Cox Cable TV Review 2021

Cox offers most of your favorite channels and decent on-demand content. It may not have the same channel count as some of the other providers, but at least Cox’s high rates don’t rise dramatically after promotional offers end.

Plus, with Cox Contour service, you can save personal recommendations, and the Record 6 DVR provides up to 340 hours of HD storage.

Cox pricing and packages

Cox’s pricing falls into the more expensive end of the spectrum

Cox’s prices are higher than other reviewed brands, but they’re honest and spell it out for you in the checkout process. Cox gives you 140+ channels, but for $5 to $20 more than you’d pay with Xfinity, DISH, and Verizon Fios TV, for similar, if not better packages.

Most additional channel packages add $5–$10 to your monthly bill, so over a year you’d pay an extra $60 to $100 over the Cox TV package price. And as you’ll see below, you also have to worry about some extra fees.

In general, with Cox, we don’t find that the cost matches up with the service provided.

How much does Cox TV really cost?

Since you may be locked into a two-year contract with Cox, you’ll be happy to know that after promotional pricing ends, your price won’t increase by much.

Compare that to DIRECTV, where you’ll see prices more than double after the first year. Cox’s Contour TV package increases about 30% after the first year—which is still a bummer for budgeters.

Additional fees

Both Cox Cable TV plans come with the standard fees:

• Broadcast Surcharge: up to $10.00 a month
• Regional Sports Surcharge: up to $9.00 a month

But depending on which standalone live TV package you get from Cox, you’ll face different additional fees.

The Starter plan doesn’t include the option for DVR service. And if you want service to multiple TVs, your monthly fees go up with each receiver—but thankfully not by much.

Cox mini cable box receiver fees:

• 1 box: $2.99/mo.
• 2 boxes: $5.98/mo.
• 3 boxes: $8.97/mo.
• 4 boxes: $11.96/mo.

Luckily with the Starter plan, Cox does NOT charge $10 per month per cable box like Xfinity or other providers do. That means it’s a better deal for big families or homes with a lot of roomies.

However, if you upgrade to the Contour TV package, you’ll pay that same $10 per month fee—which is just wack.

Cox Contour TV service has a few of the standard fees we’ve come to expect from cable television:

• Record 6 Whole Home DVR Service: $19.99/mo.
• Record 2 DVR Service: $12.99/mo.

If you opt for the higher-tier plan, Cox Contour TV, you’ll have to get a Contour HD Receiver, which costs $10 per month. If you want a DVR instead, there’s also a fee for that. You’ll pay $12.99 to $19.99 per month, depending on which DVR you choose.

As is standard for a few providers, your early termination fee is $240 minus $10 for every month of completed service.

Technical costs

If you have bad luck with your gadgets, it might be a good idea to get the Cox Complete Care Plan, which costs about $10 per month.

Cox Complete Care covers hassle-free repair and replacement not only for defective wiring, but also for normal wear and tear, including chewed and frayed wires, wiring updates to faulty fittings, and technician visits at no additional cost.

Cox channels

Cox doesn’t provide a ton of variety for live TV packages, but you can still get what you need

Cox offers two standalone TV packages. One is very basic and very affordable, and the other is a solid service for a reasonable price. If you want other TV options, you can get a bit few other TV package options if you choose to bundle with a double or triple play package.

Cox Starter TV package

The Starter package is a pretty bare-bones offer, and you may even find it easier to just grab an HD TV antenna to get all your local programming. While this isn’t the best cheap cable TV package we’ve come across, it’ll work for basic viewers.

Notable channels: NBC, CW, FOX, ABC, CBS, PBS and C-SPAN

Contour TV package

Cox’s sole standalone TV plan comes with 140+ channels and lets you set DVR recordings from anywhere.
The Contour package gives you 140+ channels and lets you set DVR recordings from a tablet, no matter where you are. That’s pretty convenient. Plus, you can stream TV shows with Cox On Demand.

