Free IPTV Apps (2026): Free Players and Free Live TV Apps in the US

Free IPTV apps: two different things

Searches for free IPTV apps mix up two kinds of app. The first is a player: free software that shows channels from a service you already have, using its Xtream Codes login or M3U link. The second is a free live TV service: an app that comes with its own channels, free because it shows ads, often called FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV).

A free player with no login shows nothing. A free live TV service shows its own lineup, but you cannot add another service's channels to it. Knowing which kind you need saves a lot of installing and uninstalling.

The best free IPTV app for each device

These players are free to install, and each one we have checked on its official page or store listing. None of them comes with channels.

Check the publisher before you install a free IPTV app. Look-alike apps with similar names are common on every store, and an IPTV app holds your login. For a fuller comparison, see the IPTV player comparison.

Free IPTV app for iOS

On iPhone and iPad, Smarters Player Lite from WHMCS Smarters is free on the App Store and takes an Xtream Codes login. On Apple TV the free choice is IPTVX, and our Apple TV IPTV guide compares it with the paid GSE Smart IPTV. Several App Store apps copy the names of better-known players, so check the developer name against the official listing.

Best free live TV apps with their own channels

These services carry their own channels for free, paid for by ads, and need no IPTV login. Each description below is what the service says in its own US Google Play listing; we have not counted the channels ourselves.

Local broadcast stations are a separate question: an antenna picks them up for free, and our guide to IPTV and local channels shows how to check your address.

Free IPTV apps and the law

A free player is legal software; what matters is what you load into it. The ad-supported services above carry channels they have arranged to show. Lists of streams posted online for free are a different matter, and we do not link to any. This page takes no position on any particular service; our guide to IPTV and the law explains what decides it.

When a paid IPTV subscription makes sense

Free live TV apps are a good start, and many households combine two or three. A paid IPTV subscription is the other route: one login in a free player, with 55,000+ live channels and 180,000+ VOD titles on Apollo Group TV IPTV, from $19.99 a month and prepaid with no auto-renewal.

The difference to weigh is licensing as well as price: the free services above carry channels they have arranged to show, while Apollo Group TV does not hold broadcast rights to any league, event, network or tournament. To compare on your own TV, try free for 24 hours — no credit card required.

Free IPTV app questions, answered