How can I watch ABC live?
ABC is available on DIRECTV STREAM, fuboTV, Hulu + Live TV, Vidgo and YouTube TV. You can also use a TV antenna to watch a local ABC station. The ESPN app will live stream some sporting events that air on ABC.
How to Live Stream ABC Without Cable TV
ABC is a key channel for watching live NBA basketball, The Oscars, college football, and new TV shows such as Big Sky.
Thanks to a wave of cord cutting, and the ongoing revival of TV antennas, there are a half dozen ways to watch ABC live without a cable TV provider.
This guide will show you how to watch ABC without cable TV services like Comcast or satellite TV. I’ll also show you how to live stream sports when you don’t have a local ABC channel by using the ESPN app.
Streaming ABC online with Hulu + Live TV
For live streaming ABC, Hulu with Live TV is the best choice for most people because it has more local stations than any other live TV service.
Hulu’s Live TV service gets you more than 65+ live TV channels for $64.99 per month with 50 hours of Cloud DVR. You’ll be able to watch ABC live alongside national networks like A&E, ESPN, FS1, TNT, Bravo, History, Smithsonian Channel and FX.
If you forget to record a show to your Cloud DVR, you can use your account to activate 40 apps including the ABCGo app on your Roku or Apple TV for networks like A&E, FOX Sports and NBC Sports.
Subscribers can stream on up to two devices at once, including your iPhone or Android smartphone when you’re not at home. There’s another part of a Hulu Live TV subscription that adds a lot value compared to competitors.
You get unlimited access to its full streaming library that includes network TV shows, movies and Hulu Originals. It’s the same on-demand library that customers pay $5.99 and up for. So you’re essentially getting two live streaming services at the same price as many of Hulu’s competitors.
Hulu with Live TV works with Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast and Xbox. You can check out the channel lineup for Hulu with Live TV to see if it’s a good fit for replacing your cable or satellite TV subscription.
You can get a free 7-day trial of Hulu + Live TV even if you already subscribe to Hulu’s on-demand service. There is also a way to bundle Hulu + Live TV with Disney+ and ESPN+ and save $5.99 per month.
Stream ABC live without cable on fuboTV
fuboTV carries local ABC stations as part of a 116+ channel lineup.
The addition was part of a multi-year deal that added ESPN, Disney, FX and National Geographic channels.
ACC Network, Big Ten Network, SEC Network, FS1, NBC Sports and Golf Channel are included in the standard channel package. AMC, HGTV, History and Investigation Discovery are some of the entertainment channels.
Subscribers get 30 hours of Cloud DVR, and the ability to activate more than 40 apps for channels that are in your lineup. Fubo works on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV, iOS and Android smartphones.
A subscription costs $64.99 per month. fuboTV has a library of on-demand movies, and TV shows.
fuboTV works on Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Apple TV and Android TV devices. There are mobile apps for iPhones, Android and you can watch on web browsers.
New customers can sign up for a free 7-day trial.
DIRECTV STREAM
With DIRECTV STREAM’s Entertainment channel bundle, you can live stream ABC from your TV or a smartphone.
The Entertainment plan carries 65+ channels for $69.99 per month. HGTV, ESPN, Nickelodeon and BBC America are part of the Entertainment bundle.
The service works on Roku, Apple TV and Fire TV devices. You can look over the different channel lineups before deciding whether to sign up.
Does Sling TV have ABC?
No. If you’re a Sling TV customer, you won’t find ABC in your channel lineup. You should try a TV antenna and see if there are local broadcast towers that can get a local ABC station into your home for free.
ABC used to be offered under Sling TV’s “Broadcast Bundle”, but that package went away in 2019 in an apparent dispute.
Vidgo: Stream ABC on Roku or Fire TV
Vidgo carries local ABC stations as part of its 85+ channel live TV lineup. A&E, ESPN, History channel and Science Channel are part of the channel lineup.
Subscribers can stream on up to three devices at once. Vidgo has apps on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Android TV devices such as Google Chromecast.
