My family has been cable-free since January of last year. While we miss watching breaking news (the tsunami in Japan comes to mind), we've cut our cable bill from $135 a month to $45 for just internet. So we're not completely in the dark about new shows, we rely heavily on Hulu+, the occasional Amazon show subscription (Walking Dead) and Netflix every few month to binge watch recently released shows (Breaking Bad's last season was just made available).

As for habits, I don't automatically turn on the tv for background noise as soon as I arrive home for work and we've taken up walking in the evenings instead of plopping down in front of the television after dinner.

Before you cut the cord, keep in mind that if you're a fan of your hometown sports team, you're subject to blackout restrictions and the sports packages most likely will not work for you. The sports packages are ideal for people who live out of their team's market, so their viewership doesn't compete with the local station.

Botched my comment. What I mean is, if you're a fan of the sports team in your area, you'll have to deal with blackout restrictions.

I have a TV, but haven't had cable for 8 years now. I don't actually have internet either, but that is because I can get on it at work or at coffee shops and I'm cheap;)

The no cable things hasn't bothered me. Because of the lack of cable I only have a few shows that I actually want to watch (New Girl and 30 Rock) and I don't waste my hours watching pointless crap. I have mutiple friends who will flip channels only to get sucked in to watching hours of crap programming.

The antennae REALLY is a good option! I thought it wouldn't work what with the switch to digital tv that's been happenning, but our's is going fine. We get ABC, NBC, FOX, some music video channel called CoolTV, as well as like 6 PBS stations (Downton Abbey!) and for some reason BloombergTV. We haven't missed cable one iota... Well... Except for when it comes to AMC and Bravo! But then we go to our friends' homes and make a party out of it. :)

I have been cable and tv free for about 2 years now. I has been great for me. I use my computer to watch movies and tv shows when I feel like it but found that I seldom do this and started enjoying time with friends more and other hobbies I have left behind or started new ones. All in all I am less of a hermit now.

I don't have cable and I'm counting the days until we move our only TV into the basement (which we rent now). I'd go TV free completely if it weren't for a good movie now and then. We use AppleTV for that. Good post AT.

I've done without cable going on two years; the antenna is powerful and allows me to watch 'Modern Family.' For movies, I have a Roku. Without cable, it's a amazing how much free time I have in the evenings . . .

We live near the top of a hill and get good antenna signals, especially when using a digital antenna. But we finally caved and got cable because while our reception strength was great, something somewhere was causing interference and half the time we sat down to watch our favorite show (still used Tivo - no commercials!) it was pixelated gobblety gook. So if you plan on relying on an antenna (you are also correct in noting the HD quality of broadcasts are much better quality than wired counterparts, which many people don't realize) you might test this method out for a few weeks first.

We haven't had cable in years, and we don't have a TV. We watch everything on our Mac, mostly Hulu and Netflix. We don't really watch a lot of TV, and we're definitely not the types to flip channels aimlessly, so it's easy for us. What I'd really like eventually is a projector--we have a great vintage estate-sale-find screen, and I'd love to watch movies on it!

Great post and very appropriate...I'm in the process of doing this myself. As soon as my cable tv bill hit $100 (no movie channels), I decided to cut the cord.

Just the internet for us. When I hear people chatting about the latest reality show, it just sounds like absolute junk food. No thanks.

I recommend Vudu if you can get access to it. It has a much better selection than Netflix streaming. We have access to it through our Sony BlueRay player.

Been without cable/satellite for over 2 years. I still have internet and basic cable for local channels (location doesn't work with OTA). I primarily use Netflix and occasionally hulu. There are a few shows I splurge on and use Amazon or Google Play to watch. Overall my Yearly bill for internet, basic cable, and purchased shows comes down to around 85$ per month (26$ per month if internet is excluded)

When I had DirecTv I was spending around 160+ per month for TV and internet.

I cut cable at the start of this year. Saving myself $85/month, and I spend about half that at two local video stores (yes) that not only have all the Hollywood movies but plenty of documentaries, foreign films, etc. So I'm watching better stuff and supoorting independent businesses in my neighbourhood. Yay!

Me = flip channels only to get sucked in to watching hours of crap programming. Totally. I am working on that -- being more diligent about setting up my DVR has helped, I know that I have great stuff on tap when I have time to watch.

I'm not ready to give up on cable just yet (though I have certainly given it some thought), but I would suggest if you're in the same boat, try to negotiate a better price with your provider. I'm in NYC and Time Warner voluntarily offered to lower the price of my cable/phone/tv bundle when I moved -- they took it from $99/month to $79 and added free DVR for 2 years. I didn't even ask! At this price, the service is still worth it...but I'll definitely be keeping my eyes open to other options.

We rely on Netflix, Amazon Prime (more for free shipping than the streaming, but it's a nice perk) and the Internet. No cable for nearly a year, and I don't miss it.

I cancelled my cable service (including home phone and Internet service) about 2 years ago. I haven't regretted it for a second.

For what I was paying for the combined service from the same provider each month I can buy a couple of movies and a tv series on DVD or BlueRay if I want.

The sad truth is there was so little that interested me on television that even still I haven't been coveting a tv series on DVD (okay with the exception of Buffy).

I do watch a lot of movies. If I want one I buy it or see it in a theatre (and maybe still buy it).

When I moved into my last place, I didn't own a TV, so I decided to go without. Then I met my boyfriend and he was also tv-free, or, he owned a TV, but it's hooked up to the computer only. Now, living together we watch a lot of Hulu, Netflix and Network channels online. As far as sports go, if there's a game we want to see, we go out to watch it at a bar (luckily we're in Philly and there are a ton of bars within walking distance from our house).

I don't really miss it. I feel like I'm busy enough without having TV to watch.

