Streaming-only households reached 41 percent of US TV homes last year, and 42 percent of households cut the cord from cable TV. The average cable bill rose six percent, accelerating the shift as satisfaction scores fell.
Key Takeaways
- 42% of U.S. households cut the cord from cable TV in 2023, up from 35% in 2022.
- 65% of cord-cutters cited cost savings as primary reason in 2023 surveys.
- Average cable bill rose 6% to $217/month in 2023, accelerating cuts.
- Comcast held 24.5% market share of U.S. cable subscribers in 2023.
- Charter Communications commanded 22.1% of video market share end-2023.
- DirecTV and Dish together had 18.3% pay-TV market share in 2023.
- In 2023, the U.S. cable and satellite TV industry generated approximately $102.5 billion in total revenue, down 4.2% from 2022.
- Comcast's cable communications segment reported $57.0 billion in revenue for 2023, representing 55% of total company revenue.
- Charter Communications achieved $41.7 billion in cable revenue in 2023, with residential revenue growing 1.1% year-over-year.
- U.S. cable households numbered 74.3 million in Q4 2023, down 1.5 million YoY.
- Comcast lost 1.3 million video subscribers in 2023, ending with 13.7 million.
- Charter ended 2023 with 14.5 million video customers, down 1.2 million for the year.
- In 2023, 68% of U.S. cable networks upgraded to DOCSIS 3.1, enabling gigabit speeds.
- Cable operators deployed DOCSIS 4.0 trials to 15 million homes passed by end-2023.
- Mid-split upgrades on 40% of HFC networks completed in 2023 for symmetric DOCSIS.
Cord cutting accelerated in 2023 as prices, ads, and streaming shifted U.S. pay TV shares.
Related reading
01 · Category
Consumer Behavior20 stats
01
42% of U.S. households cut the cord from cable TV in 2023, up from 35% in 2022.
02
65% of cord-cutters cited cost savings as primary reason in 2023 surveys.
03
Average cable bill rose 6% to $217/month in 2023, accelerating cuts.
04
78% of millennials have no pay-TV subscription, per 2023 Deloitte study.
05
Streaming-only households reached 41% of U.S. TV homes in 2023.
06
52% of former cable subs returned to pay-TV within 2 years, 2023 data.
07
Sports content retention kept 28% of cable subs paying in 2023.
08
Bundled cable-broadband subs churned at 1.2% monthly vs 2.5% standalone video in 2023.
09
61% of consumers under 35 prefer ad-supported streaming over cable in 2023.
10
Cable satisfaction scores dropped to 68/100 in 2023 J.D. Power study.
11
35% of households added vMVPD after cutting cable in 2023.
12
Regional sports network blackouts affected 12 million cable subs in 2023.
13
47% of cord-nevers (Gen Z) unaware of cable TV options in 2023 survey.
14
Price sensitivity led to 22% trial of free streaming trials post-cable cut in 2023.
15
Hispanic households cut cable at 38% rate vs 42% national average in 2023.
16
70% of cable dropouts cited too many ads as reason in 2023.
17
Over-the-air antenna adoption rose 15% among ex-cable subs in 2023.
18
Rural cable retention 75% vs 55% urban due to broadband limits in 2023.
19
29% of seniors over 65 remain loyal to cable TV in 2023.
20
Password sharing crackdowns brought back 5% of cord-cutters to legit services 2023.
Interpretation
Consumer Behavior Interpretation
The cable industry is frantically trying to plug a leaking dam with sports and bundles, but a flood of younger viewers, ad-weary consumers, and relentless price hikes have turned the stream into a stampede, proving that while some customers boomerang back, the era of the two-hundred-dollar channel package is being buried under an avalanche of cheaper, more convenient options.
03 · Category
Revenue and Financials20 stats
01
In 2023, the U.S. cable and satellite TV industry generated approximately $102.5 billion in total revenue, down 4.2% from 2022.
02
Comcast's cable communications segment reported $57.0 billion in revenue for 2023, representing 55% of total company revenue.
03
Charter Communications achieved $41.7 billion in cable revenue in 2023, with residential revenue growing 1.1% year-over-year.
04
Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) for cable operators reached $133.42in Q4 2023, up 2.3% from the previous year.
05
Cable networks advertising revenue totaled $18.2 billion in 2023, declining 8.5% due to linear TV shifts.
06
Altice USA's cable segment revenue fell 3.8% to $8.1 billion in 2023 amid cord-cutting pressures.
07
Cox Communications generated $13.7 billion in video and broadband revenue in 2023.
08
The top 10 cable MSOs accounted for 85% of industry revenue totaling $92 billion in 2023.
09
Cable one-way video revenue dropped 12% to $4.5 billion across MSOs in 2023.
10
Pay-TV affiliate fees reached $15.8 billion for cable networks in 2023, up 3% YoY.
11
WOW! Internet, Cable & Phone revenue from video services was $1.2 billion in 2023, down 10%.
12
Cable industry EBITDA margins averaged 42% in 2023, driven by broadband growth offsetting video losses.
