A TV Licence costs £180 per year with the price having risen in April
The rules around a TV Licence can be confusing and, as it turns out, some people may need it for YouTube – even if you pay for a Premium account.
This, of course, all comes down to what people watch. TV officials say: “If you are watching a TV programme live on YouTube, you need to be covered by a TV Licence. A licence is not required to view user-generated content, clips and videos on YouTube.
“This includes live-streamed content that is not part of a television broadcast. Or being broadcast at the same time by other means.”
Officials say that a YouTube Premium subscription doesn’t replace a TV Licence. If you’re watching live TV on the platform, you still need a TV Licence.
A TV Licence costs £180 per year in 2026 for a colour TV. A black-and-white TV Licence costs £60.50 per year. This follows a price rise on April 1, 2026.
While many people think a TV Licence only covers watching the likes of the BBC, that’s not the case. Your TV Licence lets you enjoy a huge range of TV beyond the BBC. It covers you for:
- All TV channels like BBC, ITV, Channel 4, U&Dave and international channels
- Pay TV services like Sky, Virgin Media and EE TV
- Live TV on streaming services – like YouTube, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video
- Everything on BBC iPlayer
- Watching, recording and downloading on any device
Is YouTube Premium worth it if I’m already paying for a TV Licence?
The TV Licence experts state: “Paying for YouTube Premium on top of a TV Licence grants you access to a range of perks through the YouTube platform. These include ad-free videos and music, background play and a number of apps compatible with various devices.
“Having a TV Licence also enables you to legally watch live programmes on YouTube, letting you enjoy all the benefits of your Premium subscription.”
Netflix, Disney and Amazon Prime
TV Licensing confirms that you need a TV Licence to watch live programmes on Netflix. You do not need a TV Licence to watch Netflix on-demand content.
It also states that you need a TV Licence to watch live programmes on Amazon Prime. You do not need a TV Licence to watch Amazon Prime on-demand content.
Discussing Disney+, they confirm: “You don’t need a TV Licence to watch on demand programmes on Disney Plus.”
