I have a love-hate…OK, it’s 99% hate relationship with Comcast and cable TV.
I negotiate with Comcast frequently (most recently saving $200 over 6 months) – and that gives me the justification (or excuse) that I need to keep paying for it. That and I’m still able to maintain an 85% personal savings rate, even with paying for cable.
Why do I do it?
I LOVE live sports. I have ever since I was a child. If it wasn’t for my love of Michigan State basketball and football, the Detroit Tigers, and the Tour de France (all are exclusively on cable), I would have ditched cable long ago, without any regrets.
The Cost of Cable
According to CNN, the average cable bill is $75 per month and has been rising by 5% annually. Over time, the impact can be mind blowing.
When I ran the numbers a month ago on the lifetime investment opportunity cost of cable, I found that it could be anywhere from ~$600K – $4.2M.
If that isn’t incentive to quit the habit, I don’t know what is.
But how does one quit? And what is life like after?
Share Your Life After Cable Story
Many have successfully quit cable. I know you’re out there.
What I, and other struggling cable addicts, would love to hear from you is:
- How long ago did you quit?
- Did you relapse?
- Was withdrawal difficult?
- What alternative forms of entertainment did you turn to?
- What changes have you seen in yourself or your lifestyle since quitting? What is life like on the other side?
It’s OK. This is a safe place.
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Hey GE,
Love the site…I dropped cable about 6 months ago and haven’t missed it at all. I too am a sports lover and I’ve still been able to view ESPN, etc. online using my sister’s account (she has cable but doesn’t use the online sports site).
I login under her acct number and I actually have MORE channels than I did with my basic cable subscription. The $70/month I was paying I’m now using as extra payment towards my school loans.
I dropped my cable at the end of last summer, but I will confess that I still have all the channels for free. Comcast hasn’t updated their infrastructure in my area yet, so in order to keep internet access, I keep the channels even though I don’t want them. Worked out kind of awesomely if you ask me!
I only watch TV on rare occasions, so it’s not a big deal for me. I bought an Apple TV and subscribed to Netflix, so if I do feel compelled to watch something I can usually find a show or movie I want to see.
I ended my cable subscription about two and a half years ago and it’s been pretty great. There are definitely things I miss (like Top Chef on Bravo and Top Gear on BBC America) but for the most part, I don’t really notice it. I’m not a big sports fan so missing the sports channels doesn’t make a huge difference.
I have a Netflix account (streaming only) and my local library has a great selection of movies and shows so I often have at least one disc checked out. It is a bit of pain for shows that are on now – I love True Blood and HBO takes forever to come out with DVDs so I am about a season behind on it. But I mostly DVR’d shows when I had cable so it’s not that unusual to be behind. I avoid talking about TV with friends for the most part to avoid spoilers. It’s also kind of nice to watch shows a few episodes at a time – I have a tendency to binge when I get the opportunity. I also watch free shows on Hulu
For big sports events (Olympics, playoff games, the occasional weeknight baseball game) I bribe friends with cable using the offer of dinner in exchange for tv or I just watch at a local bar (I’m lucky to live in a city so there are lots of options for sports bars). Without cable my boyfriend and I read a lot more, play board games and some video games, and hang out with friends in the evenings. It’s actually a great way to hang out with people with cable and make tv into a more social event.
Plus, since I spend so much less on cable, I feel ok treating myself to the movie theater when there’s something I want to see (even if I’m not dying to see it). I probably go to the movies once every other month, although less lately since all the movies seem so bad…
For $1.99 an episode, my fiance and I watch Top Chef on Amazon Streaming. We justify it because it’s the only show we’re paying for, and it only runs for 12 weeks. It’s a small drop in the bucket compared to getting cable back!
I cancelled my Comcast cable subscription because I was paying $80 for internet and cable. But I, for some reason, felt compelled to have cable although I BARELY watch TV. So I signed a 2 year contract with DirecTV which I dearly regret now. But it’s $40 a month and I share my neighbor’s internet for a small fee.
I’m interested in finding out how those with hulu accounts or Google TVs feel about the service. I wish HBO would offer a $20/month fee to watch certain shows.
I wish I had read this article at the time when I was considering to cancel my cable service!!
