Paramount Plus review: Good value for the price, with an app that could use some improvement

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Paramount Plus has quietly become one of the biggest players in the stand-alone streaming service game. Through years of hands-on testing experience, we've determined whether the app is actually worth it.

First launched in 2021 as a replacement to CBS All Access, Paramount Plus has morphed from a semi-niche, nice-to-have streamer to a full-fledged service approaching must-have status. The streaming service, which started as a handy way to watch CBS shows on demand, has evolved into a massive catalog of content from various Paramount film and TV properties. It has even launched a steady stream of original programming. With news that Paramount Skydance plans to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery (more on that later) and a recent foray into UFC events, all eyes are on Paramount Plus more than ever.

I've been using Paramount Plus for several years, putting it to the test across a variety of devices, including TVs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. I've seen several versions of the service, including back when the streamer was bundled with the now-defunct Showtime streaming service (now, Showtime is simply available in the Paramount Plus Premium tier). Our review covers everything you might need to know about the service, including an evaluation of its live and on-demand content, a breakdown of relevant prices and plans, and how it holds up with everyday use across a variety of devices. For this review, I'm evaluating the service's Premium tier.

You can learn more about the app in our Paramount Plus streaming service guide or directly through the Paramount Plus website. For more information about our testing methodology, check out our guide on how we test streaming services.

Plans

Paramount Plus offers two plans: Essential and Premium. Paramount Plus Essential offers ad-supported access to all available on-demand programming. For the most part, this excludes Showtime content (although a very small selection of Showtime series will be available). Subscribers can live stream select sports, including NFL on CBS games, Champions League matches, and UFC events.

Paramount Plus Premium, formerly Paramount Plus with Showtime, offers all of the same on-demand content, but you can watch it without ads. The Premium tier also unlocks CBS live streaming, Showtime programming, and the ability to download most content for offline viewing.

Prices

Paramount Plus Essential costs $9 a month, making it one of the cheapest ad-supported streaming plans on the market. It's more affordable than comparable ad-supported plans from Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, and HBO Max, among others. Essential is also available as an annual plan, which costs $90 a year.

Paramount Plus Premium costs $14 a month or $140 a year. As far as ad-free plans go, it's also cheaper than its Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, HBO Max, and Peacock peers, although it's $1 a month more expensive than Apple TV. Keep an eye on our guide to the latest Paramount Plus coupons for opportunities to save a bit extra.

Students, teachers, and military members can get 50% off any plan. The teacher and student discounts are valid for one year with the option to renew, while the military discount is for life. All potential discount customers will need to confirm their eligibility.

User interface

Paramount Plus is pretty easy to use and navigate. It avoids some of the most common frustrations I've found on similar services. It doesn't auto-play clips on its homepage (an annoyance found with services like Netflix and Peacock), and when you click on a show that you're watching, it takes you to the series' page rather than immediately starting an episode.

Paramount Plus also keeps the "Keep Watching" section in just the second row on its homepage (on both TV and mobile devices), right under the "Your Next Watch" section. Many similar streamers tend to stick this section further down the page or move it around across devices, creating a frustrating user experience, but Paramount Plus keeps things clean and straightforward.

Cross-device compatibility and simultaneous streaming

Paramount Plus supports three simultaneous streams, a feature available on both plans, so you won't need to upgrade to watch on more than one device. In testing, I've successfully gotten the app streaming on three devices at the same time with no issues and clear visuals.

The service is available across various devices, including smart TVs, mobile devices, set-top boxes, streaming players, and gaming consoles. All of the big options are available, including Android devices, Apple devices, Fire TV, Samsung TV, LG TV, Roku, PS5, and Xbox (One, Series S, and Series X), among others. You can find a full breakdown of supported devices on the Paramount Plus support website. Just keep in mind that supported devices vary by country, and you should use the latest version of the software.

On-demand content

The Paramount Plus back-catalog impresses, especially for fans of CBS and Paramount Pictures films. The streaming service carries on-demand episodes (including current and previous seasons) of every ongoing CBS series. New episodes hit both tiers of the streaming service the day after their CBS airdate.

There are a few CBS gaps, including some missing concluded or canceled CBS originals that, by all means, should be on the streaming service but aren't. While the streamer hosts every episode of "NCIS," along with "NCIS: Sydney" and "NCIS: Origins" (and the Paramount Plus original spinoff, "Tony & Ziva"), it no longer carries "NCIS: Hawaii," "NCIS: Los Angeles," and "NCIS: New Orleans."

