How to Lower Your Cable Bill

Cable bills can reach triple digits pretty easily. If you're paying a lot just to watch television there are probably ways you can easily reduce your cable bill. Most likely you're paying for services you don't need, want, or even realize you have! Read on for simple ways to reduce your television cable bill.

Instructions

1. You can significantly reduce your monthly cable bill by simply paying attention to what you're watching on television. If you're paying for movie channels (Showtime) special sports channels (NFL Sunday ticket), or other upgrade channels like HBO, but you never watch them call and cancel them. Get rid of any extras that you don't watch on tv on a regular basis.

2. For a week keep a diary of every television show you watch and the channel it's on. At the end of the week evaluate your viewing habits to see if you'd be able to downgrade to a more basic cable package. There's no need to pay for channels you rarely watch.

3. Sure High Definition looks great while you're watching it, but it looks like dollars signs on your cable bill. Get rid of HD and you could save about $20 a month. (Plus you're probably paying rental fees on the dish or box, right???) If you can't give up HD altogether, perhaps you could downgrade the service. Instead of having the "premium HD" switch to "basic HD."

4. Avoid ordering Pay Per View movies or events. Three dollars here or there may not seem significant but if you order three PPV movies a month that's $144 a year!

5. Bundle your cable service with your phone and internet to save money. Many providers offer packages that bundle all three services for a reduced price. It's most likely cheaper to buy them this way than to pay for them individually.

6. Review your cable bill line by line. You could be paying for services you don't want or need. Worse yet, you may not even realize you're paying for certain promotional services. If you're unsure what something means call and get an explanation. Try to remove any monthly service fees and upgrades, such as insurance.

7. Check in with your cable provider every few months to see if they can offer you a more competitive price or any promotions. Call around to other cable services to get quotes. Then ask to speak to a manager at your cable service and see if they'll beat or match their competitor's price. Otherwise seriously consider switching services. Threatening to switch services may prompt some sort of deal or discount. But, remember, if you cancel your service be prepared to pay a steep cancellation fee.

Tips & Warnings

• If you join a cable service during a promotion, such as free HBO for three months, it's your responsibility to cancel the premium channel or the cable service will start billing you for it.