Top 6 best TV subscriptions 2026
If you only remember one thing: in Belgium, a TV subscription ranking changes completely depending on whether you rank on the first-year price or on the thirteenth bill. I rank on the second.
Updated 12 August 2026
Proximus comes first because it is the only operator covering the whole country with the same package and the same set-top box, and because its promo-to-full-price gap is the most legible on the market. Telenet and VOO follow, each dominating its half of the country: Telenet in the north, VOO in Wallonia and Brussels. Orange places fourth with the most flexible offer for households that do not want a landline. Scarlet and Base close the ranking: fewer channels, fewer options, but a markedly lower full price, which makes them the only offers whose bill does not jump after a year. None of these six is best in the abstract: the only question that matters before choosing is which of them actually serves your address.
Why rank TV subscriptions on the second-year price?
Because that is the price you will pay for the longest. A Belgian TV subscription is typically kept well beyond three years: over that period, the twelve promotional months account for less than a third of the total bill, and yet it is the only figure operators put forward.
I have seen the mechanics from the inside, from the side where the set-top boxes get installed. The customer signs on a headline price, forgets the contract anniversary date, and the increase arrives with no dedicated letter — it simply appears on the next bill. Across the six offers in this ranking, the gap between the headline rate and the full rate runs from 8 to roughly 20 euros a month. Over two years that is between 96 and 240 euros of difference between two offers that looked equivalent at signature.
An honest ranking must therefore display both figures side by side. That is what this one does, and it is why the order is not the one you will find elsewhere.
Which operator actually covers my address in Belgium?
The answer depends on your municipality, and it overrides everything else. The Belgian TV market rests on two historic cable networks and one national copper/fibre network. Telenet operates the cable in Flanders and part of the Brussels periphery. VOO operates the cable in Wallonia and Brussels. Proximus covers the whole country on its own network. Orange, Scarlet and Base own no TV network of their own: they resell access over the cable or over the Proximus network depending on the area.
The practical consequence: on a street in Liège, the list of genuinely available operators is not the same as on a street in Ghent, and the coverage maps published on commercial sites are optimistic. I have carried out installations on streets where the fibre stopped three house numbers short of the customer's home, with the map showing the entire street in green.
The only check that counts is the one made at the exact address, house number included, on each operator's own availability tool. Do that before reading the rest of this page.
How many channels does a base package really contain?
Considerably fewer than the advertised figure. Belgian operators communicate a total catalogue that adds up base channels, regional channels, HD variants counted separately from their SD version, and sometimes channels reachable only through a paid option.
In practice, a French-speaking Belgian base package sits at around sixty genuinely watchable channels: the RTBF channels, the Belgian private channels, the major French channels historically carried, and a core of news and documentary channels. French channels are not all included everywhere: carriage rights are negotiated network by network, and the list changes from one municipality to the next.
The test I recommend: open the operator's official channel list, filtered on your postcode, and count the ones you actually watch. The figure almost always lands between eight and fifteen. That number, not the 100+ on the brochure, is what should settle your choice.
Should you take a trio bundle or a TV subscription on its own?
The trio bundle is almost always cheaper than the three services bought separately, but it commits you to the part of the contract you use least. The landline in particular has become a loss leader: it costs the operator little, it inflates the perceived value of the bundle, and most households no longer use it.
The rule I apply: if you need fixed internet anyway, take the TV + internet duo, which is the best ratio across all six operators. Add mobile only if the quadruple-play price drops below your current standalone mobile plan — true with some, false with others, and it takes two minutes to work out.
A strictly standalone TV subscription remains rare and rarely worthwhile in Belgium: outside a bundle it costs proportionally the most, and several operators no longer list it in their consumer catalogue at all.
What does sport cost as an add-on with each operator?
Between 15 and 25 euros more per month, with everyone, without exception. This is where the Belgian market is most uniform and most expensive: no base package includes the Pro League or the Champions League, and the rights are split across channels that do not resell to one another.
Concretely, a household wanting to follow the Belgian championship and the European cups must add one or two options to its subscription, which often pushes the bill past 80 euros a month once the promotion has ended. The calculation to make is not “which operator has the sport” — they all have it as an option — but “what does the complete bundle, sport included, cost in the second year”.
It is also the only line item where cancelling mid-year makes sense: sport options can be switched off and back on month by month, unlike the main subscription.
How was this ranking built?
By comparing six offers across seven criteria, with the post-promotion price as first arbiter. The six operators retained are those genuinely selling a consumer TV subscription in French-speaking Belgium: Proximus, Telenet, VOO, Orange, Scarlet and Base. Access providers without their own TV offer were set aside, as were unauthorised IPTV services, which are not a market but a legal risk.
The amounts shown are public-tariff ranges, surveyed on 12 August 2026 from the operators' commercial price lists. They vary by area, commitment length and options: treat them as an order of magnitude to confirm on the operator's own tool at your address, never as a quote.
No link on this page is paid for. Outbound links point to the operators' official pages or to the BIPT, the Belgian telecoms regulator.
Comparison table
Methodology : Six operators selling a consumer TV subscription in French-speaking Belgium, ranked on seven criteria of which the first is the post-promotion price. Public-tariff ranges surveyed on 12 August 2026 from published commercial price lists; they vary by municipality, commitment length and options taken, and must be confirmed at the address on the operator's own tool. Unauthorised IPTV services are excluded on principle. No link on this page is paid for: this site lives on mentions, not affiliation.
Sources : BIPT — Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications · Meilleurtarif.be — official telecom price comparator, supervised by the BIPT · Operators' public price lists, surveyed 12 August 2026
Frequently asked questions
What is the best TV subscription in Belgium right now?
Proximus, judged on post-promotion price relative to coverage and package. But the answer changes as soon as your address is served by only one cable operator: the choice is then between Proximus and that one, not between six offers.
What is the cheapest TV subscription in Belgium?
Scarlet and Base, because they have no headline promotion to claw back: their thirteenth bill matches their first. In exchange, the package is shorter and options are scarcer.
Why does my TV bill go up after a year?
Because the entry promotion covers twelve months and ends without a dedicated letter. The increase appears straight on the thirteenth month's bill, and amounts to between 8 and 20 euros a month depending on the operator.
Can you get TV without internet in Belgium?
Yes, but it is rare and rarely worthwhile. Outside a bundle, a standalone TV subscription costs proportionally the most, and several operators no longer list it in their consumer catalogue.
How long is the commitment on a Belgian TV subscription?
Belgian law caps commitment at six months for telecommunications contracts: beyond that you may cancel without a break fee. Remaining charges relate to unreturned equipment.
Is the set-top box included in the price?
Set-top box rental is generally included in the bundle price, but a second box for another room is almost always charged extra, between 5 and 10 euros a month.
Do you need a set-top box to watch your operator's TV?
Not necessarily any more. The five main Belgian operators offer an app that streams the package on PC, tablet, smartphone and smart TV, each with its own limit on simultaneous streams.