With all of the stories about rising cable television prices and the rumors of satellite TV and weather related problems and outages, just who are you supposed to believe? I mean, really- there’s almost as much opponent bashing here as in a presidential election! Fortunately for consumers, a bit of research combined with a dash of history is all that’s needed for making the right decision.

First, let’s compare the monthly cost of the two. An average analog, 64-channel cable bill runs about $40 per month. If you want a digital picture and sound, add another $11. Additional televisions on your plan will cost between $4 and $11 per month, depending on if you have the digital plan or not. Of course, all local channels are included.

A typical, 60-channel satellite bill is about $33, including additional televisions hooked up. Digital programming is included, as that’s all that satellites do. Local channels may be included, depending on your provider, or may cost a nominal monthly fee.

Satellite is the clear winner in cost.

Customer satisfaction is again in favor of satellite, with a 1% outage average, while cable runs about 3-5% in outages. With satellite again in the lead, Direct TV and Dish Network have best overall satisfaction rating according J.D. Power & Associates.

Comparing the Top 2- Dish Network and DirecTV

In order to fairly and accurately compare the two leading satellite contenders, there are a few things that need to be taken into consideration by you, the consumer. First, Dish Network currently has a wider variety of HDTV (High definition) channels, 29 to be exact. DirecTV has 9. If you don’t own a High-Def television, this doesn’t affect you.

On the other hand, DirecTV is the only satellite provider with the NFL Sunday Ticket, an available subscription that enables you to watch up to 14 pro football games each week, even those beyond your local area. But if you don’t care for football or just like to root for the home team, this feature doesn’t matter to you. College ball fans will be pleased to know that both providers carry these high-spirited games through different available program additions.

If you enjoy hanging out at home and accessing the Pay-Per-View channels, it might interest you to know that Dish network has 60 such channels while DirecTV has 55. In the adult realm of pay-per-view movies, Dish Network boasts 6 while DirecTV falls a bit short at 5.

For those with an interest or flair in the international, Dish Network is the clear choice. With 30 foreign language/culture channels, they clearly rule satellite television in this genre. DirecTV has only 10 channels, with the majority of them in Spanish.