WITH a seemingly never-ending list of streaming services vying for your attention, it’s easy to suddenly find your monthly bills skyrocketing overnight.
But from clever discount deals on Disney+ to sneaky Spotify hacks, there are plenty of ways to slash costs without missing out on any of your favourite shows, sports or songs.
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And if you’re really savvy with it, you stand to save hundreds a year as a result.
Here are the best ways to reduce some of the most popular streamed services around, including the most expensive of the bunch, sport.
#1 Disney+
Disney+ is a popular movie and TV platform, especially for the kids, starting at £4.99 per month if you’re prepared to sit through some ads.
But there are plenty of ways you can get Disney+ completely free or at a discounted price.
Your first port of call is your mobile network. Vodafone just launched a new freebie for customers, offering three months of access to Disney+ for nothing.
If you’re not a Vodafone customer, others like O2 allow you to add Disney+ to your mobile bill at a discounted rate.
There’s also been an Uber offer recently that gives people Disney+ free for up to a year if they subscribe to Uber One.
Uber One costs £4.99 per month, so you essentially get Disney+ as well as free / low price take away deliveries for the same price.
#2 Spotify
Spotify is the world’s most popular music streaming app – and it just announced price hikes in some countries recently.
Most people already know that arranging a family plan can share the cost with others in their household.
But there are some more little-known tricks – and a great saving for those not able to buddy up for the family tier.
Firstly, you’re paying extra for audiobooks on the family plan.
If you don’t read audiobooks, this is a waste of money and you can downgrade in the Spotify settings, you’ll have all the same perks and music just no access to audiobooks.
You can only find this by logging into Spotify on from a web browser, you can’t do it in the app.
Go to spotify.com/account, then go to Manage your subscription > Change plan > select Basic Family to save £2 per month.
But there’s an even bigger saving to be had for individual accounts.
Little do few people realise, you can buy an annual gift card for £120.
A monthly premium subscription costs £11.99, which works out £143.88 across the year.
So you stand to save almost £24 over a year by getting a giftcard.
You can get these from retailers including Currys and Argos.
#3 Apple Music
If you’re an Apple Music listener instead, you can shave money off too.
Those who own a PS5 can download the Apple Music app and they’ll get three months free.
And some mobile phone networks give it to you free as well, such as EE which gives you six months by texting “MUSIC” to 150.
TIME TO SWITCH?
If you’re prepared to quit Spotify or Apple Music you could save even more money.
Few people realise that Amazon Prime subscribers get free music streaming included with their membership.
It’s ad-free with access to 100 million songs.
The limitation is that you can’t just play any song you want all the time.
It’s mostly shuffle play of any artist, album, or playlist with limits on how many times you can skip.
But if you can live with this, it’s a good saver.
Image credit: Getty
#3 Sky Sports
With the Premier League back in full swing, you’re going to need Sky Sports for the lion’s share of matches.
But it’s one of the most expensive premium TV subscriptions around.
Watching through NOW (previously NOW TV) might be a good option to bring the cost down.
If you can manage only watching a match here and there for the team you support, you may want to consider a day pass for £14.99.
It’s also worth noting that NOW has a tendency to offer retention deals when you cancel.
There is no guarantee, but if you subscribe for one month and go through the cancellation process to see you could save big bucks.
#4 DAZN
DAZN is another popular streaming service among sports fans.
The cheapest way upfront to gain access is by committing to a 12 month contract at £14.99 month – otherwise it’s £24.99 a month.
But this is another one where your mobile network may have some offers.
For example, Vodafone customers can currently get 40 per cent off for a limited period.
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#5 Netflix
One of the tricks people often miss on Netflix is the lowest tier which costs £5.99 a month.
Yes, it has ads – but as we tested previously, there aren’t a horrible amount to put up with.
Going for Netflix Standard with Ads will save you £7 each month.
Netflix has also improved the offering over time by allowing two screens to watch at the same time (instead of one) and upping the quality to Full HD.
BONUS TIP
Only watch streaming services and don’t watch live TV?
If the answer is yes, you may not need a TV Licence – which would save you £174.50 per year.
A TV Licence is required for watching any live TV (whether it’s on traditional TV or streamed on Netflix) and if you watch BBC iPlayer.
Image credit: Alamy
Another hack you might want to try is account sharing.
Netflix controversially banned account sharing beyond your household a couple of years ago, but it does let you share with one person at a cost.
For the standard plan without ads its £5.99 a month and for the one with ads its £4.99 a month.
So, if you know someone who doesn’t mind you tagging onto their account and balance transferring them the money each month, this could work.
#6 YouTube Premium
YouTube Premium is loved by people who want to avoid the ads and unlock extra features like the ability to listen to audio with the screen off.
But it’s £12.99 a month for the privilege.
At the moment, Vodafone is giving away free access for two months.
STREAMING SWITCHEROO
There’s almost too much choice of good telly these days thanks to the sheer number of streaming services.
Subscribing to them all at once is costly – and if you’re a little bit organised you could avoid this by only subscribing to one at a time.
All the streaming services are offer monthly rolling membership, so you could spend one month on Netflix, the next on Disney+ and the one after that on Amazon Prime, before returning to Netflix and starting the cycle again.
You just need to do set calendar reminders of when to cancel and ensure it’s timed around any shows you’re desperate to see immediately rather than waiting.
