Hulu Live TV is available to stream on a number of compatible devices, including smart TVs, streaming players, smartphones and more. However, due to the nature of Hulu offering both live and on demand content, some users may find they can download the Hulu app on their preferred device but still cannot access live TV.
Hulu Live TV is one of the more popular live TV streaming services in the US and a standard subscription costs $69.99 per month. While this price makes it a more expensive option than some other services, it is still competitive on price when compared to the likes of fuboTV and YouTube TV. Where the service manages to add significantly more value is through the addition of basic Hulu, Disney Plus and ESPN subscriptions.
With Hulu offering a Hulu and a Hulu Live TV service through the same app, it is easy to assume that support for one also means support for the other, but that’s not always the case. Older models tend to only support the standard version of Hulu and not Hulu Live TV.
Hulu supported platforms and devices
Hulu Live TV offers a good level of device support overall and owners of a newer or recent model should find that they have no issues accessing Hulu’s live TV service. However, there are some exceptions. For example, while Contour Stream Player and Xfinity Flex users can access the Hulu app, they can’t access live TV content through the app on those devices.
Hulu Live TV compatible devices:
- Amazon Fire tablets
- Amazon Fire TV
- Android phones and tablets
- Android TV
- Apple TV
- Chromecast
- Echo Show
- iPhones and iPads
- LG WebOS smart TVs
- Nintendo Switch
- Playstation 4 and 5
- Roku
- Samsung smart TVs
- Vizio SmartCast TVs
- Web browsers
- Xbox
Devices running on the platforms listed above are all capable of downloading the main Hulu app and streaming Hulu’s live TV channels.
However, that doesn’t automatically mean that every device running on one of these platforms will have access to live TV. In cases where a platform is supported, but a device is not, the user might still be able to download the Hulu app but only have access to the basic Hulu library.
Hulu Live TV on a smart TV
Hulu Live TV is available to stream on the following smart TVs.
- Fire TV Edition smart TVs (Fire OS 5.0 and later)
- Hisense (Android TV)
- LG TVs (webOS 3.5 or higher)
- Roku TVs
- Samsung TVs (2016 or later)
- Sony Bravia TVs (2015 or later)
- Vizio TVs (2016 or later)
With support for Android TV, Fire TV, and Roku, as well as newer Samsung, Sony, and Vizio TVs, many individuals and households should find they can download the Hulu app and watch live TV.
If downloading the Hulu app only to find that you don’t have access to live TV (and providing you do have an active subscription) then the problem is likely to be that the TV lacks support for Hulu’s live TV service more so than the problem being an issue with the app.
Hulu Live TV on a streaming player
Similar to the situation with smart TVs, Hulu Live TV is also compatible with a wide selection of streaming players, mostly thanks to Android TV, Fire TV and Roku support.
Streaming players compatible with Hulu Live TV:
- Apple TV (4th generation)
- Apple TV 4K
- Chromecast
- Chromecast with Google TV
- Fire TV (Fire OS 5.0 and later)
- Nvidia Shield TV
- Roku (select models)
- Xiaomi Mi Box (never models)
Roku has been around for quite some time now and this has resulted in the release of a variety of different players and devices over the years. While many of them come with support for Hulu’s live TV service, others don’t, including Roku LT, Roku 1, and Roku 2.
Supported Roku players:
- Roku 3
- Roku 4
- Roku Express/Express+
- Roku Premiere/Premiere+
- Roku Ultra
- Roku Streaming Stick 4K+
- Roku Streambar
- Roku Streambar Pro
Hulu Live TV on other devices
If an individual or household finds they are unable to watch live TV through Hulu on their preferred smart TV or streaming player, there are a number of additional devices they can use.
- Android phones and tablets (Android 5.0 and above)
- Chrome OS devices
- Echo Show (8, 10, and 15)
- Fire tablets (Fire OS 5 or higher)
- iPad
- iPhone (5S or later)
- iPod Touch (6th generation)
- Nintendo Switch (R1 and Lite)
- Mac via browser (macOS X 10.13 or above)
- Microsoft Windows 10
- PlayStation 4 and 5
- Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
Similar to the situation with Roku, Apple offers a variety of different iPad versions and models and not all of them are supported. If it’s a newer iPad then there should be no issues, but owners of an older model may encounter problems when trying to watch live TV through the Hulu app.
Supported iPad models:
- iPad (5th generation or later)
- iPad Air, iPad Air 2
- iPad Pro
- iPad mini (2, 3 and 4)
For reference, Hulu’s live TV channels and related content can also be streamed through the Hulu website on a number of devices when accessed via a mobile or desktop web browser.
Supported web browsers (latest versions):
- Chrome
- Firefox
- Microsoft Edge
- Safari
Hulu Live TV supported devices: summary
Hulu Live TV supports a wide variety of devices, including smart TVs and streaming players powered by Android TV, Fire TV and Roku OS. This is in addition to support for smart TVs by Samsung, LG and Vizio, as well as support for newer Apple TV players.
If none of these devices are available, live TV channels and content can also be streamed on newer smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. If all else fails, consider using the Hulu website to watch live TV, or maybe consider a different live TV streaming service altogether.
