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July 30, 2020
For serious adventurers who enjoy the RV lifestyle, standard campground entertainment options get a little stale. Roasting s’mores, playing checkers, and an occasional wildlife sighting don’t quite cut it for folks who travel for months on end.
When outdoor adventure is your daily routine, a few hours with a movie or a weekend game with your favorite team can make all the difference. With satellite TV, you and your family can travel across the country with all your favorite TV entertainment. Here’s the scoop on how to get satellite TV for your RV.
In this guide:
Best satellite TV providers for RV
Your first step in getting satellite TV for your RV is picking your satellite TV provider: in the US, you can choose between DISH, DIRECTV, or Orby TV. Both DISH and DIRECTV offer hundreds of TV stations and coverage in most areas. Orby TV has a more limited channel count, but it’s the most affordable.
DISH pros and cons
Pros
- 30-day Pay-As-You-Go plans
- Choice of mounted or portable dish
- Easy signup and setup
Cons
- No NFL SUNDAY TICKET
DIRECTV pros and cons
Pros
- NFL SUNDAY TICKET with some plans
- Choice of mounted or portable dish
Cons
- No Pay-As-You-Go plan (must pay for service every month)
- Complicated signup and equipment setup (through third-party company)
Orby TV pros and cons
Pros
- No contract (stop or start service anytime)
- Affordable packages
- Free local channels
Cons
- Limited channels
- Limited sports programming
- Portable satellite dish only (must set up tripod and dish each time it is used)
Data as of 7/27/20. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
DISH for RV
If you want to minimize the expense of satellite TV service, we recommend checking out DISH Outdoors—a service made just for travelers. DISH Outdoors has a pay-as-you-go program so you can activate and deactivate service as needed, based on 30-day increments. This works out great for seasonal travelers who spend summer or winter months traveling but don’t need TV service for several months of the year.
If you travel frequently throughout the year and also have DISH at your home, you can get a low-priced RV package for just $7 per month in addition to your current monthly DISH payment.
If you’re planning on doing a lot of backcountry camping, a mobile hotspot device may not work. For example, if you’re boondocking in the backcountry and you’re 100 miles from the nearest cell phone tower, you may only be able to get online using a portable satellite dish, which is expensive and slow. But if you’re content to save online activities for when you’re staying in established camping areas, a mobile hotspot device might be great.
Travelers who rely heavily on internet access for working remotely or staying connected during long trips will benefit most from getting a mobile hotspot device. Occasional campers may not need a dedicated device for internet access while camping.
DISH plans for RV
Plan | Channels | Price | Get it |
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Flex Pack | 50+ | $42.99/mo. | Visit site |
America’s Top 120 | 190 | $84.99/mo.* | Visit site |
America’s Top 120+ Includes college and regional sports | 190+ | $89.99/mo.* | Visit site |
America’s Top 200 | 240 | $99.99/mo.* | Visit site |
RV add-on plan to existing DISH plan | Varies based on existing plan | $7.00 + existing plan charges | Visit site |
*All offers require credit qualification, 2-Year commitment with early termination fee and eAutoPay. Prices include Hopper Duo for qualifying customers. Hopper, Hopper w/Sling or Hopper 3 $5/mo. more. Upfront fees may apply based on credit qualification. Fees apply for additional TVs: Hopper $15/mo., Joey $5/mo., Super Joey $10/mo. DISH voice remote, Amazon Alexa devices and Google Assistant devices require internet-connected Hopper, Joey, or Wally. Amazon Alexa and the Google Assistant not included with offer.
DIRECTV for RV
DIRECTV has nationwide satellite TV service like DISH does, but it’s a little trickier to get it set up. DIRECTV doesn’t sell satellite antennas or equipment packages for RVs directly. Instead, you have to go through a third-party provider, who will help you get your equipment and then sign you up with DIRECTV satellite service.
