STARZ TV Review

If you like oldies, STARZ will appeal to you, but maybe not so much if you’re a fan of constant original content

STARZ logo
Starz
4 out of 5 stars
4
  • pro
    Inexpensive
  • pro
    No contracts
  • pro
    No outside ads
  • con
    Minimal popular original content
  • con
    No sports
Brianne Sandorf
Mar 28, 2023
Icon Time To Read5 min read

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STARZ is an inexpensive streaming option with some beloved old shows plus fresh, original content. 

It can’t compete with the goliath streaming services’ constant flow of movies and shows, but the easy-cancel model is perfect for you to leave and come back when something new arrives.

STARZ streaming app vs. STARZ channels
Megaphone

This review is for the STARZ streaming app, not the STARZ cable channels. They’re both owned by Lionsgate, and some content that initially aired on STARZ’s channels is now on the app.

How much does STARZ cost?

STARZ plans are straightforward. You’ll pay $9 a month or $74.99 a year if you’re okay with locking into a longer-term commitment.

There are advantages to either approach! If you choose to pay monthly, you can cancel service whenever you want, no questions asked. But if you pay yearly, you’ll save about $30.

It all depends on how much STARZ content you’re interested in. If you only want to watch a single TV show, it makes more sense to pay as you go.

But that’s at regular prices—sometimes STARZ deals will change those calculations. For instance, at the time of writing, STARZ is offering six months of streaming for just $20. In that case, it makes more sense to go long term for the lower price.

STARZ prices
Plan
Price
Simultaneous streams
Details
STARZ monthly subscription$9/mo.*4
STARZ yearly subscription$74.99/yr.*4
* No charge until after your free trial. Cancel anytime online. No long term contract. Discounted annual subscriptions.

What content does STARZ have?

In 2013, STARZ and Sony made a deal that guaranteed all Sony theatrical releases through 2021 would appear on STARZ. As of March 2022, STARZ is the exclusive home of the super-successful Spider-Man: No Way Home.

The service also currently offers other popular Sony movies like Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Venom, and Spider-Man: Homecoming.

In addition, STARZ has a lot of oldies, like Matilda, Steel Magnolias, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, The Devil Wears Prada, and Hulk.

Interestingly, even though Lionsgate owns STARZ, STARZ doesn’t have the Twilight or Hunger Games movies—although that content does appear on STARZPLAY, the version of STARZ that’s accessible in Canada, Europe, and the Middle East.

What else doesn’t STARZ have? STARZ doesn’t have the most rave-worthy original content, and it’s also not the best streaming service for sports fans. But it still has some solid offerings that will appeal to a reasonably broad audience.

What originals does STARZ have?

Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and Apple TV are all jostling to outvie each other with popular original content. But STARZ, not so much.

STARZ has some awesome original stuff, including content created for the STARZ TV channels (like Outlander and Party Down). But it hasn’t yet produced anything that’s as noteworthy as Stranger Things or Ted Lasso.

Here’s a list of STARZ original content:

  • America to Me
  • American Gods
  • Ash vs. Evil Dead
  • Black Sails
  • Blindspotting
  • BMF
  • Confronting a Serial Killer
  • Da Vinci’s Demons
  • The Deceived
  • Death and Nightingales
  • Dublin Murders
  • Flesh and Bone
  • The Girlfriend Experience
  • The Gloaming
  • Gravity
  • Heels
  • Hightown
  • Howards End
  • In the Long Run
  • Leavenworth
  • Little Birds
  • The Luminaries
  • Magic City
  • Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand Up
  • Men in Kilts: A Road Trip with Sam and Graham
  • The Missing
  • Now Apocalypse
  • Outlander
  • P-Valley
  • Party Down
  • Power
  • Power Book II: Ghost
  • Power Book III: Raising Kanan
  • Power Book IV: Force
  • Power Confidential
  • Power Universe
  • The Rook
  • Run the World
  • Seduced: Inside the NXIVM Cult
  • Shining Vale
  • The Spanish Princess
  • Spartacus
  • Survivor’s Remorse
  • Sweetbitter
  • Vida
  • Warriors of Liberty City
  • The White Princess
  • The White Queen
  • Wrong Man
STARZ doesn’t have any original movies, just original series.

Does STARZ have premium channels?

No, but sort of. We’ll explain.

STARZ started as a bunch of cable TV channels, like STARZ and STARZ Encore. While the channels still exist—and are frequently premium add-ons for cable services—you can’t get them through the STARZ app.

Does STARZ have sports?

STARZ lives up to its name by focusing on (movie and TV) starz. The service doesn’t cover any sporting events, although it does have some sports-inspired shows like Warriors of Liberty City and Mr. Baseball.

If you’re looking for sports, you’d be better off with Fubo, YouTube TV, or ESPN+.

Does STARZ have Spanish-language or international content?

Five years ago, Hollywood Reporter stated that STARZ would soon have more than 700 Spanish-language pieces of content on the app.

However, we can’t find any traces of this content.

And when we tried to switch preferred languages, we were surprised to see English was our only option. It looks like STARZ has relegated its Spanish content to STARZPLAY and the STARZ Encore Español channel.

