More Americans than ever are discovering how easy it is to cut the cord and move over to TV streaming.

Once upon a time, long ago, there was nothing but broadcast television, offering just a handful of channels. If you didn’t like what was on, tough luck. Then, came cable. With cable, you could flip between dozens, if not hundreds, of different channels, each one offering something different. In theory, you were bound to find a great show on one of the channels at any given moment. But somehow, theory was wrong and instead you were bound to find that all 300 channels were boring. Now, we're into a new era of TV on demand. Cable TV is slowly being pushed to the back of the stage, and Internet TV streaming is coming to the fore. TV streaming promises more options for shows, platforms, and devices, but not necessarily greater consumption.

Your computer used to be for work and internet browsing, your TV screen for entertainment. Now, you’re just as likely (or more so) to watch movies and TV shows on your laptop or desktop (think Netflix, Amazon Prime or HBO Go), as on your TV. This can be great for portability and flexible watching, but it’s not great if you end up with a group of friends huddled around a tiny screen. Fortunately, there are a number of ways that you can view your computer screen on your TV. The basic choice is between wired and wireless.

From small beginnings, internet TV is rising in popularity. Every day, more Americans cut the cord and switch from cable TV to getting all of their TV online. The main reason for making this switch is to save money on the ever-rising cost of cable subscriptions. Because cable TV packages vary so widely by region and provider, it’s hard to say exactly how much you’ll save when you cut the cord. Most researchers estimate that the average cable subscription costs $85 a month, or over $1,000 a year, but if you get extra packages or live in certain areas, that could be over $2,000 annually. Calculating the cost of streaming all of your TV through the internet depends on how much TV you watch and what you choose to see. There's a full range of price options from full cable replacement to the pick and choose series viewer. We’ve put together an overview of the cost of getting internet TV for the most common viewer types