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Best Streaming Services to Replace Cable TV & Save Money

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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:

fubotv$79.99/month150+ channelsFree Trial
fubotv$79.99/month90+ channelsFree Trial
hulu tv$76.99/month95+ channelsFree Trial
sling tv$40.00/month40+/30+ channelsSave 50%

Sports This Week: NHL Returns!

Bobby Ryan and Christian Ehrhoff chase the puck - San Jose Sharks vs. Anaheim Ducks Pre-season game 9/21/2007
Photo by Elliot under CC BY 2.0 via Flickr

The 2024-25 NHL regular season starts in earnest next Tuesday. But there are two neutral site games earlier featuring the New Jersey Devils and the Buffalo Sabres — the first on Friday and the second on Saturday:

  • Friday, October 4th at
  • Saturday, October 5th at

Both these games will air nationwide on NHL Network. Get the complete 2024-25 schedule in our NHL Viewer’s Guide!

Sign Up for a Free Fubo Trial

Watch Every Game With Our NFL Guides

Check Out Our NFL Team Guides

AFC East AFC North AFC South AFC West
Buffalo Bills Baltimore Ravens Houston Texans Denver Broncos
Miami Dolphins Cincinnati Bengals Indianapolis Colts Kansas City Chiefs
New England Patriots Cleveland Browns Jacksonville Jaguars Los Angeles Chargers
New York Jets Pittsburgh Steelers Tennessee Titans Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East NFC North NFC South NFC West
Dallas Cowboys Chicago Bears Atlanta Falcons Arizona Cardinals
New York Giants Detroit Lions Carolina Panthers Los Angeles Rams
Philadelphia Eagles Green Bay Packers New Orleans Saints San Francisco 49ers
Washington Commanders Minnesota Vikings Tampa Bay Buccaneers Seattle Seahawks

Get More of the NFL With a VPN

Using a VPN to watch out-of-market NFL games is the cheapest way to ensure you can watch the games you want.

Explore our extensive NFL VPN Guide, but it’s actually pretty simple. Start up your VPN app and set it to a server near the team you want to watch. Fire up your streaming service and you’ll get the local game near the city you chose.

Our top choice is ExpressVPN, which provides you with a 30-day money-back guarantee so you have plenty of time to make sure it works for you!

Get ExpressVPN’s Best Deal!

Watch Other Sports With Live Streaming

Sign Up for a Free Fubo Trial

New This Week: Joan & VP Debate

Joan

If you married the most notorious criminal mastermind in British history, how would you save your child?

Joan is inspired by the real-life diamond thief Joan Hannington (known as “The Godmother”). The CW’s new drama sees Sophie Turner (Game of Thrones) play the single mother forced to become a master criminal after her violent husband goes on the run.

Desperate to escape her old life, Joan has no choice but to leave her six-year-old daughter in foster care while she secures the money necessary to build them a new life. But getting out requires getting in deeper first, as Joan embarks on a gripping, high-stakes journey through the criminal underworld in order to survive.

The British-filmed, six-part series starts on Wednesday, October 2nd – watch the premiere on The CW with a free Fubo trial.

Vice-Presidential Debate

2024 VP Debate

The Vice Presidential Debate takes place tonight (Tuesday, October 1st) – the first and only time the two candidates are scheduled to meet.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (Democratic Party) and Ohio Senator JD Vance (Republican Party) will make the case for their respective candidates (Kamala Harris and Donald Trump) from  (ET). Watch on CBS for free with Fubo’s free trial.

Sign Up for a Free Fubo Trial

People’s Choice Country Awards

On September 26th, the People’s Choice Country Awards, airs live on NBC from the iconic Grand Ole Opry in Nashville!

This star-studded event promises to be a night to remember, showcasing the best in country music with dazzling performances from your favorite artists.

Feel the energy, sing along with the crowd, and celebrate the heartwarming moments that make country music so special.

Sign Up for Fubo to enjoy the best of entertainment this Fall!

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Why Get Rid of Cable TV?

Some reasons for cutting the cable cord are obvious, but there are more benefits 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 Fubo 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, Fubo 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!

How to Choose Best Streaming Service For You

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 Fubo, 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.

Can I Get 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.

More Cord-Cutting Wisdom For Newbies

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:

Live Stream Major Television 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:

Live Stream Sports

Most major streaming services offer good access to live sports. The standout is Fubo. We have articles about everything related to live streaming sports like:

Stream TV Shows on Demand

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:

  • The Legend of Vox Machina (Amazon Prime)
  • Love Is Blind (Netflix)
  • Grotesquerie (Hulu)
  • The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon (Vudu)
  • Tulsa King (Amazon Prime)

Try Hulu + Live TV for 3 Days Free!

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!

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