NFL Sunday Ticket moved off satellite and onto YouTube — and with it came a pricing maze of new vs. returning subscriber rates, hidden non-refund rules, and discounts that can cut your bill nearly in half. This guide untangles all of it so you don’t overpay by a single dollar.
Before wading into pricing tables, here are the questions most NFL fans actually need answered — especially if this is your first time navigating Sunday Ticket on YouTube.
1 Is there a free trial for NFL Sunday Ticket? No. There is no free trial. Once you pay, you cannot get a refund under any circumstances — not even after Week 1. ▼
2 What games does Sunday Ticket actually show — and what does it NOT include? Only out-of-market Sunday afternoon games on CBS and FOX. It does not include your local team’s games, primetime games, Thursday Night Football, or anything on Netflix, Peacock, or Prime Video. ▼
3 Do I need YouTube TV to get NFL Sunday Ticket? No. You can buy Sunday Ticket as a standalone through YouTube Primetime Channels without a YouTube TV subscription — but the bundled price with YouTube TV is lower for returning subscribers. ▼
4 Why do returning subscribers pay so much more than new subscribers? YouTube charges returning subscribers nearly double the new-subscriber rate — $378–$480 vs. $192–$240. The workaround most people use: create a new Google account and sign up as a new subscriber. ▼
5 Who qualifies for a discount — and how steep are the savings? Students pay $119. Military, veterans, first responders, teachers, and medical professionals pay $198. Both are available to new and returning subscribers. Verizon customers on qualifying plans can get it free. ▼
6 Is NFL RedZone included in Sunday Ticket — or is it extra? RedZone is always extra. It costs $42 added to Sunday Ticket at checkout (or $10 extra on the student plan). You can also get RedZone separately through YouTube TV’s Sports Plus add-on for $10.99 per month. ▼
7 Can I watch Sunday Ticket on my TV — or only on a phone or computer? You can watch on almost any device made in the past several years — smart TVs, Roku, Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation, Xbox, iPhone, Android, and web browsers all work. ▼
8 What is Multiview and does it work on a regular TV? Multiview lets you watch up to 4 games simultaneously on one screen. It works on most modern streaming devices, though older streaming sticks may struggle. A wired connection gives the best result with all 4 tiles running. ▼
9 Does Sunday Ticket auto-renew — and how do I stop it? Yes, it auto-renews every season. You can cancel the auto-renewal at any time without losing current-season access — but you must do it deliberately. There is no reminder notification before it charges. ▼
10 What does the season cover — and when does it start and end? Sunday Ticket covers the entire NFL regular season — from the first Sunday in September through the final Sunday regular-season game in early January. Playoffs and Super Bowl are not included. ▼
The name suggests you’re getting all NFL football. You’re not. Understanding exactly what the package covers prevents the most common source of buyer’s remorse.
- Every out-of-market regular-season Sunday afternoon game — the 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM ET windows on CBS and FOX that your local affiliate doesn’t show
- Multiview: watch up to 4 live games simultaneously on one screen
- Fantasy View: a real-time overlay that shows your fantasy player stats during games
- Key Plays: on-demand highlight replays of scoring plays and critical moments during live games
- Full condensed game replays available on-demand after each game ends
- Unlimited simultaneous streams within your household (student plan is limited to 1 device)
- Your local team’s games — those are on your local CBS or FOX affiliate, watchable free with an antenna
- Sunday Night Football (NBC) — not included at any Sunday Ticket price tier
- Monday Night Football (ESPN/ABC) — not included
- Thursday Night Football (Prime Video) — not included, requires separate Amazon Prime subscription
- Netflix games — for the current season, five games air exclusively on Netflix
- Peacock exclusives — certain games require a separate Peacock subscription
- NFL playoffs and Super Bowl — not part of Sunday Ticket
- NFL Network programming — not included unless you add it separately through your TV service
Sunday Ticket is genuinely worth it for exactly one type of fan: someone who lives in a city away from their favorite team’s market and wants to watch that team’s Sunday afternoon games throughout the season. If you live in Phoenix but root for the Green Bay Packers, Sunday Ticket is close to essential. If you live in Green Bay and already see every Packers game on local TV, you’d be paying hundreds of dollars mainly for games involving teams you may not care about. Local-team fans who want more NFL coverage are often better served by NFL+ ($99/year), which includes NFL Network and game replays without the high price of Sunday Ticket.
There are more ways to buy Sunday Ticket than most people realize — and the price differences between paths are dramatic. Here is every current option, in plain English.
