How to negotiate cable prices {like a pro}

Are you wondering how to negotiate cable prices?  Sick of paying too much for cable? My friends have called me the cable negotiating guru, because I know how to negotiate them down so I never have to pay full price.

How to Negotiate Cable Prices

Is your cable bill one of the largest bills in your monthly budget?  If so, I have some tips on how to get that bill much lower and negotiate cable prices.

We actually choose not to have cable at this point in our, but if we did have it – I wouldn’t be paying that much for it.  We choose to stream using Sling TV and Amazon Prime instead to have more control over what our children are watching.

If you are interested in how to save on streaming video make sure that you  read up about Sling TV, which is our favorite steaming service at only $19.99 per month (Get a free 7-day trial here)

Learning how to Negotiate cable prices can be tricky; the cable companies use many tactics to keep you paying at your current rate.  You have to be willing to cancel your cable if they don’t allow you to negotiate – I will explain why below.

Here are some of my secret tips on how to negotiate cable prices like a pro:

1.) Use a competitor deal/flyer to negotiate your prices.

Just the other day I got a Direct TV flyer in my newspaper.  This would be the perfect time for me to call the cable company and tell them what offer Direct TV is offering me.

Then ask them “I am thinking about switching to {competitor name}. What can you do to match this price?”  Then be silent; put the ball in their court.  Many times they will easily start to lower your price, matching their discounted offer.  They typically do not want you to leave, so they will try to keep you as a customer as long as possible.

2.) Ask to speak to someone in the cancellation/retention department.

If you cannot get anywhere negotiating the prices with competitor deals, then the next step would be to ask for the cancellation/retention department.  These people can really make you a deal.  The phone operator that you spoke with earlier may have not been given the training or permission to discount rates.  Most people quit negotiating after speaking with only one person, but you really need to speak to an employee responsible for cancellation requests.  Tell them that you need a lower rate and are considering canceling and going to another service if they cannot lower your bill.

3.) Cancel your cable and wait for a follow up call.

If talking to someone in the retention department still doesn’t work, here is another option. This one can be hard to do, especially if you LOVE cable TV.  You must be willing to really cancel your cable.  I’ve done this a couple of times and they always called me back within the week to offer me a better incentive to come back to them.

It can get frustrating when you know that your friend is paying $40.00 less for the same services that you have, so you can always use that to negotiate as well.

If this doesn’t work, you can file a complaint with the company on their website under their contact form. You can usually get feedback from the company that way.

Keep in mind that if you do this over and over again without upgrading over the course of a few years, they may stop offering you a retention deal unless you add on a service. You may need to switch providers in order to get a better deal.

You can also sign up for a FREE 7-Day Trial of Sling TV to try it out! You can sign up for that here.  With sling you can stream LIVE TV from over 25 channels, including ESPN, HGTV, Disney Channel and more – best part is it is only $19.99 per month!!

If you still cannot negotiate a better deal (which would surprise me), we have had great luck the past years having just basic cable and streaming in Amazon Prime (you can get a free trial of that here.)

How have you been able to negotiate prices on cable in the past? I would love to hear your advice.