Huge cord cutting guide update
Jared Newman | Hey folks, I just published a major update to my Complete Guide to Cord Cutting.
This in-depth resource covers everything you need to know about ditching cable or satellite TV in favor of cheaper streaming options. A lot’s changed since I wrote the first edition in 2024, so I’ve reworked the guide significantly to reflect where things stand today.
What I’m most proud of, though, is my new Streaming Savings Calculator. Behold:
Over the years, I’ve received countless emails asking the same question: “What’s the cheapest way to get (list of channels and streaming services)?” This interactive tool provides quick and easy answers. Just type in the channels and services you want, and it’ll look across every possible combination and bundle to find the best possible options. I’m confident that it will help save you some money.
Two ways to get my Complete Guide to Cord Cutting and Streaming Savings Calculator:
- One-time purchase: Pay what you can with a suggested price of $10 and own the guide forever, including any future updates.
- Advisorator membership: Own the guide forever, access all my other tech guides (plus my Tuesday tech advice newsletter), and get your questions answered in my Tech Buds forum. For a limited time, get 25% off your first year.
When you purchase the guide, you’ll get a link to the online edition along with a downloadable PDF version. This helps support the many, many hours that went into putting these resources together.
Bought the guide before? No need to buy it again. Just find the link to the guide in your original confirmation email.
Can’t pay right now? Let me know and I’ll take care of you. I want anyone to have access to this guide regardless of budget.
Otherwise, get started here. Thanks so much for your support!
I just cancelled Netflix, and it feels great.
After 17 uninterrupted years of Netflix membership, I just hit the cancellation button.
Netflix was the main reason I was able to cut the cable TV cord way back in 2008, and since then it’s been our home’s streaming staple. Even as we cycled through other services, Netflix was worth keeping because it usually had something we wanted to watch.
Or at least it used to. While looking over my bills this week and seeing Netflix’s $22 monthly charge (that’s $19.99 plus tax), something snapped. I realized that the cost doesn’t make sense for how little I’ve been using the service lately, and at the very least it’s time to take a break.
Weekly rewind
ESPN Unlimited price hikes: It would be cool if, for just one week, a major streaming service did not raise prices. Disney is the latest, with price hikes for ESPN Unlimited and some of its corresponding bundles:
- ESPN Unlimited: $30 → $32/mo.
- ESPN Unlimited and NFL+ Premium: $40 → $42/mo.
- ESPN Select (formerly ESPN+): $13 → $14/mo.
- ESPN Select, Hulu (w/ ads), and Disney+ (w/ ads): $20 → $22/mo.
- ESPN Select, Hulu (no ads), and Disney+ (no ads): $30 →$33/mo.
Verizon is also raising the price of its discounted Disney add-ons, and the cost for legacy Disney Trio bundles is increasing as well.
Equally notable are the options that aren’t changing: ESPN Unlimited and Fox One are still $40 per month together, and the bundle of ESPN Unlimited, Hulu, and Disney+ is still $46 per month. Disney really wants you to bundle. Does this mean Disney+ and Hulu won’t get their own price hikes this year? We’ll see.
Where to watch the NFL: The NFL has put out a pretty useful “Ways to Watch” tool that shows which channel or streaming service will carry each game. Plug in a zip code to see what’s on your local stations, or use the “Team Schedule” tab to filter by team. If I were king, every sports league would be legally mandated to provide something like this, if only to show how fragmented everything’s become.
Anyway, this makes a nice complement to my NFL streaming guide a few weeks back. While the NFL site shows which games are on which channels, my guide tells you the cheapest ways to get them.
MS Now subscription correction: Last week, I wrote that MS Now’s new streaming service won’t include a live stream of the cable channel. That’s wrong; it will. I regret the error.
More catch-up
- Here’s another rumor that Netflix may open its platform to other streaming services, either by bundling their content or selling add-ons like Amazon does.
- YouTube TV adds AMC’s channels to its cheaper genre packages. Read about those here.
- Here’s what to expect now that Charter (Spectrum) has bought Cox.
Save more money
This part of the newsletter has some affiliate links, which earn me a commission if you wind up buying or subscribing to something.
YouTube TV has some different deals going than usual for new subscribers. Right now you can get three months of the base plan for $60 per month (reg. $83 per month), or six months of the Sports plan for $45 per month (reg. $65 per month). Even if you’ve signed up for the base plan before, you may be eligible for the Sports plan offer. Both are available through September 30.
Other notable deals:
- Paramount+: You can still get two months of Premium for $1 per month with promo code P2MCS26PREM, or half-off a year of Premium with code SAVEANNUAL50. New and returning subscribers only.
- MS Now: One year for $40 (half-off). Ends 9/30.
- Apple TV: Still 30 days free via this link for new and “qualified” returning subscribers.
As always, I’ve got a full list of active streaming deals on the Cord Cutter Weekly website.
Thanks for reading!
Got cord cutting questions for me? Reply to this email and I’ll do my best to answer.
Until next week,
Jared