Back in 2018 I attempted to cancel our Cable, but I fell victim to a stellar… ok, an average salesman. Anyway, I was convinced that over a 50% reduction in price was simply too sweet to pass up.
We were then locked into a new rate for a year, and that year has finally come to an end. So, it was time to cut the cord and find the best TV Streaming Sites available!
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A funny thing happens when you cut cable. You are forced to get creative if you’re still interested in watching television.
Fear not my fellow frugal friends. The best TV Streaming sites are available for all, and a lot are free! If being frugal is something you’re passionate about, this information is exactly what you need!
Best TV Streaming Sites
Saving money and breaking the paycheck to paycheck cycle is something we’re passionate about. I constantly look for ways to save money. In 2018, I spent a few hours evaluating our monthly bills and managed to save $532/month!
After that, I realized how much money we spent each month out of habit, not necessity.
Cutting cable was another step in our obsessive money saving adventure. At first, I was a little nervous. I didn’t want to cut our expenses so much that we were left with only our stick and hoop to play with.
Luckily, we haven’t been forced to take up taxidermy post-cable departure… In place of stuffing our pets and recent roadkill, we found that there are tons of quality streaming sites available. (phew)
After much research and testing, I compiled a list of the best TV streaming sites available.
Prepare to cut cable and save some money!
Get Your Free Netflix Account
Wait… A free Netflix account? Seriously?
If you’re willing to get creative, you can 100% obtain a free Netflix account. The easiest way to do this is to switch your cellular provider.
T-Mobile will cover your basic Netflix subscription as part of their T-Mobile ONE and ONE Plus plans.
Not only will you most likely save money on your cell plan, but you’ll also get that sweet, sweet free Netflix account as well.
We made this switch back in 2018 and have been enjoying Netflix ever since. We haven’t had any issues, and our service has been uninterrupted.
One of the hilarious things we noticed was that when we still had cable, we would end up watching repeats of “The Office” or “Parks and Rec”.
Those shows are on Netflix… We probably spent 6 months paying for cable and watching shows that were completely free on Netflix…
That’s embarrassing.
LG Free Channel Plus
If you have a LG Smart TV, you’re going to love this. There is a free channel program built in!
I would always see the icon, but for years I never clicked it. I didn’t know what it was, and I never researched it.
After we cut cable, I decided to take a peak. Holy cow, was I missing out. LG offers 124 free channels, such as, NBC, Fox Sports, Golf, HSN, and many more.
The quality is HD, and it’s free. Win-Win!
Amazon Prime Video
I’m mildly upset with Amazon. In 2019 they raised their prices, but it’s hard to not continue paying for their service when you step back and look at what your money is buying you.
One of the best tv streaming sites is Amazon Prime Video. There are a number of free tv shows and movies, and you also have the ability to rent recent movies.
I’ve never paid for any of the TV shows offered, but there are a number available if that’s something you’re interested in.
Prime is available for free for 30 days and if you’re a student looking for some money saving tips, you’ll be happy to find that Amazon offers a huge discount to you! You can find information on Amazon Student here.
Hulu
At $5.99/month, you can’t help but be interested in this awesome TV streaming site. Hulu offers a wide range of TV shows and movies.
In addition, they offer Hulu originals and Hulu Live TV. If you’re interested in adding on the live TV, you’re going to see a pretty drastic price jump ($44.99/month).
For that reason, I’m not even remotely interested in “live” TV. There are so many other free or less expensive live options available.
Recently, T-Mobile purchased Sprint and Sprint has started to offer a free Hulu account (similar to the T-Mobile Netflix deal).
If you’re interested in switching your cellular provider, you can pick up some pretty sweet add-ons at the same time!
Perhaps if you and your spouse are willing to carry different cellular providers you can get a free Hulu account and a free Netflix account!
CBS Sports App
I love watching sports. Specifically, golf and football. I’m not a super-fan by any means, but I enjoy a lazy Sunday watching sports.
This was a big concern for me when we finally decided to cancel our dish service. How would I watch sports?
Enter the CBS Sports App. Not only can you watch your favorite CBS shows, but you can also always watch any live sporting event they’re broadcasting!
