Best Sky Stream deals: Countdown begins to watch Sky TV and Netflix for £0

The best Sky Stream deal can dramatically cut the price of watching Sky TV.

Sky TV is best known for its blockbuster TV shows — like Game of Thrones, Chernobyl, The White Lotus, Euphoria, and Succession — documentaries, films, and exclusive sports coverage, which was recently supercharged with the arrival of Sky Sports+ as a free upgrade for all viewers.

However, it's definitely not known for its cheap subscription prices.

That's why securing a Sky TV deal as soon as it becomes available is critical. Fortunately, the latest crop of discounts are some of the best Sky Stream deals we've seen in a while.

Sky Stream deals change pretty regularly, so don't take too long thinking about any of the above offers. Sky TV usually shakes up its discounts every week, with new deals coming online from midnight on Friday.

Scroll down for our comprehensive guide on the best Sky Stream deals, insight into the set-top box, the broadband speeds you'll need to ditch the satellite dish, and more.

Best Sky Stream deals

Sky Stream is becoming one of the most popular ways to watch Sky TV — with 90% of new customers who join opting for broadband-powered kit. Ditching the satellite dish has become so popular that Sky has started to wind-down its satellite dish operations and cull channels from its oldest Sky+ boxes.

For a limited time, Sky Stream is available with a 30-day free trial.

This package includes the Sky Stream box with access to 100+ live channels in HD, a Netflix Standard with Ads subscription, and free next-day delivery. The deal ends on May 23, 2024.

Cancel anytime during the 30-day free trial period and you'll be charged nothing but you'll still be able to watch everything included in the Sky Entertainment package from Sky and Netflix for the next month.

Using this trick, you'll be able to spend the next month binge-watching boxsets that you might've missed, including House of the Dragon, The White Lotus, Euphoria, Mare of Easttown, Game of Thrones, True Detective, and Succession from HBO, Sky Originals like Rob and Romesh Vs..., Chernobyl, and Brassic, and Stranger Things, Bridgerton, and Squid Game from Netflix.

You'll need to return the Sky Stream box at the end of the trial period.

Those who want to watch Netflix and Sky TV on the award-winning Sky Stream box for longer can enjoy bigger discount over the duration of an 18-month contract — saving £100.

After the 30-day free trial period, Sky Stream rises to £26 per month for an 18-month contract with 150+ live channels not available on Freeview and a Standard with Ads subscription from Netflix.

But using our link, you'll be able to get the same Sky Stream bundle as above for just £19 per month. Sadly, there's no free trial period, but that lower monthly cost will be locked in for the entirety of the contract.

There's no upfront fee and no cost for next-day delivery.

If you continue to subscribe to Sky Stream after the 30-day free trial ends, you'll spend £442 over the 18-month contract. With our link, you'll spend just £342 for the exact same set-top box and TV package bundle.

Unlike Sky Q, which is still available to buy from the Sky Store, High Definition (HD) quality is included as standard with all Sky Stream bundles.

What is Sky Stream?

Sky Stream is the UK broadcaster's latest set-top box, which first launched on October 18, 2022 in the UK.

As the name suggests, Sky Stream ditches the traditional satellite dish in favour of streaming live television via Wi-Fi or a wired Ethernet cable. It's also available with a 31-day rolling contract, so you can cancel at any moment or switch between Sky Sports, Sky Cinema, and other packages every month — something previously only possible with Sky TV's sister service NOW, formerly known as NOW TV.

Sky Stream runs EntertainmentOS, a bespoke operating system developed by the team at Sky TV to stream its linear television channels over the internet and seamlessly blend catalogues from catch-up services like BBC iPlayer, UKTV Play, ITVX, Channel 4, as well as streamers like Netflix, Disney+, and Prime Video.

EntertainmentOS is also the software that powers Sky Glass, the custom-designed Smart TV from the broadcaster. Aside from a few features that rely on specific hardware, like the hands-free voice controls enabled by the far-field microphone array built into the television, Sky Glass and Sky Stream offer the same experience.

Sky confirmed to GB News that it had delivered over 500 software updates to Sky Glass viewers since the all-in-one Smart TV launched in late 2021. There were 300 alone last year.

Of course, Sky Stream has received slightly fewer since it works with your existing telly and doesn't have all of the hardware features found on Glass. EntertainmentOS 1.3 was the most recent update, bringing the ability to follow individual actors and football teams in your Playlist.

But whereas Sky Glass is an all-in-one solution that replaces your TV, Sky Stream works with any television.

Since there's no satellite dish, there's no need to organise an engineer appointment. Getting connected with Sky Stream should be much speedier than traditional Sky boxes like Sky+ and Sky Q as there's no need to wait for a free slot with the engineers. Instead, the moment Sky Stream drops through your letterbox, simply plug in the power and HDMI cables and follow the on-screen instructions. And that's it.

What broadband speed do you need for Sky Stream?

Since everything is beamed to your Sky Stream box via Wi-Fi or ethernet, you'll need a decent internet connection to watch live and on-demand television.

The minimum requirement for Sky Stream is 25Mbps. The average broadband speed nationwide, as measured by Ofcom, sits at 69Mbps, so most people should have enough bandwidth to watch Sky Stream in HD.

If you want to stream in 4K Ultra HD, the minimum speed requirement increases to 30Mbps.

Until May 2023, Sky recommended a minimum download speed of just 11Mbps for Sky Stream, rising to 25Mbps for 4K UHD picture quality. However, the broadcaster decided to change these recommended speeds in the small print of its website last year. It's unclear why the change was made.

In comparison, Netflix states you need at least 5Mbps to watch in HD and 15Mbps for its 4K UHD quality.

If you want to watch Sky TV in multiple rooms of your house, you'll need an additional 5Mbps for every Sky Stream box added to the system. There's a maximum of 6 Sky Stream boxes per household, totalling an extra 30Mbps for those who want to stream from Sky Stream kit in every room.

What channels are included with Sky Stream?