To Cut the Cord or Not to Cut the Cord?

Is it Really Worth it to Cut the Cord?

Some of you might have heard recently that Disney is not only starting their own streaming service but that Ant-Man and the Wasp will be the last Marvel movie to stream on Netflix. Normally that wouldn’t be a big deal, but Disney now owns The Avengers, the X-Men, Avatar, Star Wars, and, of course, Disney animated films (plus a whole lot more). It looks like it’s about to get a whole lot more expensive to cut the cord. That begs the question, Is it still worth the cost?” This week we’re going to break it down to see if streaming services are still cheaper than cable.

According to USA Today, the average cost of cable in 2017 is about $100 a month. Now that’s not including premium channels like HBO, Showtime or Cinemax, which can add an average of $30 a month to your bill. Not only that, but prices for cable have been rising steadily for the past 20 years. It’s no wonder so many people have decided to cut the cord and switch to streaming services. However, it looks like they’re starting to catch up to the cost of cable. Let’s take a look at the price for a lot of the standard services that people have.

First up is Netflix, which is a giant when it comes to streaming services. They’re the ones that put Blockbuster out of business with their mail DVD service that helped shut in’s like me avoid the light of day. Right now their standard one disc at a time rate is still about $9.99 a month. However, if you’re a real movie fan like me, you can rent up to 2 discs at a time for $14.99. But you didn’t cut the cord just to waste all that energy walking to and from the mailbox every other day. So, you’re probably more interested in the streaming service they offer which ranges from $7.99 to $13.99 depending on how many of your ex’s are still using your Netflix login (not that we condone such a thing >wink< >wink<). The benefit of subscribing to Netflix is that they offer a ton of movies and update your choices every month. Best of all, they actually have some pretty decent original series and have devoted themselves to offering a lot of new original content in the future. The question is if the streaming service that first inspired people to cut the cord will continue to be worth it in the future, especially once you start adding these other platforms.

Next up with have Amazon Prime. Now, Prime is pretty unique because your membership offers a lot more than just movies and series. Of course, there’s the free 2-day shipping, but you also get access to Amazon Music, online storage, e-books, and a ton of other benefits. At face value, this is a pretty good deal for people who want to cut the cable. As of right now, it’s about $12.99 per month (or $119 annually). That’s where they get you though because, unfortunately, anyone can upload their movies to Prime which means there are some truly awful movies on the site. If you’re looking for more options when it comes to good movies, then you’ll need to subscribe to additional channels. Right now the big ones that Prime offers are HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, and Starz. These all range from $8.99 to $15.99 per month, which can add up pretty quickly. However, like Netflix, Prime also offers exclusive movies and series that can only be seen by subscribers, and are set to release a lot more in the future as well.

Finally, we have the most underrated of the three big streaming services, Hulu. Hulu is unique because it lets people watch most of their favorite network television shows within hours of live broadcast, which makes it an excellent option for people who are looking to cut the cord. It’s also pretty much free if you’re willing to deal with commercials. Since I’m an important person with important things to do, I subscribe to the commercial-free version which is $7.99 per month. Still, this only allows you to watch a series a few hours after they air. If you want to watch live TV, there is an option for $39.99 (along with a commercial-free version for $43.99). Hulu also allows you to play it on unlimited screens for an additional $14.99 (another great option for those of you whose exes are still pirating your accounts). Like Prime, there’s also the option to add premium channels like Showtime, Cinemax, and HBO for $8.99 to $14.99. That means there are plenty of options to get all your favorite shows and even some pretty great movies through Hulu.

Now, let’s say you’re not looking for a bunch of bells and whistles and just want to watch basic movies and shows. Well, that will run you approximately $35 per month, which isn’t that bad. However, once you start adding more and more features the price can skyrocket up to over $150 per month. Needless to say, it’s starting to look a lot more expensive to cut the cord.

The biggest issue is that there are more and more streaming services popping up all the time. Anime fans will probably want to get Crunchyroll or Funimation. Korean dramas are getting more and more popular with services like Dramafever. Toss in the fact that a lot of stations are starting up their own streaming services (NBC is notorious for not sharing). Plus, the new Disney services coming out in upcoming months. All together it’s starting to get a little overwhelming to decide what you need versus what you want. Then again, even with all these choices, it’s still a lot easier than actually dealing with a cable company. The question is if it’s still worth it in the end.

Did you cut the cord? Are you still paying for cable or satellite each month? What streaming services do you think are the best out there? Leave a comment below to let me know where you stand when it comes to cable versus streaming.