is not ideal, given its messy channel split; the two plans only share the Stadium channel. Sling Orange’s only advantage for sports fans is that it includes ESPN, ESPN 2, and ESPN 3, whereas the Blue plan does not include any ESPN content. Sling Blue, on the other hand, gets you the NFL Network and NBCSN. As noted, Sling also lacks both CBS and Fox broadcast affiliates, so NFL fans cannot watch games on Sunday afternoon and some Thursday nights. Our roundup of the best NFL streaming services includes better options. FuboTV is a good service for avid sports fans, though it lacks ESPN channels.

Extras and Premium Channels

Subscribers can add Extras (packages of additional channels) to both the Sling Orange and Sling Blue plans, as well as the combined plan. The Extras have the same names and prices whether you start with the Orange or Blue plan, but the channels included in the packages differ. Some differences exist because Sling’s Blue plan already includes some of the component channels, but others seem arbitrary.

Starting with packages that are the same across plans, the Hollywood Extra and Heartland Extra packages each cost $5.99 per month. Hollywood Extra includes Cinemoi, HDNet Movies, Reelz, Sundance TV, TCM, and The Film Detective. The Heartland package features American Heroes Channel, Cowboy Channel, Destination America, Outdoor Channel, PixL, Ride TV, RFD-TV, Sportsman Channel, and World Fishing Network.

The Sports Extra ($10 per month), Comedy Extra ($5 per month), Kids Extra ($5 per month), News Extra ($5 per month), and Lifestyle Extra ($5 per month), on the other hand, offer different channels depending on whether you start with the Orange or Blue plan.

The Sports Extra package adds beIN Sports, MLB Network, MLB Network Strikezone, NBA TV, NHL Network, Outside TV, Pac-12, and Tennis Channel to Orange and Blue plans. In addition, Orange Plan subscribers get ACC Network, ACC Network Extra, ESPN Bases Loaded, ESPN Goal Line, ESPNews, ESPNU, SEC Network, and SEC Network+. Sling Blue users gain NFL RedZone, Golf Channel, and the Olympic Channel.

The Comedy Extra adds CMT, GSN, Logo, MTV, MTV2, Revolt, and TV Land to both plans. Sling Orange subscribers accrue truTV and Paramount Network with this package. The Kids add-on gives subscribers of both plans access to BabyTV, Boomerang, Duck TV, TeenNick, and NickToons, while Orange plan users also get Disney Junior, Disney XD, and Nick Jr.

The News add-on includes BBC World News, CGTN, Euronews, Free Speech, HLN, News18, NewsMax, RT America, Science Channel, TheBlaze, and Weather Nation for users of either plan. Sling Orange subscribers also get Fusion, while Sling Blue customers get MSNBC, CNBC, France 24, and NDTV 24x7. The LifeStyle package adds Cooking Channel, DIY, FYI, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Drama, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, Lifetime Movies, VH1, WE TV, and Z Living HD to both plans. Orange Plan users get BET, while the Blue plan subscribers gain Oxygen.

In addition to Extras, you can add Premium Channels to any plan. The most popular channels available are Showtime ($10 per month), Starz ($9 per month), and Epix ($5 per month). More than 20 other Premium channels are also available, ranging in price from $3 to $8 per month. Some of the more eclectic channels include Comedy Dynamics, Docurama, Dog TV, Grokker, Hopster, Lion Mountain TV, Monsters and Nightmares, Pantaya, and Stingray Qello.

Features and Platforms

While Sling Orange allows you to stream on a single device at a time, Sling Blue bumps that limit up to three streams. If you opt for the combined Sling Orange & Blue plan, the streaming limit increases to four simultaneous devices. For comparison, YouTube TV lets you stream on up to three devices simultaneously, but AT&T TV Now limits you to just two devices by default.

Unfortunately, Sling TV’s DVR capability costs extra for both the Orange, Blue, and combined plans. The $5-per-month Cloud DVR add-on lets you record up to 50 hours of live TV. You can watch recordings for however long you maintain a subscription. Although Sling’s DVR option is consistent with other services, many competitors include DVR features as part of the plan’s price. For comparison, YouTube TV keeps an unlimited amount of content for up to nine months.

You can get Sling on media streaming devices, such as Apple TV, Roku, and Chromecast; Android and iOS devices; via the Windows Store and Chrome; and on the Xbox One. Sling TV does not support the PlayStation 4. Note that Sling does include parental control features though, which is rare for a live TV service.

Flexible, But Fractured

Sling TV’s Orange and Blue plan are cheaper than full-featured live TV alternatives, but you need to dig pretty deep into the details to determine whether either is worth its $25-per-month price. Unfortunately, even once you do, the answer still may not be clear, as the two plans don’t neatly divide channels based on interests. These plans are good for users who don’t need or want a complete replacement for their cable service, but those who do might find these plans underwhelming. The more expensive, combined Orange & Blue plan offers more coverage, but better options exist at that price point, such as our Editors’ Choice picks for the live TV category, YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV.

Originally published at https://www.pcmag.com on November 20, 2019.