What is Sky Essential TV? | Sky’s newest TV package

Jonathan Victoria • 04 Dec 2024 Guides

An easier way to discover extraordinary Sky TV.

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Sky is always thinking of new ways to introduce its stellar range of content to new customers, and its newest offering is set to provide the easiest way to do so.

Introducing Sky Essential TV, the new pack that gains customers access to Freeview and select Sky channels for less.

Sky Essential TV brings together the company’s own extensive and exceptional catalogue of content with that of Netflix and Discovery+ to provide customers with a wide range of options for TV and movies.

It is available to new customers who are joining with Sky Stream or Sky Glass.

What is included with Sky Essential TV?

As mentioned, Sky Essential TV contains a subscription for Netflix and Discovery+ alongside the select Sky content.

The Netflix Standard with Ads subscription provides you full access to everything the streaming provider has to offer in Full HD 1080p.

With Discovery+, you can find over 70,000 real-life TV episodes, including popular shows such as Richard Hammond’s Workshop and 90 Day Fiancé UK. 

What channels do you get with Sky Essential TV?

As for Sky channels included with Essential TV, you will gain access to all the standard Freeview channels, including BBC, ITV, Dave, as well as Sky’s free-to-air channels, Sky Arts, Sky Mix HD and Sky News.

They then add on top of that by providing select Sky premium channels. Those channels are:

• Sky Atlantic
• Sky Sports Mix HD 
• Sky Sports News HD
• Sky Sports Racing HD
• Animal Planet
• Discovery
• Discovery History
• Discovery Science
• Discovery Turbo
• ID
• TLC

Of those premium channels, Sky Atlantic is a real standout, providing critically acclaimed shows from the US. The channel is highly popular among Sky viewers, with hit series such as Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon, The Penguin, and the newest star The Day of the Jackal all finding its home there.

Having Sky Atlantic included with Essential TV, along with the other premium channels listed, is a perfect way to get a taste of what Sky has to offer.  

Sky Essential TV vs Sky Ultimate TV

Sky Essential TV came about in part due to Ultimate TV’s success. When it was introduced back in 2021, Ultimate TV proved a success in bringing in new customers.

As a company that is always looking to improve upon their services, Sky’s latest innovation in Essential TV is the next step in offering great TV with plenty of choice at a great monthly price.

So the two are very similar; on the surface, they are identical in that you get Freeview channels plus select Sky channels.

The difference comes with the range of channels that are available with each, as Ultimate TV has a fair few more exclusive Sky channels, including Sky Witness, Sky Showcase, Sky Max and more of the providers’ most popular channels.

How to get Sky Essential TV

You need either Sky Essential TV or Sky Ultimate TV as your base TV package when you purchase Sky Stream or Sky Glass, so getting Essential TV is very simple.

If you want to go the route of customising your own package, simply choose either Stream or Glass (depending on which you’d like). The very first screen for setting up your package will have the two options of Essential TV and Ultimate TV for you to choose from, so you select Essential and carry on with the process.

You can also do this over the phone, where you can request Essential TV in your package. Ultimate TV is usually the standard, so you would have to ask for Essential.

The easiest option though to go with for Sky Stream is choosing one of the various Stream plus Essential TV package deals that are available. You can find many of these here on the Digital TV website or by speaking to a member of our dedicated Sky team on 0330 0544 813.

How much is Sky Essential TV?

Sky Essential TV is available to new customers only and can be purchased either on a committed 24-month contract or a rolling 31-day contract.

The 24-month contract comes out cheaper, costing £15 per month, but you are locked in for the duration of the contract. You are able to upgrade and add to your package, but you can’t leave without paying an early exit fee.

This is not the case with the rolling 31-day option, which costs a little more at £18 a month, but with this option you can cancel and leave whenever you’d like. You can still add packs to your package as well.

Can I add to Sky Essential TV?

Yes, other TV packs can be added to your Essential TV package for an extra monthly cost. They will be bundled together for ease.

The packs you can add to it are:

• Sky Sports
  • 24 month contract – £20 a month
  • 31 day rolling contract – £25 a month
• Sky Cinema
  • 24 month contract – £8 a month
  • 31 day rolling contract – £10 a month
• Sky Kids
  • 31 day rolling contract – £4 a month
• TNT Sports
  • 31 day rolling contract – £26 a month

Upgrading your viewing experience is also possible, with Ultra HD & Dolby Atmos providing an even more immersive viewing experience, while Whole Home gives you additional Sky Stream Pucks to watch in other rooms. 

• UHD & Dolby Atmos – £4 a month, 31-day rolling contract
• Ad Skipping – £5 a month, 31-day rolling contract
• Whole Home – £10 a month, 31-day rolling contract

Ad Skipping allows you to skip the ad breaks when watching Restart, Playlist and On-Demand but not on live TV. It also applies to the apps that can be found and downloaded to your Sky TV, all except YouTube and Netflix.

You can upgrade your Netflix subscription if you’d like to choose one of their other options that eliminates ads, gives you more devices to watch on and upgrades the picture quality. The three subscription options to choose from are:

• Netflix Standard with Ads – Included
  • Contains ads
  • Watch on two devices
  • High definition
• Netflix Standard – £6 a month
  • No ads
  • Watch on two devices
  • High definition 
• Netflix Premium – £11 a month
  • No ads
  • Watch on four devices
  • Ultra high definition