truTV vs CBS
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
truTV
Stream live sports, full episodes of popular TV shows, and movies on demand. Sign in with your TV provider to access content from truTV and enjoy entertainment anytime, anywhere.
- Watch live sports
- Stream full TV episodes
- Enjoy blockbuster movies
- Sign in with TV provider
- Access truTV originals
- Watch anytime, anywhere
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ALWAYS HERE FOR A GOOD LAUGH The truTV app makes watching live sports, full episodes and movies easy! Sign in with your TV Provider to catch live sports like Mountain West football, MotoGP, MLB, NHL , and classic truTV originals like Impractical Jokers, Tacoma FD, Adam Ruins Everything, and more. Watch anytime, anywhere with the truTV app. Plus, enjoy blockbuster movies -- on any screen. The truTV app supports most TV Providers, including AT&T, Spectrum (incl. Time Warner Cable, Charter & Bright House), Comcast XFINITY, Cox, DIRECTV, Dish, Optimum, Suddenlink, Verizon, and many more.
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
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: CBS at fortnightly against truTV's every 3 months. CBS also leads on review sentiment (36% vs 16%) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). truTV's advantage is monetization model (ad-supported vs free with in-app purchases) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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 holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CBS has 71K ratings behind it against 14K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 16% of truTV's written reviews are positive against 36% of CBS's.
truTV ships an update every 3 months, CBS fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | truTV | CBS |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (14K ratings) | 4.8 (71K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 16.2% of reviews | 35.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 14K | 71K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | #102 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 109 MB | 240 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. | CBS Interactive |
Customer experience
truTV
CBS
User reviews
truTV
From 14K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💡 Great content like Impractical Jokers and Adam Ruins Everything
- 👍 Decent user interface
Room to improve
- 🐛 Constant crashes and bugs
- 🔁 Endless ad loops and poor ad integration
- 📺 Inability to continue watching from where you left off
- 🔍 Difficult to navigate and find content
- 🔒 Frequent sign-out issues and login problems
CBS
From 71K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 High-quality content
- 👍 Convenient app experience
- 💡 Useful features like live TV and on-demand shows
- 🙌 Consistent and reliable performance
Room to improve
- 🚫 Region restrictions preventing access in certain countries
- 📺 Too many commercials interrupting viewing experience
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and technical issues
- 🔍 Difficult to navigate and find desired content
Bugs and requests
truTV
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes when trying to watch episodes
- Freezes and becomes unresponsive
- Login screen issues and inability to sign in
- Video playback problems and constant buffering
Requested features
4 requests- Add ability to turn off closed captions
- Implement Chromecast/AirPlay support
- Add a 'continue watching' feature
- Improve overall app stability and performance
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
In-app purchases
truTV
No in-app purchases
CBS
No in-app purchases
