CBS vs Second Stream
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CBS
Stream the latest episodes of popular shows for free without a login. Access full seasons and live TV by signing in with your cable provider. Enjoy news, sports, and major live events on demand.
- Stream new episodes for free
- No login required for new episodes
- Watch on any device
- Next-day episode streaming
- Live TV with cable provider login
- Access full seasons
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With the CBS app you can watch the latest episodes of your favorite CBS shows for free at your convenience, no log-in required. You also have the option to sign in with your cable provider to access full seasons and stream Live TV from your local CBS station including live news, sports, entertainment, and can’t-miss live events like NFL on CBS, The Golden Globes, NCAA March Madness, and more. All for free, no additional subscription or monthly fee required. App Features: • Stream full episodes for free • Watch your favorite shows anywhere, on any device • Latest episodes available for next-day streaming* • Option to sign in with your cable provider to stream live TV and access full seasons of CBS shows *Live TV includes commercials and select shows have promotional interruptions.Content availability subject to change. Please note use of the CBS app is limited to the United States. CBS promotional offers for new subscribers only. Live TV subject to availability. Prices shown are in U.S. dollars. Other restrictions apply. Please note: This app features Nielsen’s proprietary measurement software which will allow you to contribute to market research, like Nielsen’s TV Ratings. Please visit http://www.nielsen.com/digitalprivacy for more information. CBS App Terms of Use: https://www.viacomcbs.legal/us/en/cbsi/terms-of-use Paramount Privacy Policy: https://privacy.paramount.com/policy Minors' Privacy Policy: https://privacy.paramount.com/childrens Do Not Sell My Personal Information: https://www.viacomcbsprivacy.com/donotsell
Second Stream
This app consolidates all your subscribed content, including podcasts, YouTube channels, and RSS feeds, into one unified reader. AI-generated summaries help you quickly grasp key information from new episodes and articles, saving you time and reducing distractions.
- AI-generated summaries for podcasts and YouTube
- Unified reader for multiple content sources
- Curated weekly news digests
- Distraction-free reading experience
- Obsidian vault sync for bookmarks and notes
- Background feed refresh
- Shake to mark all as read
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Second Stream brings together everything you follow — podcasts, YouTube channels, RSS feeds, and curated weekly news — in a single, distraction-free reader. KNOW BEFORE YOU LISTEN AI-generated summaries surface the key points from new podcast episodes and YouTube videos the moment they publish. Decide what's worth your full attention before you press play. CURATED WEEKLY COVERAGE Subscribe to topics that matter to you and receive a digest of the week's most relevant articles — no algorithm, no noise, no doom-scrolling. YOUR FEEDS, UNIFIED One clean interface for everything you follow. No switching apps. No missing updates. BUILT FOR PRIVACY Sign in with Apple. Face ID protection. No tracking, no ads. Your subscriptions and reading history stay on your device — always. POWER USER FEATURES - Sync bookmarks and notes to your Obsidian vault - Background refresh keeps your feeds current - Shake to mark all as read Second Stream is completely free.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Second Stream at 100% against CBS's 36%. Second Stream also leads on ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). CBS's advantage is chart position (#96 vs unranked) and device support (3 vs 1). On price and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
CBS ships an update fortnightly, Second Stream weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CBS | Second Stream |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (71K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 35.9% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 71K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Weekly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #96 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 240 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | CBS Interactive | Nicolas Widynski |
Customer experience
CBS
Second Stream
Bugs and requests
CBS
Reported bugs
3 issues- Fatal errors when trying to watch shows
- Playback issues like freezing, restarting, and losing progress
- Compatibility problems on certain devices and platforms
Requested features
4 requests- Resume playback from where user left off
- Expand content availability globally
- Reduce number of commercials or provide ad-free option
- Improve search functionality and content organization
Second Stream
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
CBS
No in-app purchases
Second Stream
No in-app purchases