There is a great book called "Cut the Cord: All you need to know to drop cable!" by Janko Roettgers. A must read with tips and tricks folks trying to get rid of their cable.

We've been cable free for over a year now. While we are watching a lot less tv, we are still caught up on our favorite shows. My husband just found a way to watch nearly every Giant's game online. So we're happy and with a little bit more money in our pocket.

We cut the cord 2 years ago and will never go back. Just waiting for the TV industry to figure out they are going the way of the music industry and make their content available on iTunes, Amazon, etc.

I lived happily for a decade with no television, back In the dark old pre-Internet days (the eighties). I took two newspapers and several magazines, and listened to radio news to keep up on the world. I went to movie theaters or live theater or concerts for entertainment. I did not get cable until the late 90s, and I got it then only for following the news (CNN was still real news then, sigh) and because I moved to a place with almost no tv reception.

I now have expensive, big-package satellite, but I get 90 percent of my news online, where the real reporting happens. I would be thrilled to be able to dump the pay TV service, but the alternative isn't reliable enough. Even with DSL service (wired) I cannot stream without stutters in the buffering. I suppose I could go with satellite Internet, but the upload is slow, yes? I guess I've gotten to the place where expensive tv service is the new normal. That's how they get you. I'm lassoed.

I had basic cable + 25Mbps internet up until about 9 or 10 months ago. The price of the TV portion kept increasing; I'd haggle it down to around $90/mo, and a few months later it would go back over $110. I finally said to heck with it and told the cable company I wanted internet only. I was able to upgrade from 25Mbps to 100Mbps and still save $10-15/mo. We watch very few current shows, which I BitTorrent; lots of YouTube and other free streams. I would love to get a Roku box with NetFlix and Hulu Plus, but I can't afford it right now. Other than that, we get our news from the net and we tend to watch older sitcoms and series on DVD. I don't watch sports, either, so I don't really miss live TV.

No TV here. I was staying at my parents house last week, recovering from being sick, and tried to watch TV, but was really disappointed about how much crap there was- so many infomercials, and reality shows, and commercials in general. *shrug* I'm really glad we don't pay for that. Plus, with netflix, hulu, itunes, there are plenty of options, and access to things that are actually interesting...

I haven't had a TV or cable or anything like that in several years. We torrent our favorites shows (terrible, I know), but only watch 1 per TV "season" and listen to a LOT of NPR in the living room in the evenings.

cut the cord three years ago. Best decision I ever made. It's saving me a good bit of money and also cut back the time I spent wasting away watching garbage. Now I have netflix/dvd seasons or redbox to satisfy my needs every now and then.

We haven't had cable for years, but we still have a TV partly because I hate watching anything longer than 10 minutes on my laptop and partly because I am a console gamer. Streaming Netflix or Hulu+ through the Xbox has been great! We switch back and forth between services depending on what we are most interested in watching at the time.

Every time this comes up, I think, "really? seriously?" I have a television for watching the occasional rented movie. I've rented one movie in the last 8 weeks (Melancholia). And that's 100% of the TV watching I've done. After a day in front of a computer (including breaks to read AT), the LAST thing I want to do, besides put bamboo under my fingernails or have a red hot poker any where near my body, is to watch the television.

I've been without cable for a year -- I have a digital antenna that picks up the main broadcast stations and a roku with Hulu+ and Amazon Prime (with the occasional buying of shows) I'm thinking of getting a second Roku and I'm still saving more than $50 a month over basic cable.

We've been without a TV for over 5 years. We watched shows on their respective cable channel websites until Hulu went beta. Now we use Netflix streaming & Hulu most right now. While there are some really great shows on cable, I've found that we "get over it" if it's not available online. There's so much content out there that there's no way to watch it all.

I wish I could. The bf watches a ton of soccer, and there's no other option. I once lived without cable for 6 months or so and quickly stopped caring about all the shows I had been watching, and there were a lot of shows. But I moved back into an apartment with cable and got sucked in again. One benefit is that I've been able to rewatch Veronica Mars on Soap. Plus, I'm better about putting laundry away now that there's a TV by my closets. Buuut, I would ideally rather save the money and go outside more. The library has VM, after all.

Such a timely post. My husband and I were just discussing this very topic last night. We LOVE our cable (HBO and CNN) but really need to cut back on things not needed to live or make a living right now. The land-line phone,cable TV, cigarettes, wine, Netflix...I figure we'll be super edgy and cranky for about 2 weeks but then be o.k. and prolly have sex and interesting discussions more often :)

We haven't had regular cable in two years. We rely on Netflix and will soon be subscribing to Hulu+. The only bad thing was having to switch from one cable company to a dsl company (a blessing in disguise as our dsl is more stable and cheaper) due to a sudden download limitation the cable company decided to impose. I have a feeling, quite unfortunately, that many cable tv companies will do this as the cable tv industry enters it's dying throes.

I firmly believe that streaming will become the standard before my six year old enters college. Micro-transactions, pay per month, and pay per station programs are becoming more and more prevalent. Which, imho, is great. Besides, haven't we always complained that the worst thing about cable is having 980 channels and NOTHING interesting is on?

@PI - I agree. It is the only reason we have cable because otherwise we can't watch many MLS or Euro soccer, a lot of the good games get blacked out on internet subscriptions. While I hate spending money on cable, we get pretty good use out of it with all the games we watch. If there was a solution, we'd get rid of it.

I cut the cord last summer. The only OTA channels I can reliably watch are CBS and PBS (fortunately a very good PBS station). I have a Roku, and use Hulu+, Amazon, and Netflix. I also use my parents' cable account to access ESPN (and now the Olympics live stream) online. I don't really watch any less TV, but I am watching higher quality TV. Instead of watching the Kardashians when I'm bored and lazy, I'll watch old episodes of The French Chef on Amazon.

