Short answer: Sling is still the cheapest way to get a proper cable-style lineup with ESPN, TNT, CNN and FX, and in 2026 it's more flexible than it has ever been, with $19.99 mini-plans and day passes alongside the classic Orange and Blue. It's worth it for a one- or two-person household that wants sport and news without paying $80+. The catch is the fine print: Orange allows only one stream, local channels are patchy (Fox and NBC in some markets on Blue only, never ABC or CBS), and the included DVR is just 50 hours.
At a glance
Sling TV, September 2026
| Full plans | Orange or Blue $45.99; both about $61 to $66 |
| Mini plans | Select or Essentials $19.99 |
| Passes | Day $4.99, weekend $9.99, week $14.99 |
| DVR | 50 hours included |
| Verdict | Good value if you pick the right piece |
How Sling is sold now: four layers
Sling used to be simple: Orange or Blue. In 2026 it's four layers, and picking the right one matters more than anything else in this review.
1. Sling Freestream (free). Hundreds of free ad-supported channels and on-demand shows, no subscription. Mostly older series, niche channels and news clips. Worth installing even if you never pay.
2. Passes ($4.99 to $14.99). Short-term access to a live lineup: roughly $4.99 for a day, $9.99 for a weekend and $14.99 for a week, per Sling's published pass pages. They don't auto-renew into a subscription. Perfect for the one fight, final or rivalry game you care about.
3. Mini plans ($19.99 a month). Sling Select (added August 2025) carries a small set including Fox News, FS1, NFL Network, FX and National Geographic, per plan listings. Sling Essentials (April 2026) is built around ESPN, ESPN2, Disney Channel and Freeform. Each is roughly ten to fifteen channels.
4. Full plans ($45.99 and up). Orange, Blue, or both, which is what most people think of as Sling.
That structure is Sling's biggest strength in 2026. Nobody else lets you step up from free to a $5 day to a $20 mini-plan to a full bundle inside one app.
Orange vs Blue, in one table
Orange and Blue cost the same, but they're different products, not tiers.
| Sling Orange | Sling Blue | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $45.99 | $45.99 (some trackers list $50.99) |
| Channels | about 30+ | about 40+ |
| Streams | 1 | 3 |
| ESPN, ESPN2 | Yes | No |
| Disney Channel, Freeform | Yes | No |
| Fox and NBC locals | No | Selected markets only |
| FS1, NFL Network | No | Yes |
| Bravo, USA, Syfy, FX | No | Yes |
| Fox News, MSNBC | No | Yes |
| On both | CNN, TNT, TBS, AMC, HGTV, Food Network, A&E, History, Comedy Central and more | |
The shorthand: Orange is for ESPN and kids; Blue is for the NFL (via Fox, NBC and NFL Network in covered markets), news and entertainment. Channel lists vary slightly by market and change over time, so check Sling's lineup tool with your ZIP code.
What Sling does well
- Cheapest route to TNT, TBS and CNN. Those three are on both Orange and Blue, and they're missing from Philo and Frndly entirely.
- Flexible buying. Passes and mini-plans mean you never have to pay $46 for one event.
- No contract. Month to month, easy to cancel and restart.
- Frequent first-month deals. Sling has regularly offered 50% off the first month for new subscribers.
- Broad device support. Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, Google TV, Samsung and LG TVs, consoles, phones and browsers.
- Add-ons to fill gaps. Extras packs for sport, news, kids and Spanish-language channels, plus premium channels, let you build around Orange or Blue.
Where it falls short
- One stream on Orange. The biggest gotcha. Two people can't watch Orange at the same time. It pushes families to Blue or to both.
- Weak local channels. No ABC or CBS anywhere, and Fox and NBC only on Blue in some markets. Plan on an antenna. Our antenna guide explains how to check reception.
- 50-hour DVR. That's about 25 football games or a couple of series. Unlimited DVR costs extra.
- Always ad-supported. There's no ad-free option on live or on-demand content.
- No regional sports networks. Local NBA, NHL and MLB games aren't covered.
- Mostly 720p. Live channels generally stream in 720p. Fine on a 43-inch TV, visibly soft on a big one.
- No SEC Network or ACC Network on the base plans. College fans may need a sports extra or a different service.
