ESPN
Shares rank 17 of 20 streaming services by recommenders
People recommend it for live sports and video that rarely shows artifacts. Critics say some games sit on other channels and ads and price rises keep coming.
People recommend it for live sports and video that rarely shows artifacts. Critics say some games sit on other channels and ads and price rises keep coming.
12 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 6
- approval share
- 50%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 1 recommender for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Live sports worth paying for
“live sports, which are the only thing left worth paying for”
Comment from 5 Dec 2025 in “Warner Bros Begins Exclusive Deal Talks With Netflix” Video rarely shows artifacts
“they usually have sufficient bitrate that I rarely notice video artifacts”
Comment from 24 Sep 2026 in “Disney+ and Hulu raise prices by up to 13 percent after doubling profits”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Games split across other channels
“to watch what I want, I need to subscribe to flowrestling, ESPN, B1G, and BTN”
Comment from 5 Dec 2025 in “Netflix to Acquire Warner Bros” “I pay for ESPN but some games are on TNT, NHL Network, or a broadcast channel”
Comment from 8 Apr 2026 in “Show HN: I pipe free sports streams into Jellyfin – no ads, just HLS” Too many ads and price rises
“Disney/ESPN failed to send out a reminder email that the price was increasing.”
Comment from 23 Oct 2026 in “Disney Raising Prices Days After Confirming Ads Will Now Show Up on Every Tier” “companies like Disney (ESPN) ruin one sport after another with too many ads”
Comment from 23 Oct 2026 in “Disney Raising Prices Days After Confirming Ads Will Now Show Up on Every Tier”
Other streaming services people recommend
The four most recommended other streaming services, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube Premium | 197 | 195 | 50% | 13 | 10 yrs10 owners | — |
| Netflix | 181 | 538 | 25% | 12 | 15 yrs10 owners | — |
| Nebula | 58 | 17 | 77% | 12 | 2 yrs5 owners | Approved |
| HBO | 32 | 32 | 50% | 7 | — | — |
| ESPNThis page | 6 | 6 | 50% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
10 of the 13 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I don't love going through the US credit card and VPN hassle on my part”
“companies like Disney (ESPN) ruin one sport after another with too many ads”
“Disney/ESPN failed to send out a reminder email that the price was increasing.”
“they usually have sufficient bitrate that I rarely notice video artifacts”
“I cancelled ESPN+ after they stopped their Bundesliga coverage”
“all of those have declined in reputation since their acquisition or soon after”
“I pay for ESPN but some games are on TNT, NHL Network, or a broadcast channel”
“I nicknamed ESPN in the US EBetPN”
“to watch what I want, I need to subscribe to flowrestling, ESPN, B1G, and BTN”
“live sports, which are the only thing left worth paying for”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.