Is Showtime or Starz better?

Neither clearly leads. Showtime starts at $10.99/month and Starz at $6.99/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Showtime or Starz?

Showtime starts at $10.99/month and Starz at $6.99/month.

Does Showtime or Starz run on more platforms?

Showtime runs on Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv. Starz runs on Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv, Roku, Fire-tv.

What is Showtime best used for?

Showtime is most often used for premium streaming, sports watching. Of those, premium streaming and sports watching are not what Starz is typically brought in for.

What can Showtime do that Starz cannot?

Showtime covers Sports, Live events, Content filtering. Starz covers Exclusive content, Downloads, Parental controls, Roku support. Both handle Streaming, Original series, Movies, Smart TVs.

Entertainment · head to head

Showtime vs Starz

Showtime

Entertainment

Signature entertainment and sports

From: $10.99/month
Rated: -

Full review Website

Starz

Entertainment

Premium originals and hit series

From: $6.99/month
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: Showtime showtime is now offered only as part of Paramount+'s Premium plan, per the App Store listing (Paramount+ by CBS Mobile); Starz standard monthly rate after 3-month promotion not disclosed on landing page; requires signup to see renewal pricing
They diverge on capability: Showtime covers Sports, Starz covers Exclusive content.
Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Showtime and Starz actually diverge.

Attributes where Showtime and Starz differ
Attribute	Showtime	Starz
Starting price	$10.99/month	$6.99/month
Platforms	Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv	Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv, Roku, Fire-tv
Founded	1983	1994

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Entertainment).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Showtime

Sports
Live events
Content filtering

Only in Starz

Exclusive content
Downloads
Parental controls
Roku support
Fire-tv support

Both cover

Streaming
Original series
Movies
Smart TVs
Streaming devices
Account security
Web support
Ios support
Android support
Smart-tv support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Showtime

Premium streamingnot Starz
Sports watchingnot Starz

Starz

Drama streamingnot Showtime
Original series watchingnot Showtime

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Showtime

Showtime is now offered only as part of Paramount+'s Premium plan, per the App Store listing (Paramount+ by CBS Mobile)
Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current subscription period rather than immediately, with continued access through the paid period, per the App Store listing

Starz

Standard monthly rate after 3-month promotion not disclosed on landing page; requires signup to see renewal pricing

Pricing, plan by plan

Showtime

$10.99/month

Showtime Standalone$10.99/month
- Original content
- Ad-free

Starz

$6.99/month

Standard$6.99/month
- HD
- Ad-supported
Premium$12.99/month
- 4K
- Ad-free
- Downloads

Which should you pick?

Choose Showtime if

You need sports.
You work on Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv.
You also want live events.

Showtime review

Choose Starz if

You need exclusive content.
You work on Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv, Roku, Fire-tv.
You also want downloads.

Starz review

Questions people ask

Is Showtime or Starz better?: Neither clearly leads. Showtime starts at $10.99/month and Starz at $6.99/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Showtime or Starz?: Showtime starts at $10.99/month and Starz at $6.99/month.
Does Showtime or Starz run on more platforms?: Showtime runs on Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv. Starz runs on Web, Ios, Android, Smart-tv, Roku, Fire-tv.
What is Showtime best used for?: Showtime is most often used for premium streaming, sports watching. Of those, premium streaming and sports watching are not what Starz is typically brought in for.
What can Showtime do that Starz cannot?: Showtime covers Sports, Live events, Content filtering. Starz covers Exclusive content, Downloads, Parental controls, Roku support. Both handle Streaming, Original series, Movies, Smart TVs.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Starz: What is the current STARZ subscription cost?

STARZ offers a limited-time promotional rate of $4 per month for the first three months. The standard monthly rate after this period is not displayed on the website and appears during signup.

Source

Starz: How many devices can stream simultaneously on STARZ?

STARZ subscriptions allow streaming on up to 4 devices at the same time, with unlimited HD streaming and downloads included.

Source

Showtime vs Starz

Showtime

Starz

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Showtime

Only in Starz

Both cover

What people use each for

Showtime

Starz

Where each one falls short

Showtime

Starz

Pricing, plan by plan

Showtime

Starz

Which should you pick?

Choose Showtime if

Choose Starz if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Showtime

More on Starz

Keep looking

Other head to heads