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Streaming services are a pillar of modern entertainment, and nearly all of them require some form of subscription to either access content or have an enjoyable watching or listening experience. According to Deloitte’s 2026 Digital Media Trends report, 90% of US households have a paid subscription to a video-on-demand service, paying an average of $71 for four services.
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If you’re not careful, it’s easy to rack up a hefty monthly subscription tab that equals the average cable subscription, which is $122 per month, according to a 2024 Allconnect report. I manage to keep my music and TV subscription bill under $50 per month. I’ve tried several services and canceled most after my free trial period ended. These four made the cut. Here’s why.
1. Apple Music
Price: $10.99 per month
A music streaming subscription is a must-have for me, as I listen to music while working, driving, cooking, and doing all kinds of things in between. I can usually handle a few ads here and there when watching a YouTube video or a TV show, but there’s nothing more irritating to me than a 30-second ad interrupting my living room concert.
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An $11-per-month subscription awards me streaming in hi-res lossless and Dolby Atmos, access to the platform’s several radio shows and artist interviews, local and international radio broadcasts, and curated playlists for music discovery.
Apple Music’s catalog is slightly more expansive and discovery-focused than services like Tidal and Qobuz, and it offers Dolby Atmos streaming (unlike Qobuz), while still offering several tracks in up to 24-bit/192kHz.
2. YouTube Premium Lite
Price: $8.99 per month
I watch a lot of YouTube. It’s the platform I spend the most time watching. Despite my YouTube obsession, I’ve always been stubborn about giving this platform any money. But one day, on a 45-minute flight home to Atlanta from Wilmington, NC (a regional flight without Wi-Fi), I allowed YouTube to bill my Google account for a Premium Lite subscription so I could download a video to pass the time. I vowed to cancel once my free trial ended.
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Though my ego suffered, I never canceled the subscription, and I never will, so long as it stays at a reasonable price (YouTube raised its prices earlier this month). A YouTube Premium subscription comes with YouTube Music, but I’m happy with Apple Music, so I don’t want to pay for a service I’ll never use.
Some people may be put off by having to watch a few ads in exchange for YouTube Premium Lite’s $9-per-month price, but I can spend hours watching YouTube videos without any ads. As stated in YouTube’s fine print, music-related content comes with ads, and I can attest to that. Otherwise, the videos I enjoy, such as long-form videos about medieval life, documentaries on pop culture, and hours worth of Wired’s Tech Support YouTube series, are ad-free.
3. Peacock
Price: $10.99 per month
As a certified Bravoholic and Love Island fanatic, a Peacock subscription is a must-have in my house. Peacock is home to several old and new reality shows, which is mostly what I watch. Aside from reality TV, my husband uses this service to watch live sporting events, like NFL and NBA games.
I have a Premium account instead of a Select account, so I’m not barred from any of the platform’s content. Additionally, live sporting events are streamed in Dolby Atmos, despite my lower-tier subscription. This feature is a plus. Watching your team lose in spatial audio makes it sting just a little less.
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Otherwise, I don’t watch much else on Peacock. For any other service, I would’ve canceled since my taste is so niche, but I watch enough hours of Real Housewives alone to make my $11 per month worth it. Compared to YouTube’s and Netflix’s ad interruptions, Peacock subjects subscribers to longer ads more frequently.
A 90-second ad right when the housewives’ drama gets juicy can be annoying, but it’s an opportune time to have a snack break and remind myself that 90 seconds isn’t worth an extra $7 per month.
4. Netflix Standard with Ads
Price: $8.99 per month
Netflix is another streaming service that I’m very judicious about in terms of how much I’m willing to spend every month. Netflix has an incredible selection of original documentaries that I thoroughly enjoy, with the occasional live WWE event I’ll passively watch.
There are only two people in my household, so we don’t have any issues with streaming at the same time. Also, Netflix says that some titles are locked, but that’s never been an issue for me. I had to dig deep into Netflix’s catalog to come across a locked TV show or movie. Finally, Netflix promises spatial audio for Premium subscribers, but if you have a 5.1 setup, you’ll still get traditional surround sound, so I don’t feel like I’m missing out.
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On the ad front, Netflix doesn’t bombard me with long ads every 15 to 30 minutes. I notice I’ll get 15- to 30-second ads every hour or so, which I can stomach. Considering an ad-free Netflix subscription is an additional $11 per month, I don’t have an issue.
The bottom line
I’m someone who will exchange watching ads for a lower monthly bill for every platform except music streaming. I think streaming platforms leverage ads to coax people into paying more to avoid them, but they’re a non-issue for me on platforms like YouTube and Netflix. I use them as a break to check my phone, grab a snack, or snap back into reality after three straight hours on the couch watching TV — a wake-up call, if you will.
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To me, the occasional ad isn’t worth several more dollars every month, especially when I’m already subscribed to several platforms to access the entertainment I enjoy.