13
DirecTV's revenue from cable-affiliated programming was $10.3 billion in 2023.
14
Cablefax Daily reported cable ad spend at $16.4 billion for 2023, a 7% decline.
15
U.S. multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD) revenue hit $110 billion in 2023.
16
Liberty Broadband's franchise fees contributed $450 million to cable revenue in 2023.
17
Cable programmer carriage fees grew to $12.9 billion in 2023 for top networks.
18
Mediacom's video revenue declined 9.2% to $1.1 billion in 2023.
19
Industry-wide retransmission consent fees totaled $4.7 billion in 2023, up 5%.
20
Breezeline (formerly Atlantic Broadband) cable revenue was $1.05 billion in 2023.
Interpretation
Revenue and Financials Interpretation
The cable industry is a leaky ship where they're frantically patching the holes in the hull with broadband duct tape while the passengers keep jumping overboard, but they're still somehow charging the remaining ones more for a better seat.
More related reading
04 · Category
Subscriber Metrics19 stats
01
U.S. cable households numbered 74.3 million in Q4 2023, down 1.5 million YoY.
02
Comcast lost 1.3 million video subscribers in 2023, ending with 13.7 million.
03
Charter ended 2023 with 14.5 million video customers, down 1.2 million for the year.
04
Pay-TV penetration in U.S. households fell to 64.1% in 2023 from 65.8% in 2022.
05
Cable-only subscribers totaled 45.2 million in Q4 2023, a 2.1% decline YoY.
06
Altice USA video subs dropped to 2.6 million by end-2023, loss of 400k.
07
Average monthly cable churn rate was 1.68% in 2023 across major MSOs.
08
Traditional MVPD subs (cable/sat) at 62.8 million in 2023, down 4.5 million YoY.
09
Cox video subscribers numbered 4.2 million in 2023, declining 8%.
10
Virtual MVPDs gained 2.1 million subs in 2023, reaching 13.5 million total.
11
Cable one-way subs fell 11% to 1.8 million in 2023.
12
WOW! lost 140k video subs in 2023, ending with 700k.
13
Pay-TV households with broadband averaged 92% penetration in 2023.
14
DirecTV traditional subs at 12.9 million end-2023, down 1.8 million.
15
Median tenure for cable subscribers was 8.2 years in 2023 survey.
16
Multichannel video subs total 75.4 million in mid-2023, per FCC data.
17
Liberty Latin America cable subs steady at 2.1 million in 2023.
18
Mediacom video customers at 1.1 million end-2023, down 100k.
19
Breezeline video subs declined to 250k in 2023.
Interpretation
Subscriber Metrics Interpretation
The cable industry is in the midst of a long, cord-cutting divorce, yet it stubbornly remains in the same house with its ex, broadband, because the Wi-Fi password is non-negotiable.
05 · Category
Technology Adoption20 stats
01
In 2023, 68% of U.S. cable networks upgraded to DOCSIS 3.1, enabling gigabit speeds.
02
Cable operators deployed DOCSIS 4.0 trials to 15 million homes passed by end-2023.
03
Mid-split upgrades on 40% of HFC networks completed in 2023 for symmetric DOCSIS.
04
Comcast's Xfinity network reached 1 Gbps symmetric to 25 million homes in 2023.
05
Charter's Spectrum network had 85% DOCSIS 3.1 coverage, 30 million homes in 2023.
06
Cable industry invested $8 billion in network capex for fiber deep in 2023.
07
Extended Spectrum DOCSIS deployed on 12% of U.S. cable plants by 2023.
08
Cox launched low-latency streaming tech to 5 million subs in 2023.
09
4K UHD channel availability on cable reached 150 networks in 2023.
10
Cable MSOs activated 2.5 million DOCSIS 4.0 modems in 2023 pilots.
11
Full Duplex DOCSIS tested in 20 markets, covering 10M homes by 2023.
12
Cable's Remote PHY (RPHY) nodes deployed numbered 150,000 in 2023.
13
Altice USA fiber-to-the-home passed 1 million locations in 2023.
14
WOW! upgraded 70% of network to DOCSIS 3.1 speeds over 1 Gbps in 2023.
15
Cable ONE implemented AI-driven network optimization in 85% of markets 2023.
16
Industry-wide IPv6 adoption on cable networks hit 92% in 2023.
17
Mediacom deployed virtual CMTS to 40% of footprint in 2023.
18
55% of cable households had smart home integration via cable gateways in 2023.
19
Breezeline FTTH to 500k homes, 25% of footprint in 2023.
20
Cable industry 5G fixed wireless backhaul trials in 15 MSO markets 2023.
Interpretation
Technology Adoption Interpretation
The cable industry spent 2023 frantically hammering its aging coaxial networks into a state of fiber-like respectability, proving that with enough billions and technological duct tape, even a copper pipe can be convinced to carry the future.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Rachel Svensson. (2026, February 27). Cable Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/cable-industry-statistics
MLA
Rachel Svensson. "Cable Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 27 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/cable-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Rachel Svensson. 2026. "Cable Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/cable-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
51 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level