How to watch Foxtel content online

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 Hubbl (formerly Streamotion) has made 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. 

Here are your various options for streaming Foxtel content online. 

An app from Foxtel subsidiary Hubb, Binge is a dedicated streaming service that features some of Foxtel's best movies and TV shows from Max (HBO,) FX, and more. You don't need to have any existing Foxtel setup 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. The Basic plan does have ad-breaks, however. You'll need to pay at least $19 per month to ditch the ads completely but that also gets you 4K streaming on two devices.

There's also a seven-day free trial of Binge if you're not totally convinced.

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 (not to mention a dramatically cheaper price,) makes it the clear winner in terms of streaming Foxtel's TV shows and movies. 

It's 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 (or Flash) 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 but the cheapest plan tops out at High Definition. 

Whatever Foxtel is paying the good people at Hubbl (Streamotion,) they need to double it. Both Binge and Kayo are the best streaming apps to come out of Foxtel.

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, 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, most Smart TVs,  Apple TV devices, Google Chromecast and TV Streamer, Amazon Fire TV Stick and Hubbl devices.

As a niche service, Kayo is a little more expensive than Binge, costing between $25 (1 stream) and $40 (2 streams) per month but it still beats Foxtel's $103 per month Sport plan. You can nab a 7-day free trial deal for Kayo if you're still not sure. 

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. Even bigger events previously exclusive to Foxtel Main Event (like the Super Bowl) can be purchased and viewed through the Kayo Sports app. 

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 or the Super Rugby, which is exclusive to Stan Sport. But it's got most of the big hitters. 

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.

Foxtel Now is a 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 a suite of comparatively well-received streaming services with Binge and Kayo.

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 $35 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 set-top box included.

That depends on how much you’re willing to pay every month. As mentioned above, Foxtel Now uses the same channel-pack arrangement as traditional Foxtel, meaning you can spend anywhere from $35 per month for the Starter Pack 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. 

Foxtel Now lacks competitive pricing, reliable performance, a decent user experience, 4K video quality... the list goes on. At this stage, you’d be mad to sign up to Foxtel Now over a mixture of Binge, Kayo, Lifestyle and Flash. If you’re going to fork out that much cash every month, you might as well get a Foxtel iQ5 box for its 4K support and PVR features.

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.

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. 

It’s only available on iOS and Android smartphones and tablets or Chrome and Safari web browsers by default. You can cast to a Smart TV but only if you're paying for Multiroom or Multiscreen (an additional $25 per month.)

Flash is Hubbl's news-focused streaming service. At $8 per month, it's a tough sell. It does come with a 14-day free trial, however. It's also available on a decent selection of devices including mobile devices, most web browsers, Apple TV and Chromecast, Android TV, Hubbl and Hubbl Glass. 

Flash gets you over 25 channels of local and global news programming. It offers on-demand catch-up and live-streamed news from the like of Sky News, Bloomberg Television, CNN, Aljazeera and Fox News. There's a single $8 per month plan that offers up to 1080p HD streaming. 

Pretty much anything fun. Flash is top-to-bottom news. A few of the channels might appeal to some people, but a lot of it won't. I'm sure they've got their viewers, but considering Credlin and Paul Murray Live are two of its headline programs, it's easy to tell who the target audience is here (and it ain't me, baby. )

The LifeStyle app is the latest addition to Hubbl's stable of streaming apps. It's a standalone streaming subscription that offers a niche selection of Foxtel's most popular LifeStyle programming. There's only one plan and it costs $8 per month and comes with a 7-day free trial. 

A decidedly smaller selection of television shows themed exclusively around the programming from Foxtel's four LifeStyle channels: LifeStyle, LifeStyle Food, LifeStyle Home and Real Life. That includes shows like Grand Designs Australia, Selling Houses Australia, Love It or List It Australia, The Great Australian Bake Off and more. 

Everything else. There's no news, sports, drama or movies on the LifeStyle app. You also can't stream it on mobile devices or most streaming devices. Your only options for streaming LifeStyle are via a web browser or through one of Hubbl's two devices: the Hubbl box or the Hubbl Glass Smart TV.