Notable channels: ESPN, History Channel, HGTV, FOX Sports 1, Univision

Cox channel selection

Cox covers a wide range of popular channels for a reasonable price.

While Cox might not boast the same high channel counts as DISH or DIRECTV, Cox’s channel selection tends to be right in line with our favorites.

HD channels

Cox has plenty of HD programming to choose from, but we couldn’t find a solid answer on how many HD channels were exactly involved in each package, but it seemed to mirror its SD channel offerings. Best of all, Cox offers up HD versions of its SD channels for free—other providers like Xfinity charge a $10 HD fee.

With Cox, you’ll get the big four premium channels (HBO, STARZ, SHOWTIME, and CINEMAX), comprehensive Latino packages, and supplemental Sports TV packs that include programming like ESPN Classic and Pac-12 college sports.

If you’re a fan of major-league sports, we recommend adding NFL RedZone, NBA League Pass, or NHL® Center Ice®.

Cox cable TV premium channel costs:

• HBO: $16/mo.
• CINEMAX: $12/mo.
• SHOWTIME: $12/mo.
• STARZ: $12/mo.
• EPIX: $10/mo.

Additional add-ons:

• Variety Pak: $12/mo.
• Movie Pak: $12/mo.
• Sports and Information Pak: $10/mo.
• Sports Pak 2: $10/mo.
• Latino Pak: $10/mo.

Equipment and features

Cox DVRs have decent storage, multiple recording sources, and pricing that’s on par with other companies

Selecting a Cox Contour DVR

Record 6 HD-DVR with Contour

The Record 6 HD-DVR allows you to record up to 6 HD TV shows or movies without restriction, which works for most families. In addition to usual DVR features, the Record 6 includes the Contour service, which recommends programs to you based on what you watch and rate.

Potentially, you could record a recommended show while still watching your favorite one live, then catch up afterward.

While this isn’t the best HD DVR we’ve reviewed, it has a substantial 2 TB of storage and allows offline play for recorded shows downloaded to your devices—you just need a Wi-Fi connection.

Contour Record 2 / Standard HD-DVR

Cox’s standard HD-DVR captures up to two shows at once and offers less storage at 500 GB. The fee for the Record 6 is only $7 more per month, which is a good deal—but if you don’t plan on using your DVR for more than catching a show or two while you’re out, the regular option should suffice.

Watch anywhere

Contour TV lets you stream between your big screen, tablets, and other devices. You can pull up a show on your iPad while everyone’s finishing up their show and then push it to your main television so you don’t miss a beat.

With the Contour App, you can organize your stored library for up to seven users (one less than the service says it allows), set your DVR records, and search and browse TV listings upcoming within a seven-day time frame.

While the app is nice, some features like watching live channels, video on demand, and parental controls are only available if you have Cox essential internet.

Cox customer service

When it comes to quality, Cox lacks in the service department

Like any other cable TV service provider, Cox customer service isn’t impressive.

Online chat support is mediocre at best, and confusing at its (more often) worst. If you’re getting online support, make sure to stay glued to the chat window, which times-out very quickly if you’re not active, even if you haven’t heard back from the agent yet.

You don’t always know exactly what you’re getting with TV providers. If you’re not sure about the price and need a guarantee, make sure to take a screenshot for reference, should the need arise.

Our experience

Honestly, the agents we chatted with online contradicted themselves and didn’t present the information in an easy-to-understand way. If you’re like us and need clear answers, we recommend getting on the phone with customer service to ensure you’re getting the most accurate information. Always double check before committing to a contract.

Recap: Is Cox TV worth it?

You get fewer channels, but you also get direct pricing and minimal price increases. Overall, Cox is pretty average in the industry.

When comparing their cable subscription service to the other big brands, Cox has candid pricing with minimal increases after promotional prices and comparable programming. Cox’s Contour DVR options aren’t too bad and they have fair pricing in comparison to one our favorite DVRs in the industry (Xfinity’s X1).

It may not be the best deal in the TV industry, but it’s close to it. If you live in one of the 19 Cox service areas, it’s a reasonable option.