11 Tips to Save Money on Streaming Services

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If you are like me, you probably have a lot of streaming services that you use for your home entertainment and TV viewing. Another thing that you may have at the end of the month is a large bill for all of those streaming services. There are a lot of ways to save money on streaming services that don’t take a lot of effort.

There is no question that the cost of subscribing to streaming services has risen over the past couple of years. While you may not have to worry about the future of money, you might have to worry about the cost of streaming services. Even if you only subscribe to just two streaming services, your cost may be over $25 dollars a month or more. If you factor in additional add-on services to your subscriptions, the cost per month can be even greater.

There are many ways how to save money on streaming services. Some of the best ways to save money on streaming services include taking advantage of free trials, passing on premium plans, bundling streaming services, and using an antenna for local channels. There are additional ways as well to save on streaming services which include reviewing your subscription plans along with comparison shopping.

You can still have great TV viewing options without the high cost each month that comes with streaming services. All you have to do is make a few tweaks and adjustments and you could be saving at least $50 or more a month on your streaming services.

This article will detail the best ways how to save money on streaming services while not reducing your TV viewing options in entertainment.

How Much Does The Average Person Spend on Streaming Services?

A recent study done by Deloitte found that on average households subscribe to three streaming services.  Costs for streaming services can be as low as $6 per month and as high as $15.  That would make the average cost for streaming services $32 per month. 

How Much Are People Willing to Pay for Streaming Services?

Roughly 71% of US streaming subscribers stated in a poll conducted by PC Magazine that they are comfortable spending up to $40 per month on streaming services. Additional polling results show that they are also willing to pay $10.28 per streaming device. While the consumer has the choice on which services to purchase, the costs for entertainment ate still present. They are no different today than the costs for premium cable depending on consumer selections.

How to Save Money on Streaming Services

Below you will find the best ways how to save money on streaming services. Using these tips will surely put more cash back into your budget than spending it on streaming services.

Utilize Free Trials

A lot of streaming services will offer promotions from time to time for their streaming services. Some of those promotions include free trials once you sign up. This is a great opportunity to sign up for the service and enjoy free TV streaming services.

When your free trial is about to expire, simply cancel your subscription. Most of the time you can cancel without any additional charge if you are within the promotional timeframe. Streaming services was one of the things I stopped buying to save money and relied on free trials instead.

Additionally, when one streaming service free trial expires, simply sign up for another free trial with a different service. There are so many different streaming service options available today.

Some of the best streaming services for free trials include:

  • Showtime
  • Discovery+
  • Apple TV+
  • Amazon Prime Video
  • AT&T TV
  • FUBU TV
  • Hulu+ Live TV
  • Curiosity Stream, Documentaries

You could use one free streaming services at a time, watch a series, and then simply cancel after done viewing. Then you simply move on to the next service and watch other series on that channel. It could be possible to simply watch half of your TV streaming services and entertainment for free for half of the year or longer.

Pass on Premium Plans

Another great option how to save money on streaming services that often gets overlooked is to pass on premium plans. Passing on premium plans and upgrades is one of the easiest budgeting tips and tricks to save money. A lot of times there are additional charges for enhanced features of streaming service plans. If you want to watch in 4K definition, you may have additional charges for that option.

There are also other add-ons for premium plans which include streaming services there are advertisement free. If you want to view TV streaming services without commercials, you will have to pay additional fees on your subscription.

Another way how to save money on streaming services is to look at the number of devices allowed to view TV simultaneously. One way streaming services add costs to their subscriptions is through the number of TV’s you can stream on simultaneously. If you have other people in your house watching one program while you are watching a different series on the same streaming service, you may have to pay more to stream. Many streaming services will only allow you to watch TV on one device at the same time without charging you extra.

By passing on some of these additional features for these premium plans, you can bring the cost of your streaming services down each month.

Bundle Streaming Services

Sometimes you can save money on streaming services if you bundle them together. I recently signed up for Disney plus, Hulu, and ESPN all for less than $25 a month. Bundling streaming services is a popular way for families to save money. You can receive a lot of TV streaming options with just a few channels and apps.

