Spending Too Much on Streaming? 3 Ways to Cut Costs

For many Americans, streaming bills are beginning to resemble the cable packages they once tried to leave behind.

Editor's Note: This story comes from CableTV.com.

Netflix no longer has the streaming market nearly to itself. A recent survey of TV fans found that almost 80% of Americans now pay for at least two streaming services, while 22% subscribe to five or more.

The outcome is a monthly bill that increasingly looks like the cable bundles many cord-cutters hoped to escape over the past 15 years.

Americans now spend an average of about $20 to $60 a month on streaming. That is still $40 to $80 less than traditional cable, but it also raises questions for a service model originally sold as affordable, pick-and-choose entertainment.

Here are some of the most common ways streaming can drain your budget, along with practical steps to help keep those costs under control.

Are you paying more than you should for streaming?

Our annual report on streaming price trends shows that subscription costs have risen across the board and, in many cases, are outpacing inflation. It is not surprising, then, that 43% of Americans say they are overspending on streaming and no longer feel the value matches the price.

That frustration is also leading to cancellations. About 35% of Americans dropped at least one service in the past year, and 43% of those said high cost was the main reason.

The first step is to list every service you subscribe to and think carefully about how often you actually use each one.

After that review, cancel the services you rarely use or never watch. One of streaming’s biggest advantages is still its month-to-month flexibility, so you can cancel now and rejoin later when a must-see show or game returns.

Did you really cancel that free trial?

Free trials remain one of streaming’s favorite ways to attract customers, but they can also be expensive if you forget to cancel. Nearly half of Americans, 48%, have been charged after missing a free-trial deadline, and for another 22%, it has happened more than once.

The losses can add up quickly. Nearly 10% of those charged said they lost more than $100 to forgotten subscriptions. That may be routine revenue for a platform, but for consumers it can mean giving up the equivalent of a night out or a couple of new pairs of shoes.

A quick review of your bank or credit card statement can help you spot these hidden charges. Once you find them, cancel the subscription and recover some of that money.

When signing up for a free trial, it can also help to set a calendar reminder and an email alert so you can cancel before the charge appears.

Have you considered free streaming apps?

As prices continue to climb, free ad-supported streaming television, or FAST, and other ad-supported plans have become more than just backup options. They are now a serious alternative. In fact, 82% of Americans say they would be open to switching to a lower-cost, ad-supported tier, and 49% cite saving money as their main reason.

That shift matters for premium streaming services trying to hold onto subscribers. But it also matters for viewers, because FAST services have improved their libraries and user interfaces over the past five years. For many households, using several free services could save hundreds of dollars a year. Are the ads really worth avoiding that much expense?

For more streaming statistics, see CableTV.com’s full survey. And if you want to trim your monthly subscription costs, browse the streaming deals that have been gathered and reviewed from across the web.