My husband does this for a living, so he could explain this much better…
We use a computer to run Windows media center on our TV. We get signal straight from the antennae and much of it is now in HD. We can record shows and get all local sports. We don’t get ESPN or TLC (what I miss) but we save so much money!
We record about 1 show per night on the major networks like ABC and FOX and that gives us plenty of TV to watch. We can also get PBS shows for our kids and even Rachel Ray. I’m afraid with any more options I would get sucked into my TV and never see the light of day.
My fiance and I gave up cable five months ago, and never plan on going back. We never watched more than an hour of TV a day anyway though, between working at our jobs, exercising, making & cleaning up dinner, playing with our dog, reading before bed etc.
For me, giving up cable didn’t mean giving up TV altogether though. We still get a free network package of ABC, NBC, etc. just by plugging our TV in the wall. With those channels, we get plenty of sports, movies and TV shows. We login to Netflix ($9.99/month) or Hulu (the free one) and use an HDMI cable to watch shows on the physical TV.
For sports, my fiance watches ESPN online (unlike Michael’s comment above, we’ve just opened up the website and been able to see the games). When it comes to non-ESPN, non-network sports that he HAS to see, we know at least one of our friends or family members will be watching, too, and we go over to their homes. Depending on how “good” the game is, we’ll occasionally go watch something at a sports bar.
Our substitute entertainment is that we undertook a project to watch all of the AFI Top 100 movies–a fun way to get the sit-in-front-of-the-TV time. When it comes to background noise for cooking/hanging out/side hustle/etc. we just run Pandora stations. We’ve also taken more time recently to play with our dog on the floor, too, which is fun :)
Overall, I feel ridiculously liberated. When people complain about movie trailers they’ve seen a million times, or yet another Kardashian/Housewives show, or commercial jingles they can’t get out of their head, or the high cost of cable, I just smile.
I cut the cord about a year ago and haven’t missed it once! I still think about what a sucker I was to have kept it as long as I did.
I subscribe to hulu (for $8.00 a month) which allows me access to new shows and complete seasons of old shows that have long gone off the air (like Monk, the Pretender, etc.)and movies, as well as have streaming access on my TV (through a Roku box). I also have Netflix (both the DVD and streaming) for about $17.00 a month. This way the shows I can’t access on hulu or other websites I can just wait for the complete seasons to come out on DVD.
I find the lack of commercials (you only watch between 1-3 online) nice. Plus since everything is online and ready for you when you want to watch it you don’t have to live by the TV schedule. You can go out, live your life, and then come back and watch what you want. I never find myself endlessly channel surfing because I already have what I want to see queued up when I want to watch TV.
Live events (like sports) are easy to get around because usually you know someone who still has cable. If you offer to buy the beer or bring the chips most people are glad to watch the game with you. If you can’t go to a friend’s house there is always the local sports bar which purchased all the sports packages. The cost of 1-4 games a month where you nurse a few beers, or order a soda and appetizer is far less money than keeping cable.
I used to pay $100.00 a month for cable services; now I only pay $25.00 for just the shows I want to watch (I rarely watch live events). I like to think of it as TV ala carte.
I’ve been cable free for about 6 months now. Actually, the only reason I had it before that is because it was included in my seriously cheap rent. But after I moved I got Netflix and internet (around $30 a month for decent speeds). I think the only cable TV I really miss is HBO. I loved Boardwalk Empire and Game of Thrones. After about 3 months in the new place I found out that because of the way my internet service is structured, it includes the basic channels (fox, NBC, ABC) and TBS.
I don’t see myself going back to having cable or satellite unless someone else pays for it. We also get some ESPN on my boyfriend’s xbox, which keeps him happy about the arrangement too!
My husband and I have been cable free since ’08. We don’t miss it, but you’re right about sports…
We happened to catch the GIANTS game at the Lake Placid Pub & Brewery two weeks ago -that win got us excited (and hooked)!
This past weekend we actually found the converter box and the old antenna, and carried our TV around the house (its a 13″ circa 1997) in an attempt to get enough signal to watch the Giants play San Francisco.