New YouTube TV subscribers can sign up for the YouTube TV base plan at a promotional rate of $67.99 per month for the first 3 months, then $82.99 per month — and add Sunday Ticket on top of that for the new-subscriber seasonal rate. The Sunday Ticket portion for new subscribers via YouTube TV costs $192 for the full season, payable upfront or spread across 12 non-cancellable monthly payments of $15.50. This is the entry point that makes the most financial sense if you want Sunday Ticket and don’t already have live TV service. YouTube TV includes every local network channel, ESPN, TNT, NFL Network (through add-on), and is the platform where Sunday Ticket is most integrated — including multiview, Key Plays, and Fantasy View built directly into the interface.
You don’t need YouTube TV to get Sunday Ticket. Buying it through YouTube Primetime Channels as a standalone gives new subscribers access for $240 for the season, payable upfront or as 12 non-cancellable monthly payments of $20. The experience is the same as the bundled version — multiview, replays, Fantasy View — but accessed through the regular YouTube app rather than the YouTube TV interface. One practical note: installment plans are not available in Colorado, Maine, Utah, Wisconsin, or U.S. territories — residents of those states must pay the full $240 upfront. This is the cleanest option for anyone who doesn’t want or need YouTube TV’s full channel lineup but still wants every out-of-market Sunday afternoon game.
If you already subscribe to YouTube TV and bought Sunday Ticket last season through that account, your returning-subscriber bundled rate is $378 for the season, payable as a lump sum or in 12 non-cancellable monthly payments of $31.50. This is $102 less than the returning standalone price — so if you’re an active YouTube TV subscriber, using the bundle path is strictly better than buying Sunday Ticket through Primetime Channels separately. The important caveat: purchasing the bundle requires keeping an active YouTube TV subscription for the entire season. If you cancel YouTube TV mid-season, you lose access to Sunday Ticket too — even though you already paid for it. Plan accordingly before bundling.
Returning standalone subscribers who buy through Primetime Channels pay $480 for the season — double what a new subscriber pays for the identical package. This is the full-price no-discount path that most returning fans default to if they don’t actively seek out alternatives. Before paying $480, check in this order: (1) Do you qualify for a student, military, first responder, teacher, or medical community discount? Those cut the price to $119–$198. (2) Are you a Verizon customer? Qualifying plan holders can get it free. (3) Have you actually bought Sunday Ticket before on this Google account? If you used a different account in a prior season, you may still qualify as a new subscriber. (4) Is creating a new Google account an option for you? Many subscribers do this each season to access new-subscriber pricing.
Several discounts can cut the cost of Sunday Ticket by more than half. Many qualifying subscribers don’t know they’re eligible. Check every category below before paying any standard rate.
The student plan is the single cheapest way to get NFL Sunday Ticket — $119 for the entire regular season, which works out to roughly $7.44 per Sunday of football. Adding NFL RedZone to the student plan costs just an additional $10, bringing the combined total to $129. This is less than the cost of a single month of the returning standalone plan. The verification happens through SheerID, which checks enrollment databases to confirm active student status. One significant limitation: the student plan is limited to a single device at a time — you cannot use multiview on multiple screens simultaneously. For a student watching alone, this doesn’t matter much. For households sharing the subscription, this is a relevant restriction. Verification must be completed each season.
The Heroes plan covers a far larger group of Americans than most people realize. If you or anyone in your household served in the military, works in healthcare, teaches, or works in emergency services, you very likely qualify. Verification happens through ID.me, which connects to government and professional databases to confirm eligibility. Both new and returning subscribers qualify at the same $198 price — there is no penalty for being a returning subscriber on the Heroes plan. Existing Heroes subscribers who already claimed this discount in a prior season auto-renew at $198 without needing to re-verify. Adding RedZone at checkout brings the Heroes total to $240. The offer runs through December 31 of the current calendar year. Available through YouTube Primetime Channels — does not require a YouTube TV subscription.
Verizon is offering NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube completely free — a value of up to $480 — to customers who activate or upgrade to qualifying wireless and home internet plans. If you were already considering switching to Verizon or upgrading your home internet to fiber, this promotion effectively pays for itself. Customers who don’t qualify for the free offer but have Verizon Home Internet or are Simplicity plan customers can still get a significant discount — Sunday Ticket standalone for $234, or bundled with RedZone for $276. Qualifying customers claim the offer through Verizon directly rather than through YouTube; the subscription is then delivered to their Google account. The promotion runs through September 2 of the current year. Terms require the new phone activation or internet plan upgrade to precede Sunday Ticket redemption.
YouTube Premium members — those who pay for the ad-free YouTube experience, YouTube Music, and background play — receive a loyalty discount on Sunday Ticket for new subscribers: $186 for the full season, payable as 12 non-cancellable monthly installments of $15.50. This is $54 less than the standard new-subscriber standalone price of $240. The offer is only available to subscribers who have not previously purchased Sunday Ticket, and it must be claimed before August 26. If you’re a YouTube Premium subscriber who’s been curious about Sunday Ticket but never pulled the trigger, this is a meaningful incentive to do it this season rather than next — next year, you’d likely qualify as a returning subscriber at the higher rate.
