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Top Streaming Services That Can Replace Your Cable Cheaper – What’s On?

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The Stanley Cup Playoffs are underway. Watch it all with Sling TV!

Get all the details in our viewer’s guide.

The last few years have seen a revolution in TV. It is no longer necessary to be tied to a cable provider with a long contract. There are many live TV streaming services that are as good, or better, than what the cable companies provide. All this for a lot less money.

In a hurry? There’s lots of information below, but if you just want to start enjoying TV more while spending less money, you can’t go wrong with these services:

  • Fubo (formerly FuboTV): Known for its outstanding sports coverage, Fubo’s 130+ live TV channels provide a broad selection that appeals to most people. Fubo allows you to try out its service free for 7 days.
  • Sling TV: Offers 40+ channels, including a couple of local network affiliates, for just $40.00/mo. Save 50% on Sling TV now!
  • DIRECTV STREAM: The king of RSNs, this is the streaming service for MLB, NBA, and NHL fans. Check out its Choice Plan if you want to watch every game! A 5-day free trial is now available for DIRECTV STREAM.
  • Hulu + Live TV: This industry leader in on-demand streaming offers 85+ live channels, covering a broad range of sports, entertainment, and family content. Try one month for $69.99.

Women’s College World Series is down to the final games! Get all the details in our viewer’s guide!

And the Men’s CWS is around the corner! We have all the details!

And you can watch it all with a 50% discount on Sling TV!

Watch MLB on Sling TV. Get all the details!

Formula 1 Bahrain 2016 -- First Lap
Image cropped from Formula 1 Bahrain 2016 — First Lap by JaffaPix under CC BY-SA 2.0.

The 2023 Formula One season is on! Watch the entire calendar with Sling TV for half-price! See our guide on the Miami Grand Prix right now!

Also: Top 10 Formula 1 Circuits.

We provide simple but detailed information for cord-cutters to get the best possible experience without cable. You will learn where and how to stream different channels, what individual streaming services offer, and how to be cost-effective with your chosen streaming device.

Whether you’re a sports fan, movie buff, parent with curious kids, or just a general TV consumer, we provide you with everything you need to leave your cable contract behind.

Premier League is headed toward the finals. Don’t miss it with Sling TV! See our Sling schedule and guide.

What’s Streaming Now?

Here’s the stuff we think deserves attention. It’s by no means complete, however! All times are Eastern.

Watch the 2023 NASCAR season with Sling TV!

Sporting Events This Week

The NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Finals are on but you already knew that. The big new thing is the Women’s College World Series. Over the last couple of years, interest in softball has increased dramatically. The smaller diamond makes for some fast-paced action.

The event runs from June 1st through the 6th and will air on ESPN and ESPN2. We recommend Fubo for sports in general and softball in particular. The men’s College World Series will come later in June — watch it all for less on Sling TV.

  • French Open: The event enters the Third Round for the singles matches, Second Round for doubles, and First Round for mixed doubles. It’s all on NBC and Tennis Channel. If you can’t get enough, check out Peacock.
  • Ligue 1: The top French soccer league ends its long season this weekend with matches on beIN Sports.
  • FA Cup: Tune in for this top English soccer tournament’s final match between Manchester United and Manchester City. It streams live on Saturday, June 3rd at (EDT) on ESPN+.

Sign Up for a Free 7-Day Fubo Trial

Other Sporting Events This Week

Coming up: The Belmont Stakes on June 10. Watch it on Sling TV for less!

Save 50% on Sling TV Now

Movies and TV Shows This Week

Talented Americans, Hot Wheels, too many multiples, drag competitions, Nancy Drew is back, soul food searching, T-Boz and Chilli open up, and Lily-Rose Depp gets nasty. There’s no shortage of reality, competition, and reality competitions (and more!) in this week’s new releases May 30 through June 5:

  • America’s Got Talent: Season 18 of the perennial favorite since 2006 is coming May 30 at  on NBC. Watch it broadcast on NBC on Fubo, or stream it beginning next day on Peacock.
  • Hot Wheels: Ultimate Challenge on NBC: Car-enthusiasts compete to build the best life-size Hot Wheels car, for the prize of having said car made into a die-cast Hot Wheels toy car for general sale. The grease-monkeying around begins May 30 at – watch it live on NBC via Fubo, or catch it streaming next day on Peacock.
  • Doubling Down with the Derricos: Season 4 of the family that keeps multiplying its fun debuts on May 30 at on TLC, included with Fubo.
  • Drag Me To Dinner on Hulu: Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka co-created this drag queen cooking contest series to create the most fabulous dinner party; expect lots of RuPaul’s Drag Race alumni. Premieres May 31.
  • Girl sleuth Nancy Drew returns to The CW for a 4th and final season— watch it on Fubo May 31.
  • Season 3 of the new iCarly is premieres on Paramount+ on June 1.
  • Queen of the Universe: Season 2 of the multinational drag queen singing contest starts streaming June 2 on Paramount+.
  • Love Allways on Paramount+: A The Bachelorette-style dating show with a twist: our lovelorn heroine is pansexual (attracted to all genders), as are several of the contestants. The drama starts streaming on June 2.
  • Searching For Soul Food on Hulu: Do we really need another world travel/cooking show? Alisa Reynolds, LA restauranteur, thinks so. See if you agree starting June 2.
  • TLC Forever on Lifetime: A documentary on the ground-breaking, platinum-selling nineties girl band premieres on June 3 at  on Lifetime, which you can stream via Fubo.
  • The Idol on HBO: From the guy (Sam Levinson) who brought you Euphoria comes a drama about a pop star (Lily-Rose Depp) who gets involved with a cult leader (The Weeknd). Begins June 4 at  on HBO (included with DIRECTV STREAM’s Premier Package or added on to any plan), or stream it on Max (formerly HBO Max).
  • June 4: Joe Pickett is back on Paramount+ for a second season, beginning June 4.
  • The Eric Andre Show goes for Season 6 on June 4 on Adult Swim— get it with DIRECTV STREAM.