We couldn’t get Fox to come in though -not upstairs, facing East or West and ended we up listening to the game on AM radio. Here’s something I found interesting – because I listened to the game, I actually learned what a “Snap” and a “Sack” are. I watch, like, one football game a year and have little understanding of penalties, strategies, etcetera. So for me the emotions on the players’ faces and the bright jerseys tend to grab my attention. Listening actually helped me learn about football.
Anyways – we’ll likely be socializing for Super Bowl (not at our house).
My husband & I quit cable 3 years ago when we finished college. We only had cable at that point because it was included in rent. While we liked having the cable, we never felt the need to continue paying for it. We went with the free over-the-air broadcasts up until about 6 or 9 months ago, when we quit watching live TV. Since turning of the ‘Advertising Box’, as we call it now, we’ve slept better and haven’t had those weird desires to buy/eat/drink/do what the commercials say.
With all the free alternatives, we haven’t had withdrawal. We use Hulu and a couple other free sites with the occasional Redbox rental. We LOVE that it is so easy to use these sites and the commercials are much less intrusive and annoying. Otherwise we’ve been busy with other ventures in our life. We use part of what we save to pay for more expensive Internet, both because my husband is a computer nerd and because we stream TV.
We never invested in a giant TV, only using the 18″ LCD we received as a gift. One of the first questions out of guests mouths is usually ‘Where’s your TV.’ Followed by the comment ‘You should take down that [beautiful] picture [of your wedding(to eventually be replaced by family photos)] and put a giant TV over your fireplace.’ We just smile, nod, and change the subject.
We plan to never turn back and pay for TV. I ‘suffered’ through a childhood of fuzzy broadcast TV and am grateful I didn’t waste years of my life being bombarded with advertising and subliminal messaging. (Come on, we all know that’s what advertising is about!) Our kids will survive it too.
I cancelled my cable in 2008, however like someone else, I still got the channels. The reason I cancelled in the first place was that the schedule for the shows I watch was what dictated when I would be home. I would rush home from work to watch one show, and stay in on Wednesdays and Thursdays to watch others.
I finally moved in 2010 (partly to get away from the cable), and I haven’t looked back. I currently have Netflix Streaming, free Hulu, an antenna, and the library for free DVD/VHS’s, all of which I’ve used in the last week. I find myself more willing to do projects on my house because I don’t have to worry about missing the show I HAVE to watch. I’ve cut my TV time from about 25 hours a week to less than 10.
A recent change that I’ve made was for my health, and has ended up entertaining me. I have missed the some made for TV movies along with home finding shows (mostly HGTV) and I also wanted to join a gym. I have joined a gym and started planning my visits around my open schedule and the possibility to see a show/movie while on the eliptical/tread mill. It’s the incentive I needed to be more active, and it’s about $40 less a month than the cable would be!
I watch TONS of shows on lots of channels so I keep the cable. I have a stable job that I absolutely love, so I enjoy having free time that isn’t dependent on being productive in some way. In fact, I am constantly stymied by the fact that you can “only” record 2 shows simultaneously. I’d watch a lot more things if it weren’t for that restriction.
I do think we could cancel and I could use HULU plus and Amazon to get the programs I follow, but my fiance won’t let us cancel – despite bragging about how little he watches TV, every time I bring this up he refuses to even consider it. I’m still baffled as to why. However, since my share of the cable is half the total, I’d probably pay that much or more on my own to replace all the things I follow religiously anyway. So if he wants to spend $40/month on something he says he doesn’t use, and we’re not going to merge our finances after the wedding, then I’m the one who’s getting off cheap :-)
I would like to save the $60 or so I pay in cable each month and I gotta say probably the only thing keeping me back is that I LOVE watching ESPN and especially college football and basketball. Yes, you can get some games on ESPN3 but if you are a diehard then every game is a must. Also, the convenience of flipping on the news for a few minutes in the morning before work is nice.
If anyone can tell me how I can get around the ESPN/college sports obsession and still catch my games, I may think about cutting the cord. I still save $1000 a month so I think can afford to keep cable. I just keep calling to say I am thinking of cancelling and they give me 25% off.
How long ago did you quit?
I quit cable almost exactly 2 years ago. I had been negotiating consistently until they finally cut me off on cheap deals and made me pay full price. It was right when I got into Dave Ramsey and started wanting to get myself out of debt. I pulled the plug. I have not relapsed. It was hard at first. I had to learn to deal with streaming video content from the web.
