. Free XM Preview on Channel 1 or Channel 184, depending on your locale and radio, is probably the only channel working on your satellite radio after your subscription runs out.

• Sirius Radio Channels

It streams back-to-back promos for different shows on SiriusXM. Buried in among them are offers to tempt new or returning users. The offers change regularly, but it isn't unusual to hear an offer to buy six months of satellite radio service for as low as $5 a month, which is way below retail. Admit it, that's almost free. The Returning Listeners Offer is available only to people with currently inactive radios.

Sirius Radio Channels

The offer changes occasionally. In the past, SiriusXM has offered the first six months of a subscription for $30. After any trial period, unless you cancel, you are billed the regular rate beginning in the first month after the trial period ends. In 2016 and 2017, Sirius opened a free 100-channel lineup for a couple of weeks as a promotion. That announcement is made on the XM Preview Channel or online. It gives new listeners an opportunity to hear just what the service has to offer.