Sign Up for a Free 7-Day Fubo Trial

Why Get Rid of Cable TV?

Some reasons for getting rid of cable are obvious. But there are some that may not have occurred to you.

  • Time: Too much television is a waste of time. If you cancel cable and only watch your favorite TV shows, you can spend more time with your friends and family.
  • Money: A cable or satellite subscription costs many times more than it does to grab a simple on-demand plan with Hulu and Netflix. Cable is also more expensive than online cable replacement services with live TV channels, like FuboTV and Hulu + Live TV.
  • Technology: Video streaming is the future of TV. Soon, all video entertainment will be via an online connection. You might as well get on board now, learn the tricks, and save money in the process.
  • Information: Be more informed. Rather than be at the mercy of local news anchors, you will revert to more reputable news feeds like PBS, Bloomberg, CBS News, and LinkTV. For example, FuboTV provides 13 news and information channels, along with all the local affiliates in its base plan.
  • Freedom: Cable and satellite providers normally tie you into a long contract, only to give you prices that are still higher than comparable streaming services. Getting rid of cable means getting rid of the contract. Go month-to-month and be flexible.
  • Dignity: Stop getting ripped off! Calling up the cable company and canceling your cable will simply make you feel good.

Looking for missing conservative news channels? Check out Sling TV!

Best Streaming Services

Choosing the right streaming service is probably the most important decision that a cord-cutter will make. There is no absolute “best” streaming service. It all depends on what you want with your live TV streaming plan.

Some streaming services are free, like Peacock TV (although they have a premium plan). Sling TV offers value plans that are low-cost but offer a lot. And the full-featured plans of FuboTV, Hulu Live TV, and DIRECTV STREAM) provide what you would expect from a standard cable plan, but with different bonus features designed to appeal to all sorts of viewers’ needs.

Get access to all our detailed and up-to-date reviews of the major streaming services. You will also get links to free trials so you can make sure a service suits you before you buy.

Internet Without Cable?

Sling TV Sports Android
Sling TV makes it easy to watch TV on your smartphone and other devices.

Most cable TV subscribers also get their internet access from the same place. In many cases, there are other options for the internet. In some cases, cable is literally the only game in town.

We’ve put together everything that cord-cutters need to know about getting internet service. Even if your cable provider is tied in with your internet, you can probably get a reasonably-priced internet-only plan via a downgrade.

Cord-Cutting Wisdom

There are a lot of aspects of cord-cutting that newbies may be faced with. These range from what’s worth watching, to getting access to particular channels, to buying and installing specialized streaming and recording devices.

We discuss it all. Here are some of our most popular articles:

Stream Major Events

Major TV events are still a big part of our social lives — just look at Facebook and Twitter during the Super Bowl or Academy Awards. Cord cutters have full access to these events.

For those just starting out, we have primers on how to stream the biggest happenings:

Stream Sports

Most major streaming services offer good access to live sports. The standout is FuboTV. But a good low-cost newcomer to the industry is Vidgo. We have articles about everything related to live streaming sports like:

Stream TV Shows

With live TV streaming, you never have to miss your favorite shows, mini-series, and films when they are broadcast live. Here are some of our articles about streaming some recent must-see TV titles:

2023 Deals

We have a list of free trials but we also have a list of major deals from streaming, VPN, and other cord-cutter services:

2022 Cord-Cutters’ Deals Guide

Specific Cord-Cutter Deals

Here are all the deals we are following:

Get Started Now

We understand that dumping cable is intimidating. So we’ve written a detailed step-by-step guide to the process on How to Watch TV Without Cable.

It also gives you an overview of all the top streaming services, desirable features to look for, and answers to the most frequently asked questions from to-be cord-cutters.

What are you waiting for? Get started now!

Ditch “Big Cable” Now – 3 Simple Steps to Cut the Cord

  1. Pick the right streaming service
  2. Get the content you deserve with the best VPN.
  3. Supercharge your internet provider

That’s it — you’ll save money, take back control, and enjoy TV more!

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Alanna Baker
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