The Sky TV Essentials deal (also known as Sky Q Lite) gives you a Sky Q box and superfast broadband for £30 per month. See the Sky TV Essentials channels.

If you’re looking for a low-cost TV and broadband deal, you can currently get Sky Essentials for just £30 per month (this package is also known as Sky TV Essentials or Sky Q Lite).

The £30 per month fee includes a Sky Q box and Sky Superfast 35 Broadband. You’ll get access to more than 200 channels on your Sky Q box, with the ability to pause, rewind and record live TV. You’ll also be able to watch catch-up TV on iPlayer and other apps through your Sky Q box.

In this article, we’ll review the Sky Essentials deal with Sky Q Lite and Sky Superfast 35 Broadband. We’ll look at how the TV Essentials plan works, the channels you’ll get included on it and how you can switch from your current broadband & TV provider to Sky.

What is Sky TV Essentials?

In the UK, Sky now offers a lower-cost TV Essentials deal. Available exclusively to customers who are new to Sky, it includes a Sky Q box with access to more than 200 free-to-view channels. You’ll get all of the normal functionality available on Sky Q such as apps and the ability to pause, rewind and record live television. You’ll also get a clever remote with voice control functionality built-in.

Alongside your Sky Q box, you’ll get Sky’s Superfast Broadband. This gives you an average download speed of either 36Mbps or 59Mbps, depending on the plan you choose. You’ll also get a speed guarantee included as standard with your broadband:

ServiceBroadbandTelevisionMonthly Price
Sky Broadband
Sky TV Essentials with Superfast 35 Broadband

36Mbps
average download
Sky TV Essentials
200+ channels included		£30/month
for 18 months
Sky Broadband
Sky TV Essentials with Superfast Broadband

59Mbps
average download
Sky TV Essentials
200+ channels included		£30/month
for 18 months
plus £29.95 upfront

You’ll normally pay £25 per month for Sky Superfast 35 broadband on its own, without TV included.

Other Sky TV & Broadband Deals

Unlike Sky’s other TV and broadband deals, you won’t have access to premium Sky TV channels on the Sky Essentials deal.

If you’d like access to premium channels such as Sky Atlantic, Sky Showcase, Sky Sports or Sky Cinema, you can choose one of the following TV and broadband deals from £26 per month:

ServiceBroadbandTelevisionMonthly Price
Sky Broadband
Sky TV with Netflix and Superfast 35 Broadband

36Mbps
average download
Sky ShowcaseSky AtlanticNetflix
Sky TV with Netflix
300+ channels included		£26/month
for 18 months
plus £29.95 upfront
Sky Broadband
Sky TV with Netflix and Superfast Broadband

59Mbps
average download
Sky ShowcaseSky AtlanticNetflix
Sky TV with Netflix
300+ channels included		£26/month
for 18 months
plus £29.95 upfront
Sky Broadband
Sky TV with Superfast 35 Broadband

36Mbps
average download
Sky ShowcaseSky Atlantic
Sky TV
300+ channels included		£39/month
for 18 months
plus £29.95 upfront
Sky Broadband
Sky TV with Superfast Broadband

59Mbps
average download
Sky ShowcaseSky Atlantic
Sky TV
300+ channels included		£42/month
for 18 months
plus £29.95 upfront
Sky Broadband
Sky TV with Sky Sports & Superfast Broadband

59Mbps
average download
Sky ShowcaseSky AtlanticSky Sports
Sky TV with Sky Sports
300+ channels included		£62/month
for 18 months
plus £29.95 upfront

In particular, we’d recommend the £26 Sky TV with Netflix and Superfast 35 Broadband deal. This includes a subscription to Netflix (worth £6.99 per month), along with Sky’s entertainment channels and Sky Box Sets.

Sky TV Essentials Channels

With Sky TV Essentials, you’ll have access to more than 200 free-to-view channels through a satellite dish. This includes all of the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five channels. You’ll also get access to Sky Arts and channels such as CBS Drama, Food Network, Dave, Quest, Pick and more.

All of the following channels are available on Sky TV Essentials:

  • BBC One
  • BBC Two
  • ITV
  • Channel 4
  • Five
  • ITV2
  • ITV3
  • ITV4
  • ITVBe
  • E4
  • More4
  • 4seven
  • 5*
  • 5USA
  • Paramount Network
  • CBS Drama
  • CBS Reality
  • CBS Justice
  • Challenge
  • Sky Arts
  • Food Network
  • Dave
  • Drama
  • Yesterday
  • Quest
  • Quest Red
  • Pick
  • BBC News
  • Sky News
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Film4
  • plus more…

You won’t have access to Sky’s premium TV channels such as Sky Atlantic, Sky Showcase, Sky Cinema or Sky Sports. You also won’t be able to stream from the Sky Box Sets service. You will, however, still be able to use catch-up TV apps on your Sky Q box (including BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, Spotify, YouTube and more).

