17 Best Educational Streaming Services

One of the best things about the new streaming age is that many services, to stand out, specialize in a single thing. There are streamers dedicated solely to classics, reality shows, live TV, and horror films. In this list, we're rounding up the best of the educational streamers. 

Some of them will be kids-focused, like Noggin and Hopster, but most of the services in this list offer quality lessons on topics like history, geography, race, and culture. Unsurprisingly, many also lean on documentary and non-fiction styles of reporting.

Our recommended three best educational streaming services:
Kanopy free Watch
Guidedoc $7.99 Watch
Amazon Prime + PBS Kids $19.98 Watch

Kanopy is an on-demand streaming service that schools and public libraries all around the US offer students and members for free. All you have to do is enter the details of your participating institution and you can start watching as you please. Because of the academic nature of the platform, Kanopy makes sure it streams only the most essential and important content available, which could mean hard-hitting films like Moonlight, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Lady Bird, Dogtooh, Memento, and Howard's End for certain viewers, or The Adventures of Paddington, Richard Scarry, and The Monster Math Squad for even other, younger viewers. There are also storybooks, documentaries, and educational programs available to watch as Kanopy makes sure to cater to every learner regardless of leaning or age.

Price: free for channels available

Device availability: Amazon Fire Stick, Amazon Fire Tablet, Android Phones, Chromecast, iOS, Roku, Website

True Story is an online streaming service that focuses on documentaries from all over the globe. The nature of the films seems to focus on relationships among real-life people in specific and unique contexts. If you enjoy exploring the complexities of interpersonal relationships while also learning surprising things about the world interestingly and movingly, then this streamer is for you. The subscription is $6.99/month. True Story was launched in 2020.

Price: $6.99/month

Device availability: Chromecast, Website

Toon Goggles is an on-demand service dedicated to streaming kids' shows, including popular cartoons like PJ Masks, live-action features like Guinness World Record, and even games like Angry Birds. There are hours upon hours of content here, not to mention pre-screened ads and strict parental controls, making it a suitable service to leave the children with. Some of Toon Goggles' shows can be streamed for free, but if you want full access and no ads, you'll have to subscribe to its premium tier, which costs $1.99/month in the US and Canada and just $0.99/month everywhere else.

Price: $1.99/month

Free Trial: 30 days

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Google TV, Google TV Streamer, Hisense Smart TV, iOS, LG Smart TV, Panasonic Vera Connect, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Sony Smart TV, Website

PBS channels around the country are free on television, and thanks to the PBS app, they're now free to stream as well. The PBS app gives you on-demand access to many of the network's famously educational shows, including Nova and PBS News Hour, as well as the nearest local station in your area. You don't need an account to start watching on the PBS app, although you might have to activate it beforehand. Again, PBS is free, but if you want to support your local PBS station and gain extended access to even more films and TV shows, then you can purchase a PBS Passport membership, which costs around $5/month or $60/year.

Price: free for channels available

Device availability: Amazon Fire Tablet, Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Comcast, iOS, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Vizio

NASA+ is the space agency's official, ad-free, and on-demand streaming service. It carries original shows and movies that feature NASA's discoveries on the cosmos and beyond and intimate interviews with the astronauts and scientists behind these projects. There are also animated kids' shows and Spanish-language content for younger viewers and families to enjoy, as well as high-definition intergalactic videos set to interesting sounds, in case you're not in the mood to watch anything too heavy. The app, which can be downloaded on iOS, Android, Roku, and Apple TV, is completely free and requires no sign-up to access.

Price: free for channels available

Device availability: Android Phones, Apple TV, iOS, Roku, Website

MagellanTV’s content focuses mostly on documentaries. New movies and series are added weekly, so the library is frequently updated. This streamer is for people who love learning about science, space, and the earth. MagellanTV provides a thoughtfully curated selection of films that focus on current events and global topics of importance. A monthly subscription costs $5.99/month with a 7-day free trial, but if you opt to pay annually, your monthly cost comes up to just $4.99/month and you'll be eligible for a 14-day free trial.

Price: $5.99/month

Free Trial: 14 days

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Google Play, iOS, Roku, Samsung, Vizio

Described as the Netflix of language learning, Lingopie has a wide array of international movies and TV shows to watch in nine languages: Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, and English. Mainly, it has a flashcard feature that allows you to learn the words in the subtitles as you go along. The flashcard lets you hear the right pronunciation of the word, while also giving info on its position of speech, tense, etc. It's a great option for those interested in learning through entertainment. 

Price: $12/month

Free Trial: 7 days

Device availability: Android Phones, iOS, Website

Hopster TV is a kids-oriented streaming service that offers a variety of educational and entertaining shows. It also offers games, books, and songs in the platform, allowing kids to navigate between depending on their mood.