You can stream this on your phone, tablet, or computer. If you have an iPhone, you can purchase a lightning to HDMI cable and connect your phone to your television as well!
This was exactly how I streamed the Masters and watched Tiger bring home that green jacket!
I’ve been using the app for about a month and I haven’t had to pay or connect the service to a local provider.
I’m not sure if I’m living in some blissful loophole, but it’s working really well for me!
ESPN Plus
Initially, ESPN Plus broke my heart. I signed up for their 7-day free trial when they obtained the rights to broadcast the UFC.
The streaming quality wasn’t great and it froze often. I didn’t renew my service initially back then and wrote the app off as trash.
After a few months, we upgraded our internet service and I decided to give it a try again. ESPN was offering a UFC PPV event for $79.99 and it included a year of ESPN Plus. That deal sucked me right in!
The service has been great, and I haven’t had any issues with freezing. I’m cheap… and dropping $79.99 on something was hard for me. I’m pleased with this purchase so far.
If sports is your thing, you really should consider ESPN Plus. They cover MLB, MLS, Serie A, FA Cup, EFL and NHL. They now stream Live UFC Fight Nights, 30+ Top Rank Boxing cards, Grand Slam tennis from Wimbledon, US Open and Australian Open.
Plus access to your favorite college sports like football, basketball, lacrosse, and more. For $4.99/month… that’s a lot of sports!
Project Free TV
I recently did a write up on Project Free TV. The site has been around for a long time and offers a plethora of TV and Movie options.
They run an odd operation, have been shut down a few times, and have some pretty terrible ads… But, they do offer a free streaming service.
When perusing the site, be extremely cautious to not click or download anything that may pop-up. I’d imagine it’s pretty easy to get a terrible malware infection from pages like this…
The videos are not housed on their webpage. They are uploaded by non-affiliated 3rd party pages. This is the loophole that keeps Project Free TV operating.
Sure, some of the content is illegally uploaded, but they aren’t responsible for this (wink wink).
I won’t say that I’ve personally used the page, but I’ve been told it works extremely well. A final word of caution would be to prepare for an onslaught of extremely adult ads.
You’re going to see things… You were warned.
Popcornflix
Popcornflix offers a totally free, totally legal TV streaming service.
Popcornflix was created for people who want to watch great movies for free. Popcornflix has full-length movies and a large selection of television shows to pick from.
In addition to the movies and TV shows, they offer documentaries, foreign films, a unique original web series, and a place that showcases the brightest filmmakers of tomorrow.
Popcornflix is trying to be the most user-friendly movie destination on the web. In my opinion, the fact it’s free and legal is a huge draw.
You won’t find many new series or movies, but I did find quite a few good movies and shows listed. Popcornflix will certainly find a home in my rotation of the best TV streaming sites!
YouTube
You might be surprised to hear this, but Youtube is good for a lot more than makeup tutorials and learning how to express your dog’s anal glands.
YouTube offers a unique platform for visual entertainment. Aside from the “influencers”, you’ll find a lot of really interesting channels on YouTube.
If you have a hobby or passion, I’ll almost guarantee that a channel exists that’s loaded with content that you’ll absolutely love.
I personally follow many podcasts here and also some outdoor related content.
Another perk is the fact you can stream YouTube on almost all Smart TVs these days. The quality is high and the content is very good.
I’ve lost many hours to YouTube!
Final Word
Cutting cable wasn’t an easy decision for us. It’s not that we watch a lot of TV, but we each had our favorite shows, and the thought of missing out on new episodes was something we struggled to give up.
Eventually, the shows we enjoyed became less enjoyable. I’m not sure if the shows became less intriguing or we were making peace with cutting cable.
Either way, we decided to cut cable and save almost $720 a year. Small decisions like this add up over time.
If you’re able to trim your living expenses and increase your income, you’re going to be on a fast track to financial freedom!
This was simply another brick in the foundation we’re building our financial future on.
The pain from cutting cable has almost been unnoticed. The best TV streaming sites discussed above have dulled what could be a painful lifestyle change for most Americans.
What are some of your favorite TV Streaming Sites?
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