How to Install Freeview on FireStick (Quick Guide)

Last Updated on October 26, 2020

Many of you wonder if it’s possible to get Freeview on Firestick, as it’s basically a free service with no hidden charges or contracts. Since you are here, read on through this guide to learn more about the availability of Freeview on Fire TV devices.

Freeview is one of the most popular DTT (Digital Terrestrial Television) services in the United Kingdom, thanks to the involvement of BBC, ITV, Channel 4, and Sky.

With select television and set-top box models, users get access to Freeview services, which includes 80+ popular UK TV channels (10 of them in HD), 11 catch-up streaming services, 26 radio channels, etc.

The best thing about Freeview is that you don’t have to pay a monthly or yearly subscription or sign a contract. All you need is a TV license, a mandatory requirement for watching TV channels in the United Kingdom.

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Is it Possible to Get Freeview on Firestick?

Sadly, there’s no way you can get Freeview on Firestick. To enjoy its services, you will need a TV, set-top box, or DVR with Freeview built-in.

In the United Kingdom, most modern smart TVs from Sony, LG, Toshiba, Hisense, and Panasonic are compatible with Freeview Play.

You can also grab a DVR from Humax or Panasonic with Freeview Play capabilities. There’s a Freeview app for Android and iOS devices as well.

However, you can’t sideload Freeview on Firestick due to certain limitations.

Despite the unavailability of Freeview on Firestick, most of Freeview’s channels are separately downloadable from the Amazon Appstore. Here’s a list of the channels:

BBC iPlayer
All 4
ITV Hub
My5
UKTV Play

Alongside all these apps, you can also get TVPlayer on Firestick. It gives you access to 50+ live and video-on-demand channels, as well as hundreds of hours of catch-ups from just £6.99/month.

You get a free tier on this service that lets you watch almost all the Freeview channels (e.g., BBC One, BBC Two, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, Quest, 5USA, CBBC, BBC News, Paramount, etc.) without paying a premium.

With the paid plan, you get access to premium channels like Comedy Central, Discovery, History, MTV, TLC, and many more.

How to Install Freeview Channels on Firestick

Installing Freeview channels on Firestick is a breeze. Whether you want to install BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All 4, My5, or UKTV Play on your Fire TV device, the following steps will guide you through the installation process:

The first thing you’ll need to do is highlight the Search option above the Fire TV home screen. A hand lens symbol indicates it.
Now search for your preferred Freeview channel (e.g., BBC iPlayer) using the on-screen keyboard or the voice search function.

Select the channel name from the suggestions in the search menu.
After that, click the app/channel logo under Apps & Games on the following screen.
Click Get to download the respective Freeview channel on your Firestick. It will get automatically installed in a minute or so.

Once you install one of the Freeview channels on your Firestick, you will be able to launch it from Your Apps & Channels row of the Fire TV home screen. You can also to the quick access menu (hold the Home button) > Apps, where you should find the recently installed apps/channels at the bottom of the list.

What do the Freeview Channels offer on Firestick?

If you are looking to watch a particular channel or your favorite TV show, then you definitely check out the list below. We have discussed the offerings of each Freeview channel on Firestick.

BBC iPlayer

With BBC iPlayer, you can watch live and catch-up content (up to 30 days) from BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three, BBC Four, BBC News, and CBBC channels in the UK for free, assuming that you have a TV license.

You can watch BBC’s popular crime thrillers, dramas, comedy shows, documentaries, lifestyle programs, reality shows, and made-for-TV films on iPlayer, such as Reported Missing, A Suitable Boy, Lady Bird, Canada’s Drag Race, Harlots, Strike, Line of Duty, Mandy, The Bridge, Casualty, Good Trouble, Fort Salem, Celebrity MasterChef, So Awkward, The Secret She Keeps, Panorama, EastEnders, Katy Keene, Heroes, etc.

BBC iPlayer also offers on-demand sports replays, highlights, and documentaries, which many of you would certainly appreciate.

All 4

You can stream the 24/7 feed of Channel 4, E4, More4, Film4, and 4seven from the All 4 app on Firestick. Like BBC iPlayer, All 4 also offers the last 30 days of catch-ups, as well as box sets of All 4 original shows.

At the time of the writing, you can watch 270 shows on-demand on the All 4 app, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Goldbergs, Seinfeld, Scrubs, Shameless, The Lawyer, Gogglebox, Hollyoaks, Come Dine With Me, The Inbetweeners, Detective Cain, Bad Banks, No Offence, Catastrophe, 8 Out of 10 Cats, Mary Kill People, PhoneShop, Peep Show, Father Ted, ER, Misfits, and more.

Most of the sports-centric content on All 4 are documentaries.

ITV Hub

ITV Hub lets you watch ITV, ITV2, ITVBe, ITV3, ITV4, and CITV channels for free. Hundreds of ITV’s original shows are available in ITV Hub’s on-demand streaming library, such as American Dad!, Family Guy, Love Island, A Touch of Frost, A Mother’s Son, Bancroft, Be Tasty, Emmerdale, Sanditon, Endeavor, Coronation Street, Midsomer Murders, Vera, Scott & Bailey, Tipping Point, Tonight, etc.

In addition, you get a first look at the latest ITV shows and watch 80+ box sets without paying subscription fees.

ITV Hub also streams live and on-demand rugby, football, and other sports events from UEFA, Guinness Six Nations, British Touring Car Championship, Motorsport UK, AEW: Dynamite, and more.

My5

With the My5 app on Firestick, you can watch the live Channel 5, 5USA, 5STAR, 5Select, and Paramount Network channels, as well as binge-watch Channel 5 shows on-demand.

My5 also sources content from BET, PBS America, BLAZE, Spark, Together, and Real Stories, which are some of the most popular partner networks of Channel 5.

You can watch The Gadget Show, Home and Away, Neighbours, Wentworth Prison, Hoarders, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Ultimate Police Interceptors, Yellowstone, Police Code Zero, The Deceived, The Oval, Seven Types of Ambiguity, Boomerang, The Border, Crawford, Twenties, Crusoe, and dozens of other shows and documentaries from the Channel 5 networks.

My5 also provides hundreds of box sets, exclusive content, and behind the scenes clips of your favorite Channel 5 shows. It also has a vast library of kids content, including Peppa Pig, Poppy Cat, Thomas & Friends, etc.

UKTV Play

UKTV Play does live channel feeds, and you can watch on-demand entertainment, comedy, drama, soaps, and documentaries from Dave, Yesterday, and Drama channels. Also, you will be able to watch new episodes online at the same time as the TV broadcast.

Shows like Classic Eastenders, Taskmaster, Yianni: Supercar Customiser, Porters, Classic Holby City, The Heart Guy, Abandoned Engineering, and many more shows can be streamed for free. Plenty of box sets are also included in UKTV Play’s content catalog.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How much internet bandwidth do I need for streaming Freeview channels on Firestick?

Since most of the live streams and on-demand content on BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All 4, My5, and UKTV Play maxes out at 720p, you will only need a 5 Mbps internet connection for smooth and buffer-free streaming on Firestick.

Select on-demand content are available in 1080p, for which you will need a minimum of 15 Mbps internet bandwidth.

2. Can I record my favorite TV shows on Firestick?

Firestick has neither the function nor the capabilities to record TV shows. For that, you will need a dedicated DVR or set-top box with Freeview Play and TV recording features. T

he Fire TV Recast device does have DVR features built-in, but Amazon doesn’t sell it in the United Kingdom.

3. Do I have a pay a monthly subscription to watch Freeview channels on Firestick?

The Freeview service itself won’t cost you anything, let alone the individual services that we mentioned above. All you need is the Firestick device and a decent broadband plan for online content streaming.

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Wrapping Up

In this guide, we have given all the information you need to watch Freeview on Firestick. It’s worth mentioning that the apps and channels will also work with Fire TV, Fire TV Cube (Gen 1 & 2), JVC Fire TV Edition Smart TV, and the Nebula Soundbar.