The app and day-to-day use
Sling's app is built around a grid guide that looks like cable, plus rows of recommendations and a "My TV" area for favourites and recordings. People coming from cable tend to find the guide familiar; people coming from Netflix-style apps sometimes find it busy. Neither is a reason to choose or avoid it.
A few practical points that affect everyday use:
- Location matters. Local channels and some sports follow your home location, and Sling checks where you are. Watching away from home works for most cable channels but may not for locals.
- Stream limits count across devices. On Orange, a phone watching ESPN in the kitchen blocks the living-room TV. On Blue, the third stream is the limit.
- Recordings share one pool. The 50 DVR hours are for the whole account, not per person. A household that records a lot will fill it within weeks.
- Extras stack up quickly. Sports, news, kids and premium add-ons are each a few dollars to $15 a month, and they're easy to add from the app. Review the bill after the first month.
If playback stutters, the fix is usually the home connection rather than Sling. A wired connection or a stronger Wi-Fi signal near the TV does more than any setting inside the app.
The price trend
Sling's selling point has always been price, and it's worth knowing how that's moved. Orange launched in 2015 at $20 a month. According to a price tracker, it has risen in five steps to today's $45.99, most recently in December 2024. That's an increase of about 130% over ten years.
To be fair, every live TV service has risen, and most faster in dollar terms: YouTube TV's base plan is $82.99 and Hulu + Live TV about $99.99 in 2026. Sling is still the cheapest full-size lineup with ESPN and TNT. But the gap is smaller than it used to be, and the new $19.99 mini-plans exist partly because $46 is no longer the easy "cheap cable" price it was.
Sling against the obvious alternatives
| If you mainly want | Better than Sling? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Entertainment and reality, no sport | Philo ($25) | Similar lifestyle channels, 3 streams, half the price |
| Just ESPN | Maybe ESPN Unlimited ($31.99) | All ESPN channels incl. SEC and ACC Networks |
| Everything including locals | YouTube TV ($82.99) | Full local coverage, unlimited DVR |
| ESPN plus TNT, CNN and cable basics | No, Sling Orange wins | Nothing cheaper covers that mix |
For the head-to-head with Philo, see Sling TV vs Philo. And if ESPN is the only reason you're looking at Sling, read whether ESPN Unlimited is worth it first; for some people it's the better buy.
Which Sling to buy
Single sports fan, mostly ESPN: Sling Essentials at $19.99, or Orange if you want TNT, CNN and entertainment too.
NFL fan in a Fox/NBC market: Sling Blue plus an antenna for CBS. Blue gives you Fox, NBC, NFL Network and FS1. Our NFL 2026 guide shows what's still missing, such as Amazon's Thursday games.
Household of three or more: Blue for the three streams, or Orange & Blue for four. If you need both, compare the total with YouTube TV before committing.
Occasional viewer: passes. A few $4.99 days a season is far cheaper than any subscription.
Anyone who mainly watches HGTV, Food Network and Hallmark: not Sling. Philo does that for less.
Avoid: Orange for a family (one stream), and adding every extras pack. Once Orange & Blue plus two extras passes about $75, a full service with locals and unlimited DVR is usually better value.
Quick answers
How much is Sling TV in 2026? Orange and Blue are $45.99 each, both together about $61 to $66, and the Select and Essentials mini-plans $19.99. Day passes start around $4.99.
What's the difference between Sling Orange and Blue? Orange has ESPN and Disney channels with one stream. Blue has Fox and NBC in some markets, FS1, NFL Network, news and entertainment, with three streams.
Does Sling have local channels? Only Fox and NBC on Blue, in selected markets. No ABC or CBS.
How much DVR does Sling include? 50 hours. Unlimited DVR is a paid extra.
Is there a free version of Sling? Yes. Sling Freestream offers free ad-supported channels without a subscription.
Does Sling have a contract? No. It's month to month, and passes don't renew into a subscription.
Is Sling worth it in 2026? Yes for small households wanting ESPN, TNT and CNN cheaply. Less so for families, local-channel viewers or sport-free households.
Prices, pass pricing and channel lineups are from Sling's pages and published trackers, and vary by market; some sources list different Blue and Orange & Blue prices, so confirm at checkout. Checked September 2026.