I've been cable free for several years, I watch my shows online when they are streamed for free and purchase the dvd's when they are on sale if they are not already on Netflix. I have a Roku which i stream everything through to my tv as well as amazon movie rentals.

So, for $8 bucks a month i get "t.v.", rent movies when i get gift cards for selling college textbooks and get my season dvd's for free through best buy rewards. :) Why would i ever want cable back?

i havent had cable for 4 years now, they charge way to much for it and the only channels i want come in the upgraded package so even more money.

I would love to get rid of my cable subscription, but gosh...no TV? It's my main form of entertainment...the only thing I hate is that I have to pay so much in charges to get all the stuff I *don't* want just to get HBO and SHO (the only reason I have SHO is to watch Dexter as soon as it is on)...the charges for digital, HD, etc are just ridiculous. I cannot *wait* until it's all streaming.
Those of you with no cable service who order stuff from Amazon etc...how do you even decide what to watch if you can't see the previews of new shows?

I've been cable free for over 12 years, and told my husband when we married he was responsible for pricing and setting it up if he just had to have it... and he went a few months deciding that it was not a "must have."

We're not tied to seeing the programs when they're current so we wait for them to show up in netflix, and while we do own one large tv, it's because husband is a movie junkie and wanted a larger screen than a laptop to view his massive collection.

So basically, we watch what's available by antenna for free, have a netflix account that costs us around $20 (and they must hate us, as we go through about 20 dvds a month plus streaming) for everything else. It helps that neither of us like sports, as that's probably one of the big reasons people want cable for.

I am a life long tv addict. A few months ago I cancelled my directtv. It's been a little challenging but less painful than I imagined.

My ex was one of those park-in-front-of-the-tv people. My first act when we broke up was to cancel the Dish+. Someone gave me Apple TV, but I don't have NetFlix so it's not of real use except to watch paid Apple downloads. I usually use Amazon+ on my laptop, plus Hulu+. I listen to a LOT of music now, and get more done.

I've been considering this for some time, and am delighted for this motivational boost. Heading home to cut the cord now :) thanks AT!

I've been without cable for about five years. It just wasn't worth it even though I live in such a rural location I can't get any tv reception at all without cable. I never watched ESPN or QLC or most of the other channels in the basic package. I have a Netflix streaming subscription and HuluPlus for my Roku box (the cheapest one connected to my tiny flat screen) and iPad. Some shows I can only get on my laptop. I never feel deprived or out of the loop. Cut the cable!

It's wonderful.

Friends have 'movie nights.' We watch sporting events at friend's homes or sports bars. This sort of entertainment goes "social."

And evenings are quiet, relaxing, and really lovely at home -- just our little family talking, reading, resting together.

and we can still rent videos or download (legally) on our computer and see what we want.

I grew up without cable (my parents NEVER subscribed) and while this was very puzzling to my friends, my family always had dinner at the dinner table, and had lots of free time for other things. Occasionally we would sit down and watch a show or the news, but TV was never central to us.
In college, I had access to cable for 2 years when it was included with the apartment I lived in. I found that I spend most of my time flipping through junk. When I did find something interesting to watch, it was 40% advertisements. And people pay money for this! When I moved out into a cable-less apartment, I did not miss it.
I'm happy to say that I've never paid for cable in my life, and I intend to keep it that way. Hooray for Netflix!

No TV for years, we do watch movies sometimes though and find the library system great for borrowing flicks. I buy some classics through Amazon that I know we'll watch again later.Don't tell the FBI but I have a pal who copies some for me too.

When I go somewhere and the TV is on I am totally reinforced in my opinion of the crap on the tube. Sure there are always a few things worth watching but I'd rather do without than invite all that junk and noise into my home!

y'all are very motivating...I have been considering getting rid of the cable for quite a while because of the cost so this is food for thought...thanks

Is there an NFL fan that's tried this yet? I wish someone would weigh in

I got rid of cable over 2 years ago (I think maybe longer) and I would never go back. We have an antenna on one tv in the bedroom, two apple tvs, netflix and we subscribe to mlbtv. It saves us an incredible amount of money considering that we used to spend about $120 a month on tv and now it is about $18. (We are baseball fans here so I'm not sure about the NFL package price I think it may be way more expensive so may not help the cost savings much.) The best part is my 3 year old son has no idea what commercials are and that makes me very happy.

I would love to cut the cord - i find the Time Warner monopoly in NYC abhorrent but i'm in the business so i have to watch for research sometimes in real time or at least time shifted within 24 hours of airing. Once HBO makes HBO GO a stand alone service i will probably cut the cord and just go with internet.

We did this last summer. While I miss some cable channels (AMC, HGTV, E!), it's been a great change for us. We have an antenna to pick up network tv, including PBS, and have Netflix and Hulu Plus. We pay $50 internet + $8 for Hulu Plus +$8 for Nexflix = $66 and were paying like $140 before. Half the price plus we are not just flipping through whatever crap is on, but choosing better quality stuff. We do use Amazon instant video for Breaking Bad and Mad Men which feels worth it.

I ditched my satellite dish last year and got a Boxee Box, I'll never go back.
No problem finding content. Currently watching the opening of the Olympics.

I have only had basic cable for 7 years, and tried to cut that to just an antenna, but Comcast thwarted my plans :(. If I cut basic cable, they raised the cost of internet, so I wouldn't be saving any money. On top of that, my bill has slowly crept up and up over the last 2 years. I hate you, Comcast.

I have a Roku with Netflix and just started Hulu+. Not sure I'll keep that in the fall, but I've gotten a lot of use out of it so far. Also, I've bought a few full seasons of current tv shows through Amazon, so they're available to me the next morning.

We haven't had satellite for about 6 years. We do have a TV for gaming, DVDs and Netflix.

