How we compared them
We make Hoopster, so read this with that in mind. Everything below about other apps comes from their App Store listings, their developers' help pages and Apple's own App Store data, checked on October 16, 2026. Where we couldn't confirm something, we left it out rather than guess. Apps change often, so check the listing before you decide.
At a glance
| App | Best for | Live Activities | Apple Watch | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NBA | Watching games, official highlights | Yes | Yes | Free; League Pass from $16.99 a month |
| ESPN | Watching ESPN and ABC games, all sports | Yes | Yes | Free; streaming needs an ESPN plan or a TV provider |
| Apple Sports | Fast, simple scores with no ads | Yes | Live Activities only, no Watch app | Free |
| Hoopster | Widgets, Live Activities and Watch in your team's colors | Yes, starts on its own | Yes, with MVP | Free; MVP $2.99 a month or $19.99 a year |
| theScore | Scores and news across every sport | Yes | Yes | Free with ads |
| Yahoo Sports | Scores with win probability and key plays | Yes | No | Free with ads |
| Sports Alerts | Multi-sport widgets and alerts | Yes | Yes | Free with ads; ad removal from $0.99 |
"Apple Watch: Yes" means the App Store lists Apple Watch support. Prices are US prices.
To watch games: NBA and ESPN
Only two of these apps stream NBA games. The official NBA app sells League Pass, which shows out-of-market games; national TV games and your local team's games are blacked out in the US. ESPN streams the games on ESPN and ABC with an ESPN plan or a TV provider login. Since 2025-26, national games are also on NBC and Peacock, and on Prime Video, which have their own apps.
Both apps also have live scores, box scores and Live Activities, and both list Apple Watch support. The NBA app has a Hide Scores setting for watching later.
For free scores with no ads: Apple Sports
Apple Sports is free, has no ads and opens straight to your teams' scores. It added Home Screen widgets in 2025, and its Live Activities can be scheduled before a game. There is no Apple Watch app, but its Live Activities appear on the watch with watchOS 11 or later. It doesn't stream games; it links out to where they're on.
For widgets, the Lock Screen and Apple Watch: Hoopster
Hoopster is built around the parts of the iPhone you see without opening an app, all in the colors of the team you follow:
- A Live Activity that starts on its own just before your team tips off, with the score, the clock and every quarter on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island
- Eleven widgets for the Home Screen and Lock Screen: Next Game countdown, Tonight's scoreboard, My Team, My Player and headlines
- An Apple Watch app with your team's schedule, live scores and a tip-off countdown on your watch face
- Hide scores, which keeps finals out of the app, the widgets and the Live Activity, plus a Focus filter
Scores, box scores, standings, the schedule and the small Next Game widget are free. Hoopster MVP ($2.99 a month or $19.99 a year) adds the full-game Live Activity, the other widgets and the Apple Watch app. Hoopster doesn't stream games, and it is not affiliated with the NBA.
For every sport in one app: theScore and Yahoo Sports
theScore covers every major league with fast scores, box scores and news, NBA Live Activities for up to five games, and Apple Watch support. Yahoo Sports adds win probability and Key Plays, and its Live Activities cover the NBA and up to five games at once; it has no Apple Watch app. Both are free with ads.
If you mainly want widgets across several sports, Sports Alerts lists league and team widgets, Live Activities and an Apple Watch app with complications.
Which one should you get?
- You want to watch games: NBA (League Pass) for out-of-market games, ESPN for ESPN and ABC games.
- You want the score without opening anything: an app with Live Activities. Hoopster starts one on its own for your team; Apple Sports, ESPN, theScore and Yahoo Sports let you start one per game.
- You want your team on your Home Screen and Lock Screen: Hoopster's widgets, in your team's colors. See how to add NBA widgets.
- You wear an Apple Watch: NBA, ESPN, theScore, Sports Alerts and Hoopster have Watch apps. Any app's Live Activity also shows in the Smart Stack.
- You watch games later: the NBA app's Hide Scores, or Hoopster's Hide scores, which also covers widgets and the Live Activity. See how to avoid spoilers.
Many fans use two: one app to watch, and one for scores on the Lock Screen and Home Screen.
