Paramount Plus on desktop

Paramount+ has a solid weekend for football viewers, holds the whole Star Trek catalogue, and its MobLand Season 2 landing September 18 will get some cable-drama audiences back. But the Essential plan at $7.99 quietly drops live CBS in most markets, the Premium tier at $12.99 approaches Netflix pricing, and the desktop app on Windows still has a reputation for buffering on 4K. If you want to keep Sunday sports and the CBS drama slate without the compromises, these are the seven Paramount+ alternatives that cover the same ground on a Windows or Mac desktop.

Every service below runs on Windows via Microsoft Store or web, and macOS via native app or the web player. Prices are US-region for August 2026.

Quick comparison

Service Best for Free tier Starting price Standout content
Peacock NBC library and Sunday NFL 7-day trial $7.99/mo Sunday Night Football, The Office
Max Prestige drama No $9.99/mo HBO originals, Warner films
Netflix Broadest algorithm-friendly No $7.99/mo with ads Stranger Things, Wednesday
Disney+ Family and franchise No $9.99/mo with ads Marvel, Star Wars
Prime Video Broad catalogue + Thursday NFL Ad-supported $8.99/mo The Boys, TNF
Hulu Current-season ABC/FX No $9.99/mo Only Murders, The Bear
Apple TV+ Curated originals 7-day trial $12.99/mo Slow Horses, Severance

Why people leave Paramount+

Three complaints come up over and over in cord-cutter forums. First, the Essential ad tier still costs $7.99 but drops the local CBS live feed in most cities, so if you subscribed for Sunday football you probably need Premium at $12.99. Second, the app is thin on desktop. The Microsoft Store player is fine at 1080p but stutters on 4K in Chrome and Edge, and the Mac experience is web-only. Third, Yellowstone-adjacent content has fractured. Landman lives here, 1923 lives here, but new Sheridan-verse spin-offs surface on other services too.

None of the alternatives below solves all three at once, but each takes a different swing. Peacock is the closest one-for-one because it also carries a Sunday NFL package. Max is where the “prestige” side of Paramount+ competes. Prime Video swaps Thursday for Sunday football.

Peacock, best for NBC library and Sunday NFL

Peacock ended up with the Sunday Night Football exclusive package, Big Ten football, Premier League, and WWE, plus the entire NBC comedy library (The Office, Parks and Rec, 30 Rock). The Windows app is Microsoft Store; Mac is web-only.

Where it falls short: Premium at $7.99/mo still shows ads on most content; only Premium Plus ($13.99) is ad-free, and even then you sit through pre-roll on live sports.

Pricing:

Migrating from Paramount+: cancel Paramount+ after football season ends in February; Peacock covers NBC dramas, Sunday Night Football, and Premier League year-round.

Download: Web player and Microsoft Store.

Bottom line: pick Peacock if your Paramount+ was really about live sports and network dramas. Skip it if you specifically watch CBS shows.

Max, best for prestige drama

Max carries the HBO catalogue: Succession, The Wire, House of the Dragon, White Lotus, plus older Warner Bros. films and DC content. The Mac app is native; Windows is web-only after the Store app was retired in 2024.

Where it falls short: ad tier viewers see pre-roll on nearly every episode. Ad-free is $16.99/mo, above Paramount+ Premium.

Pricing:

Migrating from Paramount+: if the reason you cared about Paramount+ was Yellowstone-style drama, Max’s Succession-tier catalogue is a natural next home.

Download: Web player and Mac App Store.

Bottom line: pick Max for prestige TV. Skip it if you only wanted live sports.

Netflix, best for algorithm-friendly binging

Netflix at the ad tier is now $7.99/mo, matching Paramount+ Essential. It has no live sports, but the Netflix drama slate (Stranger Things, Wednesday, Bridgerton, Squid Game, The Diplomat) plus its comedy specials cover a Paramount+-adjacent audience.

Where it falls short: no CBS live, no NFL, no true movie-network catalogue. Password-sharing crackdown adds fees for out-of-household viewers.

Pricing:

Migrating from Paramount+: you keep the drama, you lose the sports. The Netflix desktop apps (Windows Store and Mac App Store) are both stable.

Download: Web player and native app on Windows and Mac.

Bottom line: pick Netflix if algorithm-driven binging is what you want. Skip it if live sports were the anchor.

Disney+, best for family and franchise

Disney+ carries Pixar, Marvel Studios, Star Wars streaming series, and National Geographic. The Duo bundle with Hulu at $10.99 essentially replaces both Paramount+ and a network-TV service for the same price.