You can also use the Netflix application to watch Netflix shows on your Sky Q box (a separate subscription to Netflix is required for this). If you do this, however, you might be better off getting a Sky TV & broadband deal from £26 per month with Netflix included in the price.

The channels available on Sky TV Essentials are similar to what was previously offered on the Freesat from Sky service which is now discontinued.

Switching to Sky

If you’re currently using another broadband or TV provider, it’s easy switching your service to Sky.

Start by ordering your Sky Essentials plan online. When you place your order, you’ll be able to schedule the installation date for your service.

In most cases, Sky will automatically contact your old provider to cancel your old broadband service for you. However, this won’t be the case if you’re a Virgin Media customer – if so, you’ll need to contact them separately to cancel.

For step-by-step instructions on how to change your broadband & TV provider to Sky, please select your current provider from the list below:

Switch to Sky Broadband
Your step-by-step guide to switching

Select your current broadband provider:

More Options

You can also read our full guide on switching broadband providers in the UK.

More Information

For more information about the Sky TV Essentials deal, please see Sky’s official website.

Your Comments 18 so far

We'd love to hear your thoughts and any questions you may have. So far, we've received 18 comments from readers. You can add your own comment here.

  • Lorraine Allison said:

    Yes I agree with Wendy Thurman.
    I certainly don’t need it and also already had freesat all set up on my ‘old tv’ which worked perfectly fine.
    Now I’m getting confused with 2 mote controls as I had to get a smart tv. (Which I didn’t need).
    So now I’m paying £7 month for nothing.
    Not happy!
    Lorraine

  • Wendy Thurman said:

    How I have been conned. I was initially told that the tv essential was part of a package including fibre broadband and unlimited telephone calls. I thought that is ok as it’s included. I now have a separate contract for the tv essential which is just basically freeview channels on the sky Q box. I can record pause and rewind live tv. Of course I can. I can do that on the tv apps and I don’t need a sky W box . Told to be thankful the essential tv is usually £14 and I have it for £7.
    It’s free I shouldn’t be paying anything. I already paid for my tv license and now I’m paying double for catchup which is a free service. Very disappointed to be paying for an application which is free. Just to use the box. I don’t need it and I can do the same on my smart tv.

  • Brigitte said:

    Hi. I am currently with Virgin Media but cannot afford it now with the new price rise. Don’t know whether to go back to Sky and have their Essentials package with Superfast Broadband and phone line or buy a Freesat box and just have Sky for Broadband and phone line. Is a Freesat box better than the Sky box? Any advice? Many thanks.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Brigitte,
      Thanks for your comment. I think they’re both good options. In terms of pricing, you’ll currently pay £26/month for Sky’s Superfast Broadband on its own, or £31/month for Superfast Broadband with TV Essentials. It’s therefore just £5/month more for the Sky Q box with Sky TV Essentials. The chances are you’ll pay a lot more than that for a Freesat box (maybe £200 or so for a box), so the TV Essentials deal probably works out better value. However, there’s also the benefit with the Freesat option that you own your box – whereas you’ll need to return your Sky Q box if you cancel TV Essentials in the future.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

      • Wendy Thurman replied:

        Don’t get the tv essential. It’s basically freeview Chanel’s which are free anyway. You already pay for a tv license and you will be paying twice. I have been conned into getting it and was told it was no extra charge and was included in the package. I was quite happy with my tv as it was. You can’t access sky go on the sky q box only on your phone or tablet. So what am I paying £7 a month for. My phone does more than the sky q box and please don’t buy

  • Simon Claydon said:

    Will the Sky Q box work for more than 1 TV or enable a linked system, we propose having 3 or 4 TV’s around our new home.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Simon,
      Thanks for your comment. The Sky Q box will work for one television. If you’d like to watch on multiple TVs, I believe you’ll need to get Sky Signature instead as you can add their Multiscreen service to that.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Sean,
      Thanks for your comment. I believe it’s an extra £5 for inclusive evening & weekend calls, or £12 for anytime calls.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Paula,
      Thanks for your comment. Unfortunately, it isn’t possible to add Sky Atlantic to the Essentials TV package. Instead, you’ll need to upgrade to Sky Signature which will include Sky Atlantic and other Sky Entertainment channels.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

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