Philo isn’t typically my top pick for the best live TV streaming service, but it’s still an option worth considering if cost is your most important factor. I don’t hate Philo by any stretch, especially because of its relatively low price. While that price did recently increase from $28 a month to $33 a month, it came with a serious perk: HBO Max is now included with Philo.
Now, here’s the other thing that’s great about Philo: it offers a seven-day free trial. That means that now, not only can you try out Philo for free, but you can try out HBO Max (with ads) as well for an entire week as part of your Philo free trial, without paying a dime. You can’t even get that deal directly from HBO.
I’ll be honest, at the end of your seven days, you might not keep Philo. It’s not as robust a live TV streaming service as YouTube TV or even Sling. Yes, you get 70+ channels, including AMC, Comedy Central and MTV, but you don’t get much in the way of news and live sports.
However, you might decide at the end of a week that Philo works for you. If you don’t need news or live sports, you can’t find Philo’s offering of entertainment channels for less. Especially when you throw in AMC Plus, Shudder and HBO Max, the last of which is our pick for the best streaming service we’ve tested.
And while Philo lacks a fair amount of popular channels, it doesn’t lack popular features. Philo is available on almost all of the best streaming devices, though it’s notably not available on game consoles. You also get three simultaneous streams on up to 3 devices simultaneously and unlimited cloud DVR, which is on par with the best cable alternatives. I genuinely enjoyed my experience with Philo in my Philo review; I just ultimately found its channel selection a notable shortcoming.