To sign up for DIRECTV service for your RV, you’ll need to go through KING, Signal Connect, or Winegard, which are all equipment providers.
Another thing we don’t like about DIRECTV satellite TV service for RVs is that DIRECTV doesn’t have a monthly plan (known as the Pay-As-You-Go plan with DISH). If you sign up for DIRECTV for your RV, you’re under contract to keep paying for it every month for two years, whether you’re using it every month or not. Canceling early will result in an early termination fee (ETF).
And, as the final kicker of doom, DIRECTV’s sports programming isn’t available with all RV packages. Remember how you have to get your DIRECTV package through the equipment supplier? Well, the equipment suppliers don’t offer the same channels in But good news for football fans: if you go through KING to get your satellite dish equipment and package, you can get NFL SUNDAY TICKET in some areas—so we recommend KING over other suppliers.
DIRECTV plans for RV
DIRECTV for RV plans vary slightly based on which equipment manufacturer you’re getting it from. Since we recommend going through KING to get DIRECTV for your RV, we’ve highlighted the plans it offers below.
Plan | Channels | Price | |
---|---|---|---|
DIRECTV SELECT | 155+ | $49.99/mo.* | Visit site |
DIRECTV CHOICE | 190 | $59.99/mo.† | Visit site |
DIRECTV ULTIMATE | 250+ | $74.99/mo.† | Visit site |
DIRECTV PREMIER | 330+ | $124.99/mo.† | Visit site |
*Monthly, plus taxes with 24-mo. TV agmt. AutoPay & paperless billing req’d. Price is higher in second year.
† Monthly, plus taxes & RSN fee up to $9.99/mo. with 24-mo. TV agmt. AutoPay & paperless billing req’d. Prices higher in second year.
KING offers slightly lower starting prices for DIRECTV packages than Signal Connect or Winegard, plus KING DIRECTV packages also offer more sports. So, most people prefer going through KING for their DIRECTV for RV packages.
Orby TV for RV
Orby TV is a new satellite TV service launched in 2019 that offers reasonable prices for a moderate channel count. While other satellite TV providers pack in hundreds of channels and raise the cost of service for everyone, Orby TV focuses on a smaller channel package and a low cost for all packages.
We like the flexibility of Orby TV. If you choose the Orby TV Freedom plan and pay for your equipment up front ($250 for receiver and dish), you won’t be stuck paying for service during months you don’t need it. You can use it for a few months in the summer while you’re taking that grand road trip in the Winnebago and then turn it off for the rest of the year without any penalties. The Orby TV Freedom plan works really well for RVers who may have cable TV or streaming services at home and need Orby TV only while traveling.
A disadvantage to this service is that Orby TV’s dish isn’t auto-tuning. Every time you move your RV, you’ll have to set up your Orby TV satellite dish and point it in the right direction, which can take 30 minutes or more when you’re just getting started.
Another disadvantage is that Orby TV doesn’t offer much in the way of sports. You can get some games on local stations, but you won’t find ESPN or NFL SUNDAY TICKET on Orby TV.
Orby TV for RV plans
Plan | Channels | Price | |
---|---|---|---|
Essentials | 43 | $40/mo. | Visit site |
Extras | 66 | $50/mo. | Visit site |
Data as of 7/27/20. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
Orby Essentials plan gives you all local channels, plus TNT, the Hallmark Channel, Cartoon Network, CNN, Discovery Channel, Food Network, MTV, BBC America, and more. The Extras plan delivers over 20 additional channels like Discovery Family, Real Heroes, Cooking Channel, DIY Network, Nick Toons, BET channels, Lifetime Real Women, Discovery en Español, and more. For a full list of channels, see the Orby TV channel lineup.
If there aren’t enough of your favorites, you can add premium packages to either Essentials or Extras. Premium packages include HBO®, CINEMAX®, EPIX, and STARZ®, which you can add or drop at any time. Premium packages range in price from $6 per month for EPIX to up to $18 for the HBO channels.