A little more than eleven years ago, we bought a brand new car (GASP! I know — how not frugal! But we are still driving it so there!).
We wanted a Toyota Venza and it was the first or second model year so no used cars were available. (see???)
If you’ve ever bought a new car within the last few years, you were gifted a trial subscription to Sirius XM radio. I think our trial subscription was for six months.
SiriusXM is pretty great. You get high-quality audio, a bazillion different channels so you’ll always be entertained, and it’s available practically everywhere except if you’re surrounded by mountains or in a tunnel. It’s a solid service.
I just didn’t want yet another subscription. We have multiple streaming subscriptions (Netflix, Disney+, Spotify, etc.) and I didn’t want to pay for one in our car.
Their packages aren’t ridiculous. $12.99 for Music Showcase, $17.99 per month for Music and Entertainment, and $22.99 for Platinum still come out to less than a dollar a day. But why pay more when you don’t have to?
But… you should never pay full price for Sirius XM. Never. Ever.
SiriusXM is a prime case where negotiating your subscription rate will always save you money.
All you have to do is call in, threaten to cancel, and wait for them to offer you a “comeback offer.”
The Best Deal: Here are the Cliff Notes to this post – to get the best deal, you have to call and threaten to cancel. They will then offer you the best deal. If they don’t, call back.
Or, you can take their current deal of 6 months of SiriusXM for $30. It is very close to the best deal I’ve seen and you don’t have to call to cancel. The “best” varies month to month but the best I’ve ever seen is 6 months for $25, which is only $5 off. I think SiriusXM got wise to what people were doing so they offered this deal publicly.
Table of Contents
SiriusXM Standard Pricing: $5 per Month
SiriusXM has a few plans but the basic one for your car is $5 per month for 6 months (new subscriptions only).
The tiers are (all these are plus fees and taxes, see offer details):
| Plan Name | Trial Terms | Regular Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| SiriusXM Music & Entertainment | $4.99 per month for 6 months for 140+ channels | $17.99 per month | Get this offer |
| Platinum | 3 months for $1 to stream online or on the app | $22.99 per month | Get this offer |
| Music Showcase | 3 months for $1 to stream online or on the app | $12.99 per month | Get this offer |
After each promotion period, you’re automatically renewed at the regular price but there’s no contract so you can always cancel.
The Absolute Best Deal: 6 Months for $25
The best deal I’ve ever heard of is getting 6 months for $25. This isn’t that much better than the promotional offer they’re offering everyone.
All you need to say is “I love Sirius XM, I just can’t afford that price. Is there any way you can help me?” — and they will help you.
If they don’t, and some representatives won’t, you need to hang up and call again. You may have to do this a few times.
You must take note of when your promotional period ends because they will start charging you full price immediately. There will be no warning, it’s automatic renewal at the full price, so mark it on a calendar somewhere and set up notifications.
When the time nears, call them up again. Sometimes they’ll cut right to the chase and offer to extend the deal. If you don’t, cancel it and you’ll get a “winback” offer in a month or two.
What If You’ve Called Several Times?
It could be a note in your account or just bad timing or luck, but if you’ve called a few times and they won’t budge – just cancel.
SiriusXM frequently will send a “winback” or “comeback” offer that is similar to the best price. They know that it costs them the same to run their service and each customer is just profit. They will attempt to win you back shortly after you cancel and you will just have to manage not having satellite radio for a little bit.
SiriusXM 25% Military Discount
If you are military personnel, which includes veterans, retirees, active duty, and reserves; you can get a 25% military discount. This is for the life of the subscription and you can call customer service at 1-866-635-2349 to learn more – or visit this page.
SiriusXM Promotions
If you only care about getting the very cheapest, then $4.17 per month is the cheapest.
If the price is less important (say, if you’re being reimbursed or it is a tax-deductible expense) and you want to take advantage of promotions, SiriusXM runs promotions periodically. We don’t know of any right now but will update this when we see one.
It’s really up to you.
Diver86 says
I’ve played the renewal game for the last 20 years !!! I had a SatWeather too! EVERY YEAR, I had to call and quibble. BUT, for the last 3 years, they did not make me call or threaten. I told them 3 years ago I was tired of calling and playing the game. They must’ve tagged my account, because now I only do it through the chat. Bing bang bong renewed at same rate ($99 + tax/fees).
John C Richards says
appreciate your input on sirius/xm pricing, but what about multi vehicle discounts? I did not see that addressed
I only have one vehicle with Sirius so I’ve never researched it.
Andie says
I quit my SiriusXM a couple of weeks ago. I got an offer 2hours ago for the platinum plan for $6 for 12 Months. I’m gonna hold out a bit more to what else they will offer.
John says
I just called and the $29.94 / 6 month deal was last year. No way they would give it to me. The new price is $36 and with taxes and fees it comes to $43.70. She first offered me a 1 year upgrade to platinum for $99 which is only $28 per year more and don’t have to call in 6 months, but I wouldn’t use platinum.
Jaxx says
Thanks for sharing Jim. My Sirius trial just ended and been trying to decide if I wanted to subscribe but the price, eek. With the six month deal, I’m sold!
Legger says
Hi Jim, Great article. I only wish I had seen this earlier this year (before my renewal) cuz I’m paying an outrageous amount yearly for my one vehicle. It just renewed on March 4, so just less than 2 months ago. I don’t suppose that it will do me any good now since they already billed me. Have you heard of anyone that got a refund?
Keep up the great work!
Legger
I haven’t heard of anyone getting a refund after the billing but it never hurts to ask!
Wendy says
I haven’t heard of a refund either, but I have heard of them extending the credit on the new rate so you go longer without paying again.
Erika says
I learned that one when I bought by 2012 Camaro. Then I decided to try it with other bills. I called Verizon wireless complaining that my bill is way too high and I want to cancel my 5 lines. I was put through to the retention department and boom they decreased my bill for that month down from around $600 to less than 200. But that was only for that month. However they found every way possible to cut all kinds of fees here and there and my monthly bill dropped by half. I shit you not. It isn’t always going to work but it’s worth a shot with any bills you have.
KP says
I do believe Sirius has caught onto the game. Today when I contacted them for my annual renegotiate-the-fee conversation (two days before my auto-renewal) I had an automated option give me an offer of $129.54 for a year of platinum. Last year that exact same plan cost me $174.49. I’m happy plus I never had to speak with a customer service agent.
Wendy says
I just used the chat feature on the SiriusXM website and it was the easiest negation I’ve had with them in the 12 years I’ve been using the service. I told them I couldn’t afford the service, and they came back with $5/month for 12 months + fees and taxes for a total of $6.06/month. My calendar is already marked for 50 weeks out to try again. Thank you!