English Language Settings Only

Likewise, any STARZ international content is on STARZPLAY.

But even with no international content, STARZ still tries to cater to a diverse audience. For instance, the app offered many relevant options during Black History Month.

Which devices are compatible with STARZ?

For the most part, the STARZ app will work well with your preferred mobile device/game console/other streaming conduits.

According to the STARZ website, the STARZ app works on the following devices:

  • iPhones, iPads, and iPods running iOS 10.3 or newer
  • Amazon Kindle Fire tablets from at least 2014 running Fire OS 5 or newer
  • Amazon Kindle Fire phones
  • Most devices running Android 5 or newer
  • Computers running Microsoft Windows 10 or newer
  • Computers running Apple OS X 10.5.7 or newer
  • 3rd-generation Apple TVs
  • 4th-generation Apple TVs running tvOS 9 or newer
  • Nexus Player Android TV
  • NVIDIA Shield Android TV
  • Razer Forge Android TV
  • Amazon Fire TV
  • Amazon Fire Stick
  • 2nd-generation Roku 2
  • 2nd-generation Roku 3
  • 2nd-generation Roku 4
  • Roku Stick
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox One S
  • Xbox Series X | S

As you can see, it almost makes more sense to ask what devices STARZ doesn’t work with (Playstation consoles, which some people are understandably unhappy about).

What browsers work with STARZ?
Info Box

STARZ works with Edge, Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. So if you’re using Opera, Internet Explorer , or anything else, you’re out of luck.

Is my internet fast enough to stream STARZ?

With a 4K streaming service like STARZ, you’ll want a minimum internet speed of 25 Mbps.

If you have several streaming, smart home, or other devices using the internet simultaneously while you watch STARZ, you’ll want at least 50 Mbps.

And if you have a super-connected home with many devices online while you watch STARZ, you’ll want to start with 500 Mbps. Otherwise, your other devices may eat up the bandwidth you need to watch Wanted: Dead or Alive.

How does STARZ work?

If you’ve used a streaming service before, STARZ should be fairly intuitive. It models itself after Netflix.

When you log in, you’ll see several rows of suggested content such as “Popular,” “Recommended for You, “Just Added,” and “Trending.”

Surprisingly, we didn’t see an area of content that we’d already started watching, which is inconvenient. If you’re in the middle of Patrick Warburton’s Rules of Engagement, you may have to search for it in the search bar. Well, the browse bar—it’s literally labeled “Browse,” which may be confusing the first time you see it.

STARZ also has a few features we don’t commonly see in a streaming interface.

Before every TV and movie, STARZ has a screen that shares the content's rating and why it's rated the way it is. That way, if you forgot to check the show’s rating, you’ll get a last chance to make sure you want to watch. It’s extremely helpful if you have kids in the house or just don’t like explicit content.

Rating for Spider-Man

Screenshot from STARZ app showing the film's content rating

You might have heard that STARZ doesn’t have ads. Sounds fake, but it’s actually true!

Sure, there are trailers for other STARZ content before you can watch whatever you’re watching! But no pesky ads for car insurance and dating apps will pop up in the middle of your stream.

Recap: Is STARZ worth it?

STARZ may not have all the original content you crave, but it doesn’t cost much, and you can cancel anytime. We think it’s worth signing up for.

  • Price: At $9 a month, STARZ’s price is low and reasonable.
  • Content: STARZ has some solid creations plus older (and newer) movies and shows you’ll love rewatching, although it doesn’t have oodles of award-winning original content compared to other services.
  • Devices: STARZ works with almost every streaming device you can think of. Well, except Playstation.
  • Interface: STARZ is easy to use and has some great features, like pre-show ratings and minimal ads.
STARZ logo
STARZ®
Starz
4 out of 5 stars
4
Starts at
$9
/mo
Data as of 04/05/2023. Offers and availability vary by location and are subject to change.

Methodology

When comparing streaming services, we always consider the following:

  1. Price
  2. Content
  3. Devices
  4. Interface

To research this review, we spent extensive time on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Disney+, and, of course, STARZ.

FAQs

If you're in Canada, Europe, or the Middle East, you'll use STARZPLAY.

STARZPLAY is similar to STARZ, but it’s not a carbon copy. It has the same features but slightly different content based on licensing agreements.

Some of the STARZ TV shows that have made the biggest splash are as follows:

  • Blindspotting (with Jasmine Cephas Jones as Ashley)
  • Heels (with Stephen Amell as Jack Spade)
  • Outlander (with Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser)
  • P-Valley (with Nicco Annan as Uncle Clifford)
  • Party Down (with Adam Scott as Henry Pollard and J. K. Simmons as Leonard Stiltskin)
Brianne Sandorf
Written by
Brianne Sandorf
Brianne has a degree in English and creative writing from Westminster College and has spent 6+ years writing professional, research-based content. Before joining Reviews.org, she wrote safety and security content for ASecureLife.com. Her pieces and quotes are published across the web, including on MSN.com, Social Catfish, and Parents.com. Hobbies include wearing a seatbelt, wearing a life jacket, and keeping her arms and legs inside the ride at all times. Contact her at brianne@reviews.org.

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