Best streaming and pay-TV services 2020: Sky, Virgin, Netflix and Amazon Prime compared and ranked

Mon 13 Jul 2020 02.00 EDT Last modified on Mon 13 Jul 2020 02.02 EDT The choice of how you get your TV and movies in the UK has exploded in recent years, with a growing number of premium pay-TV providers and streaming services available at a wide range of prices. Many of them have long contracts, exclusive content and complicated bundled pricing. And that's before you work out how to actually get it to your television, whether it is live broadcast TV via the traditional routes of aerial, satellite or cable, new offerings of streaming live TV over the internet, on-demand download or streaming services, or a mix of all three. All of which makes choosing the right one for you a bit of a minefield of information overload. To help you pick the best pay-TV or streaming service for your needs, wants and budget, here's a guide covering all the options from Sky Q to Netflix and everything in between. This Guardian buyer's guide to UK pay-TV and streaming services was last updated on 13 July 2020, and represents the best available and tested at the time. As services change and new ones are tested, this guide will be updated to help you choose the right pay-TV or streaming service for you. Welcome to one of the Guardian's new buyer's guides. This article represents hundreds of hours of testing by the author to bring together a succinct list of recommended products or services so you can pick from the best and ignore the rest without having to do hours of your own research. While the Guardian may earn a small commission from items bought through affiliate links, the items featured in this buyer's guide have been tested and included without influence from any advertiser or commercial initiative.