No other streaming purchase works quite like NFL Sunday Ticket when it comes to cancellation and refunds. The rules are stricter than most subscriptions and the stakes are hundreds of dollars.
YouTube’s official policy is unambiguous: once your payment is processed for a Sunday Ticket season pass, there are no refunds under any circumstances. It doesn’t matter if you buy it in August and realize in Week 1 that your favorite team is in your local market and is blacked out every week. It doesn’t matter if your circumstances change. The season pass is non-refundable from the moment the charge clears. This applies equally to the upfront lump-sum purchase and to the monthly installment plan — the installment plan cannot be cancelled mid-season for a refund either. The only thing you can cancel at any time is the auto-renewal for next season, and that only affects future billing, never the current season’s payment.
- Cancel auto-renewal immediately. Go to your Google account’s Purchases & Memberships page, find NFL Sunday Ticket, and turn off automatic renewal. Do this the same day you buy. This prevents next year’s full-price renewal from charging automatically.
- Don’t purchase on an Apple device. Buying through the YouTube app on iPhone or iPad routes through Apple’s App Store, which charges a commission that significantly increases your cost. Always buy through a web browser on a computer or through an Android device, then watch on any device you choose.
- Verify your team’s games aren’t blacked out first. Enter your home zip code on the Sunday Ticket FAQ page before purchasing to confirm which games from your market will be visible versus blacked out. If you live in your team’s market, those games won’t be available through Sunday Ticket.
Monthly installment plans for Sunday Ticket are structured as a fixed-payment commitment, not a flexible subscription. When you select 12 monthly payments, you are committing to pay all 12 — there is no option to cancel and stop paying mid-season. The installment option simply spreads the cost over time for cash-flow purposes; the total amount owed is the same as the upfront lump sum. Installments are not available to residents of Colorado, Maine, Utah, Wisconsin, or U.S. territories — those subscribers must pay the full season price upfront. If your billing method on file fails during the installment period, access to Sunday Ticket may be suspended until payment is collected.
One of the biggest improvements since Sunday Ticket left DirecTV satellite is device compatibility. Here’s what works, what works best, and what to avoid.
- Smart TVs: Samsung, LG, Sony, and other Android TV / Google TV models with the YouTube or YouTube TV app
- Streaming boxes & sticks: Roku (all current models), Amazon Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Cube, Apple TV 4K, Chromecast with Google TV
- Game consoles: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and select Xbox One models
- Mobile devices: iPhone, iPad (via YouTube or YouTube TV app), Android phones and tablets
- Computers: Mac and Windows via any major web browser (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge)
Watching four simultaneous game feeds puts real demands on both your streaming device and your internet connection. Budget streaming sticks (older Roku Express models, older Fire Stick Lite) can drop frames or stutter when running four video tiles at once. For a smooth four-game multiview, use a 4K-capable streaming box — Apple TV 4K, Chromecast with Google TV (4K), Roku Ultra, or Fire TV Cube — and connect it to your router via a wired Ethernet cable rather than Wi-Fi if possible. Your internet connection should deliver at least 25 Mbps consistently for four simultaneous HD streams. A wired connection matters most during peak Sunday afternoon hours when neighborhood Wi-Fi congestion is highest.
If you purchase NFL Sunday Ticket through the YouTube app on an iPhone or iPad, your payment is processed through Apple’s App Store, which takes a commission that gets passed to you as a higher price. This is a consistent pattern with streaming subscriptions on iOS devices. The solution is simple: on your phone, open a web browser (not the YouTube app) and navigate to tv.youtube.com, or complete the purchase on a Mac or Windows computer through any browser. Once you’ve purchased the subscription through the browser, it’s tied to your Google account — you can then watch on any device you want, including your iPhone or iPad, without any extra cost.
Every current Sunday Ticket plan in one place. Prices shown are for the full regular season. On mobile, each plan displays as a card below.
← Scroll to see full table →
| Plan / Path | Who It’s For | Full Season Price | Installments | RedZone Add-On | Refundable? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Sub · YouTube TV Bundle | First-time buyers with YouTube TV | $192 | $15.50/mo × 12 | +$42 | No |
| New Sub · Standalone (Primetime) | First-time buyers, no YouTube TV | $240 | $20/mo × 12 | +$42 | No |
| Returning Sub · YouTube TV Bundle | Prior buyers keeping YouTube TV | $378 | $31.50/mo × 12 | +$42 | No |
| Returning Sub · Standalone | Prior buyers, no YouTube TV | $480 | $40/mo × 12 | +$42 | No |
| Student Plan | Enrolled college students (SheerID) | $119 | N/A | +$10 | No |
| Heroes Plan (Military/Medical/Teachers) | Mil, vets, first resp, medical, teachers | $198 | N/A | +$42 ($240 total) | No |
| YouTube Premium Member (new sub only) | Active YouTube Premium, first-time buyer | $186 | $15.50/mo × 12 | +$42 | No |
| Verizon — Free (qualifying plans) | New Verizon Unlimited Ultimate/Plus or fiber | $0 | N/A | Varies | No |
| Verizon — Discounted ($234) | Existing Verizon Home Internet / Simplicity | $234 | N/A | +$42 ($276 total) | No |
All prices are for the current regular-season package and are subject to change. Installment plans are not available in Colorado, Maine, Utah, Wisconsin, or U.S. territories. RedZone pricing may vary by purchase path — verify at checkout. Apple device purchases may carry higher pricing due to App Store fees. All plans are non-refundable.