Why is the model cutting a power cable in the picture?

i am so stressed about this topic. Im not quite ready to give up cable, but Ive been trying to figure out a way to save money. I have Comcast and i pay about 130 a month for internet and cable. I also havent made the jump to a phone with a data plan because i dont want to pay for internet twice. I have researched a few options but im not sure what the best decision is. I made an appt with Dish to see if they can find a signal since Directv couldnt, thats how I ended up with Comcast. I thought maybe a cheaper cable and then maybe upgrading to a phone with internet and possible tether to my laptop from the phone would be my best option but Im afraid to commit to anything not knowing if its the right option. UGH! I too was going to just get internet from Comcast but the price goes up. Fairpoint is a little more reasonable but people complain about their services around here a lot. I had them once for a short period and I had no issues, but again afraid to commit. Dish has a 2 year commitment... bla bla bla

We haven't had cable for over ten years now, and I have honestly never missed it. There are so many other options now, like Hulu, Netflix, even Amazon (if you have Prime), and DVDs of shows getting released so quickly, that weren't even around when we first got rid of cable. I think it would be a much easier decision to make today.

Can't live without HBO. Otherwise I'd dump the cable.

I've been cable-free for three and a half years and TV-free for two years! I don't miss it at all! The only thing I miss a little is my game consoles - but I haven't missed them enough to figure out a way to plug them into one of our computers (which I'm sure exists somewhere).

I got rid of cable a few years ago. I tried to get it installed when I moved but after multiple no-show appointments and an attempted appointment with the non-English speaking installer and his translator, I had enough. I missed watching Mad Men but then found out I could subscribe to it on iTunes. I didn't subscribe this year and will just get the DVD when it is released. There is no other must-see TV for me. I have Netflix (DVDs by mail as my computer is too old to support streaming) and Classicflix and they work just fine.

I think what I enjoy the most is not writing that check every month to the cable company. We turned the cable off last January and my 10yo daughter didn't notice until almost March, so that will tell you how hard it is. We have a wii and roku, netflix, amazon and hulu+. Our tvs are not digital and I want to replace at least 1 maybe both so we haven't yet gotten an antennae since we'd need a converter too. We've introduced the kids to a lot of good older movies and cartoons. So far to date, we've saved $450 and we may upgrade the tv when we reach $700.

One good thing about not having cable is that on those days I just don't want to work out, I get motivated by the promise of an hour of "House Hunters International" or the like while I'm on the elliptical at the gym. Pathetic, maybe, but at least once a week crappy tv is all that movtivates me...

I have been cable free for 2 years. Best decision of my life. No more mindless channel surfing. I do have Netflix and Vudu. That way I can watch what I want. Don't miss TV shows at all. Now I read and listen to music and go to bed earlier and meditate and make art. A better life all around.

My family has also been without TV for two years (seems like a trend here.) But we just signed up to have it installed only for the Olympics coverage. I know we can get it online, but it's just not the same.

We also use Netflix and Hulu (don't waste your money on Hulu+ -- it has little extra content then the free stuff and you still have to watch the advertisements.) Project Free TV had a lot of current television programming, but you must, must have up-to-date virus and anti-malware protection on your laptop. It's super buggy.

We got rid of cable a year ago and found out that just by plugging in to antenna already on our roof that here in NYC we get more than a dozen channels over the air--all the networks, cw, fox, upn, as well as ny1, TBS, three PBS stations, al jazeera, tv guide channel, ion, and a few more. So we can always watch news, sports and old movies, even cooking shows on PBS on weekends. Comboed with Netflix it's pretty great.

Well, this is a whole new world.

I've never had cable, or any of those other services, in my life. I have a tv that I paid $300 for, 5 years ago, that gets free-to-air channels only. I don't download/watch online, because it chews up my prepaid internet credit. So basically, I watch 2 or 3 hours of free tv a week, or I go to the cinema or rent a dvd from the local store.

I feel like a throwback to last century after reading this! LOL.

We cut our cable last December, when we swapped our dining room with our living room. Our new living room was smaller, and it just didn't have room for a TV. I'd been wanting to try going TV-free as I found myself staying up til midnight most nights watching Law & Order reruns, etc so this seemed like a good time to start. So far we haven't missed anything -- and we don't even have Netflix or apps to supplement. We go to friends' houses if there's something we really want to see and we make a social evening out of it!

Haven't had a TV/cable for about ten years. We use Hulu (only the free stuff), Amazon to rent movies, and, more and more. . . the public library! Easy to get all the movies we want, free. I'm a big library fan. Also, listen to lots of NPR for news, etc.

In the past 20 years, i've only had Cable TV because it came with a roommate. On my own, it was far too expensive for my sinlge-woman budget and the majority of shows never interested me. So i've never really missed not having cable.

Today, my partner and i are cable AND TV-free. We pretty much rely on Netflix for visual entertainment.

Though when a special event is happening, the question comes up about convenience "Wouldn't it be better to roll out of bed and turn on World Cup?"

In the end, we realize how the pros simply outweigh our temptation to be couch potatoes.

I didn't have a television at all until my bf moved in. He brought a massive big screen, but wanted to cut costs, so he decided to give then antenna a shot- it's been working just fine! We both have our own Netflix accounts, still, and he has an HBO Go (I think it's called?) account that he can use for the shows he likes, but, seriously, I think both of us had maybe 3 channels we watched on cable. We get to catch up on our fill of mindless TV when we're at our parents' or with friends. We pay 35 bucks a month for Internet and are still on our separate cell phone plans. Around here, I don't know anyone under the age of 30 who has a phone-Internet-cable bundlething.

No cable for 3 years. With social media, tv has become less of a solo endeavor. Everybody tweets/fb what they're watching. So in addition to Hulu + Netflix, I go to finale or award show parties with friends who have cable. Gets you out of the apt & keeps u connected.

