Don’t Pay Full Price For Streaming: Insider Secrets That Will Save You Hundreds!

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man
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Seniors: Don’t Pay Full Price for Streaming. Ever. Many people say that streaming has become almost as expensive as cable and satellite TV. I understand the argument because streamers such as Netflix, Disney Plus, HBO Max and Paramount Plus have started increasing their subscription rates every year (or even more frequently), just like cable and satellite. Consequently, some TV viewers are now paying $70-80 a month to get the top services.

However, I subscribe to Netflix, Apple TV, Disney Plus, HBO Max, The Criterion Channel, Hulu, Peacock and Paramount Plus – and I only pay $24 a month.

How? Before I divulge my secret, allow me to itemize my subscriptions and monthly fees. Here’s what I get and what I pay:

The TV Answer Man’s Streaming Subscriptions

* Netflix: $8.99 a month plan: Free with my T-Mobile service
* Apple TV’s $12.99 month plan: $3 a month with my T-Mobile service
* Disney Plus/Hulu $11.99 a month bundle: $4.99 a month purchased as annual subscription during Black Friday promotion.
* HBO Max’s $10.99 a month plan: $2.99 a month purchased as annual subscription during holiday promotion.
* Peacock’s $10.99 a month plan: Free with my Xfinity Internet service plan.
* Paramount Plus’ $13.99 a month plan: $6 month purchased as annual subscription during holiday promotion.
* The Criterion Channel’s $10.99 a month plan: $7 a month purchased as annual subscription during promotion.

If I paid full price for the seven streamers, the cost would be nearly $80 a month – and that’s if I just subscribed to the ads-included plans.

So listen to these words:

Don’t Pay Full Price For Streaming!

As you have probably guessed by now, the secret is to look (and wait) for deals. And when they become available, pounce. Lock in those annual subscriptions offered during promotions because they will provide the best value.

The big discounts are usually listed during holidays or other special promotions. Black Friday. Christmas. Amazon Prime Days. Roku special events. Etc.

You also can find reduced streaming prices (or FREE service) offered with services such as wireless plans and cable/satellite plans. For example, T-Mobile and Verizon have deals where streamers are included with certain packages for free or at a discount. DIRECTV, Fubo, YouTube TV and some others offer the ESPN Unlimited app for free with select plans. And if you have Fox in your cable or satellite package, you can use your service user name and password to get free access to the Fox One app.

Don’t pay full price for streaming: Insider tips on how you can get the top streamers as free add-ons or at reduced prices:

Netflix
The world’s top streamer, which has plans starting at $8.99 a month, does not offer free trials or discounts at its web site, not even for military, students or seniors. But if you have one of the following T-Mobile’s wireless plans – Experience More, Experience Beyond, Go5G Next, Go5G Plus™ or Magenta^® MAX plan – Netflix’s $8.99 a month ads-included plan is included for free.

Seniors take note: T-Mobile also includes Netflix for free with its 55+ plans. To learn more about T-Mobile’s Netflix deals, click here.

Verizon doesn’t offer Netflix for free but it does include it with HBO Max in a bundle for $13 a month, which is a $7 discount. Note that you must be a Verizon customer and eligible for select plans. Click this link to learn more.

Amazon’s Prime Video
Amazon Prime, which includes Prime Video, is available for free with a 30-day free trial. (Prime membership is normally $14.99 a month.) This is a great way to check out the streamer’s movie and original show lineup or watch a big game that’s exclusive to Amazon such as NFL Thursday Night Football. (Note the free trial also includes all Prime benefits such as free shipping.)

Seniors take note that if you have Medicare, and also qualify for Medicaid or Supplemental Security Income, you can get full Prime benefits (including video) for $6.99 a month. Click here to learn more.

HBO Max
HBO Max, which has plans starting at $10.99 a month, does not have a free trial. But there are ways to subscribe to the popular streamer without paying full price.

First, Verizon offers that Netflix/HBO Max bundle for $13 a month. (See link to learn more.)

Second, some cable and satellite providers include HBO Max for free with select packages. See this DIRECTV page for more information.

And lastly, you can subscribe at discounted rates during special promotions at the HBO Max web site, Roku and Amazon Prime Video Channels. (That’s how I got HBO Max for $2.99 a month.)

Apple TV
The tech giant’s streaming service, which costs $12.99 a month, has a terrific lineup of original ‘prestige TV’ shows such as Ted Lasso, Cape Fear, Severance, Sugar, Silo and Shrinking (starring Harrison Ford). Apple TV offers a free seven-day trial but you can often score a longer trial from one to three months during special promotions. (If you buy an Apple product, a three-month free trial usually is included.)

T-Mobile’s Experience More, Experience Beyond and 55+ plans includes Apple TV for just $3 a month.

Finally, like HBO Max, Roku and Amazon Prime offers Apple TV for a discount during special promotions.

Disney Plus/Hulu
The popular bundle, which starts at $11.99 a month, does not offer a free trial. But it’s included for free with select packages on some cable and satellite providers including DIRECTV. See this page to learn more. (T-Mobile offers Hulu, but not the bundle, for free with select packages. See this page to learn more.)

Verizon offers the Disney+ Premium, Hulu and ESPN+ bundle, a $24.99 month value, for free with 5G Get More or 5G Play More plans. The wireless service has other discounts on the bundle which you can see by clicking this link.

Finally, the Disney/Hulu bundle is available for a discount during special promotions. (That’s how I got it for one year for $4.99 a month.)

Peacock
The NBCUniversal-operated streamer, which starts with plans at $10.99 a month, is available for free with top-tier Xfinity Internet plans. See this Xfinity page for more details.

Walmart offers either Peacock or Paramount Plus for free for one year with its Walmart Plus plan. Seniors take note that you can get the Walmart Plan for $40 off if you have an AARP membership. That brings the cost down to $58 (regular price: $98.) See our article here for more details. (There’s a 30-day free trial for Walmart Plus.)

Spectrum TV includes Peacock for free with ‘TV Select’ plans. See this page for more details.

Finally, Peacock does not include free trials at its web site but Amazon Prime has a seven-day free trial for the service on its Video Channels page.

Paramount Plus
Like Peacock, Paramount Plus is included as a free option with the Walmart Plus plan which can be purchased for $40 off with an AARP membership.

T-Mobile includes the streamer for free with its All-In-Home Internet plans. See this page for more details.

Finally, Paramount Plus offers a number of discounts during special promotions at Roku and Amazon Prime as well as at its web site. I was able to get it for 50 percent off during the Christmas season.

Fox One
The $19.99 a month streamer from the Fox network is available for $15 a month to Verizon customers. See this page for more details.

If you have Fox in your cable or satellite package, you can access Fox One for free with your provider supplied user name and password.

Fox One also has a one-week free trial.

Finally, you might find a rare discount deal from Fox One as I did last week when it offered the service for one year for $99, a $100 reduction.

ESPN Unlimited App
The sports network’s streaming service, which is $29.99 a month (or $35.99 a month bundled with Hulu and Disney Plus), is available for free with some cable and satellite packages including YouTube TV, Hulu Live, Comcast’s Xfinity, Spectrum TV and DIRECTV. See this page for more details.

ESPN Unlimited does not offer a free trial, but you can get one month free by placing a $5 bet with the DraftKings wagering service. See this page for more details.

I hope this article helps save you money which is a major reason why we are publishing the TV For Seniors site.

If you have ideas on how to save money on streaming, or anything related to TV, click the Green circle on this page and record your comments.

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