The streaming service also has an impressive film catalog, including many popular Paramount Pictures hits. These range from classics like "Top Gun" and "Mean Girls" to newer releases, including "Roofman" and "The Running Man," which arrive on streaming after their theatrical and VOD purchase period. We've checked back long after a Paramount Pictures original hits the streaming service and found that, for the most part, the movies stick around for a while. The service also goes the extra mile by licensing films from other companies, providing a slew of new offerings each month.

Paramount Plus has also developed a strong, albeit specific, reputation for original series, a necessary component of any streaming service worth its salt. The bulk of the streamer's original shows comes from Taylor Sheridan, the co-creator of "Yellowstone." Sheridan's Paramount Plus original shows include "1883" and "1923" ("Yellowstone" prequels), "Lioness," "Landman," "Tulsa King," "Mayor of Kingstown," and "The Madison." Sheridan will also executive produce the upcoming "Yellowstone" spinoff, "Dutton Ranch," which will drop in May 2026 under showrunner Chad Feehan.

While Sheridan's work is popular, the streamer doesn't offer much in the way of prestige original shows beyond his programming, and many of the "original" series rely on recycled IP. "School Spirits," which recently dropped its third season, is one of the streamer's more unique and enduring originals. While "RuPaul's Drag Race" airs on MTV, spinoffs like "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars" are now exclusive to Paramount Plus. The streaming service carries the full catalog of "Star Trek" programming (including an impressive number of past TV shows and movies), and has launched several original series within the "Star Trek" universe, including "Star Trek: Starfleet Academy," "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," and "Star Trek: Discovery."

Paramount Plus even boasts a few original movies, like "Significant Other" and "Pet Semetary: Bloodlines," although its strength is still in its television programming. The streaming service also hosts a decent back catalog from other non-CBS Paramount properties, including Comedy Central, MTV, and Nickelodeon. This means that you can catch new episodes of "South Park" or classics like "Broad City."

There are some minor frustrations. Episodes of "RuPaul's Drag Race," which air live on the Paramount-owned MTV network, don't hit the streaming service until long after the latest season has finished airing. "Yellowstone," which aired live on Paramount Network, isn't available on Paramount Plus in the US at all. Instead, the series is only available to stream on Peacock, despite all the prequels and spinoffs landing on Paramount Plus. It is included in the UK and Canadian versions of the app, though.

It's also a bit of a bummer that Showtime content is reserved for the Premium tier. For most other streaming services, higher tiers unlock ad-free on-demand content and live streaming, but the same amount of on-demand content is available across both tiers. The closest comparison is Peacock, which offers loads of Bravo programming in both its Premium and Premium Plus tiers, rather than locking it away in the ad-free tier.

That said, many ongoing Showtime shows, like "Yellowjackets" and "Dexter: Resurrection," drop new episodes on Paramount Plus Premium ahead of their broadcast airdate.

It's also worth noting that some classic Showtime programs are surprisingly missing. This includes several Showtime series that I consider essential programs, like "Homeland," "Shameless," "Nurse Jackie," "The Big C," and "Weeds." All of these shows have been licensed to Netflix, except for "Weeds," which is on Prime Video (at the time of writing).

The streamer loses some points because it has succumbed to an increasingly frustrating trend with streaming services (which, fittingly, HBO Max is also guilty of): removing select original programming from the service after a show was canceled. "Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies," a rare non-Sheridan Paramount Plus original that premiered in 2023, was removed shortly after the show's cancellation.

This is different from removing external programming after a licensing deal has expired, and it is especially frustrating because the programming only existed on Paramount Plus and is not being licensed for streaming elsewhere. Instead, you'll need to pay to own access to the show through a third-party VOD service like Prime Video or Apple TV. That's just the best-case scenario; select original programming that has been removed from HBO Max is unavailable to purchase anywhere in the US and has effectively become lost media since many streaming-exclusive shows rarely get a DVD release.

Live content

Both tiers of Paramount Plus have access to select live content, including NFL on CBS games, Champions League matches, and UFC events. UFC is the latest addition to the Paramount Plus line-up, added to the streaming service in 2026 after UFC's broadcast licensing agreement with ESPN concluded. All UFC events, including both Fight Nights and major numbered events, are available with Essential and Premium subscriptions. Select events will also be broadcast directly on CBS (and streamed).

When UFC events were on ESPN, viewers needed an ESPN subscription (now starting at $13 a month) and a pay-per-view (PPV) fee to watch every major numbered event (typically $80 a pop). Notably, Paramount isn't requiring a PPV fee or locking away the coverage in a premium tier.