About 6 months ago, my 14-year old son and I agreed to try ending TV, cable, and XM radio in favor of having more money and time to pursue some "live" entertainment options.

Hulu, I-Tunes, Netflix, Pandora and picking up shows on YouTube have long been a part of teen culture, so dumping the TV was surprisingly painless. Bike rides, going to the movies with buddies and joining the high school cross country team turned out to be great ways to spend freed-up funds/time.

Recently, I heard a kid offering my son the delivery of a spare TV and Xbox. I was (silently)delighted by the reply: "thanks man... that's nice of you, but I really like my life this way."

Bye bye, TV.

I could never get rid of my cable - I watch way too many hours of sports (and truthfully I don't think I would want to even if I could). While I can usually find a stream (except for baseball), it's not the same as watching sports in HD on TV. There are so many blackouts for local sports when you buy the packages, that it would basically be useless.

I also like randomly flipping through channels and finding something new and interesting to watch. When I watch things on my computer I inevitably end up checking my work e-mail and working on work projects.

I have never personally owned a TV and am proud of it. It's the worst addiction in the western world. I was raised on it like everyone else, but grew disinterested by my late teens. Go a year without it, and you will have a better life and never want it back. Now at 36 we have internet, which is almost as bad, but at least you can weed out the garbage easier, and when your show is over, it's over.

i cut my cable a few months ago. i didn't really use it anyway. there are only 4 or 5 shows i watch and even with cable i had to get most of these online because my provider doesn't carry AMC, FX, HBO, etc. netflix, hulu, amazon, and itunes cover almost all of the bases, and when those fail, i grab a torrent (you've forced my hand, HBO). the only difference between my life with and without cable is that now i have an extra $60/month, i play podcasts instead of watching sports center when i clean my home, and i go to the pub to watch live sports. cutting cable has not cut my intake of media or television series (which was limited anyway). it's just given me one less bill to pay. i wish i'd done it sooner.

No cable or satellite for three years now. I have saved around $4000 so far. The bit of TV I watch comes from a few sources, Netflix (streaming and Blu-ray), my Mac Mini for shows offered by the channels directly and other videos, and over the air TV. That's more than enough for me.

We haven't used cable in years...and when we decided to check on satellite prices I didn't realize how much money we save simply by keeping an eye out for new things on Netflix and watching stuff online (at least $60/mo). Commercials are also a lot more bearable online.

@JUSTIN KEENEN By cutting out cable, I can completely justify the 10+ Sundays I spend at bar watching football, as well as other major sporting events. I'd probably spend a couple of Sundays there anyway, plus it's a better experience: social, larger screen, ability to watch multiple games. I make use of various game day parties I'm invited to and by and large have been okay without it. I'm currently view the olympics online with a friend's username and password for their cable, so supportive friends are great :)
Worse case scenario you could always order cable during football season and ditch it for the off-season.

I cut cable years ago. I am a cable news junkie, so I have XM radio to cover that, and my other TV favorite is sports. ESPN3 takes care of a lot of what I like. I could care less about 95% of what else is on TV, so Netflix and Hulu take care of me pretty well. I don't miss TV at all.

I just cut the cable after moving cross country again, but the savings aren't significant. I've been paying for cable for years and only watching the NFL, so I figured that enough is enough. I'm saving $65 per month, and I paid $79 for Amazon Prime. I also bought an antenna. We get 39 channels, half of which are in Spanish. We've always had our TV room in the basement, so it's never been a big part of our lives, but honestly, if I paid for Netflix and Hulu Plus, I'd be back up to $20 per month on "TV" while still missing my football, and I don't have a PS3, so that's not an option.

True Blood sucked me back to cable. ;) Every year for my bday I get a cable subscription for the summer while True Blood is airing. But, otherwise, we don't watch t.v. outside of hulu and netflix at all. I will say, though, that the money we save by cutting the cord is spent on my husband's new iphone gadget+service. So, if it's not one thing.. it's another.

Grew up with no TV in the house and didn't have one in college so kinda used to not having access to the old idiot box. Had cable for a few years in the mid-2000s, but decided to cut it out about 5 years ago. Now, through a combination of Roku, Apple TV, bit torrent, the computer and several iPad apps, we see everything we want to see. For example, watching Olys now via BBC on Roku and via some bit torrent streams. Only downside has been inability to watch my beloved Formula One races on my schedule. If I want to see them (via bit torrent), I gotta watch when it is live. Oh, and college football can get dicey, but usually can find a stream somewhere if you look hard enough.

On a side note, tried to get cable for a single month just for the Olys. My local cable company wanted about $130 for the basic package--no premium chanels--for that one month. Honestly, I think greed is what is going to finally kill the cable companies.

Since digital tv I have yet to figure how to record shows. Our local PBS station has done shows that I cannot get any other way and we can no longer record, as far as I know.

Anyone?

Antenna didn't work for us - I had to subscribe to local cable just to watch the "free" networks - boo. The digital boxes the government sold everyone just don't work in our area, except on sub zero winter days when I guess the air was clear?
Anyway, I watch ALL of my tv shows on Hulu on my laptop. If I can't watch it online I do without. The hubby watches tv in the living room-so there is no fighting over channels :) and has just adjusted to living without cable like, it seems, the rest of the world uses. My 16 year old son hasn't watched tv since he was a toddler BUT I won't mention his online gaming addiction ;)
I love all the $$ money we are saving, which is more of a PRO vs the con of not having 500 stations to flip through. I'm very easily sucked into the tv world so this helps me live a life away from the boob-tube.

