Last year, I wrote a guide of general streaming service tips. While most of it still applies, some changes have happened over the past year in the streaming world. Thus, instead of updating the previous post, here’s a new one for 2024.
Note my suggestions, and the prices given below, are as of the time of this writing (October 2024), and aimed mainly at people in the United States.
Pay for only several streaming services or set a monthly budget
You don’t have to pay for every streaming service, nor should you. Despite the constant price hikes and password sharing crackdowns, sticking with just a handful of services is still cheaper than cable. Thus, I suggest only paying for three or four services at the most. For everything else, either: rent; buy the DVD/Blu-ray/digital video; subscribe to a service long enough to binge the content and then cancel; or just ignore it.
Several services is enough to provide a ton of TV and movies to enjoy, while not feeling overwhelmed (the “paradox of choice”) or spending a lot. You also won’t forget to cancel some rarely-watched service. And of course, nobody has time to watch every “must-see” TV show, no matter how much said TV shows are hyped or praised.
An alternative to the above is to set a monthly streaming service budget, and limit the number of services to whatever you’ve budgeted. Given the increased emphasis on streaming bundles, this might work out OK.
Exceptions to the above:
- Free ad-supported streaming services (Pluto TV, Tubi, etc.) don’t count toward the several-service-limit.
- Also not counting: streaming services you get for free through, say, a bundle with a phone carrier or some other service.
The top five streaming services
While I can’t cover every possible situation or viewing taste, I do have a few suggestions for which services to choose. For starters, there’s the five most popular streaming services (and presumed winners of the “streaming wars”):
- Netflix ($7/mo. with ads; $15.50/mo. without ads; $23/mo. without ads, also in 4K)
- Amazon Prime Video ($9/mo. standalone Prime Video; $15/mo. or $139/year, full Prime service with ads; $18/mo. full Prime service without ads)
- Hulu ($10/mo. or $100/year with ads, $18/mo. without ads)
- Disney+ ($10/mo. with ads; $16/mo. or $160/year without ads)
- Max ($10/mo. or $100/year with ads; $17/mo. or $170/year without ads; $21/mo. or $210/year without ads, also in 4K)
All of these services work as general purpose/”catch-all” services, with a broad variety of content that’d satisfy most people. Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu are longtime mainstays; Disney+ is one of the few newcomers to become entrenched (because, well, Disney); and Max is riding on the popularity of HBO (and Warner Bros.’ catalog, or what’s left of it).
I note that most of the above services are available as part of bundles, including the famous Disney Bundle (Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ as an optional add-on). More recently, a Disney+/Hulu/Max bundle has become available.
Secondary services
Also available are what I’d consider secondary services, including:
- Paramount+ ($8/mo. or $60/year with ads, $13/mo. or $120/year without ads)
- Peacock ($8/mo. or $80/year with ads, $14/mo. or $140/year without ads)
- Apple TV+ ($10/mo. without ads)
- Various niche services: Shudder, Discovery+, etc.
These services don’t have the same breadth of material as, say, Netflix; I wouldn’t make Peacock or Apple TV+ my only streaming service. Still, depending on one’s tastes, they may fit a niche well: Paramount+ for “Star Trek” fans, Peacock for “Yellowstone” fans, etc. They’re also often on sale, such as on Black Friday.
Free ad-supported services
Free services are also an excellent choice, depending on your tolerance for commercials. In my opinion, Pluto TV and Tubi are the two best choices; the former provides dozens of streaming “channels,” replicating the cable TV experience. The latter serves as an on-demand service, similar to Netflix.
While not ad-supported, I also recommend PBS and (for young children) PBS Kids, two free services that offer on-demand PBS programming. The PBS app also provides a free live stream of your local PBS station; similarly, the PBS Kids app provides a free live stream of PBS Kids programming. Most PBS stations also offer PBS Passport, PBS’ own on-demand streaming service, as a benefit for donors paying at least $5/month or $60/year.
Finally, there’s using a TV antenna for over-the-air programming, if possible.
Cable replacement services
Cable replacement services can serve as a provider for the major cable TV networks, from CNN to Nickelodeon to the “Big 3” cable sports channels: ESPN, TNT, and TBS. While such services are expensive, they’re (for now) free of most of the fees that plague (and hike the price on) traditional cable TV.
Sling TV is the cheapest cable replacement service, starting at $40/month for the Orange or Blue tier (with differing channel lineups) or $55/month for both tiers. If Sling TV doesn’t cut it, other options include:
- Fubo TV: starting at $80/mo.
- Hulu Live: $77/mo. (with ad-based Disney+/Hulu and ESPN+) or $90/mo. (with ad-free Disney+/Hulu and ESPN+)
- YouTube TV: $73/mo.
Unlike Sling TV, these three offer all your local TV channels… which is a major reason why they also cost way more. Local TV stations earn a lot of money charging cable providers retransmission fees.
Sports aren’t cheap
Sports are the most expensive programming to watch on TV for a variety of reasons. (Never mind even instant replays have corporate sponsors, and that sports betting ads are rampant.) As such, there aren’t many good ways to save money on sports, especially if you’re a hardcore sports fan. It’s more a question of how much you’re willing to spend to watch your favorite team(s).
The cheapest sports option is a TV antenna for over-the-air TV, which mainly works for NFL football. After that, there’s a few on-demand services that carry sports:
- ESPN+ ($12/mo. or $120/year): out-of-market hockey, some college sports, ABC/some ESPN football and basketball simulcasts.
- Paramount+: CBS football coverage, “March Madness” college basketball playoffs.
- Peacock: NFL “Sunday Night Football,” Premier League Soccer, the Olympics.
- Max ($10/month extra add-on to Max): NHL hockey, “March Madness” college basketball playoffs; NBA basketball (though TNT loses the rights starting next year).
Hardcore sports fans will want either one of the aforementioned cable replacement services or, if all else fails, consider keeping cable.
Which streaming services to choose?
As for which services to choose, I suggest getting at least one of the top five services. I also suggest sticking with the several service limit to save money, especially with price increases not stopping anytime soon.
A few possible examples:
- General viewing: Netflix, Disney Bundle (Disney+/Hulu), Amazon Prime.
- Animation fans: Either: the general viewing suggestion above, or the Disney+/Hulu/Max bundle and Paramount+. For more about cartoons, see my post about animation-related streaming services.
- Sports fans: Either: Sling TV and an antenna, or YouTube TV.
- Reality shows: Netflix, Discovery+.
- Frugal viewing: Pluto TV, Tubi, PBS, and one of the following paid services: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Bundle (Disney+/Hulu), Max.
My own streaming usage is a mix of several services and running my own home media server (Jellyfin) based on my DVD/Blu-ray collection.
Conclusion
I hope the above streaming service tips are helpful. A few sites with additional (or updated) streaming service information:
Photo by Andres Ayrton from Pexels
