CNN brings viewers up-to-date on news from all over the world, covered by storied journalists Anderson Cooper, Jake Tapper, and others.
You can watch CNN with Roku and without cable on Sling TV Orange, DirecTV Stream, Sling TV Blue, Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV Orange + Blue, Max, YouTube TV, or DirecTV Stream Premier.
Below, we dive into each of the services that cord-cutters use to watch CNN on Roku.
DirecTV Stream’s cordless TV packages are pretty much the same as their cable counterparts. There’s Entertainment, Choice, Ultimate, and Premier, which are known to be some of the most expensive but complete plans out there. If you already have an account with DirecTV Stream and want to access it on your Roku device, you can actually do so using the Roku app, which serves as a control center of sorts. On your app, go to Apps on Roku, download DirecTV Stream, and add it to one of your channels. You should be able to watch DirecTV Stream on Roku after logging in with your DirecTV account details, but make sure your Roku device is upgraded to software version 9.4+. Otherwise, you might encounter some playback issues.
Price: $86.99/month
Free Trial: 5 days
Channel lineup: ABC, ACC Digital Network, AccuWeather, Alien Nation, AMC, Anger Management, Animal Planet, Are We There Yet?, Ax Men, AXS TV, Baby First, BabyTV, BBC America, BET, Big 12, Bloomberg TV, Bob Ross, Boomerang, Bravo, C-SPAN, C-SPAN2, Cartoon Network, CBS, CBS local channels, Cheddar News, Cleo TV, CMT, CNBC, CNN, CNN en Espanol, CNN International, Comedy Central, Comedy Dynamics, Court TV, Crime 360, CW, Daystar HD, Declassified, Discovery, Duck Dynasty, E! Entertainment, EarthxTV, Ebony TV, El Rey Rebel, ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN2, ESPNews, ESPNU, FMC, Food Network, FOX, Fox Business Network, Fox News Channel, FOX SOUL, Fox Sports 1, Fox Weather, Freeform, FUEL TV, Fuse Music, FX, FXX, Galavision, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Mystery, HerSphere, HGTV, HLN, Home Shopping Network, HSN, IFC, Investigation Discovery, ION, ion Television, Jewelry Television, MeatEater TV, MotorTrend, MovieSphere, MSNBC, MTV Classic, MTV2, NBA TV, NBC, NBC local channels, News Nation, Nick Jr., One America News, Ovation, Oxygen True Crime, Paramount Network, PBS, PBS Kids, PBS local channels, Poker GO, Pursuit Channel, QVC, QVC2, QVC3, Racing America, REELZ, REVOLT, RFD-TV, RSNs, Scientology Network, Scripps News, Shop LC, Somos Novelas, SportsGrid, Start TV, SundanceTV, SYFY, Tastemade Home, Tastemade Travel, TBS, TCM, TeenNick, Telemundo local channels, The First, theGrio, TLC, TNT, truTV, TV Land, TV One, Univision, Up TV, USA Network, VH1, WE tv, Women’s Sports Network
Hulu with Live TV is a comprehensive live TV package that comes with more than 80 live channels, including major local networks like ABC and NBC and sports channels like ESPN and CBS Sports. Plans start at $83/month, but Hulu with Live TV has a range of add-ons you can purchase. You can download the Hulu app on Roku to start watching on your Roku device and log in with your Hulu credentials if you already have an account. If you don’t, you can sign up through Roku, where you will be billed, but note that add-ons can only be managed directly on Hulu.com. If you’re on a basic tier, you’ll also want to update your plan on Hulu rather than Roku to enjoy bundle inclusions like Disney+ and ESPN+, which should come at no additional cost with Hulu with Live TV.
Price: $82.99/month
Free Trial: 3 days
Channel lineup: A&E, ABC, ABC News Live, ACC Network, Adult Swim, Animal Planet, BET, Big Ten Network, Bloomberg TV+, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CBS, CBS local channels, CBS News, CBS Sports Network, Cheddar News, CMT, CNBC, CNN, CNN International, Comedy Central, Comedy TV, Cozi TV, CW, Dabl, Discovery Channel, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, E!, ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPN College Extra, ESPNews, ESPNU, Food Network, FOX, Fox Business, Fox News Channel, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, Freeform, FX, FXM, FXX, FYI, Get TV, Golf Channel, Hallmark, Hallmark Mystery, HGTV, History, HLN, ID, Justice Central TV, Lifetime, Lifetime Movies, Localish, Military History Channel, Motor Trend, MSNBC, MTV, Nat Geo Wild, National Geographic, NBC, NBC local channels, NBC News Now, NBCLX, NBCSN, News Nation, NFL Network, Nick Jr., Nickelodeon, OWN, Oxygen, Paramount Network, Pop, QVC, SEC Network, Smithsonian Channel, Start TV, SYFY, TBS, Telemundo, The Grio, TLC, TNT, Travel Channel, truTV, Turner Classic Movies, TVLand, Universal Kids, USA Network, VH1, Vice, Weather Channel
As one of the more affordable and customizable live TV providers out there, it’s no surprise that Sling TV is a popular choice among cordcutters. Depending on what you prefer, you can choose between Sling Orange (family friendly content) or Blue (more news and sports), each for $40/month, or you can combine the two plans for $55/month and select add-ons ala carte. If you own a Roku device, it’s possible that Sling TV already comes pre-loaded on the homepage since many Roku users are also on Sling. But if it’s not, then you can simply download Sling on the Roku store and add it to your lineup of channels. You might be asked for your Roku PIN and Sling credentials in the process. Some Sling users have reported that Sling occasionally crashes on Roku, but an upgrade or refresh usually does the trick.
