Streaming Stack vs Cable: Have You Re-bundled Without Noticing?

Cord-cutting promised lower bills. What did the math actually do?

The original streaming pitch was simple: skip the cable bundle, pay $9 for Netflix, save $90/month. That math worked exactly once. The streaming industry then re-fragmented — Disney pulled its catalog into Disney+, HBO and Discovery merged into HBO Max, Apple and Amazon launched competing services, sports content went to Peacock and Paramount+. A typical 2025 household stack with 5-6 services runs $60-100/month before any sports add-on. Add YouTube TV or Hulu Live for live TV ($72-85/mo) and you're back at cable's number — for content you have to assemble yourself.

This tool isn't an argument for going back to cable — it's an honest check on what the unbundling cost actually is for your specific stack. List what you subscribe to, set the cable benchmark to what you'd otherwise pay (FCC reports put the US average bundle near $100-130/mo), and see the monthly difference. Streaming may still be cheaper for you — especially if you're sub-$50/month — or it may have quietly crossed cable, and the choice is now about the non-price benefits (ad load, portability, on-demand), not the bill.

How the math works

1. Streaming total = sum of every listed service's monthly cost.
2. Monthly difference = streaming − cable benchmark. Positive = streaming costs more.
3. Annual difference = monthly × 12.
4. Future value of the diff applies the monthly-annuity FV formula to the absolute value of the monthly difference; the sign of the result matches the sign of the difference.

Sources: FCC reports on cable + broadband pricing, published price lists for Netflix / Disney+ / Apple TV+ / HBO Max / Hulu / Spotify / YouTube Premium as of 2025, and Variety / The Verge price-history records for the long-term trajectory.

The honest limit: streaming offers things cable can't — ad-free playback, no commitment, no install, library breadth, watch anywhere. Paying more for those benefits is a legitimate choice; the gap shown here is the price tag on that choice, not a judgment of it.

Math runs locally. Inputs never leave your browser. Source on github.

Where this calculation doesn't apply

• You also pay for live TV. YouTube TV ($72-83/mo), Hulu + Live TV, Sling — these add cable-like prices on top of the streaming stack. Include them as services if they're part of how you watch.
• You bundle through a phone or credit card. T-Mobile gives Netflix and Apple TV+. Some credit cards bundle Disney+ or Peacock. If you'd subscribe anyway, count it. If you only watch it because it's free with the bundle, you can leave it out.
• Ad-supported tiers. Netflix Basic with Ads is $7.99 vs Standard $15.49. If you accept ads, the comparison shifts meaningfully. Set the price to the tier you actually pay.
• Broadband isn't in the cable benchmark. Cable companies bundle TV with broadband; streaming requires broadband but doesn't include it. If you'd have broadband either way (you would), it cancels out and isn't part of the comparison.

What to actually do

1. List your actual current services with their actual current prices. Streaming prices have hiked every year — the number in your head from when you signed up is probably wrong.
2. Set the cable benchmark to what a comparable bundle would actually cost where you live (call your local provider and ask, or check their site).
3. If streaming costs more, ask whether the non-price benefits are worth the gap. If they are, keep it. If they aren't, pick 1-2 services to rotate out for a few months at a time.
4. If cable would cost more, you've validated the cord-cut. Redirect what you'd have paid the cable company into automatic investing — without the redirect the savings get absorbed elsewhere.