The biggest pain was having to pick what I wanted to watch before I watched it. I would search through content for a long time before deciding on something to watch.
My alternatives have been renting movies from iTunes, subscribing to Netflix streaming and the free version of Hulu.com. I also got into blogging and reading more to keep myself busy away from the TV.
Since quitting, I have learned that I no longer need the TV. I watch far fewer movies and don’t feel the urge to stream video as often either. I may even cancel my Netflix subscription soon because I don’t use it.
I’ve seen myself move away from needing to be entertained to getting into things that I’m passionate about. I feel like TV is a complete waste of time at this point and feel like there are many better things to do with my time than watch TV.
All in all, life has been better on the other side for me. I don’t feel any urge to resubscribe to cable anytime soon.
We would like to be cable free but w/ Comcast it actually costs more to have HSI (internet) by itself than it does to be packaged w/ cable. I know I have to separate from Comcast for at least 3 months to be able to start all over w/ HSI only. How crazy is that?
We don’t actually watch much cable TV. Most of my shows are broadcast primetime free channels while my wife watches the Food Network.
Both my husband and I watch shows online. I know he watches hockey online, but I am not sure how. You should be able to google it though.
I still subscribe to cable because I rent rooms in my house out to 2 friends (potentially 3 in the upcoming months) and it’s not too much of an expense when split amongst all of us. The HOA also has a deal for basic cable so I’m just paying to upgrade to HD (lame) and 1 DVR.
I’m strongly considering dropping the DVR and subscribing to Netflix streaming as it’s actually a cheaper alternative since TWC wants $12/mo for DVR. I would definitely drop everything but Netflix if I was on my own though
I quit cable when I stopped sharing the expense with a roommate. It was easier than I thought, but I never would have given up my Netflix. It seemed like a decent trade. I also read more. I was two years without cable and recently bought a condo with HOA fees that include basic cable. I guess I’m glad to have it back, but mostly just on Saturday afternoons when there’s always some kind of marathon on whereas before it was like infomercials and random sports events. If it were still a choice, however, I’d probably be okay with letting it go again.
We did this but went a step further and even got rid of our tv :). The first step was getting rid of cable when we realized that we didn’t watch a lot of shows on the cable channels anyway and we were happy to wait a bit for the ones we did so we could get them on Netflix or other online sources.
When we got rid of cable we switched our Internet to get a discount plan from my workplace that gave me unlimited downloads and much better speeds so streaming movies became much better.
Then we moved apartments and our old TV was something that had come with the apartment so we had to leave it behind. We planned to buy a new one but didn’t get around to it for a while. This was just around the time Netflix started it’s drama so I froze the account and then we just decided to hold on the TV buying and it’s been close to a year now without a TV.
We didn’t really end up substituting a lot. We don’t watch sports so it was easier. We watch more movies in theaters now especially in winter but that’s something we always did even with cable since we like it. It’s probably not more than 3-4 movies a month up from 1-2 though. I get a lot more reading in now with books from the library.
Try it you might be surprised at how little you miss it.
I have basically not had cable TV since I started college. Sure, we had it in the dorms / campus apartments for free, but I never had a TV to hook up to it. For the first few years of college, I got all my TV watching done in the dorm lounges when a bunch of us would gather to watch a particular show (Nip Tuck was a favorite), so I would watch 1-2 times per week and it was a social event.
I don’t like sports, so that’s a huge gain. My roommate, however, did. Eventually we got a TV for the apartment, and both being electrical/computer engineers, we decided to go for the Home Theater PC route. (he had an old computer left over since he upgraded). I was immediately hooked. On campus, there was a local, student-only P2P hub so we got a lot of content for free.
