If you have Sky TV beamed into your home then your bill has almost certainly just gone up. The satellite telly firm hiked costs from April 1st with customers paying around 8% more than they were before.
Because of the way Sky works out its increases, each user will be hit by a different amount but many could see things rise by around £5 per month.
For example, an email seen by Mirror.co.uk shows one customer being hit by a bunch of additional charges including Sky Entertainment going up by £2, Sky HD rising by £1 and Sky Sports by £2. Clearly, the more things you subscribe to the bigger your bill will be.
If your bank balance is struggling to keep pace with the increases then there are some simple changes that could save you money and there's even a way to get Sky TV channels completely free.
Here are four tips for lowering your outgoings.
Switch to Freesat
If you're not locked into a Sky contract and want to stop paying high monthly fees then it's worth checking out Freesat. This service uses your current dish to beam free channels to your TV.
Freesat has even just slashed the price of its Sky Q-style set-top box to under £200.
Although that's still pretty pricey, once the money has been paid there are no additional charges.
Considering the average Sky bill is around £30 -£40 per month it won't take long to see significant savings.
Stores including Currys sell the 500GB Freesat box which can record shows, pause live TV and set series links. Prices now start from £199 - saving £30.
Sky Glass offers content for free
Anyone happy to ditch the dish can currently get things for free. Yes, Sky has a limited-time offer on its Glass connected telly and it comes with premium content without any fees. There's even full Netflix access and plus channels such Sky Atlantic, Sky Documentaries and Sky Nature.
Sky says that those making the move before Wednesday, April 5, will only pay the monthly price for the TV and not things to watch on it. That means prices start from as little as £14 per month for Sky's 43-inch Glass screen.
For those not aware, Sky Glass uses broadband to beam things to the screen and even includes an in-built soundbar plus voice controls and a backlit remote.
This freebie lasts for the first three months of the contract before rising back to the standard price.
Make the move to NOW
Sky might be the most recognisable TV brand in the UK but don't forget NOW. This Sky-owned streaming service offers instant access to premium telly including Sports, Entertainment and Cinema.
To make things more enticing, NOW currently has a huge sale which means customers can now watch Sky Sports for just £21 (was £34.99) or switch on Sky Entertainment and Cinema for just £11.99 (was £19.98). These deals last for 6 months and also include a free trial of NOW's Boost service which upgrades the viewing experience.
Unlike Sky Q, there's no way to record live TV but considering the current low price that might be a feature worth ditching if you want to get the bills reduced.
Change your current package
If your Sky bill is seriously hurting your wallet then it could be time to take a deep dive into what you've actually signed up for.
Although a basic Sky Q bundle starts from just £28 things can quickly mount up.
For example start adding Sky Sports (£20), Sky Cinema (£12), Sky Kids (£6) and extras such as Multiscreen (£15) and Star HD (£13) and you could face a bill of almost £100 - ouch!
Just make sure you really need all of these add-ons as turning them off will slash costs.
