From original series to live sports, streaming services have become a go-to for home entertainment and a growing expense in household budgets.
“I love HBO Max, and all the shows on Max,” Courtney Wright, a consumer in Tempe, said.
For Ethan Brewer of Scottsdale, it's all about one thing: football.
“I only watch one sport, college football, so I'm willing to pay $90 a month to watch college football for four months or five months out of the year,” Brewer said.
With more platforms than ever, streaming can feel cheap until the subscriptions start to pile up.
“We start out with Roku. We do Netflix. We do a lot of Fubo, Prime, of course, YouTube. The sports channels, the music channels. We do a lot!” Sherry Ecklund, Mesa, said.
It can be a lot for budget-conscious consumers.
“Especially like as a college student who's full-time and I work part-time, things are already tight. So sometimes streaming services are the first things to go,” Aspin Ross, Tempe, said.
The average U.S. household now subscribes to four streaming platforms and spends about $69 a month, up $8 from last year, according to Deloitte's 2025 Digital Media Trends. In the same survey, nearly half of subscribers, 47%, say they feel they’re paying too much.
“Even though it seems like the cost of each streaming service isn't very much, it can add up really quickly once you're signing up for multiple streaming services,” Kimberly Palmer, NerdWallet Personal Finance Expert, said.
She recommends starting with a streaming audit. Go through every service you’re signed up for and ask if you’re really using it.
"You want to do a complete subscription audit of your streaming services at least once a year,” Palmer said. “But if you're someone that's constantly opting into free trials because you're excited about a new show, then you want to do it more often, every few months.”
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Palmer shared several money-saving tips, including:
- Cancel “free trials” before they become a monthly surprise
- Avoid paying for duplicate content across platforms
- Watch the ad-supported versions to save
- Look for streaming bundles offered through phone or internet plans
“For example, your phone service might offer you a discount or even free access to a streaming subscription,” Palmer said.
Another strategy? Rotate your services. Sign up for one, binge what you want, then cancel and move to the next.
Consumers are catching on.
“There's some services now where you can pause it for a couple months and then come back,” Ross said.
Some consumers say they’re sharing subscription costs in a household or with roommates. Others look for seasonal deals like Black Friday promotions.
“You know your budget best,” Ross said. “If you can’t afford it, it’s not going to kill you to miss your favorite show.”
She says when it comes to saving money in the streaming era, sometimes less really is more.
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