Hello Grasshoppa,
In my previous post, I have written about How Will Your Monthly Subscriptions Affect Your Financial & one of the details that I touched on was to source cheaper options. Over the years, I have subscribed & unsubscribed to many platforms until recently when I moved to a new house & bought a new TV, I started to feel some pinch in my subscriptions.
Previously, I barely touch any TV channels as it was always occupied by my mum but even when she was away, I will not use the TV because I find no interesting programs on Astro. My time with Netflix was also quite limited until the pandemic where I started watching it more frequently. Since the launch of Disney+ in Malaysia, I have cancelled my subscription to HBO Go which I subscribed to previously to watch Justice League. The combination of all subscriptions have taken almost RM300 out of my pocket each month & I am exploring other options to reduce it.
What Are The 5 Hacks That Can Save You Money From Your Subscriptions?
1. Go For Annual Subscription
Normally, the annual subscription cost lesser than monthly. You can opt for an annual subscription plan to help save you money.
2. Rotate Your Subscription
This applies to platforms offering short-term subscriptions such as Netflix, HBO Go, Disney+, or others. Not only it helps you to save money, but you are also able to enjoy different entertainment in a different month.
3. Go For Friends & Family Plan
Spotify & Netflix are offering friends & family plans where you can share them among your loved ones. For example, the Netflix Premium plan is RM55 where it can be shared among 4 users. You can share it among your friends or family & charge them each month for it. As for Spotify, their family package for 6 is RM23.80 & their personal ones are RM15.80. Would you rather pay more for the personal package or share it with your friends or family?
4. Downgrade Existing Plan
One of the common things that we usually do is to subscribe to the premium or mid package. Not sure why but it is a marketing trick for those companies to package it to make it worthy to take the mid or premium package. Do you really need such a package or those basic packages that are good enough for you?
5. Seek Other Options
TV Box is a good but illegal option where you are paying only one-off for the purchase & you can enjoy it for the next few years until the device is outdated. Some illegal streaming websites are also offering free movies or series you can watch online. Since it is illegal & free, you will have a risk of lagging, stream got taken down & other possible inconvenience.
Conclusion:
I came to this realisation the other day after I had a conversation with my colleague recently where he was sharing how much he paid for his Astro & Netflix bills which cost him RM180 a month. RM120 for Astro & RM60 for Netflix. He was looking at upgrading to a TV Box so he can save more money from all his fixed expenses. Although I’ve been applying most of the above hacks, there is also some room for me to optimise it further to ensure I can save more money. Although it is a small amount of money that many will overlooked, if you are calculating the total amount including your fixed expenses, you will realise that the amount is huge.
OSS!
You can also check out my latest YouTube video on Your Official Guide To Invest In Mutual Fund In Malaysia:
