Tired of breaking the bank every month just to pay your cable TV bill and think you may be ready to finally cut the cord? You're not alone. Millions of Americans nationwide have been fed up with the rising costs of cable TV from providers like DISH Network, DirecTV, DishLATINO, and Spectrum, and traded in the cords for cheaper streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Sling TV and more. There's dozens of streaming services with thousands of TV shows, movies and live channels! Whether family TV time is movie night, football on Sundays or post dinner entertainment; you can still enjoy everything you love with a cheaper bill through streaming. Here's how to get started on your journey to finally cutting the cord, let's dig in!

Upgrade Your Internet Service

You've cut the cord, but don't be so quick to break up with your provider entirely. You'll want to keep your internet connection with them if it's a good one. Before you run off and make any hard decisions, ask how much your internet service will cost by itself outside your TV and internet bundle. Sure you'll be paying less by cutting out TV, but without the bundle you may have to pay more for your internet by itself. You'll want to account for that price hike when deciding if cutting the cord will really save you any money. Also while you're on the phone with your TV and internet provider, find out if you're still in contract. If you are, you may not even be able to cancel your TV service without facing hefty early cancellation fees that can result in hundreds of dollars, defeating the purpose of cutting the cord in the first place.

The biggest mistake people make going into cord cutting is they start scrimping far too soon. You don't want the cheapest internet plan your provider has available. You want an internet plan with unlimited data and minimum internet speeds of 50 Mbps. If your current internet plan isn't this fast or isn't even fast enough for your current activities, we recommend upgrading your internet provider before attempting to cut the cord. Without quality high speed internet, you're not going to be happy streaming no matter which streaming services you ultimately choose.

Get A Streaming Device

To start streaming, you'll need a streaming device. You might already have one and not even know it. Here are the different devices you can use or may already have available in your home:

● Smart TV: Smart TVs have the ability to connect to the internet and download streaming apps. They're fairly common today, so much so that you may have one already and not even know it!

● Streaming sticks and boxes: There are so many streaming sticks and boxes on the market. From Google Chromecast, to Amazon Fire TV and Roku; you have options. One will cost you anywhere from $30 to $200 with various extra features the more you spend. If you're new to streaming, start off small to maximize your savings.

● Gaming system: Are you a gamer? If so, your XBox or Playstation can do more than play video games. It can download streaming apps too!

● Laptop: If you don't have it in the family budget to buy a streaming device, you could use your laptop and a HDMI cable plugged into your TV. This can be clunky and you can't multitask watching TV and surfing the internet if you choose this route, but it'll work! If you don't have a spare HDMI cable, just get a streaming stick or box. HDMI cables can easily be more expensive than a proper streaming device.

Make A Monthly Streaming Budget

If you're finally cutting the cord because you want to save money, it's important to set a family streaming budget right now. It's very easy to overspend on streaming services because many of them have great content and as you start signing up they add up very quickly!

Live TV, On-Demand Programming Or Both

As you have probably already figured out, not all streaming services are the same. Some like Netflix and Disney+ only have on-demand content. You can sift through their extensive content libraries and watch whatever you want when you want to. Then there's some streaming services like Sling TV and AT&T TV NOW that are very similar to cable TV with the live channels you already know and love. The only difference is it can be cheaper than traditional cable TV and it's delivered over your internet connection instead of a coaxial cable. Whether you choose live TV, on-demand programming or a combination of the two; it's best to decide now. This will help you narrow down your options before you even start to research different streaming services.

Choose Your Streaming Services

This is both the fun part and the daunting part; now you get to choose your streaming services! There's dozens to choose from and each one is more unique than the next. They can all be appealing if you're not careful, so choose wisely based on what you specifically want to watch right now. None of them have contracts so you can add and cancel them as you see fit. Here are the most popular streaming services available today, their monthly cost and what's popular on each service; let's dive in!

Before You Cancel Cable TV, Test Out Your Service

You've upgraded your internet plan, picked up your streaming device, and chose the streaming services you like that'll adequately replace your cable TV subscription; that's great! Now it's time to do the math and test them out.

Add Up The Cost Of All Your Services

Add up the cost of all your new streaming services plus your internet plan - are all of your choices cheaper or more expensive than without cable? If it's more expensive, either you've picked too many streaming services or cutting the cord isn't for you. Remember none of these streaming services have you locked in a contract. You can sign up and cancel services whenever you want to. Staggering services is a good way to save money too. When you're done with one service, cancel it before starting the next.

Test Your New Streaming Services & Internet

Next test out your new streaming services and internet service. You'll want to make sure you're truly happy with cutting the cord before making the final snip. When testing your streaming services, are you getting all the channels and TV shows your family likes to watch? This might take some time perfecting, but it can be done if you truly commit to cutting the cord. Also test your internet connection; make sure it can handle all the new  and existing internet traffic in your home. You won't be happy cutting the cord if there isn't enough bandwidth or internet speed to support everything your family loves to do.