How does Showmax work?
Browse full collectionShowmax is a streaming service with the best movies and series in Africa. Find out how much Showmax costs, Showmax pricing, and how to pay for Showmax.
Find out how much Showmax pricing and cost, about the different Showmax plans, and how to pay for Showmax.
What is Showmax?
Showmax is not a TV channel.
It’s a streaming service where you can watch movies, series documentaries, and kids’ stuff. Watch online at www.showmax.com or using the Showmax app. The Showmax app is available for phones, tablets, smart TVs, media players and gaming consoles.
All you need is a subscription and a device that can connect to the internet to watch Showmax.
What are the different Showmax plans?
- Showmax’s standard plan comes with thousands of movies and series to stream.
- Showmax Pro comes with everything in the standard plan, plus live sport from SuperSport, and live news and music channels. Read more.
- Showmax Mobile and Showmax Pro Mobile are the mobile versions of the plans above. They’re half the price, because even though you can watch all the same content, you can only do so on one device – a phone or tablet. Read more.
How much does Showmax cost?
| Country | Showmax | Showmax Mobile | Showmax Pro | Showmax Pro Mobile |
| Botswana | BWP 96 | BWP 36 | BWP 216 | BWP 108 |
| Ghana | GHC 45.99 | GHC 16.99 | GHC 119.99 | GHC 59.99 |
| Kenya | KSh 760 | KSh 300 | KSh 2100 | KSh 1050 |
| Namibia | N$ 99 | N$ 39 | N$ 449 | N$ 225 |
| Nigeria | NGN 2900 | NGN 1200 | NGN 6300 | NGN 3200 |
| South Africa | ZAR 99 | ZAR 39 | ZAR 449 | ZAR 225 |
| Tanzania | TSh 20,000 | TSh 7,800 | TSh 46,000 | TSh 23,000 |
| Uganda | UGX 30,300 | UGX 11,499 | UGX 67,200 | UGX 33,600 |
| Zambia | ZMW 192 | ZMW 72 | ZMW 432 | ZMW 216 |
| Rest of Africa | USD 7.99 | USD 2.99 | USD 17.99 | USD 8.99 |
| Diaspora | USD 8.99 | USD 4.49 | Not available | Not available |
*Showmax Pro is available in: Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comores, Republic of Congo, Cote D’Ivoire, DRC, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Réunion, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
How to start your free trial
Sign up to Showmax with your credit or debit card and get 14 days of access to the entire catalogue for free. The free trial is not compatible with live sport, so Showmax Pro does unfortunately not have a free trial.
- Go to showmax.com, sign up with your email address and create a password.
- Choose cheque or credit card as your payment method. If you cancel within the 14-day free trial, nothing will be deducted off your card.
- Stream your favourite shows for free for 14 days.
- Once your trial has expired, your card will be charged each a month for continued access to Showmax. (There is no contract and there are no penalties for cancelling at any time.)
How to add Showmax to your DStv bill
DStv customers can opt to pay for Showmax as part of their monthly DStv bill. For step-by-step instructions on how to do this, click here.
NB: The Showmax Pro and Showmax Pro Mobile plans can’t be added to a DStv bill for a discount.
Which devices support Showmax ?
Access Showmax on virtually any device that is connected to the internet.
- Phone or tablet: Get the Showmax app to stream or download shows on your Android or iOS device.
- Laptop or computer: Go to www.showmax.com on your favourite web browser to stream.
- Smart TV: Stream Showmax on your smart TV or connect your laptop to your TV screen with an HDMI cable.
- Media streaming device: Use your connected DStv Explora, Android TV, Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Sony PS4 (SA only) or Xbox One to stream Showmax onto your TV.
- DStv Explora: The cost of your Showmax subscription is included in your DStv Premium membership, so you won’t pay a single cent. And if your Explora is connected to the internet, you’ll be able to stream movies and series from Showmax directly onto your TV through your Explora. Find out how here.
- Supported devices may differ from country to country.
- Live streaming on Showmax Pro is not available on gaming consoles or DStv Explora, and only on certain smart TVs.
- For the full list of supported devices, go to the Showmax website or read What devices can I use?.
How to control data usage on Showmax
Showmax offers two clever ways for you to manage your data spend.
- Download shows to watch offline: When you’re in a Wi-Fi zone, download episodes or movies on the Showmax app on your tablet or phone, and watch them offline later. Choose between four different download quality settings with specific file sizes – the lower the quality, the less data you will use for the download, and the less space the show will take up on your device.
- Bandwidth capping: Setting a bandwidth cap helps you use less data by automatically adjusting the streaming quality so that you don’t exceed a certain number of GBs per hour while streaming. This is really handy if you are on a data budget. The lowest quality uses just 100MB per hour, with quality that’s just fine if you’re watching on a mobile device. Find out how to use bandwidth capping here.
What is there to watch on Showmax?
What sets Showmax apart is that you can watch whatever you like, whenever you like. There are no ads, no interruptions and no limits (except your self-control).
What is there to watch?
Now all you have to do is sign up to Showmax.
