What your TV budget could do instead
Cable and satellite give each room a channel lineup. For $40 a room, Senior Streamers gives each room live channels, a classic library, scheduled programming, video calls and messages from family. Here is an honest side-by-side, including what residents give up.
| Cable or satellite (DIRECTV, Spectrum, Xfinity) | Senior Streamers | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost per room | Bulk contracts: about $5–15 per unit for programming, plus equipment.1 A resident's own account: about $105–170 with fees.2 | $40 per room, everything below included |
| Equipment | Receivers in every room or a central headend, sold or leased separately; a dish or coax wiring1 | Box, voice remote, camera and microphone. $400 deposit per room, refunded when the box comes back in good working order |
| Contract length | DIRECTV senior living: three-year minimum with an early-cancellation fee.1 A resident's own satellite plan: usually 24 months.2 | One year per room, renewing automatically. No cancellation fee, and rooms can be added or removed at any time |
| Installation | Dish or headend, coax to each room, receiver setup | Plugs into the TV's HDMI port and your Wi-Fi. A small adapter covers rooms with Ethernet but weak Wi-Fi |
| National news & weather | Yes | Yes CBS News 24/7, NBC News NOW, ABC News Live, LiveNOW from FOX, Fox Weather, BBC News, Bloomberg TV and more |
| Local news | Yes local stations | Many markets 300+ local news channels from stations across the country |
| Classic TV & game shows | Some depends on package | Yes channels like The Carol Burnett Show and The Price Is Right: The Barker Era, plus 42,900 episodes and films on demand |
| ESPN, regional sports & live network games | Yes in most packages | No Senior Streamers carries free sports channels only. See what changes |
| Premium movie channels | Add-on HBO, Showtime | Not today premium streaming services are coming with the next box |
| Playlists & scheduled programming | No | Yes mix live channels, classic shows and personal videos, and play them at set times |
| TV hours | No | Yes turn the TV on and off on a daily schedule |
| Video calls on the TV | No | Yes with family, friends and care staff, scheduled or on request |
| Messages & videos from family | No | Yes sent from a phone, shown on the TV, read aloud on request |
| Commercials | Yes on most channels | Yes on free live channels, as on regular TV. No ad breaks added to Golden Oldies or personal videos |
Sources are listed at the bottom of this page.
Compare with what you pay today
Pick the situation closest to yours, then change the numbers to match your bills. The starting numbers are typical 2026 prices from the sources below.
Estimates only. The deposit is a one-time amount, refunded for each box returned in good working order. Internet service and TVs are not included in either column.
How the numbers usually work out
These examples use published 2026 prices. Your own bills will differ, so use the calculator above or ask us for a quote.
Residents pay their own cable or satellite
A resident with their own satellite or cable plan typically pays about $105–170 a month once box and broadcast fees are added.2 Senior Streamers is $40, and adds video calls and family messages.
Typical difference: $65–130 less per resident, every month. That is a saving families notice, and a reason to choose your community.
The community charges a TV fee
Many communities pass TV on to residents as a monthly fee. Published examples range from $20 to $50 a month, sometimes with a hook-up charge.3
At $40, Senior Streamers fits inside the same fee, and turns it into TV plus family connection. No cable boxes to lose: one community charges residents $120 for a lost or damaged cable box.3
Families buy a separate video-calling device
Senior tablets and TV calling boxes cost families about $10–65 a month plus the device. For example, GrandPad is about $40 a month plus a $299 tablet, and JubileeTV is $39 a month.4
For the price of the calling device alone, Senior Streamers puts calls on the TV the resident already watches, and replaces the TV service too.
The community pays a bulk TV contract
Bulk satellite programming can be inexpensive per unit: about $5–15 a month through a reseller, plus receivers or a headend, with a three-year minimum on DIRECTV's senior living plans.1 Senior Streamers is one year per room, with no cancellation fee.
On programming alone, bulk TV costs less. The difference pays for video calling, family messages, a 42,900-episode classic library and scheduled programming, with refundable equipment instead of receivers you own.
What residents keep, and what changes
Senior Streamers uses free, ad-supported live channels. Most of what residents watch every day is there. Some things are not, and you should know which before you switch.
What residents keep
- National news: CBS News 24/7, NBC News NOW, ABC News Live, LiveNOW from FOX, BBC News, Bloomberg TV, Scripps News, Newsmax2
- Weather: Fox Weather, AccuWeather NOW, WeatherNation
- Local news: more than 300 local news channels from stations around the country
- Classic TV & game shows: The Dick Van Dyke Show, Leave It to Beaver, The Carol Burnett Show, Family Feud Classic, The Price Is Right: The Barker Era
- Faith: Daystar, Trinity Broadcasting Network, BYUtv, Jewish Life TV
- Hobbies: The Bob Ross Channel, Antiques Roadshow, This Old House, America's Test Kitchen, PBS Nature
What changes
- ESPN and regional sports networks are not available; free sports channels are
- Live network primetime and games on the main CBS, NBC, ABC and FOX channels are not included
- Some cable news networks, such as Fox News, MSNBC and the full CNN channel, are not free; CNN Headlines is
- Premium movie channels like HBO and Showtime are not included today
- Free channels carry commercials, like regular TV
Have sports fans? Many communities keep a single cable or antenna feed on the common-room TV for game days, and move every room to Senior Streamers.
Try it before you switch
Put one Senior Streamers box in one room for 30 days, free. Our customer care team helps set it up for the resident.
Sources
- Bulk DIRECTV for senior living through reseller Groove: FAMILY $4.75, SELECT $7.85, ENTERTAINMENT $8.35, XTRA $14.25 per unit per month plus a $0.75 technology fee, programming only (getgrooven.com, June 2026). Three-year minimum commitment and separately sold receivers or headend (directv.com/forbusiness/senior-living, 2026).
- One TV, regular prices with fees: DIRECTV satellite ENTERTAINMENT about $105 including the $10 TV Access fee, on a 24-month agreement (cabletv.com, March 2026); DIRECTV via internet $99.99 (directv.com, October 2026); Xfinity TV Plus $105 (telecompetitor.com, December 2025); Spectrum TV Select about $139–169 with broadcast fee and receiver (budgetseniors.com and theseniorlist.com, 2026; fees vary by market).
- Published assisted living rate sheets: Juniper Springs, Redmond OR, $40/month cable (July 2025); Ecumen Pathstone, Mankato MN, $50/month plus $15 hook-up (January 2026); Ecumen Lakeshore, Duluth MN, $25/month (January 2026); The Sanctuary of St. Cloud, MN, $20/month (July 2025); Good Samaritan Heritage Grove, East Grand Forks MN, $120 for a lost or damaged cable box (June 2026).
- GrandPad: about $40/month through Consumer Cellular plus a $299 tablet (seniorliving.org, December 2025); JubileeTV: $39/month month-to-month (getjubileetv.com, October 2026); ViewClix: $9.95/month for video calling plus a $179–299 frame (viewclix.com, October 2026).
- Channel availability: Senior Streamers live channel lineup, October 2026. Free availability of national news channels: cabletv.com, September 2025.