Watching Hallmark movies

During the Christmas season, it's almost cliché to think about the Hallmark Channel and all their Christmas movies. People will joke about how bland and predictable they all are, but watch them anyway.

Of course, Hallmark doesn't just have movies during Christmas. The Hallmark Channel, and the Hallmark channels (there are more than one), offer content year-round. And, sure, you could make the same jokes about the other Hallmark movies that you do about their Christmas movies (most of the same jokes) but the reality is, you'd probably like those movies just as well.

There are several ways for a streamer to watch Hallmark movies and TV shows, ranging from expensive to cheap to free.

Expensive

The services that carry the three Hallmark channels carry more than just Hallmark. However, it's a good idea to look at their other channels to see if it's worth the cost. It may be. Or not. If your only want is Hallmark, these are probably not the way to go. All of the expensive ones carry news channels and, mostly, local channels as well. Note that Hulu+Live TV, which would be listed in the Expensive category isn't listed because it doesn't have any Hallmark channels.

DirecTV Stream

The DirecTV Stream service is the most expensive, at $70/month, but includes a lot of channels, including local channels, plus two Hallmark channels: Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries. You can add Hallmark Drama as part of the Movies Extra Pack, which is another $5/month. That pack also includes AMC+, Hallmark Movies Now, Lifetime Movie Club, A&E Crime Central, HISTORY Vault, Pantaya, UP Faith & Family, Pantaya, Revry, and DOGTV.

Fubo TV

Fubo TV, at $65/month, includes the three Hallmark channels, as well as local channels and around 80 other channels.

YouTube TV

YouTube TV is $65/month includes the three Hallmark channels, with the ability to add Hallmark Movies Now for another $6/month.

Vidgo

Vidgo is cheaper than Fubo or YouTube TV, and offers the three Hallmark channels in their $55/month package.

Cheap

Cheap is a relative term. Compared the the services listed above, these services are at least $20/month cheaper. None of these carry local channels, and only one, Sling TV, has any news or sports channels.

Sling TV

Sling TV is a little complicated. That's because Sling TV has a free tier that most people don't realize or think about. Free Sling TV is similar to Xumo or Pluto TV, but doesn't offer as much content. What it does offer is a "best of" in that the offerings they do have are many of the more popular ones of the free streaming services. That includes some on-demand content from Hallmark Movies Now. To be sure, it's not the entire library, and it's not the current year's content, but it is Hallmark content, and it's free.

For Sling TV subscribers, whether the Orange or Blue plans ($35/month) or the combined Orange+Blue plan ($50/month), you can get the three Hallmark channels with the add-on Lifestyle Extra package for another $6/month.

Philo

At $25/month, Philo is one of the best deals available for live streaming entertainment, with over 60 channels, including the three Hallmark channels.

Frndly TV

For $7/month, this is the cheapest way to get the three Hallmark channels, with live streams plus on-demand content.

Oh, if you have a service that doesn't have any Hallmark content, it may be easy enough to

Free

Yes, you can get some Hallmark content for free. You won't get the full live streams of the three channels, but you will get some content, which is better than no content. And you'll get it for free, which is better than paying through the nose.

Live streams

These apps and services offer free Hallmark content live streaming.

• Xumo (Hallmark Movies & More)
• The Roku Channel (Hallmark Movies & More)

On demand

These apps and services offer free Hallmark content on-demand.

• Xumo (Hallmark Movies & More)
• Sling TV Free (Hallmark Movies Now)

Alternatives

I know we're talking Hallmark content, but the reality is that Hallmark doesn't have a monopoly on the types of movies they show. You can find similar content on many services. For example, on Netflix, if you search for "Hallmark" you'll find no matches. You'll also find a list of movies that are similar, and if you didn't know better, would think that many of them were Hallmark movies.

If Hallmark movies and TV are what you're after, you can add some content for free, or all content for as little as $7/month.