Still watching TV using a cable box? Now’s the time to start streaming your favorite TV shows and movies instead.

The cable box is an expensive way to get TV. Yes it’s familiar, but it’s also something you don’t need anymore to enjoy your favorite TV shows and movies. The apps built into your smart TV or running on an inexpensive streamer such as Roku or Amazon Fire TV can provide more great shows than any cable box for less money. 

More Americans than ever are cutting the cable TV cord in favor of streaming, a trend accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic. Staying at home, facing financial hardship and bereft of options for live sports and other big events, people are turning to streaming in record numbers. 

Services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus, HBO Max and Hulu have thousands of TV shows and movies to stream on-demand, but that’s just the beginning. Live TV streaming services, available from the likes of Sling TV and YouTube TV, can stream most of the live channels available on your cable box with no contracts to sign, so you can cancel anytime. And if you don’t want to pay at all, numerous other services stream free TV shows, free movies and even free live news. Whether your favorite shows are on Netflix or TNT, Disney Plus or ESPN, Amazon Prime or your local ABC, NBC or PBS station, you can probably stream them without ever needing to use a cable or satellite TV box.