What is CuriosityStream? What You Need to Know

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CuriostiyStream delivers a wide variety of educational programs to its subscribers. From documentaries to original series, viewers who want informative shows will find hours upon hours of content on the service.

While there may be thousands of shows and documentaries to watch, the question remains: Is it worth it? Keep on reading to find out.

What is CuriosityStream?

CuriosityStream is an ad-free streaming service much like Netflix or Hulu. While both services focus on delivering shows and movies for the mainstream market, CuriosityStream delves into a niche of its own: educational content.

The service features historical and scientific documentaries, short-form videos and feature-length programming. It is the perfect service for those who love learning. With content like The Coronavirus Epidemic, From the Frontlines of Covid19 and The Body vs. Coronavirus, viewers are sure to learn more about the current state of the world.

Sign up to CuriosityStream by clicking here.

How Much Does CuriosityStream Cost?

CuriosityStream is not as expensive as cable. In fact, it is not even as expensive as Netflix or Hulu.

The service’s High-Definition plan starts at $2.99 a month or $19.99 a year ($1.67/month). You can upgrade this to 4K resolution for $9.99 a month or $69.99 a year for the best picture quality. With the 4K plan, you save roughly $4.16 a month.

With the service being this inexpensive, cord-cutters or history/science enthusiasts on a budget will surely get more than what they paid for.

Where can I Watch CuriosityStream?

Nearly all streaming devices are compatible with CuriosityStream. For a complete list of compatible devices, see the list below:

• laptop or desktop with a modern web browser
• Amazon Fire TV and Amazon Fire TV Stick
• Roku
• Google Chromecast
• Google Chrome extension
• Android and Android TV
• Apple iOS and Apple tvOS
• Xbox One
• Available Smart TV Market apps from LG, Samsung, Sony, TiVo and VIZIO

If you are a Suddenlink, Optimum, Flow, BTC or REV subscriber, you can also get CuriosityStream with your subscription.

People with a Sling TV subscription can purchase CuriosityStream as an add-on for $3 a month. Sling has two packages: Sling Blue and Sling Orange. Both plans cost $35 a month.

Besides Sling TV, CuriosityStream is also available on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, YouTube TV and Comcast/Xfinity.

Large households don’t need to worry about screen sharing limits a big difference when compared to its competitors.

How can I Watch CuriosityStream for Free?

CuriosityStream once had a free tier called CuriosityStream Showcase, where you could enjoy a few episodes without the need to sign up. This had the downside of having frequent ad breaks disrupt your viewing experience. Sadly, the free tier has been discontinued.

Now, you can only watch 2-minute previews of shows if you do not sign up for the service. This seems inconsequential, but, unfortunately, there is no legal way to stream CuriosityStream for free. You will need to choose a plan and enter a payment method to do so.

The service has also done away with its 7-day free trial, so new customers cannot try the service without paying.

You get complimentary access to CuriosityStream through a Suddenlink, Optimum, Flow, BTC or REV subscription, but this is not exactly “free.” You still need to subscribe to one beforehand.

Does CuriosityStream Have an App?

Yes, CuriosityStream has an app. It is free to download and install on your device.

To get the CuriosityStream app, follow these steps:

• Go to your respective device’s app store
• Search “CuriosityStream” and select the official application that pops up
• Press “download”, “install” or “add” depending on the device you are using
• After the installation process is complete, return to your device’s home screen or channel menu, select CuriosityStream and enjoy

After opening the app, you can sign in, create a new account or browse through the service’s on-demand library. Browsing through does not require a CuriosityStream account, but it also means you can only stream two-minute previews.

You can also access everything the app has to offer by signing in with your TV or internet provider.

If you do not have an account, you will need to sign up through the CuriosityStream website.

One of the app’s standout feature is Background Play, which allows you to listen to shows while you sleep or multitask. It even automatically plays to the queued-up video so you can focus on your current tasks.

Sadly, since CuriosityStream is an on-demand-only streaming service, it does not have a DVR. What it has instead is an offline viewing option for mobile devices. This feature lets you watch your favorite documentaries or shows without an internet connection or if you are on the go.

You can save shows to your device by following these instructions:

1. Open the app and navigate it to the show you want to watch offline
2. Press the “download” or “save” option (indicated as a downward arrow) located below the title
3. Open the “My Stuff” tab at the bottom of the app
4. Under the “Saved” category, you will find the show you downloaded
5. Select it and enjoy

However, this feature has a limit. You can only save up to 10 hours of content at a time, so if you have reached this limit, you would have to delete previously saved shows before you can download new ones.

How can I Watch CuriosityStream on TV?

The CuriosityStream app is available on multiple streaming platforms. You simply have to directly download the app from your TV’s app store and sign in.  

You can also cast directly from your browser or mobile device to your Chromecast. If you are using the CuriosityStream mobile app, there is an option allowing you to connect and stream the show to your TV.

If you lack a smart TV to stream CuriosityStream, you can also use an Xbox One console. The Xbox has its own app store, which offers the CuriosityStream app for free. Download the app and sign in to enjoy its contents.