I have never paid for cable / satellite as an adult. I did live in an apartment or two where it was included. But, personally, I refuse to pay for any more commercials to come into my home. I do purchase the net version of Netflix and I watch things on free Hulu all the time. I have my macbook hooked up to my huge tv, so everything I choose to watch is like a movie going experience. I love the Hulu service that allows you to sign up for the shows you want to watch and they email you when they are available. No planning your life around the big corporations anymore. If it is not on free tv, Netflix, or Hulu, I don't usually bother with it. I feel they don't want me as a viewer. LIBRARY, LIBRARY, LIBRARY... As for movies and some tv shows not available on the above listed aggregators, I use the library. When I see or hear about a movie that I want to see, I immediately go to my library's hold page and sign up for said movie / show. They email me when the movie is available for pickup at my local branch and I get a 3 week check out time for the movie / show. It is great for those of us who are short on entertainment time and don't care about instant gratification. Also, the shows are checked out per season - which is very nice. I also know that itunes, Red Box, and all the other pay for streaming sites are at my disposal. But, I have yet to use one. I would rather wait for the free library version.

We bought a Sony Bluray player with streaming capabilty and a wireless router. Canceled cable and now we only pay for internet ($35/m) and Netflix streaming ($8/m). We watch movies and occasional TV shows (Breaking Bad) on Netflix and a lot of PBS with our antenna. Netflix has plenty of things for the kids and we will get DVDs for free from the library once in a while. It's been 6 months and we still don't miss cable!

When we moved into our apartment, we decided not to get cable. The decision was easy because for some reason a few channels came through our hookup– HBO, Food Network, TBS– and I bought a connecting cable for my laptop to the television. When we came back from vacation earlier this month, we discovered that both all the movie channels we were receiving had been cut off. Fine. But, then I went to hook my computer up to the television to watch the latest episode of Louie off of iTunes (where I purchase the shows I really cannot miss like Mad Men) and discovered that the latest software update forbade me from watching my library of movies on the big screen. WTF???

Cut cable a year ago and don't miss it one bit. We have an antenna and get the major (free) network channels. We do subscribe to Hulu Plus and Netflix for additional options.

PBS just ran this same story on facebook... odd...
http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2012/07/need-help-cutting-the-cord-to-cable-this-e-book-will-guide-you207.html

One thing I learned when my mom refused to replace the family TV when it went kaput nearly 10 years ago was that I didn't really need it as long as we had the internet. When I moved out, I didn't get cable. Instead, I got a Hulu Plus and Netflix subscriptions for most shows I watch. For movies and shows that are not on Hulu or Netflix I just download them from iTunes.

It's neither here nor there to me, but I don't understand why some people are 'proud' of not having a tv. It's not like you need an actual tv set to watch tv shows, as some of these comments amply demonstrate.

(I know that's not what the actual article is about.)

We didn't bother to subscribe here in Australia, Pay TV. As TV is now digital, we didn't bother installing an aerial to enable the Digital TV Switchover. Using the set top box we only have clear access to two TV channels and three radio stations. My fiance watches his sport online. But really we can't be bothered and there's more to do than watching TV all day anyway.

We have TV to watch our DVDs - I prefer our kids to watch their favourite shows from DVD because we were quite disturbed by TV adverts targeted at kids and the frequency of them! I prefer to watch the latest film on DVD because of the ticket/food/drink prices only to sit in a damaged seat or a seat with rubbish.

I don't have cable and never plan on getting it. All my adult life I've worked nights. The shows that I enjoy watching all air when I'm asleep. I use the internet to catch up on what I've missed. It's much cheaper and not limited to whatever package I could afford, or what country I live in.

Really the only thing my tv gets used for is video games and DVDs. I never bothered to get an antenna setup, so I don't even get basic broadcast.

Was TV free for 2 years, cable free for 3. When I moved in with my boyfriend, he had a TV, but we don't have cable and barely watch TV at all. We watch the shows we want to watch by getting an iTunes season pass of a particular show or by using Netflix. Works great, and I don't waste my time watching TV - I watch what I want to watch when I want to watch it. I'll NEVER go back.

I am also cable free and have a better life because of it! About 2 years ago my BF moved in with me and I decided to connect it again. All we did was sit around, eat, watch TV and sleep. Now that we moved to a new place, I decided to not to connect it again. Its amazing how much you can get done when you aren't spending your evenings in front of the tube....reading, listening to music, connecting with friends, cooking REAL food, walking, biking, gardening and the list goes on and on.....
Do I still watch TV? yes, but its mostly movies or DVDs of our favorite TV shows but this is occasionally at best...
I would encourage anyone reading this to challenge yourself to go wtihout TV for a month just to see how much your life changes...its kinda cool...

For people in Manhattan, can you get antenna reception? I thought I remembered Time Warner making people get a cable box just to replace antenna broadcasts a couple years ago?

We've been without for some time - I think the plug was pulled in November. Just Netflix. My bf watches sports, but instead of the $339 football package, a beer or a diet coke + nachos is cheaper (or the same price) AND supports the local economy. He does like the baseball games, but goes and watches them at his grandparents' with them - they would have cable anyway (for said games) and love that he (or we) come and watch with them. My one TV addiction is available the next day after it airs on Amazon for $1.89, which is still much cheaper than cable! We have a google box can stream everything! Plus, it has the keyboard rather than a remote, which is pretty nice.

The wife and I cut the cable when we got married and never looked back. We watch movies and a few TV shows through Netflix, but don't miss anything else. We've saved bundles not trying to keep up with everyone else. I'm not a huge sports fan, so those packages are luxuries, and she uses the excuse of no cable to visit friends and family more often. We normally just have the TV off in the evenings and it forces us to actually talk with each other and read a book or two. The quiet house is the best trade-off.

Good post, something I've been considering recently. Not always having access to live sports would the hardest part for this household. At the moment I've been flipping back and forth between the four stations showing the Olympics, and it's times like this that I'm glad I have cable. It'd be nice if one could just get a temporary package for special events like this.

