I get asked all the time how you can lower your internet bill. Without home internet, you will find cord cutting options severely limited.
The good news is I have a few tricks that help us save money on our home internet.
#1 Shop Around
Shopping around is most important when you are looking at downgrading from a bundle to internet only. Every year or two I spend an hour to switch or argue for a better internet deal. I find this has saved me thousands of dollars on my internet.
Even if you do not plan to really switch, knowing what options you have is a powerful way to get a better rate.
Cable companies seem to hate giving any type of discount to someone who wants to downgrade. For example, my local cable company will charge a new customer $29.99 for 100 Mbps down, but customers who downgrade to the same plan pay more than double: $70 a month.
Take some time, do some research, and do not discount DSL. I often switch between DSL and cable TV. You may be surprised to see AT&T DSL in some areas even offers a 1 Gbps option and 100 down DSL is more common than you may think. Don’t want to go with AT&T or CenturyLink? Look into some of the smaller DSL companies such as Toast.net.
#2 Lower Your Speed
Often when people become cord cutters internet service providers try to talk them into crazy high internet speeds. Remember to take what the phone rep says with a grain of salt.
I cut the cord with just 10 down and later found that about 20 to 25 Mbps down is all you need. Once you get over 100 down it has little effect on streaming. Not sure what internet speed you need? Check out our guide on picking the right internet speed for you.
Here is what Sling TV says you need for internet speeds to stream Sling TV. The following are the recommended speeds according to Sling TV’s Help Center:
- Constant speed of 3.0 Megabits per second or more: Streaming video content on portable devices such as tablets and phones.
- Constant speed of 5.0 Megabits per second or more: Single stream of video content on a TV, PC, or Mac.
- Constant speed of 25 Megabits per second or more: Households that maintain internet use on multiple devices.
Still struggling with buffering and have more than that? Check out our guide to fixing buffering.
#3 Buy a Modem
Most ISPs charge $10 a month and a few are now charging $12 a month to rent their modems; however, many, such as Comcast, will let you buy a modem from them and save $120 a year. This is a great deal when you consider that most modems cost less than $100 and you can start saving money the first year.
If you rent a modem for three years it will cost you $360. If you buy a $100 modem it would save you $260.
Do you have a tip for saving money on home internet? Leave us a comment and let us know.
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