There are hard times on the way. If you are not already you may well be counting every penny by the end of the month. If you are a cord cutter you already decided to save money that you would otherwise give to the cable company, but some folks have found a way to at least approach spending as much money on streaming as they did on cable. I don’t know how they pull it off but this guide provides a few ways to cut that spending back till it does not cost $100.00 or more to fill up a truck. So here we go.
Check with your cell provider
A lot of cell phone companies have partnerships with streaming services that will give you free access to streaming services. And the thing is that you are not limited to streaming them on your phone. If you have a smart TV or streaming device, you are really missing out if you don’t sign in on them. If you already have a services that is offered on your cell plan just drop it and sign in with whatever email you need to use. No reason to pay for something you get for free. T-Mobile (Apple TV+), Verizon (Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+),
Look for bundles
Bundled services may harken back to the days of cable and landline phones but some streaming services can be had cheaper if you want more than one related service. The best one that comes to mind is the Disney Bundle, which gives customers Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ all at a price that gives each service at a better price than it would cost individually. In fact, with the bundle, ESPN+ is almost a free bonus compared to the normal pricing. As more companies combine their streaming efforts and more mergers happen you should expect to see other opportunities come along. Bundles of course are only savings tools if you wanted and intended to have multiple services in the first place.
Don’t have all services at all times
Here is equal and opposite advice. You may not even have time to watch all of your services at one time so no need to have them all at the same time. With no contracts that means you can add a service when a show you really want to see is available. And or let a few add up and pay one cost of 4.99-6.99 and binge them. Some like a cable replacement service are probably every day every week services, but something super niche might not be.
Don’t be afraid of change
You might have signed up for Hulu with Live TV when it came out and gotten used to it, but it doesn’t mean you are married to it. The same goes for YouTube TV, and the rest. If another service is offering a great special maybe you should jump and play in a new sandbox. If it means saving a few hundred dollars or something it is really worth downloading that new app and signing in.
Do not forget Antennas
So many people would be happy with a limited amount of paid streaming apps and a trusty antenna. If your main viewing is network shows and local news an amplified antenna can give you all that for free along with those signature live events and network sports broadcasts. There is a lot more sports on over-the-air TV than some people realize. This can allow people to maybe use a paired-down service like FRNDLY or Philo to get the handful of cable channels they really want while not getting jammed with upcharges for local channels.
Just watch more commercials
Look. Millions of people in the US grew up watching TV commercials during their shows. And I know that having premium streaming options eliminates that. But is it really that bad if it means saving a lot of money across a number of services? If you have a number of services that offer ad-supported tiers if could really be worth exploring them. Try one out and see what you think. If you have 5-6 that cost an extra 3-4 dollars at a time that’s 15-25 bucks saved. If you feel like 15-25 dollars is more than worth just getting on with it I totally understand. But savings is not about that one thing you do. Savvy shoppers who combine savings on services, with savings at the grocery store through coupons, sales, store brands etc, food banks, refinancing, shopping for better insurance rates, and other cost savers can start to see their take-home pay go a lot further.
Do not ignore totally free streaming stuff
There is now an ungodly amount of great free streaming services out there. So many of them present users with hundreds of free channels and on-demand options. Yes, they have ads, but so does football on ESPN right? If TV is just something you do to enjoy the evening give services like Tubi, Pluto TV, Xumo, The Roku Channel and Freevee a look.