I didn't have TV for months, just internet, then I realized that True Blood was coming back, and no, I can't wait till it comes out on Netflix. The plan is to get rid of the HBO when it;s over but to keep my cable. I don't watch a whole lot of TV, but I do like to watch the news as it is happening. And frankly, watching TV or movies on my computer just didn't do it for me.

I cut the cable a few months ago and besides saving money, I'm getting more sleep. After decades of channel surfing myself to sleep, I thought this would be a problem. But no. I don't stay up to watch ANYthing any more, my room is completely dark, and I drop off quickly and stay asleep all night. Love it! Now I find myself watching a movie on Netflix and/or clips of news programs online every now and then, even though I'm recovering from surgery. No more hours wasted 'looking for something good to watch.' The quiet is absolutely blissful. And so is the total absence of any sort of reality tv, commercials and other mind-numbing b.s.

I grew up without television, and at the time I felt like I was the only person in the world without tv. To clarify, we had a tv, but no cable/satellite/local stations. So the only option was to watch a VHS movie, which we rarely did and when we did it was an education National Geographic movie. Looking back, it was great! We did so much as a family, were outdoors all the time, and accomplished so many things on our to-do lists! When I met my husband, all hope for this kind of lifestyle flew out the window. His family's "quality" time was deeply rooted in watching television (think Jerry Springer and Days of Our Lives...ugh). We've slowly been cutting back on our cable bill, but I would love nothing more than to just nix it entirely. What my husband doesn't realize is that he's already living the life I had hoped for us - we're outdoors, working on projects, playing with our kids, etc. - and NEVER have time for tv! He just can't give up the "well, if I have time, I want to make sure I can watch MLB and NFL" mentality. I'm all for sending him to his friends' homes or the local sports bar to watch the game if it meant I could rid myself of this ridiculous waste of money! I've tried everything, but I think I might be stuck with cable...sigh...

Except when I was living in the dorms, I've never had cable, and I've been TV-free for most of my adult life. The proliferation of programming available online means that I've started watching more, but unless and until they offer a la carte cable where you can decide which channels you want and not pay for Spike TV or whatever, I'll never consider paying for it. I think you're late to this party - cable use in cities has been on the decline for a while now.

I have been with out cable or tv of my own for two years now. Although I CAN NOT live with out the internet I have managed to watch everything I feel the urge to most of the time. Even shows that are not on Hulu or Netflix can often be found online on the website for the channel. (Lifetime and Project Runway, Walking Dead and AMC etc.) Netflix has also allowed me to get interested in shows that I may have missed when they were starting out and catch up (Mad Men, Breaking Bad). Many things you will now find broadcasted on YouTube as well, now that they've changed some things up there. I now watch INDY CAR there regularly. (And repeatedly since I like the soothing sounds of racing as I do house work and it helps motivate me for some odd reason.)

Its quite easy to hook up computers to tv screens in this age as well. So you may not have to get a game console just to use it for a device for tv if you don't to intend to use the other features on them.

The best thing about it all. No commercials to fastforward/ sit through. Or as with hulu... just a fraction of what it would be on cable or sat.

We've been without cable/satellite for years and only miss it occasionally. We never flip aimlesslessly through the channels only to watch something totally worthless until bed time. And my kids aren't continually asking for the latest toys or junk food from the commercials that seem to eat up 2/3 of the time of the OTA shows. Occasionally, it is frustrating. For instance, not being able to legally download and watch Game of Thrones is really frustrating, or the occasional sports apps - such as the one for the Masters this year - that require you to have a concurrent paid subscription to a cable or dish service to use the app. My gut tells me that sooner or later all these stingy networks are going to have to find a way to accomodate cord-cutters, or risk losing us to a competitor (or worse, to illegal downloads).

We cut satellite a few years back and don't regret it (Roku, Hulu+, Netflix and Amazon Prime)

How are other that are cable/satellite free watching the Olympics?

I'm not big into the summer games, and I have a friend who is very big into them, MSNBC style channels, and college sports. She uses her cable heavily and so between spending time with her at her place, and the cable at work and the internet I feel connected enough to not feel like I'm missing out.

We ditched the cable and got a Roku (Netflix and Hulu) almost 2 years ago. I highly recommend it.

I haven't read all 111 comments, so forgive me if this is a double post, but for many shows and movies check your library. Im currently watching Game of Thrones on a borrowed DVD set. They also got me the 1974 Dr. Who DVDs.

We did this years ago and love it. We stream shows and movies from netflix and hulu plus and occasionally buy a season pass from Amazon to something like Mad Men or Top Chef. We do have an antennae for watching the super bowl or something like that but we rarely set it up. For sports we find ourselves going to local minor league games or sports bars to watch games. It's actually more fun than sitting at home. I totally recommend this.

I got rid of cable and my television a few years ago. Never been happier.

Many (most?) MLS matches are available through a subscription to MLS Live. I was disappointed to not see soccer listed as one of the sports in this post. A subscription for the 2012 season is $59.99.

I was cable free until I moved in with my current roommates, who are obsessed with crappy reality tv. It worked well since I could get ABC, NBC, fox, and some random channels OTA and use Netflix, Hulu, and HboGo for everything else. The only issue was I could never get PBS OTA.

I'm thinking about getting rid of cable again and wish there was some way to get PBS.

We don't have cable any more either. The thing that is killing me now is that I can't watch the Olympics! I only want to watch TV once every four years and the system is just not set up for that.

I'm about to move out onto my own and am looking at my cable options. I've considered going cable free but I'm a big sports fan and unfortunately, there aren't really any options for me without cable (I watch a lot of college sports and no packages that I have found give you access to those games).

