We extend the resolvent estimate on the sphere to exponents off the line [Formula: see text]. Since the condition [Formula: see text] on the exponents is necessary for a uniform bound, one cannot expect estimates off this line to be uniform still. The essential ingredient in our proof is an [Formula: see text] norm estimate on the operator [Formula: see text] that projects onto the space of spherical harmonics of degree [Formula: see text]. In showing this estimate, we apply an interpolation technique first introduced by Bourgain [J. Bourgain, Estimations de certaines fonctions maximales, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris Sér. I Math. 301(10) (1985) 499–502.]. The rest of our proof parallels that in Huang–Sogge [S. Huang and C. D. Sogge, Concerning [Formula: see text] resolvent estimates for simply connected manifolds of constant curvature, J. Funct. Anal. 267(12) (2014) 4635–4666].