How to Watch the Roku Channel Without a Roku Device

Use the Roku Channel app or the web player

By
Dave Johnson
Dave Johnson
Dave Johnson
Writer
  • Rutgers University
  • Central Michigan University
Dave Johnson has been writing about tech since 1990. He's the author of over 2 dozen books and his writing has appeared in Wired, PCWorld, Business Insider, and many other publications.
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Updated on September 6, 2021
Reviewed by
Jon Fisher
Jon Fisher headshot
Reviewed by Jon Fisher
  • Wichita Technical Institute
Jonathan Fisher is a CompTIA certified technologist with more than 6 years' experience writing for publications like TechNorms and Help Desk Geek.
lifewire's editorial guidelines

What to Know

  • You can stream movies and TV shows (including live TV) on The Roku Channel's website without creating an account.
  • You can also watch the Roku channel on Android and iOS devices using the mobile app.

This article explains how to watch the Roku Channel on the web and mobile app.

How to Watch the Roku Channel with the Web Player

Roku offers its own streaming channel which includes a wide variety of free television, movies, and sports, and premium content for subscribers.

  1. Open the Roku Channel in any web browser. This gives you access to a broad selection of TV programs and movies.

    The Roku Channel web page

  2. Open the Roku Channel's Live TV page in any web browser. This page is dedicated to Roku's lineup of live TV, which includes news, sports, and other programming.

    Roku separates the ordinary streaming programming from the live TV programming on the web, so you'll want to bookmark both pages so you can browse them later.

  3. If a window pops up asking you to sign up, click I'll do it later and it won't ask you again.

How to Watch the Roku Channel with the Mobile Apps

Roku supports Android and iOS. All the content is combined in the mobile apps, though; you can switch among ordinary free content, premium subscription services, and live TV.

Download for:

  1. Open the Roku mobile app.

  2. Use the tabs at the bottom to navigate between free, premium, and live TV programming.

    The Roku Channel iPhone app.

What's Included on the Roku Channel

You can stream the Roku Channel from any Roku device or Roku smart TV, of course, in addition to watching it from a web browser or mobile device.

Roku offers a surprisingly large library of content on the Roku Channel, and most of it is free, whether you have a Roku device or not.

The channel includes free television programs and a rotating selection of free feature-length movies.

There's also a limited selection of live TV and live sports. These shows are streamed as they're broadcast, and you don't have the ability to control playback or restart these from the beginning.

Unfortunately, Roku doesn't include a comprehensive category guide, so you're limited to scanning the categories listed on the website home page or the app's home page. There are over 40 categories in all including: Adventure, Fantasy, Family Night, Mysteries, Drama, Comedy, and more.

You can also subscribe to premium channels. Roku makes streaming channels available such as Starz, Showtime, HBO, Sundance Now, and the science documentary platform, CuriosityStream.

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