First, check whether you qualify for any discount. Run through this list in order: Are you an enrolled student? $119. Are you military, a veteran, a first responder, a teacher, or a healthcare worker? $198. Are you a Verizon customer on an eligible plan? Possibly free. Are you a YouTube Premium subscriber? $186. If none of those apply, your standard new-subscriber price is $240 for the standalone Primetime Channels path or $192 if you’re joining YouTube TV at the same time. Before buying anything, verify that your favorite team’s games won’t be blacked out in your location — Sunday Ticket only shows out-of-market games, and if you live in your team’s city, you’ll be watching local broadcasts anyway. Complete your purchase through a web browser, not a phone app.
No. Auto-renewal charges you the returning-subscriber full price — $378 if you’re bundled with YouTube TV, or $480 standalone. Before your renewal date, cancel the auto-renewal through your Google account settings to stop the automatic charge. Then evaluate your options: if you qualify for a Heroes discount (military, veteran, first responder, medical worker, teacher), claim that at $198 regardless of your subscriber history. If you’re a returning standalone subscriber without a qualifying discount, the new-account strategy — creating a fresh Google account to access the new-subscriber price of $240 — saves $240 compared to the returning standalone rate. Set a calendar reminder every July to review your options before the season opens. That single annual habit saves hundreds of dollars over multiple seasons.
Your discount is $198 for the full season through the Heroes plan — available to all veterans regardless of era or branch of service, not just active duty. Here’s the exact process: Visit the YouTube Sunday Ticket military offer page, click to verify your status through ID.me, and follow the prompts to connect your service history. ID.me verifies eligibility by checking VA records and other government databases. Once verified, you’re directed to purchase Sunday Ticket at $198 through YouTube Primetime Channels — no YouTube TV subscription required. If you used this discount in a prior season, your account auto-renews at $198 — no re-verification needed. You can add NFL RedZone at checkout for an additional $42, bringing the total to $240 — still less than half of the full returning-subscriber price.
For most households cutting cable, YouTube TV plus Sunday Ticket is one of the more complete replacements available. YouTube TV at $82.99 per month includes local ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX affiliates, ESPN and ESPN2, TNT, TBS, CNN, HGTV, and 100+ channels, plus unlimited cloud DVR storage and up to six household profiles. Adding Sunday Ticket at $192 (new subscriber) for the season adds every out-of-market Sunday afternoon game. The total first-season cost for a new subscriber is approximately $82.99 per month (YouTube TV) plus roughly $16 per month amortized for Sunday Ticket — around $99 per month all-in, versus cable packages that often exceed $120–$160 per month for comparable sports coverage. Note that Thursday Night Football (Prime Video), certain Netflix games, and some Peacock exclusives are still separate. No single service covers every NFL game — but YouTube TV plus Sunday Ticket gets you closest.
Work through the discount ladder: student ($119), military/veteran/first responder/teacher/medical ($198), Verizon qualifying plan (free), YouTube Premium new subscriber ($186). If none of those apply, check whether a household member qualifies — a spouse who’s a veteran or a teacher can claim the Heroes discount and use it for the household. Alternatively, evaluate whether NFL+ Premium ($99/year) covers enough of what you want — it includes NFL Network, game replays, RedZone, and some live game access on mobile — without the full Sunday Ticket commitment. Finally, if you’re a returning subscriber facing the full returning price, the cleanest path to the new-subscriber rate is a fresh Google account, which many fans use each season without issue. Never pay the full $480 returning standalone price without first exhausting every alternative on this list.
This guide is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by YouTube, Google, the NFL, Verizon, or any other company mentioned. All prices, plan terms, discount eligibility, and availability are subject to change at any time without notice — verify all current details directly with YouTube or the relevant provider before purchasing. Discount eligibility requirements (student, military, Heroes) are set by Google and verified through third-party services (SheerID, ID.me); BudgetSeniors.com™ has no control over or access to that eligibility process. NFL Sunday Ticket is a non-refundable purchase; review all terms carefully before completing any transaction. Blackout rules and market availability vary by location.