By bundling your streaming services, you can watch all different types of TV venue without needing a lot of additional equipment.

Some of the best bundle streaming services would include ESPN, Disney+, Hulu, and Netflix. With this streaming combination, you can keep your cost for streaming services at a minimum while also having maximum TV service options for all ages in your household.

Use an Antenna for Local Channels

A lot of streaming services will charge you extra for local TV viewing options. There are multiple ways around this to avoid paying extra for this add-on. You no longer must subscribe to additional features just to watch your local broadcasting.

One way to save money streaming services is by utilizing a digital antenna for local TV. One great advantage that has come with digital antennas is there are multiple options for TV viewing for free. Aerial antennas used to have a very limited range when it came to broadcast signals. If you are focused on practicing frugal living strategies, using a digital antenna is a great option for free local TV.

However, with digital antennas, that range has increased significantly. Some of the most advanced digital antennas can pull signals from as far away as 70 plus miles with optimal conditions.

What used to be very limited options for local TV is not the case with digital antennas. With digital antennas today, you no longer only receive the major TV networks. Many of the digital subchannels now offer movies in addition to documentaries on certain topics.

Review Your Subscription Plans

It is important to monitor and track which streaming services you are using the most. If you are paying for more than four different streaming services, you may be losing money. The chances are that you are not actually watching all those channels. You might only be watching two of those channels most of the time. Therefore, you may be throwing away money on the other streaming services that you’re not really using. We all know that organizing will save money and reviewing your subscription plans is a one way to organize your monthly finances.

It’s important to review your subscription plans every couple of months to save money on streaming services.  To save money on streaming services subscriptions, use a checklist to determine if you should renew your subscription.

Streaming Service Subscription Review Checklist

Below are some of the questions to ask yourself when reviewing your streaming service subscriptions:

  • How often did I watch this channel this month?
  • What TV series am I currently watching?
  • Do I have enough time to watch all these streaming channels?
  • What are my favorite shows I am currently watching?
  • When will a new season be released?

One thing to consider is that if you are currently waiting for a new season to be released on a specific channel, you may be better off to cancel that streaming service temporarily. Oftentimes people only sign up for a streaming service for one or two programs. When the season has ended, there is usually a long wait until the next season is released. You can cancel your subscription to save money while waiting for the new series to be released.

Use Free Streaming Sites

There are a lot of ways to cut costs when it comes to streaming services. The cheapest way to stream is streaming for free. The best way to save money on streaming services is to utilize free options and services. There are a lot of sites out there that offer hundreds of channels for TV and movies free to users for viewing.

Some of the best free movie streaming sites to watch free movies online include current TV shows and some limited release series. Public access channel sites are also a great option for watching free movies and TV shows. Some of the public access stations now broadcast in 4K definition as well.

Some smart TV’s today also offer built in options for streaming services. A lot of those options are for channels that include multiple free TV viewing sources. You can also use some of the free streaming sites for a way how to get free audiobooks as well.

Comparison Shop

When it comes to chopping costs for your streaming services, comparison shopping is one of the more traditional cost saving mechanisms. With the use of online subscription portals for billing, it is now easier than ever too quickly comparison shop prices.

Be sure to factor in promotional terms and free trials when you are comparison shopping for the best rates on TV streaming services. Think about using a streaming services cost spreadsheet where you can easily track the cost of each subscription.

Streaming Channel Comparison Tool

One great advantage of using a spreadsheet as a streaming channel comparison tool for shopping is you can quickly sum up what your costs would be for any period with formulas. By using simple spreadsheet formulas, you can quickly determine what your cost would be to sign up for three months, six months, nine months, or even a full year.

ChannelCost Per Month3-Month Cost6-Month Cost9-Month Cost12-Month Cost
HBO Max$14.99$44.97$89.94$134.91$179.88
Apple TV+$4.99$14.97$29.94$44.91$59.88
Showtime$10.99$32.97$65.94$98.91$131.88
Hulu$5.99$17.97$35.94$53.91$71.88
Netflix$8.99$26.97$53.94$80.91$107.88
Streaming Channel Comparison Tool – Based off of current pricing. Prices subject to change without notice.