But I have some advice for your step 1 - Sidereel (www.sidereel.com) has a "track show" option that's pretty cool. You select the shows you watch and can check off each episode you've seen (or whole seasons at once). Really helpful if you're going back and watching a show so you can keep track of which episode you're on. But more importantly for these purposes, it shows you what network the shows on, when episodes next air, and where they're legally available to watch (which could help you determine which option to go with). And they even make a calendar for you to see what shows are on when!

I've been without tv & cable for 6 years...and....I MISS IT! The last two rooms I've rented have been with families that have cable TV (they pay the bills, it's included in my rent) and knowing that I have HGTV (the only show I lovingly watch) at my beck and call is my version of crack.

Moving to a place where the owner DOESN'T have cable TV. Hulu carries some of my HGTV shows, but not all of them.

I know...whine whine poor me no HGTV - total first world problem - but it's the only addiction I allow myself and I'm actually thinking of breaking down and buying a tv and getting minimal cable.

Is there a way I can get my HGTV without breaking the bank and breaking down and buying a tv?

I have a Mac Book Pro and an iPad. All suggestions welcome.

:-)

Is it my imagination or was some collective decision reached about two years ago and people suddenly realized cable co's were charging a fortune for garbage? I wonder if the sudden alarming change in the economy and other world issues has everyone's tolerance of paying way too much for badly written drivel way down. I too have found alternatives: reduced high speed internet only; no land line phone, Hulu (This and that especially The Daily Show), Amazon streaming video (just for The Walking Dead) and purchased the entire episode collection of Star Trek STNG on dvd for when I want endless background TV. Honestly I think my life is a lot better than having to listen to TV droning on in the background all day and I've found more entertaining things to do with my time and money.

No cable here for the last 8 years. Once you make it thru the initial "detox" phase, you'll wonder how you ever had time to watch tv in the first place. We do Netflix, mainly and some Hulu, and still only when we have the time... Minimal really. Watching regular broadcast television is so jarring... Commercials and reality shows just seem so obnoxious. The only thing we (family) is really missing is the Olympics. Personally I prefer reading the news, including transcripts of speeches, etc. sans the emphasis and emotional delivery. Much easier to zero in on fallacies and get to the meat of thing IMHO.

The only thing we *ARE* really missing... Teehee. Clearly, my smart phone hillbilly translation was on!

I'm obviously in the minority here but I will never cut cable. I love my awful tv shows (My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, anyone?), and the ability to dvr the morning news to watch at my leisure. My dvr is constantly recording fantastic movies on AMC and TCM, and I can't get enough of The History Channel and the like. If you can cut cable, more power to you, but to me it's a great stress release and the apartment would be way too quiet without it (I live alone).

i tried using Netflix on my Xbox 360 ( in Canada) and it told me i needed a Microsoft live Gold Subscription.... what is that about?

We dropped cable when we were first married, and had only DSL internet for years. When we moved to our current apartment complex, the cable provider offered a free-cable-with-internet deal that was cheaper than internet alone, so we got that deal for the year. We are about to drop it again.

We were happier with the wider selection of movies on netflix, the streaming of Hulu and other sites, and hung out with friends or had a date night on football nights. The much-touted "on demand" service seems arbitrary and limited. And we almost never watch TV in real time. (The exception being our weekly ritual of the Thursday night comedies... which we can get via rabbit ears!)

We also noticed that the public broadcasting is much better via antennae than on cable! PBS has a lousy show lineup available through our cable company, but PBS was wonderful through the antennae! I can't wait to get Rick Steves, Steve Raichlen, and Simply Ming back into my regular lineup!

My significant other and I opted to not get cable when we moved into our first apartment in April. We decided to stick with internet which provided us with Netflix and Hulu. We DID look into getting satellite because football season is coming but our landlord won't allow a dish on our building. We don't mind because there's a sports bar down the street. We also go to work later in the day (12pm & 2pm) and work til 8 or 10 so we usually sleep in in the morning and just watch a TV show or movie after work. We're already a little strapped for money so saving that $80+ bill every month is nice. I don't miss having cable.

I've never owned cable (I'm 42) and I have a 16 yr old! We watch regular tv and LOVE Netflix. She's a savvy teen who finds any and everything she wants to watch online. I can't justify the cost of cable. Every time I visit a friend with cable, we flip through the hundred's of channels and can NEVER find anything to watch.

I didn't have a TV for over 10 years (and I'm 29) until earlier this year .There was just so much crap on tv that I didn't see the sense in wasting my money on something that would probably only make me lazy. I honestly didn't miss it, except for when I wanted to watch a movie - for which I used my laptop.

This January however, I finally broke own and bought nice TV so I could better entertain my guests. I decided to buy a blueray player, too, that had Hulu and Netflix apps built in. No need for Roku, no need for cable, and I've found there's plenty to watch!

I was looking at ways to cut my expenses....and realized this was a huge way to do it. I had a high def set top box, a low res ste top box and 1 premium channel on top of the basic service. Once I thought about it, I had watched maybe 1 hour of cable TV last month. As for missing sports, I will either use a digital antenna or go to the bar. Even buying drinks and a meal is still cheaper than carrying the extra equipment and services!

i did... sucked. if ur like me and r a nfl fan, DONT CUT THE CABLE!

Constant repeats of local high school football games, local cable programs, city council meetings, infomercials, QVC, uh...for $30. a month ?
Cable TV, especially 'Comcast' is ridiculously moronic, the programming is submental.
Finally got rid of Comcast, and the world seems a much better place.

MLS has MLSLive, and NBC Sports, which is taking over MLS and EPL next year, is going to have streaming services available, both for free and subscription. As an diehard DC United and Liverpool fan, this was the last thing stopping me from cancelling cable. That's not longer an obstacle!