ESPN Select review: New name, same old ESPN Plus content

Editor's note: As of Aug. 21, 2025, ESPN Plus will become ESPN Select, which will allow users access to ESPN Plus-branded content for $11.99 a month. This review is for the ESPN Plus streaming service, so the content it discusses is the same content you'll see on ESPN Select. However, some aspects of the new ESPN Select user experience are not reflected in this review. We are currently working on reviewing the new ESPN streaming service in full, and will update this article accordingly once that review is completed.

ESPN Select offers a lot. The slimmed-down version of ESPN's streaming service gives you access to an eclectic selection of sports, such as exclusive UFC pay-per-view bouts (until Jan. 2026, when Paramount Plus will take over UFC content in the U.S.), matches from several global soccer leagues and every Formula 1 race. It also offers simulcasts of some Monday Night Football NFL games and exclusive out-of-market access to select MLB and NHL games.

The problem is what it doesn't offer. Most importantly, you'll still need a cable subscription or ESPN Unlimited if you want to enjoy ESPN's cable networks. That means ESPN Select misses out on marquee programming — NBA games, big-time college football and basketball match-ups, and even some Monday Night Football games, to name just a few.

When ESPN Select was first launched ESPN Plus, it was a low-cost alternative for cord cutters. But now that it costs $12 a month, it's a much less compelling offering. Unless you're a fan of international soccer leagues not called the Premier League, some lower-profile college sports teams or love F1 racing, it's harder than ever to justify signing up for this streaming service.

However, there is one way that ESPN Select becomes affordable again. If you sign up for the Disney Bundle Trio Basic, you pay $16.99 a month to get Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN Select. Given that this is just $5 more than a standalone ESPN Select subscription, this is really the only way you should subscribe to the slimmed-down version of ESPN's streaming service. Here's our full thoughts on ESPN Select, including cost, content and more.

ESPN Select review: Cost and availability

You access ESPN Select through the same ESPN app and website you've been using to check on sports scores and news. ESPN Select currently costs $119.99 per year or $11.99 per month, a huge price hike from its previous $69.99/$6.99 pricing. UFC live streams will are an additional $79 per pay-per-view event.

As we mentioned earlier, you can save a lot on ESPN Select by bundling it with Hulu and Disney Plus. You get all three for $16.99 per month, just $5 more than a standalone subscription to ESPN Select. It's also worth checking our ESPN promo codes page for the latest offers if you don't want the Disney Bundle.

If you want to save even more money, ESPN Unlimited is free if you have Hulu with Live TV, as that service now bundles in live TV with Hulu, ESPN and Disney Plus for a total of $82.99 per month. It's also included in most Charter, DirecTV, Fubo, and Verizon live TV packages.

How to get ESPN Select

We tested ESPN Plus on an iPhone SE and a fourth-generation Apple TV. We have yet to test getting ESPN Select, but we currently expect the process to be similar if not identical.

Getting the service was as simple as launching the updated ESPN app on my iPhone, tapping the Watch tab at the center of the menu on the bottom of the screen, and following the on-screen prompts to sign up for the service, with iTunes helpfully reminding me when my trial period ended. On my Apple TV, all we had to do was log in to my ESPN account, and the subscription transferred over.

If you open the ESPN sign-up page via a web browser, though, you'll be greeted with something different. For some reason, ESPN is pushing the aforementioned Disney bundle instead of selling itself outright above all else.

The process works exactly the same on Android devices, with the Android version of the ESPN app prompting you to sign up for ESPN when you select a live match or original programming associated with the service. One disappointment: The ESPN app on the Pixel 2 XL wouldn't recognize the subscription that was purchased on the iPhone SE iPhone, even though the same ESPN account was logged in to ESPN on both devices. A similar thing happened when trying to access the service from ESPN.com on a MacBook Pro.

ESPN says that if you buy ESPN from a mobile device, you should be able to access the service on multiple devices by going to the settings of the ESPN app and linking your account. However, the Subscriptions section of the ESPN app on my iPhone wouldn't let us do that; it gave us a message that it was still processing my purchase. Perhaps this is a kink ESPN has since worked out, but it's a hassle our reviewer had never experienced when watching Netflix on multiple devices.

ESPN Select review: Content

ESPN Select puts a lot of its own content front and center, though this isn't programming you're going to find on the cable channel. SportsCenter, for example, is boiled down to a "best of" package of its feature stories.

Instead, you'll get ESPN Plus exclusives such as Draft Academy, which is a behind-the-scenes look at some of the top players angling to be selected in the upcoming NFL draft, and a 30 for 30 documentary on disgraced basketball coach Bobby Knight. Other original programming includes a nightly hockey highlight show, a Kobe Bryant-hosted series about basketball, and the roundtable soccer discussion program ESPN FC, which has moved over from cable to this service. You also get access to an on-demand library of past ESPN programs and documentaries.

If that were all ESPN Select had to offer, you'd expect the company to pay you $5 a month to watch it. But ESPN Select's value lies in its live sports coverage. You'll get a daily Major League Baseball game, though it's subject to local blackout rules.

Other sports feature prominently as well. ESPN Plus content features PGA tour majors, Grand Slam tennis matches and live boxing. You can expect college sports featuring schools from outside the major conferences, as well as sports like softball, volleyball, track and swimming, which don't always get the spotlight on cable.

That lineup gives you a pretty good sense of just who ESPN Select is for. While sports fans with eclectic tastes will certainly like the streaming service's variety, fans of sports that don't otherwise get a lot of airtime on U.S. television — that would be you, Formula 1 fans — may find $11.99 a small price to pay to get their fix.

In August 2023, ESPN announced that it was merging ESPN Plus with its Insider service. That means your ESPN Select subscription will give you access to articles and services on ESPN's website that live behind a paywall.

ESPN Select review: Performance

Should ESPN Select's slate of sports intrigue you, you can expect a pretty solid viewing experience, once you navigate your way through a fairly cluttered menu to find the exact sport you want to watch.

We've got no complaints about the stream itself, which is delivered in HD quality. Even on a 4-inch iPhone SE screen, the action in an Aston Villa vs. Leeds EFL League Cup match looked crisp and clean enough for me to follow along. A Pause button lets you halt the stream, and you can rewind and fast-forward by dragging on a timeline. I wish those two latter controls offered finer control, like a 30-second rewind button.

ESPN built in some fairly clever controls, like a picture-in-picture feature that lets me still watch a livestream while I peruse other areas of the ESPN app. Tap the picture-in-picture icon, and your livestream shrinks to a little window in the lower corner of the app, freeing you up to check scores and news.

When it comes to streaming original or on-demand content, the app remembers where you left off if you pause to handle tasks outside the app, like answering emails or making a phone call, or if you switch between programs during single viewing sessions. Try to resume watching that program on another device — say, moving from an iPhone to an Apple TV — and you'll have to start over. Again, that's something that will surprise fans of Netflix's seamless viewing experience.

The biggest flaw of ESPN Plus's user experience is clutter, particularly on a mobile device's limited screen. However, ESPN Select promises to come with a newly enhanced ESPN app, so perhaps that will improve things significantly.

ESPN Select review: Bottom line

ESPN Select offers a healthy variety of live sports, but in an increasingly expensive package. If you're a mainstream sports fan, you're unlikely to find enough on ESPN Select to justify the subscription. You'll most likely want to opt for ESPN Unlimited, which includes all of ESPN's linear TV networks, rather than just ESPN Plus-branded content.