Using a streaming channel comparison tool has many benefits. In addition to calculating your costs, you can also use it to keep track of which shows are on which streaming service. This can also help you plan your streaming service costs and determine whether to keep the channel or to pause it temporarily.

Go Back to Cable TV

Another way how to save money on streaming services is to sign up for basic cable. Cable companies are taking it on the chin these days due to the number of other options consumers have available to them.

Is Cable Cheaper than Streaming?

Cable can be cheaper than streaming if you keep your subscription to basic services which includes some premium channels most of the time. You may be able to negotiate a great price for cable TV that will also include many popular premium channels as well. Streaming services make sense if you only purchase one or two streaming channels at the most during the same time. If you end up subscribing to several streaming channels, it no longer becomes cost effective over cable TV.

You can get a great price on a premium cable plan that will include channels such as Showtime, HBO, and Cinemax. Buying three streaming services from individual streaming channels such as HBO, Showtime, and Cinemax, might add up to $50 a month or more if purchased separately. Purchasing a cable TV plan may end up saving money in the long run. Additionally, you may get more premium channels with your cable subscription due to specialized incentives in promotions that run.

There are also other alternatives to cable TV that could prove beneficial in offering savings for streaming services.

Use Promotional Prepaid Credit Cards

Another hack how to save money on streaming services is to buy discounted gift cards.  There are a lot of places where you can buy discounted credit cards and discounted gift cards.  One site that is popular is CardCash for buying discounted gift cards. Check out our CardCash Review to see how CardCash works. By buying the prepaid credit cards at a discount, you can pass the savings onto your streaming service.

For example, you might buy a $50 gift card for $40 which is a 20% savings on the full retail of the prepaid credit card.  You can pass those savings onto your streaming service when you go to pay your bill by paying with the prepaid credit card you bought. 

From time to time, credit card companies will offer promotions for new customers to sign up.  Some of those promotions might include free streaming services from certain channels if you sign up for their credit card.  The free periods do vary, but it’s a great way to stream your favorite TV shows for free.

Other Ways How to Save Money on Streaming Video Services

There are also some uncommon ways how to save money on streaming video services that can also save you money. Look at services you are already using and subscribed to for additional features that may include streaming video services.

Use Amazon Prime

If you have an Amazon prime subscription, there are a lot of services provided to you already included in your plan. Amazon prime subscriptions include a handful of movies that you can watch. In addition, there are also TV series and seasons that are included.

Amazon prime may only offer a limited number of seasons for some of their programming. However, you can pay for an upgraded subscription plan for streaming video services. You can do this for a lot of add-on services with Amazon such as Amazon Prime Pantry for an example. Amazon streaming video services are no different because you can also subscribe for more in depth coverage video streaming options and programming. 

Check Cell Phone Plans

Many cell phone plans offer streaming services included with their plans.  You can stream Netflix, Hulu, and many more channels through your cell service.  Most of the time, this is included as part of your cell phone and data plan.  If not, check on what the additional cost per month to stream video would be.

It could be cheaper than paying separately for the service on your TV. Many people search who buys used TVs near me because they get rid of their TVs for money and use their cell phones.

Streaming Services Savings Summary

You don’t have to be stuck with the high cost of streaming services in order to enjoy your favorite TV shows and movies. 

There is no question that you can reduce the cost of your streaming services and apps. There are multiple ways to save money on streaming services such as negotiating your price, signing up for free trials, and comparison shopping.  Even bundling streaming services can drop the cost that you otherwise would be paying for streaming services separately otherwise. 

Other ways to save money streaming videos would include your existing memberships such as Amazon Prime.  Some memberships offer movies and tv series seasons for no additional cost.

When it comes to saving money on streaming tv services, you won’t have to worry about the cost anymore.  Finding enough time in the day to stream all your favorite shows might become the toughest challenge of all!

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