How to Watch ‘60 Minutes’ Without Cable

There are a lot of news programs on TV, but there’s only one “60 Minutes.” Since the 1960s, CBS’s hour-long program has been the gold standard in news magazine-style television news. There’s lots of flashy nonsense on cable these days, but “60 Minutes” still puts in the reporting legwork, and it shows. If you consider “60 Minutes” to be must-watch TV, then you may have a dilemma: How can you cut the cord without giving up watching the show? Is there a way to watch “60 Minutes” without cable?

As it turns out, there is a way — a few different ways, in fact. Below, we’ll lay out everything that you need to know, including details on getting yourself a safe (and legal) “60 Minutes” livestream online as well as information on how to watch “60 Minutes” free with an antenna — no cable required!

Here are a few of our favorite ways to stream 60 Minutes:

	Price	Channels	Free Trial
#1	$69.99 – $139.99	65+	None	See Offer
#2	$5.99 – $85.96	68 – 88	7 or 30 days	See Offer
#3	$64.99 – $33.00	220+	7 days	See Offer
#4	$4.99 – $99.99	N/A	7 days	See Offer

So how can you watch “60 Minutes” without cable? You can sometimes find segments on CBS’s website or on YouTube, but what we want is a way to watch “60 Minutes” right as it airs, so that we’re watching the same full program that the rest of the cable-watching nation is seeing. How do we do that?

To watch “60 Minutes” without cable, we need to find a way to watch the channel it’s on: CBS. There are two main options here. One is to get a pay-TV service. We’re talking about a live TV streaming service, or “skinny bundle.” Skinny bundles are “skinny” because they slim down bloated cable channel bundles, and this helps them keep costs down.

There’s another way to get CBS — and therefore “60 Minutes” — without cable. And it’s free too! We’re talking about antenna TV, and we’ll explain it all in a moment. Read on for our list below, where we’ll start by covering the skinny bundles, then talk about antennas, and then wrap things up with a brief discussion of devices like Fire TV and Roku streaming sticks.

DIRECTV Stream is a live TV streaming service owned by AT&T. You can watch it anywhere on all sorts of devices, and you don’t need to have AT&T internet or phone service to get it. It includes a livestream of CBS in most markets, which makes it a strong option for streaming “60 Minutes.”

Not every streaming service has a livestream of CBS, but Hulu does. Actually, to be precise, Hulu + Live TV is the service that will get you CBS and “60 Minutes” online. We recommend both Hulu subscription options, but only one will get you live TV, so make sure you’re picking the right one! Hulu + Live TV has a free trial program.

fuboTV likes to market itself as a sports-first streaming service. That’s true, but don’t let that turn you off if you’re not a sports fan: fuboTV has plenty of other channels, too, and it’s entry-level streaming channel bundle is pretty well-rounded. fuboTV offers livestreams of CBS in most markets, and it has a free trial. It’s a great option for streaming “ 60 Minutes” online.

In spring 2021, CBS All Access turned into Paramount Plus. CBS announced the change in fall 2020, and they even ran a Super Bowl ad to further promote the rebranding effort. Paramount Plus has more content from channels like Comedy Central, BET, and Nickelodeon, but don’t worry, “60 Minutes” fans: It still has the same CBS shows as before too. In some markets, you can even get a livestream of your local CBS station on Paramount Plus.

YouTube TV

YouTube TV is a streaming service owned by Google (or “Alphabet,” as they like to be known these days). Unlike regular old YouTube, though, YouTube TV has live network and broadcast TV channels — including CBS, complete with livestreams of “60 Minutes” at its usual hour (or in its entirety right after football — you know how that goes). YouTube TV does cost money, but it has a free trial program that you can use to check out the “60 Minutes” livestream risk-free.

Free Over-the-Air TV

If you’re old enough to remember when “60 Minutes” first came on the air in 1968, then you might remember watching “60 Minutes” with an antenna before cable was around. Cable was invented way back in the 1940s, but it really didn’t take off until the ‘60s and ‘70s, which means that “60 Minutes” used to reach a lot of audiences by over-the-air transmission. Whatever happened to that?

The short answer is: Nothing! Free over-the-air TV is still around (though protocols and frequencies have changed over the years, so you might not be able to use the same antenna your parents did in the ‘60s). Local stations with terrestrial broadcast towers still send out TV signals for free, and anyone close enough can pick up those broadcasts with an antenna, no cable required. In many markets, the local TV broadcast stations are affiliates of the major networks (ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC). And since “60 Minutes” airs on CBS, this means that you might be able to use an antenna to watch “60 Minutes” for free, no cable necessary. You can check for nearby stations using the FCC’s official tool. If you see a CBS affiliate nearby, all you’ll have to do is grab an antenna with the right range, plug it into your TV, scan for channels (you’ll find the option in your TV’s settings — use your remote), and you’ll be all set to watch “60 Minutes.”

Any good cord-cutting setup includes two types of things: Streaming services and streaming devices. It takes two to tango, here! Just like you can’t use Microsoft Word without a computer, you can’t use Hulu or YouTube TV without something to watch on. And just like you need programs to make your computer useful, you need apps to make full use of your Fire TV, Roku, or other devices.

So which services go with which devices? The good news is that, these days, it’s pretty hard to go wrong. Sometimes tech companies will get into little spats and mess things up, but for the most part, the streaming companies seem to be getting along well these days. That makes it easy to stream “60 Minutes” on a Fire TV Stick, Chromecast, or another device of your choice. Just check the chart below to make sure your device works with the service you want to try out.

As for antennas, those are even easier: You can plug them straight into your TV. Just scan for channels and you’ll be good to go! You don’t need to deal with any streaming devices to watch TV over the air, and you can use the same TV for both by using two different inputs on the back of your TV (just plug your streaming device and antenna into their proper spots, and don’t forget that you need to use the TV controller to switch inputs when you want to hop from one to the other.

If you want to integrate your antenna into your streaming setup a bit more, you can do that with a little streaming know-how. We’d recommend an OTA DVR that will let you turn your antenna TV into a digital TV that you can stream, record, and replay from afar. If you want to keep it simple, you could also get a smart TV that lets you switch between the antenna input and your favorite streaming services without having to use more than one controller (we like the Roku smart TVs best).

Finally, we have to mention Paramount Plus: It’s available on the exact same devices that CBS All Access was. That includes Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, Android TV, Chromecast, iOS, Android, and web browsers.

Cutting the cord is easier when you don’t have to give up great channels like CBS and great shows like “60 Minutes.” But there’s still so much more for you to watch, so don’t stop here. Check out what’s on another major network, like FOX — which is just as easy to watch online or over the air as CBS is. Or check out the streaming options, because CBS isn’t the only big network with its own streaming service: NBC’s parent company, NBCUniversal, has one called Peacock that we really like. There’s never a lack of things to watch when you’re a cord-cutter!