This year, we've all consumed a lot of content on streaming services — and only our bank accounts feel a bit lighter. With all the holiday shopping still to be done, you might think this is a good time to pare down your entertainment budget and cancel your streaming services.
You're right ... and wrong.
Every year, after my turkey and TV binge, I cancel all my streaming services over Black Friday weekend. But here's the catch: I re-subscribe to all of them, taking advantage of the excellent Black Friday streaming deals.
Americans now pay an average of $61 a month for four streaming services, according to a Deloitte report. That's a hefty $732 a year. Of course, you don't have to subscribe to every streamer every month. In fact, we here at Tom's Guide recommend churning — canceling a service for a month or two, then resubscribing down the road when there's a new show or movie you truly cannot miss.
But at this time of year, you're better off canceling everything and turning right around to sign up again. I'll explain exactly why and how — and the five Black Friday streaming deals you absolutely should not miss.
Quick links
- Hulu with Ads: $0.99 per month for one year
- Peacock Premium: 12 months for $19.99
- Paramount Plus with Showtime: First two months for $5.98
- Max Ultimate Ad-Free Plan: save $41
- Disney Plus/Hulu Duo Basic Bundle: $2.99 per month for one year
5 can't-miss Black Friday streaming deals
Give yourself the gift of Black Friday streaming deals
Every Black Friday/Cyber Monday, most streaming services offer some kind of discount. But generally, these deals are only available to new subscribers (in some cases, returning subscribers who canceled awhile ago).
There's a super simple way to get around this fine print: Sign up with another email address.
You probably already have one (or a few). But if not, just go to any one of the numerous email services with a free tier, like Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, AOL, etc.
So, here's how I do this every year. First, Past Me already set calendar reminders to cancel the services I subscribed to during Black Friday week last year. So, I just make sure to cancel by the scheduled date.
Then, I use my new email address to sign up for the streaming deals. In my opinion, the best ones every year are Hulu, Peacock, Max and Paramount Plus.
The best streaming deals right now are for annual plans, which means you can't really churn these services out monthly. But since they're so deeply discounted, it's worth the upfront cost.
Just don't forget to set that reminder to cancel next year.
Is there a Netflix Black Friday deal?
Unfortunately, the answer is: no.
Historically, Netflix has rarely offered discounts on its plans and that includes not participating in Black Friday deals.
So, Netflix is sticking with its usual monthly prices: $6.99 for the Standard ad-supported plan; $15.49 for Standard ad-free; and $22.99 for Premium with 4K ultra HD.
However, since you aren't locked into a discounted annual plan, Netflix is the easiest streaming service to churn. They know this, too, which is why they've been splitting the seasons of their hottest shows ("Stranger Things," "Cobra Kai," "Emily in Paris," "Outer Banks," "You," etc.), forcing you to keep Netflix to see the rest of the new episodes.
Is there an Apple TV Plus Black Friday deal?
The answer is also: no. Which is a bummer because Apple TV Plus is on fire right now with the excellent shows "Shrinking," "Silo" and "Bad Sisters" all currently streaming.
But you can get Apple TV Plus for free for three months with the purchase an Apple device (if you've never had a free trial before). Check out our guide to the best Black Friday Apple deals.
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