A Vidgo subscription costs $55 per month. You can look over the channel lineup before deciding whether to sign up.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV offers roughly 85+ channels for $64.99 per month, and you’ll be able to live stream ABC in most markets.
There are YouTube TV apps for Roku, Apple TV and a mobile app for Chromecast. You can stream on up to two devices at once.
YouTube TV also has channels like CNN, FS1, FS2, Sundance TV and TBS. You can try out YouTube TV with a free 7-day trial.
How to Stream ABC sports live on ESPN3/ESPN app
If you don’t have ABC in your channel lineup, you can still watch ABC sports live on ESPN3 or the ESPN app. ESPN is actually a subsidiary of ABC.
Subscribers to Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV (Orange plan) and YouTube TV can activate the ESPN app and watch live sports airing on ABC.
If you don’t already have the ESPN app, you can download it from wherever you get apps for your device (e.g. The Roku Channel Store has the ESPN app for free for all Roku devices.)
Watch ABC for Free or Cheap
Before you even delve into a live TV service, you should check out whether you can get ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX for free with a TV antenna.
There’s a quick and easy way to check. Head over to the free Transmitter Locator map on the AntennasDirect website and punch in your zip code. You’ll get a list of what channels that you should be able to get for free.
Television broadcast towers transmit digital signals in HD picture quality (720p or 1080i picture resolution).
So forget about the static-riddled analog signals prior to 2010.
You might not buy an antenna right away, but read over my review on the Best Indoor TV Antennas when you’re ready for one.
If you’re wondering what kind of things you can watch on ABC with a TV antenna, here’s a list of the most popular shows currently airing, including the new show Big Sky.
- American Housewife
- American Idol
- The Bachelor
- Big Sky
- black-ish
- The Chew
- Designated Survivor
- Fresh Off the Boat
- General Hospital
- The Good Doctor
- Grey’s Anatomy
- How to Get Away With Murder
- Jimmy Kimmel Live!
- Kevin (Probably) Saves the World
- Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
- The Middle
- Modern Family
- NBA Basketball
- NCAA College Basketball
- The Oscars
- Scandal
- Shark Tank
- Speechless
What’s the best way to live stream ABC without cable?
I suggest getting a free trial of Hulu with Live TV, especially if you already subscribe to Hulu on-demand.
Hulu’s Live TV package has 65+ channels for $64.99 per month, including A&E, ESPN and FOX.
Subscribers can use a Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and even on iPhones or an Android smartphone.
Check out Hulu with Live TV’s channel lineup before deciding whether to sign up for a free 7-day trial.
For more news on streaming, how-to guides and reviews, head over to the main page of The Cord Cutting Report or follow the CCR on Google News.
This article was published March 4, 2018, and has been updated.
Founder and Editor of The Cord Cutting Report. Before launching the site in 2016, he worked for more than two decades as a staff writer or correspondent for a number of daily newspapers, including The Boston Globe. His enthusiasm for tech began with the Atari 2600. Follow @james_kimble
Time to drop You Tube streaming….
I am outside of Philadelphia and i have a digital antenna-but ABC just simply doesn’t come in at all! I can get CBS, NBC, PHL17,FOX,CW,ION&ION PLUS and so on…but ABC DOES NOT WORK ! It really stinks
I don’t know why I would bother with Hulu Live TV, cable is cheaper. The whole point of cord cutting is to save money, not spend more!!!
First of all, you can only stream ABC online (or through Youtube TV, Hulu, Sling, etc.) if you are in one of a very small number of metropolitan areas. Last year, I knocked myself out on Oscars night trying to stream before figuring out that ABC had it locked down tight: you are not gonna live-stream if you’re outside Chicago, Fresno, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham or San Francisco.
I even tried changing my location, but YouTube TV is smart: you have to use your mobile device to show that you are where you say you are. The others use your internet connection and credit card zip code. I’m not saying it’s impossible to change those, but it is a lot harder than you imply here.
I think you mean to simply say that you can later watch TV shows online. That’s true. But watching live outside of the eight urban areas means paying for it or getting an antenna.