Price: $5.99/month

Free Trial: 7 days

Device availability: Android Phones, iOS

Hoopla is a digital library that offers free books, playlists, and yes, movies to members of public libraries they've partnered with. You can check their website to see if your library card is valid; if it is, you can register (with no extra fees) and start viewing their available titles. Hoopla rotates its selection every week or so, but generally, it has a good mix of old films, cult classics, past hits, and foreign movies. Occasionally, it will also have the latest blockbusters. For television, it's recently partnered with the BBC and a couple of manga publishers to deliver content from around the world. Apart from that it also has a vast collection of ebooks, audiobooks, podcasts, and albums it offers members.

Price: free for channels available

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, Roku, Website

The History Vault has all the best of The History channel: excellent documentaries, informative series, travel shows, and of course, historical specials. The difference is that the streamer offers all this on-demand and ad-free, with curated collections and exclusive titles to boot. Some programs that are no longer available on the cable channel can also be found in the Vault. If you're a fan of quality deep dives on everything and anything related to history and humanity, then this streamer is for you.

Price: $5.99/month

Free Trial: 7 days

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, Roku, Website

A sure treasure trove for history buffs, History Hit TV is a dedicated service featuring original documentaries, series, dramas, interviews, and films spanning all sorts of time periods and eras. It was founded by renowned historian Dan Snow, who hosts a hit podcast of the same name and whose other content can be found in the streamer. History Hit TV also claims that 10% of its profits go into history education projects around the globe.

Price: $7.99/month

Free Trial: 14 days

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Website, Xbox One

GuideDoc is a global online streaming and distributing service for documentary films. The service is currently available for US$7.99 per month and can be accessed from anywhere in the world. GuideDoc apps exist for iPhone, iPad, Android phones, Android Tablets, Google TV, Apple TV, ChromeCast and Airplay. At the time of writing, GuideDoc does not offer an app for other services like Roku, Fire TV and game consoles.

Price: $7.99/month

Docsville’s focus is on documentaries sourced from around the world, originally launched by award-winning documentarian Lawrence Elmen and his business partner, Nick Fraser, who worked for the British Broadcasting Corporation. This streaming service is for those doc junkies who can’t get enough of real-world exploration and have a thirst for knowledge about many different aspects of our planet and the human race. Topics include climate change, inequality and racism, inspiring real-life tales, and true crime. Most of the documentaries offered are independent films.

Price: $3.99/month

Free Trial: 3 days

Device availability: Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Fire TV, iPhone, Website

Discovery+ is a streaming service from the famous mass media company that has an ad-supported plan for $4.99 a month and an ad-free plan for $8.99. This includes content from Discovery, TLC, Animal Planet, Food Network, HGTV, ID, A&E, History, Lifetime, OWN, Travel, Science Network, and The Dodo. But beware, you cannot stream these channels live with a Discovery+, you can only watch their TV shows in playback.

Price: $4.99/month

Free Trial: 7 days

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Google TV Streamer, iOS, Roku, Samsung TV, Xbox

CuriosityStream is an American streaming service that focuses on documentary movies and shows and is available in more than 175 countries. In the US, pricing starts at $4.99 per month or $39.99 per year for the basic plan, with an upgrade to the 4K Monthly plan available for $9.99 per month or $69.99 per year. CuriosityStream can be accessed via web browser as well as Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Fire TV, Roku, and has a mobile app that is compatible across Apple and PC computers, and Android and iOS phones and tablets.

Price: $4.99/month

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Android TV, Apple TV, Google TV Streamer, iOS, LG TV, Roku, Samsung TV, Xbox

Following a multi-year deal signed by both parties, Amazon Prime is now the exclusive home of PBS Kids and all the entertaining and educational shows it carries. This bundle allows you to pay for Prime and PBS content under one bill while giving you all the useful perks of the former platform, namely, parental control and offline downloads so you can supervise what your kid watches and have episodes ready on the go. It's the perfect bundle if you're looking to have both mature content for the adults and appropriate shows for the young ones.

Price: $19.98/month

Free Trial: 7 days

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Apple TV, Changhong, Chromecast, Haier, Hisense, iOS, LG, Nvidia SHIELD, Panasonic, Philips, PlayStation, Roku, Samsung Sharp, Skyworth, Sony, TiVo, Vestel, Vizio, Wii, Xbox

Amazon Kids+ is a streaming service for kids 3 to 12. it features animation content from Disney, Nickelodeon, Sesame Street and Cartoon Network, but also access to educational apps, games, and e-books. It costs $5.99/month if you already have Amazon Prime or $7.99/month if you don't.

Price: $5.99/month

Free Trial: 30 days

Device availability: Amazon Fire TV, Android Phones, Fire tablets, iOS

Which are the best educational streaming services?

You can get educational streaming services with Kanopy, True Story, Toon Goggles, PBS App, NASA+, MagellanTV, Lingopie, Hopster TV, Hoopla, History Vault, History Hit TV, Guidedoc, Docsville, Discovery+, CuriosityStream, Amazon Prime + PBS Kids, or Amazon Kids+.

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The streaming services on this page were chosen by our editors. If you choose to subscribe to a streaming service we recommend as a result of our research, analysis, and curation, our work is sometimes (but not always) supported by an affiliate commission from the streaming service when you make a purchase.