Now that I have graduated, I had to build my own HTPC as I was addicted to that experience. $400 for the PC and $100 for an HDTV antenna (to get local sports & news). Unless you like watching a LOT of sports, I feel like this is very cost effective. The HTPC is becoming outdated with network and wifi enabled TV perhipherals, such as bluray players, apple tv, WDTV, roku, xbox, wii, etc, but I don’t have any of those. I can upgrade the optical drive (currently a $20 DVD burner) to a bluray once they come down in price. Couple that with my taste in movies (usually dont go for the huge blockbusters) means I buy the blu-ray remastered versions of old classics, which are often cheaper. I hunt the bargain bins and usually end up with a lot of movies. Once I find a need for the bluray I will upgrade and pay eight bucks for netflix. I probably can’t mention this, but I rip blurays to the HTPC. I will continue doing this with netflix, which is grey-area-DMCA illegal, but will save me a bundle.
I watch the daily show online, I watch south park online, and I stream Al Jazeera for news. Most other (U.S.) news I get from my RSS reader anyway (which also ties into the TV! do THAT with an xbox). Furthermore, it means my digital music collection (ripped CDs, downloaded tracks from days of yore, Spotify, and itunes) are all available on my TV and thus my sound system. I love the convenience. Its way better than TV for sure.
G.E. – I ditched cable 4 months ago when I moved into my own place. I felt like shouldering a cable bill myself, on top of paying rent on a one bedroom apartment in Chicago was too much.
Like you, I mostly watch sports and certain, specific television shows. I’m mostly a football fan, Green Bay and Wisconsin and not a year round sports watcher. I also love a few cable tv shows, specifically HBO shows (Game of Thrones, Curb, Boardwalk Empire, AMC (Breaking Bad, Madmen, etc.). I’m also a technophile, so I have an AppleTV, a PS3, and a laptop hook up to my main TV. I have ESPN3 access through my laptop, pay $8 a month for Hulu Plus and $8 for Netflix. There’s tons of content through these services. I have a set of rabbit ears for local stations that come in crystal clear. I buy the occasional season pass on itunes as well. At about $30 a pop, that sounds expensive, but if you only buy 4 or 5 shows a year, it’s way below the $60 a month I would be paying for cable. Plus, in the summer I barely watch TV, preferring to spend my time outside. I’m also not locked into a contract
Sports are the biggest challenge, but generally when there’s a can’t miss game on I either go to a friends house or to a bar to watch. It takes a little planning ahead, but is doable. Also, while I don’t condone this, most TV shows are available in HD online for download. If you have an AppleTV or streaming device, it’s pretty easy for someone to download and watch completely for free, but not necessarily legally.
While it may not seem like I’m saving much by using iTunes season passes and Netflix/Hulu, I’m happy to just pay for the content that I consume. I don’t need to buy anything I don’t watch and I’m not stuck in a contract paying for content I don’t use. Some months I may have a hefty iTunes bill, but many I pay nothing at all.
I wish more channels, specifically HBO, would get a clue and offer their shows or content via paid streaming. I would be perfectly willing to pay HBO $20 a month, independent of cable, for access to their iPad or iPhone app.
The only other caveat to all this is that you need high speed internet. Luckily, my building provides DSL service for free, and I pay an additional $20 a month for an upgraded connection. If I had to pay for internet, I would be tempted to purchase a bundled package.
If you want to test what stations you’d get over the air, plug your coax into a potato and reprogram your TV. It’ll give you an idea of what you can get before putting down money on an antenna.
I cut out cable the last time I moved. I have an antenna with 34 channels plus Netflix and NBA League Pass instead.
My last year that I lived with my roommate (before moving in with my boyfriend), we ditched cable. Didn’t miss it at all. I did watch Dexter over at my boyfriend’s apt, but would have been fine holding out or trying to find it online.
Fast forward to moving in with my boyfriend who, like you, LOVES sports (his weakness is Texas Basketball), thus we won’t get rid of it. I hate paying for it because I find myself watching useless stuff when I could be doing more productive things. Or, if I really wanted to watch TV or a movie, using the plethora of online options. We do have both our Netflix accounts on freeze right now to help save some money. But it’s still annoying knowing we’re spending the money on cable.
Instead of quitting cable entirely, I’ve been paying for “limited” cable all along. I get all of the major networks (NBC, ABC, CBS, and CBC) as well as some other channels I don’t watch. Combined with my TiVo, this is a far better TV watching experience than trying to watch shows online with Hulu.
How much does limited cable cost me? $15 per month. It started out at $12/month, but it’s been slowly creeping up. How much does my TiVo cost me amortized over 3 years? About $16 per month. So having cable costs me about $30/month overall. I would say that it provides me with enough entertainment for that amount.
