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4 ways to watch Foxtel online

There's no need to pay for additional hardware when most of Foxtel's content is available online.

TV and movies
Binge
Binge
  • pro
    From $10 p/month
  • pro
    Great app design and content selection
Sports, sports, sports
Kayo Sports
Kayo Sports
  • pro
    From $25 p/month
  • pro
    Huge sports library and clever design
Free companion app
Foxtel Go
  • pro
    Included with Foxtel
  • con
    Requires Foxtel iQ subscription
Fox without the box
Foxtel Now | 2022 logo | Reviews.org Australia
Foxtel Now
  • pro
    Premium TV shows from HBO and FX
  • con
    Expensive
Brodie Fogg
Feb 20, 2024
Icon Time To Read5 min read

Not everyone is too keen on the entertainment industry's pivot to streaming video-on-demand, but one thing we can all agree on is that it beats paying through the nose to get an ugly satellite installed on your roof. Foxtel still sells its traditional pay-TV services and its PVR set-top box, Foxtel iQ, but it's also (very slowly) coming around to the idea of the Netflix streaming model. Its first few attempts (see Presto) experienced a failure to launch, but Foxtel subsidiary Streamotion makes better streaming apps to house Foxtel content. If you're looking to watch Foxtel online, you're spoiled for choice these days, but the service you choose will depend on your existing Foxtel arrangement and the type of content you want to stream.

Binge streams Foxtel's TV shows and movies

Option 1: Binge

A strong selection of Foxtel’s best TV shows and movies, at a fraction of the cost.

The newest addition to Foxtel's stable of streaming services is Binge, a dedicated streaming platform that features some of Foxtel's best movies and TV shows from HBO, FX, and more. You don't need to have any existing Foxtel set-up to try Binge.

Like Netflix and Stan, all you need is a compatible device (most smartphones, tablets, and browsers will do the trick) and a subscription. Plans start at $10 per month for one device with standard definition streaming with no lock-in contract or strings attached. There's also a seven-day free trial if you're not utterly convinced.

What do you get with Binge?

Binge has premium drama, comedy, reality TV, and some of the latest blockbuster movies. It doesn't have absolutely everything Foxtel has, but the libraries are strikingly similar. All of this in addition to no lock-in contract and no need for installation.

What don't you get with Binge?

It's mostly missing news and sports. If you get your news and sports coverage from Foxtel, there are two things you need to know: firstly, consuming news via Fox could be considered a severe health risk, and secondly, most of the sport is available on Kayo anyway.

As with Netflix and Stan, Binge only offers 4K streaming on its more expensive tiers. The cheapest one caps out at high definition.

Binge Plans

Plan
Monthly Price
Free Trial
Devices
Max. Stream Quality

Binge Basic

$10

7 days

1

Standard Definition

Binge Standard

$18

7 days

2

High Definition

Binge Premium

$22

7 days

4

High Definition

Learn about Binge
Megaphone

Interested in Binge? Check out our guides on the TV and movie streaming service.

Stream most of Foxtel’s sports on the run with Kayo Sports.

Option 2: Kayo Sports

Most of Foxtel’s Sports in a tidy streaming app.

Whatever Foxtel is paying the good people at Streamotion, they need to double it. Both Binge and Kayo are the best streaming apps to come out of Foxtel. In particular, Kayo is a genuinely innovative sports streaming platform with clever features you won't find on any other platform in Australia. It features over fifty sports, live and on-demand, SplitView for viewing up to four events at once, 20-minute highlight reels with Kayo Mini, stats and scoreboards, and key moments tagged on the playback bar. There's even a spoiler-free view if you want to dodge any scores before catching the game. It's available on smartphones, tablets, most browsers, Samsung and Android smart TV, Apple TV, Telstra TV, and Chromecast.

As a niche service, Kayo is a little more expensive than Binge, costing between $25 (1 stream) and $35 (2 streams) per month with 7-day free trial.

What do you get with Kayo?

Sports and loads of it. Kayo offers a huge suite of live and on-demand sporting events, as well as sports documentaries, talk shows, and recaps.

What don't you get with Kayo?