However, the Premium tier does come with some additional live perks. Premium subscriptions unlock 24/7 live streaming of your local CBS station, which means that subscribers can catch CBS shows and sporting events live. This is particularly helpful for fans of CBS primetime shows, who might not want to wait until the next day and risk being spoiled on the latest episodes of "Survivor" or "Tracker." It's also a great option for cord-cutters looking to live stream major games (including select men's March Madness match-ups) or awards shows (like the Tony Awards).

The CBS live stream works well. Once you navigate to the Live TV section of the app, you're shown a TV guide of sorts. There, the CBS live stream, including current and upcoming programming, is displayed. The guide also shows a schedule of upcoming live events from UFC and Champions League, along with a TV guide for additional available channels.

These channels are run-of-the-mill Paramount-owned options, some of which are accessible for free online or through FAST (Free Ad-supported Streaming Television) services. They include CBS News 24/7, CBS Sports HQ, and Inside Edition, among others. You can also parachute in on different live CBS News Local channels. I'm in Boston, and I can watch my local channel or flip to Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, and other major cities.

There are also channels devoted to specific Paramount properties, like South Park, SpongeBob SquarePants, Paw Patrol, CSI, Star Trek, Survivor, RuPaul's Drag Race, The Challenge, and more. Other channels include those pegged to 80s Sitcoms, 90s Sitcoms, TV Classics, and Nostalgic Hits, among others.

Basic functionality

These are all great perks, but they're only really worth it if a streaming service actually reliably works. For the most part, Paramount Plus does what it says it does. I've found that navigating the app can be a bit laggy and slow on some TVs, but not as much of an issue on others (or mobile devices).

The service occasionally gets tripped up when you try to rewind or fast-forward on-demand content on TVs, and both live and on-demand streaming are subject to some occasional buffering (especially when you're first loading something). This has been noticed in both my household and by Business Insider's Senior Commerce Director, who uses the service to watch live Champions League matches. He also noted that it can sometimes be tricky to navigate and select your desired Champions League game on matchday, where unresponsive menus "feel like wading through treacle."

Closed captioning is excellent, fast, and pretty accurate across both on-demand and live content. This is not the case for every streaming service, and for some apps, adding closed captions causes buffering. There's no discernible difference when captions are turned on on Paramount Plus, creating a seamless viewing experience for those who might need them.

The bottom line

I would not have called this streaming service a must-have a few years ago (I was mainly using it to watch "Criminal Minds" and "Yellowjackets"), but through sheer content acquisition alone, it has muscled its way into the pantheon of best streaming services. It's also one of the more budget-friendly streaming services, considering that its base tier is still under $10 a month (a rarity these days), and its premium tier is significantly cheaper than ad-free plans from most competitors.

If you like CBS and Showtime series, signing up for a subscription has been an obvious choice for years now. But select original TV shows and deep back catalog from other Paramount-owned networks are helping make it a must-have for even casual viewers. If you're even planning to watch just one UFC main event this year, the Essential tier of service practically pays for itself compared to the subscription and hefty PPV fees you'd need to pay to watch while UFC was still on ESPN.

If you want to watch something specific on the streaming service, it's definitely worth the plunge. It's also affordable enough that it might fit nicely into a monthly entertainment budget, even if you go ad-free. The price hikes so far have been modest, with the latest increase coming in early 2026 and only adding $1 a month more to both plans. The sheer volume of content means that it will probably take you quite some time to burn through the TV shows and movies, and there's a deep enough catalog of older content that you might find some hidden gems.

TLDR: We use Paramount Plus in our own homes and plan to continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

Things to keep an eye on

We can't talk about Paramount Plus without acknowledging Paramount Skydance's bid for Warner Bros. Discovery. While it still needs to clear some regulatory hurdles, Paramount says that the transaction is expected to close in Q3 2026.

So far, it sounds like the plan is for HBO Max and Paramount Plus to eventually be available under one app. During a March investor call, per Variety, Paramount CEO David Ellison shared plans to combine the services while allowing HBO to retain its independence. Whether that means that one will be available as a tile on the other (à la the Hulu tile on Disney Plus) or if they'll be fully integrated remains to be seen. While testing the services, I've found that the HBO Max app interface is a little easier to use and nicer to look at, so if full integration is the way, I hope Paramount takes some tips from Warner Bros.' UI team.

I'm also curious to see how the streaming service's original programming continues to evolve, especially given that Taylor Sheridan's TV deal with Paramount expires at the end of 2028, after which point he'll take his hit-making talents to NBCUniversal and Peacock.