You can run the lifetime investment opportunity numbers on anything you want, but that’s always going to produce a ridiculously large number. You have to ask yourself the questions:
1) Does this service make me happy now?
2) Does it cut into my savings for retirement or other goals?
Money is a tool, not a means to an end. When you’re trying to save absolutely everything at the expense of fun, what’s the point in even having money in the first place? For $30/month, cable TV and TiVo is worth it to me.
I haven’t had cable now for over 4.5 years. After college (where I had incredible cable options) I took a job as an AmeriCorps VISTA and so money was tight. I decided I’d get either cable or Internet. Quickly I realized I couldn’t go without internet. And it’s been great without cable. I miss some channels (game show network especially!), but everything really important (state of the union, superbowl, etc) is free on basic cable. Plus I firmly believe it’s actually improved my quality of life. Cable tv is like a black hole and filled with junk. Much like junk food, when you stop putting it in your body you feel much healthier. Plus the savings are great. Can’t imagine I’d go back anytime soon.
■How long ago did you quit?
I haven’t had cable for approx 10 years and that was after having over 500 channels to choose from. Completely exhausting I tell ya.
■Did you relapse?
I have never relapsed and I don’t recall it crossing my mind again. I have to laugh to myself when a friend asks if I had seen an episode of (insert name of show) and I say “No, I dont have cable.” I swear their eyes bug out and they ask “Well what do you do?”
“I read.”
Of course it’s not ALL I do but they don’t know that.
■Was withdrawal difficult?
I did not find it difficult since what was mainly on cable was nauseating to watch anyway. I don’t like reality shows so that pretty much knocks out cable. ;)
■What alternative forms of entertainment did you turn to?
I read. I have always been into reading though so it wasn’t something that I picked up just because the cable went bye-bye. I have also been somewhat of a hobbyist so there are plenty of other things to bide my time.
■What changes have you seen in yourself or your lifestyle since quitting? What is life like on the other side?
I am more focused on whats going on around me I guess. Life on the other side is drama free as well.
They don’t deem it “the idiot box” for nothing!
We just quit cable about a month ago! We moved cross country and were looking for ways to cut our expenses out here in California. We bought an HD receiver to get local channels ($35 one time cost) and my husband already had an xBox so we got Hulu plus on that which is $7.99 a month. So far we don’t miss cable at all! We get the basic stations (which includes a lot of sport he wants to watch) and most of the shows we like plus a ton we’ve never seen are on Hulu as well as some movies.
It also helps that the weather is so nice here so we don’t want to hang out inside as much :)
– How long ago did you quit? 2 years ago.
– Did you relapse? I haven’t yet. Husband & I are planning on signing up for Dish soon.
– Was withdrawal difficult? Nope. We didn’t notice anything different except we missed watching the morning and evening news.
– What alternative forms of entertainment did you turn to? Netflix and Redbox.
– What changes have you seen in yourself or your lifestyle since quitting? What is life like on the other side? We finally can do things in the evening without feeling like we “have” to get home to watch ____(insert some stupid realtiy show here)____.
I got rid of cable August 2010 and haven’t looked back. Initially I would purchase seasons of shows on iTunes (i.e. Top Gear UK) & had Netflix streaming. After a while I found myself watching less and less Netflix (their offerings were ‘ok’ but never stellar) so I canned that as well about 3 months ago. Next the tv has to go…thankfully it’s an old one.
I continuously have to remind people that I don’t have cable. No matter how many times I tell them…they don’t seem to think I’m telling the truth! The only ‘issue’ is being able to tune out after a long week to comedy central or the history/discovery channel. But, it saves me roughly $80/month so I can live!
We canceled, and bought a Roku about 14 months ago. All of our movie and tv watching is now 100% streaming. We almost never deal with commercials now, and we really don’t miss anything about cable. On a long enough timeline, everything of interest is in a streamable format. Just delay gratification for a bit, and it’s there.
I have noticed that people think we are crazy for not having cable. People’s reactions to our choice vary from and awkward silence followed by stuttering a response commending our choice, to open recoiled disgust, to absolute disbelief that we can “live that way.”