At checkout, you’ll have about four steps for each service, which include choosing a plan, choosing your equipment, and add-ons. Cox has really made the checkout process seamless, and we honestly haven’t seen a more customizable experience than what Cox offers. Let’s get into the details. On the upside, Cox’s Contour TV Starter plan with local channels is only $53 for 75+ channels, which is cheaper than what you’d get with a live TV streaming service. But those 75+ channels do include 50 Music Choice channels, whereas live TV streaming services include only popular channels. Upgrading to Cox’s Preferred Plus plan will grant you access to premium channels such as HBO Max, STARZ, Cinemax, and SHOWTIME. And lastly, Cox’s Ultimate plan gives you the same premium channels as the Preferred plans as well as the Sports-channel pack and MGM+. (Also, we noticed that this plan costs $118 if you opt out of the add-ons it comes with.) Keep in mind that no matter which plan you choose, Cox allows you to add on more channel packs and premium channels for a more customizable package (more on that below). Cox TV doesn’t outright say how much your monthly price will be after your contract is over, but we do know the Contour TV Preferred Plus plan ($118 per month) will increase by $27. So just make sure this package is the one for you before ordering.
Broadcast fee: $13.50/mo. Regional sports fee: up to $10.00/mo.
But depending on which standalone live TV package you get from Cox, you’ll face different additional fees. Set-top box fees:
Contour HD Box: $8.50/mo. CableCARD: $6.00/mo.
Not only do you have to pay monthly for renting the set-top box, but you’ll also have to pay a monthly price for the DVR service (unfortunately, these charges are normal with most TV providers). Cox’s DVR service fees:
Essential DVR service: $10.00/mo. for one year (then increases by $4 per month) Preferred DVR service: $20.00/mo. Ultimate DVR service: $30.00/mo.
You can find more information about the set-top box and DVR services in the equipment section, but this gives you an idea of how much extra you’ll need to add to your monthly bill. With that said, let’s see which personality attracts you the most. Cox’s Contour TV Starter includes the following channels in its lineup: When you order the Preferred Plus plan, you’ll get HBO Max, STARZ, and SHOWTIME in your channel lineup. When you upgrade to Ultimate, you can get all five premium channels and every channel pack. But if you’d prefer the Contour TV Starter or Preferred plans, check out the table below to see how much you’ll need to budget.
Sports and Info Pack: This pack gives you about 19 sports channels, including ESPNU, ACCN, Tennis Channel, FOX Deportes, and Big Ten Network. Sports Pack 2: Get about 12 more sports channels, including the NFL RedZone Channel, MLB Network, NBA TV, and Longhorn Network. Movie Pack: Spruce up your TV service with 14 movie channels from MGM+, STARZ, and FX Movie Channel. Variety Pack: This pack is for everyone in the family. The 33 channels in this pack include Nicktoons, Disney Jr., Disney XD, BBC America, The Cooking Channel, and Boomerang. Latino Pack: Good news for you and your abuelita: you’ll get 38 Spanish-language channels with this pack. Enjoy Galavisión, NBC Universo, FOX Deportes, Cine Latino, Univision Telnovelas, and CNN en Español.
A Contour HD box is included with every TV plan, and this set-top box gives you access to on-demand content and streaming apps. Not only is it convenient to have everything in one place, but you’ll also get a voice remote to make your TV experience smoother. The Essential and Preferred DVR service gives you 250 hours of DVR storage space. But Essential only lets you record two shows at once while Preferred lets you record six. We’re not really sure which household would record 24 shows or movies at once, but Cox makes it possible. The Ultimate DVR service will also give you 1,000 hours of DVR storage. Out of the four TV plans Cox offers, we recommend the Preferred plan ($98) because it has an excellent channel variety to make everyone in the family happy without breaking the bank too much. You can also get a set-top box for everyone in the family and 1,000 hours of DVR storage space to share. Although Cox has TV packages to suit everyone, Cox is considered the priciest cable TV provider in the industry. It’s worth the price if you live in one of the 19 areas of the US Cox offers its services and if you’d like the simplicity of bundling TV, internet, home security, and mobile services in one. If you’re not sure Cox TV is the one for you and your home, check out Best Cable TV Providers of 2022 or Cheapest Cable TV Providers.