Is CuriosityStream Free with Amazon Prime?

As mentioned above, CuriosityStream is not free, and there are no free trials available even if you register through the website.

However, you can enjoy a week-long free trial of CuriosityStream by adding it to your Amazon Prime Video subscription.

You get a 30-day free trial of Amazon Prime, so you can test CuriosityStream, before committing to a monthly or yearly plan.

If you want to subscribe to Amazon Prime for CuriosityStream, an Amazon Prime subscription costs $12.99 a month ($8.99 a month for Amazon Video only). There is also a $119-a-year option, which saves you $3.07 a month.

There are no additional fees and you can cancel at any time before the trial expires with no obligations.

Click here to get Amazon Prime Video.

What Shows are on CuriosityStream?

CuriosityStream has one job—present high quality informative content—and it does it well.

There are various content to explore on the service. Below is a list of notable shows sorted per genre:

• Science
  • Deep Time History
  • Deep Ocean
  • Exploring Quantum History with Brian Greene
  • Our Violent Sun
  • Nigel Latta Blows Stuff Up
• History
  • Apocalypse series
  • China’s Little Train
  • Pompeii Disaster Street
  • Secrets of the Third Reich
  • Empire of the Tsars
• Technology
  • Heston’s Dinner in Space
  • European Inventor Awards
  • Engineering the Future
  • Hack the Moon: Unsung Heroes of Apollo
  • The Joy of AI
• Nature
  • Crocodile Kingdom
  • Seasons of the Forest
  • Realm of the Volga
  • Mammoths: Giant of the Ice Age
  • The Secret Lives of Big Cats
• Society
  • American Icons
  • What is Reality? With David Eagleman
  • Electing Lincoln
  • Bone Detectives
  • Curious Minds series
• Lifestyle
  • The Search for Life: The Drake Equation
  • Frank Lloyd Wright: The Man Who Built America
  • The Mona Lisa Mystery
  • Big World in Small Garden
  • Highway to the Arctic: Canada’s Ice Roads
• Kids
  • Wild Summer School
  • Space Probes!
  • Brown Bears: Teddy Bears Picnic
  • Meet the Mustelids
  • Whale Wisdom

But these are only a taste of what CuriosityStream has to offer. There are even documentaries from HBO and Netflix within the service like Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief and Wild Wild Country.

You can enjoy original docuseries like Digits, Sacred Spaces, Breakthrough, A Crimson World, Stephen Hawking’s Favorite Places, The History of Home and many more. Original features are also available like Miniverse, David Attenborough’s Light on Earth, The Woodstock Bus, Top Science Stories series, among others.

Some series are four to seven hours long with one-hour episodes, while others are short-form—often being a minute long per episode.

Unfortunately, you will not find any traditional TV shows like news, sports events or reality TV on the service. Additionally, you will not receive any live or local broadcasts since CuriosityStream is an on-demand streaming service akin to Netflix and Hulu.

Is CuriosityStream any Good?

Even if you already have Netflix or Hulu, CuriosityStream cleanses your palate with documentaries on science, history, health, the arts and more. While its competitors may also serve this kind of content, CuriosityStream’s library exclusively revolves around it. This means they offer more educational programs to their consumers. However, this also means CuriosityStream lacks mainstream shows and films.

Nevertheless, CuriosityStream costs less than an average cup of coffee per month, so you can pair it with another subscription that best complements it.

For instance, Sling TV offers multiple channels and plenty of add-ons to make your viewing experience more customizable. Sling TV also has CuriosityStream as a premium channel for an additional $2.99 a month. You can even use a good antenna to get a wide selection of local broadcasts in your area.

For more information on live TV services to pair with CuriosityStream, you can read our articles on the latest TV streaming news here. If you are looking for local TV options, check our blog posts on the topic here.

Additionally, CuriosityStream may be inexpensive, but it does not need to show ads to supplement its revenue. The service is completely ad-free, so your viewing experience will be excellent.

Keep in mind, CuriosityStream’s library grows slowly. Do not expect recent documentaries to be included in the service after they release.

Conclusion

Despite its slow content growth, CuriosityStream is perfect for those who want to stream well-researched and produced documentaries.

Even though the service doesn’t have a free tier, CuriosityStream is relatively inexpensive for most cord-cutters on a budget to subscribe. You even bundle it with another streaming service to complement it.

You can also get CuriosityStream by subscribing to services like Sling TV and Amazon Prime Video. The latter offers a week-long free trial for new subscribers.

There are thousands of hours to watch and learn on CuriostyStream, and you can get all of it, for the price of a cup of coffee.

Additional Resources

Read some of our more popular blogs like:

How to Watch the History Channel Without Cable, here

What is the Cheapest Way to Watch FoxNews, here

How to Watch Newsmax TV Without Cable, here

The Cheapest Way to get One America News, here

To find out the future of TVision after it shuts down, check out our YouTube video below: