Watch Peacock in the UK: The 2026 Reality

You cannot watch Peacock directly in the UK: the standalone Peacock service closed to UK viewers on 9 January 2024, and the app was removed from all Sky Glass, Sky Stream and Sky Q boxes on that date. If a page tells you Peacock is still live on Sky or NOW, it is out of date.

The practical position in 2026 is simpler than it looks. Some former Peacock programmes were redistributed across Sky channels and NOW, some reality titles moved to the Hayu app, and the US Peacock service remains region-locked to American viewers with a US payment card. exactly where those shows went, what a UK streaming setup actually costs now, and how much broadband speed you need to stream any of it without buffering.

Last updated: July 2026

Written by the Free Price Compare editorial team | Reviewed July 2026

Is Peacock still available in the UK?

Peacock is not available to watch in the UK as a standalone service, and it has not been since 9 January 2024. On that date Sky removed the Peacock app from all Sky Glass, Sky Stream and Sky Q boxes, ending an arrangement that had run since November 2021 when Peacock was rolled out to Sky viewers at no extra cost. There is no UK sign-up page, no UK subscription and no legitimate UK app. The service never grew into a full standalone platform in Britain the way Netflix, BBC iPlayer or ITVX did, and its catalogue was cut back sharply well before the final closure. If you land on an article claiming Peacock is currently included with a Sky package, treat it as outdated.

The closure was not a UK-only quirk. It reflected wider streaming consolidation as household budgets tightened and NBCUniversal focused Peacock on its home US market. For UK households, the useful question is no longer “how do I get Peacock” but “where did its shows go, and what should I actually subscribe to.”

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Where can I watch Peacock shows in the UK now?

Former Peacock shows are now spread across three places in the UK: Sky channels, NOW, and the Hayu app. When Sky retired Peacock, it confirmed that some programming would be redistributed across its own channels, some reality titles would transition to Hayu, and selected scripted shows would remain on Sky and NOW. That means there is no single replacement app, so where a specific title lives depends on the genre.

• Reality content (the kind of US reality franchises Peacock carried) largely moved to Hayu, which costs £4.99 a month.
• Scripted and general entertainment titles were absorbed into Sky’s channel line-up and NOW’s Entertainment catalogue.
• Anything exclusive to the US Peacock service (certain sport, live events and US-only originals) is not licensed for UK streaming at all.

If the show you want is a US reality series, Hayu is the likely home. If it is a drama or comedy, check NOW’s Entertainment membership or the relevant Sky channel. To see how NOW’s catalogue and channels are structured, our guide to the NOW TV channels line-up breaks down what each membership includes.

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What does the NOW Entertainment membership cost in 2026?

The NOW Entertainment & HBO Max Membership is £9.99 a month, or from £6.99 a month on a 6-month minimum term, and it now includes HBO Max at no extra cost. Since 26 March 2026, every Entertainment subscriber’s plan was automatically updated to include HBO Max Basic with Ads, adding the full HBO Max series catalogue from Game of Thrones to The Pitt. The older standalone Entertainment membership was £7.99 a month before this change. For context, NOW’s other memberships are Cinema at £9.99 a month and Sports at £34.99 a month, with a Sports Day pass at £14.99 for 24 hours.

NOW is the closest legitimate UK route to the kind of NBCUniversal and Sky-adjacent content Peacock used to carry, and it needs no contract on the standard monthly plans. There was also a time-limited Commonwealth Games tie-in: from 24 July to 2 August 2026, the Entertainment & HBO Max Membership included the live TNT Sports 2 channel showing Glasgow 2026 coverage, though other TNT Sports channels were not part of that. If live sport is your priority rather than Peacock’s back catalogue, our guide on watching live sports on NOW TV is more relevant.

Figures are indicative and may change.

Why is Peacock only available in the US?

Peacock is only available in the US because NBCUniversal licenses most of its catalogue and live rights for the American market and enforces those licences by IP address and payment card. The Peacock sign-up flow requires a US-based IP and a credit or debit card issued in the United States, so a UK card and UK internet connection are rejected at checkout even before you reach the content. Sport and live events, such as US Olympic streams, are contractually limited to the US and its territories, which is why they never appeared on the former UK version.

People do promote using a VPN to appear US-based, but that route sits against Peacock’s terms of service and still runs into the US-card requirement at payment. Free Price Compare does not endorse working around a provider’s terms, and we would not present it as a reliable or supported method. For UK households, the dependable options are the legitimate ones: Hayu for reality, NOW and Sky for scripted content, and the mainstream services below for the shows Peacock never had.

See NOW TV channel options

What broadband speed do you need to stream these shows?

You need around 10 Mbps of download speed for a single HD stream and at least 25 Mbps per stream for 4K, while standard-definition streaming uses roughly 5 Mbps per device. NOW’s own published minimum is a 2.5 Mbps download speed just to start streaming, though that leaves no headroom for a household with several devices online at once. Browsing and email need only 1 to 3 Mbps, so the real driver of the speed you need is how many people stream, game and video-call simultaneously.

For most UK homes a connection in the 60 to 100 Mbps range comfortably handles multiple HD streams plus everyday use, and only heavy 4K households with many devices need to reach for gigabit tiers. Full fibre is available to 82% of UK homes (24.9 million premises), and gigabit-capable broadband reaches 89% of residential premises, per Ofcom’s Connected Nations update, Spring 2026 (data as of January 2026). That availability means most households can pick a plan on speed and price rather than being forced onto the fastest option. Before you commit, run a postcode check with your broadband comparison so you only compare deals that can actually reach your address.

Fibre type and why upload speed matters

Full fibre (FTTP) delivers a fibre-optic line all the way to your property, giving faster and more symmetrical speeds than part-fibre (FTTC), which runs fibre to a street cabinet and copper for the final stretch. For watching Peacock-style content, download speed is what buffers or smooths your stream, but if anyone in the house uploads video, streams live to social platforms or works from home, the higher upload speed of full fibre is the difference maker. FTTC connections in the UK average around 47 Mbps, while FTTP users average well over 200 Mbps, so the fibre type on offer at your address shapes both your ceiling and your reliability.

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Check which full-fibre and part-fibre deals reach your postcode before you choose.

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Which UK streaming services replace what Peacock offered?

The UK services that best cover what Peacock offered are NOW, Hayu, Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video, depending on whether you want US reality, scripted drama or films. There is no like-for-like Peacock replacement, so the right choice depends on the specific shows you were chasing. NOW carries the Sky entertainment channels plus HBO Max, Hayu holds the US reality franchises, and the big three subscription platforms cover most mainstream US and UK originals.

• US reality franchises: Hayu is the clearest home for these titles, but its monthly price should be checked on the provider’s current page before publishing, as streaming prices change frequently.
• HBO and Sky drama: NOW Entertainment & HBO Max, now including HBO Max since 26 March 2026.
• General US and UK originals: Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video.

If your interest in Peacock was really about US sport, the picture is different again. Premier League and other football rights in the UK sit with Sky and TNT Sports, not any Peacock-linked service, so our Premier League TV listings and TNT Sports guides are the practical starting points. Adding several streaming subscriptions quickly adds up, so it is worth checking whether a broadband and TV bundle works out cheaper than paying for each app separately.

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How to keep streaming costs and contracts under control

Keeping streaming costs down comes from matching your subscriptions to what you actually watch and pairing them with a broadband plan sized to your household, not the fastest tier on the shelf. The standard NOW monthly memberships run without a fixed contract, so you can pause or cancel between the shows you care about rather than paying year-round. Broadband is the opposite: most home broadband sits on a 12, 18 or 24-month contract, and mid-contract price rises are now governed by clearer rules requiring providers to set out any increase in pounds and pence at sign-up.

Over 2 million customers used One Touch Switch to change broadband or landline provider between its September 2024 launch and the end of 2025, per Ofcom, so moving to a better-value deal at the end of your term is straightforward. If money is tight, around 532,000 UK households were on a broadband social tariff as of June 2025 (Ofcom), and social tariffs give eligible low-income households a lower monthly price with the same streaming-capable speeds. Review your contract end date, cancel any streaming app you are not watching this month, and re-check broadband prices at renewal rather than rolling onto a standard tariff.

• Peacock Streaming Service: Ending UK Operations
• Premier League TV Listings – Watch Live Football
• Sky Sports Channels – Live Sports & HD Streaming
• TNT Sports – Live Football, Cricket & More
• NOW TV Channels – Explore Entertainment, Sports, and Cinema

Information correct as of 28 July 2026. Prices, tariffs, policy details and providers change frequently, so please check the latest details before making a decision. This article is for general information only and does not constitute financial advice. Free Price Compare is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).