Everything else. If it's not sport or sport-related, you won't find it on Kayo. No news, TV shows, or movies. It does what it says on the tin. Some sports aren't available on Kayo, like the English Premier League, which is only available on Optus Sport.

Like Binge, there's no 4K available on Kayo's cheapest plan, but other than that, you should be getting the same experience, provided your internet speed is up to snuff.

Take your traditional Foxtel subscription mobile with Foxtel Go

Option 3: Foxtel Go

Take your existing Foxtel subscription online.

Out of all the services listed, Foxtel Go is the most simple to explain. Foxtel iQ subscribers get a Foxtel Go login that allows them to stream most of the content included in their pay-TV plan on the go. All you need to do is download the Foxtel Go app on Android or iOS, or visit the Foxtel website in Safari or Chrome, and log in with your Foxtel ID details. Foxtel Go isn't a standalone streaming service, more of an alternative way to access your traditional Foxtel subscription.

There are no additional charges past what you already pay for your regular Foxtel subscription.

What do you get with Foxtel Go?

Foxtel Go gives you almost everything included in your regular Foxtel subscription. It’s a companion app tied to your existing account. As such, it will consist of whatever channel packs you’re already paying for with Foxtel and nothing else.

What don’t you get with Foxtel Go?

It’s only available on iOS and Android smartphones and tablets or Chrome and Safari web browsers. The app itself isn’t widely available on any other device type, such as Apple TV, Chromecast, or smart TVs.

Foxtel Now | Banner | Streaming Services Australia

Everything Foxtel offers without the iQ box

Option 4: Foxtel Now

Everything you know about Foxtel (including the price) packaged as a streaming service.

Unlike Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now is an actual streaming service created to compete with Netflix and Stan without the same affordable price or reliability.

Foxtel Now infamously tanked at crucial moments throughout the history of the service's most popular show, Game of Thrones. The experience was so bad that it was immortalised by the massive spike in 'Cancel Foxtel Now' searches the day after Game of Thrones' last episode aired.

But for some reason, Foxtel just won't quit on Now, even after releasing two comparatively well-received streaming services with Binge and Kayo. We're not privy to the inner workings over at Fox, but the company continues to make bizarre, ill-informed decisions around the rollout and co-existence of Binge, Kayo, and Foxtel Now. Like removing Binge and Kayo from the Foxtel Now streaming box. These three services are all owned by the same company. They work out of the same office. But you'd be forgiven if you assumed they were bitter streaming rivals trying to undercut each other.

Whatever is happening behind-the-scenes, you're better off paying for Binge and Kayo rather than Foxtel Now, in our opinion.

Foxtel Now's channel packs start at $25 per month, but that's just the basics. You can spend over $100 per month if you decide you want sports, lifestyle, kids content, and more. It's essentially the same premium pricing model as Foxtel, without the PVR set-top box included.

What do you get with Foxtel Now?

That depends on how much you’re willing to pay every month. As mentioned above, Foxtel Now uses the same channel-pack payment model as traditional Foxtel, meaning you can spend anywhere from $25 per month for Pop and Lifestyle to $104 per month for all channel packs included. Comparatively, Binge and Kayo together will cost you as low as $35 per month. For that price, you get all your TV shows, movies, and sport with half the headache, and none of the Sky News.

If you absolutely must, there’s a ten-day free trial of Foxtel Now that will cost you nada, which is precisely what the service is worth. If you’re a Telstra customer, you’ve got the option to take a 1-month trial of Foxtel Now’s most premium package until 30 June 2021, but Telstra customers can also bundle three free months of Binge.

What don’t you get with Foxtel Now?

Foxtel Now lacks competitive pricing, reliable performance, a decent user experience; the list goes on. At this stage, you’d be mad to sign up to Foxtel Now. If you’re going to fork out that much cash every month, you might as well get an iQ4 box for its 4K support and PVR features.

Brodie Fogg
Written by
Brodie Fogg is the Australian editorial lead at Reviews.org. He has covered consumer tech, telecommunications, video games, streaming and entertainment for over five years at websites like WhistleOut and Finder and can be found sharing streaming recommendations at 7NEWS every month.