Price: $60 $40
Channel lineup: A&E, ABC, AMC, AXS TV, BBC America, BET, Bloomberg TV+, Bravo, Cartoon Network, Charge!, CNN, Comedy Central, Comet, Discovery Channel, Disney Channel, E!, EPIX Drive-In, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, Food Network, FOX, Fox News Channel, Fox Sports 1, Freeform, FS1 4K, Fuse, FX, HGTV, History, HLN, IFC, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, Local Now, MGM+, MotorTrend, MSNBC, National Geographic, NBC, NBC local channels, NFL Network, Nick Jr., QVC, Sling Scapes, SYFY, TBS, TLC, TNT, Travel Channel, truTV, USA Network, Vice
Formerly HBO Max, Max is a subscription-based on-demand platform that is only available in the US. New subscribers can choose from three monthly tiers ranging from $9.99 (with ads) to $16.99 (no ads) to $20.99 (no ads, plus more concurrent streams, downloads, and 4K streaming). An annual subscription option is also available. When you subscribe, you'll get HBO’s world-class exclusives, such as The Wire and Game of Thrones but Max also functions as a bundle: you'll get content from Discovery, DC, Criterion Collection, Looney Tunes, Studio Ghibli, Turner Classic Movies, and Crunchyroll. And as of September 2023, you will also get a live stream of CNN. It's not a direct 24/7 simulcast of the channel, but many segments of it are broadcast live. Most mobile devices that can stream video support Max, although there is yet no app for Amazon Fire TV and Roku devices.
Price: $9.99/month
YouTube TV has more than a hundred channels including local, entertainment, and sports networks. If you’re a fan of the latter, then you might already know that YouTube TV is also the exclusive home of the NFL Sunday Ticket. That’s why at $73/month, it’s a favorite among cord-cutters, especially since you can play it on almost all streaming devices including all Roku models (best to keep them updated, though). YouTube TV’s clean interface coupled with Roku’s minimalistic design make quite the match, just remember to download “YouTube TV” from the channel store if it’s not pre-installed yet, not “YouTube” or “YouTube Premium” if you want to watch live TV.
Price: $82.99/month
Free Trial: 7 days
Channel lineup: ABC, ABC News, ACCN, Adult Swim, AMC, Animal Planet, BBC America, BBC World News, BET, BET Her, Big Ten Network, Bounce, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CBS, CBS local channels, CBS Sports Network, Charge!, Cheddar, Cheddar News, CMT, CNBC, CNBC World, CNN, Comedy Central, Comedy TV, Comet, Court TV, Cozi TV, Dabl, Discovery, Disney, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, Docurama, Dove Channel, E!, ESPN, ESPN U, ESPN2, ESPNews, Food Network, FOX, Fox Business, Fox News, FOX SOUL, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, Fox Weather, Freeform, FX, FXM, FXX, Galavision, Game Show Network, Get TV, Golf Channel, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Drama, Hallmark Mystery, HGTV, HLN, HSN, IFC, Investigation Discovery, ION, Justice Central TV, LAFC Channel, Law & Crime, Live Now, Local Now, Localish, MotorTrend, MSNBC, MTV, MTV 2, MTV Classic, My TV, Nat Geo Wild, National Geographic, NBA TV, NBC, NBC local channels, NBC News Now, NBC Universo, NBCLX, NBCSN, NECN, Neon, News Nation, Newsmax, NFL Network, Nick Jr., Nickelodeon, Nicktoons, Orlando City Channel, OWN, Oxygen, Oxygen True Crime, Paramount, PBS, PBS Kids, PBS local channels, PC Mag, Pop, QVC, Recipe.TV, Scripps News, SEC Network, Smithsonian Channel, SNY, Start TV, Sundance TV, SYFY, Tastemade, TBD, TBS, Teen Nick, TeleHit, Telemundo local channels, Tennis 2, The CW, The Great Courses, The Walking Dead Universe, The Weather Channel, TLC, TNT, Travel Channel, Tru TV, Turner Classic Movies, TV Land, TYT, Unimas, Unimas local channels, Universal Kids, Univision, Univision local channels, USA, VH1, WE tv, YouTube Originals, Zen channel
You can get services to watch CNN without cable on roku with DirecTV Stream, Hulu with Live TV, Sling Orange + Blue, Max, or YouTube TV.
The services that accept Paypal and carry CNN are: Sling Orange, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue, Hulu with Live TV, Sling Orange + Blue, Max, YouTube TV, Spectrum TV Stream, and DirecTV Stream Premier.
The services that accept Paypal and carry CNN are: Sling Orange, Sling Blue, and Sling Orange + Blue.
The services that accept Paypal and carry CNN are: Sling Orange, Sling Blue, Sling Orange + Blue, and YouTube TV.
testThe 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.