Where it falls short: thin on adult drama, thin on sports (ESPN+ needs to be added separately), and the ad tier now runs interstitial ads inside kids’ shows.

Pricing:

Migrating from Paramount+: the Disney+ + Hulu duo picks up your CBS-adjacent viewing (via Hulu’s next-day ABC and FX) plus all family content.

Download: Web player and Microsoft Store.

Bottom line: pick Disney+ if there is a franchise or kids’ viewer in the house. Otherwise the Duo bundle is the sharper play.

Prime Video, best for a broad catalogue plus Thursday NFL

Prime Video has Thursday Night Football exclusively, plus The Boys, Fallout, The Rings of Power, Reacher, and a large licensed catalogue on top. Windows uses Microsoft Store; Mac has a native app.

Where it falls short: the UI mixes rentals, purchases, channel subscriptions, and Prime-included content, which reads as clutter. Ad-free adds $2.99.

Pricing:

Migrating from Paramount+: you swap Sunday football for Thursday. If Amazon Prime is in the household already, this is close to free.

Download: Web player and Microsoft Store.

Bottom line: pick Prime Video if you already have Prime. Skip standalone if Thursday football does not appeal.

Hulu, best for current-season network TV

Hulu is the next-day home for ABC, FX, and much of Fox’s slate. Originals include Only Murders in the Building, The Bear, and Shogun (which streamed under Hulu with FX). Because Disney owns Hulu, the Disney+ Duo bundle is $10.99.

Where it falls short: no live CBS. The Live TV plan adds $76.99 and includes CBS, but at that price you are half way to a cable package.

Pricing:

Migrating from Paramount+: the Duo bundle plus a $7.99 Peacock subscription covers Sunday NFL, NBC comedy, Disney/Marvel/Star Wars, ABC and FX current shows, for a total under $19 a month.

Download: Web player and Microsoft Store.

Bottom line: pick Hulu inside the Disney+ Duo. Skip standalone.

Apple TV+, best for curated originals

Apple TV+ carries Severance, Slow Horses, Ted Lasso, Silo, Foundation, and For All Mankind. The catalogue is small (dozens of shows, not thousands) and the average quality is high. Native Mac app; Microsoft Store on Windows.

Where it falls short: no back catalogue, no sports, no news. You can exhaust the good stuff in a couple of months.

Pricing:

Migrating from Paramount+: works as a rotational subscription. Pay for a month, work through Severance and Slow Horses, cancel.

Download: Web player and native Mac app; Microsoft Store on Windows.

Bottom line: pick Apple TV+ if you want a small library you actually finish. Skip it if you need a “put something on” service.

How to choose

Pick Peacock if your Paramount+ subscription was really about NFL and NBC dramas. It is the closest structural swap and it lands the Premier League too.

Pick Max if the Sheridan-verse dramas were your main draw. HBO’s prestige slate is closer in tone than any other service.

Pick Netflix ad tier if you want a similar $7.99 entry price and a large algorithm-driven library.

Pick Disney+ + Hulu Duo if a Netflix-plus-network alternative is what you actually want, at a lower monthly bill.

Pick Prime Video if Amazon Prime is already in the house.

Stay on Paramount+ if live CBS, Star Trek back catalogue, or Sheridan-verse first-run episodes are non-negotiable. Nothing else replicates that mix.

FAQ

Which Paramount+ alternative has NFL? Peacock (Sunday Night Football, exclusive Wild Card game) and Prime Video (Thursday Night Football). ESPN+ has Monday Night Football, and Netflix has Christmas Day games. There is no single “all NFL” streaming service in 2026.

Is Peacock cheaper than Paramount+? Same starting price ($7.99 with ads). Peacock’s Premium Plus at $13.99 is slightly pricier than Paramount+ Premium at $12.99.

Where can I stream Yellowstone spin-offs after Paramount+? Paramount+ is still the exclusive first-run home for the Sheridan-verse (Landman, 1923, MobLand). Some older seasons rotate to Peacock and Prime after several months.

Which streaming service has the smoothest Mac desktop app? Apple TV+ has a native Mac app that handles 4K without stutter. Max’s Mac app is stable. Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+ ship native apps too. Paramount+, Peacock, and Hulu rely on the web player.

What is the cheapest way to replace Paramount+? Netflix ad tier at $7.99 matches Paramount+ Essential’s price. If Sunday NFL matters, Peacock Premium at $7.99 is a direct swap.