With a vast library of TV shows, movies, and original programming, Netflix is one of our picks for the best streaming services you can sign up for. But like its competitors, the price of Netflix varies depending on which subscription tier and features you choose.
Netflix pricing starts at $7 a month, but following a Netflix price hike in October 2023, you now have to pay $23 a month to get the best video quality without ads. And due to Netflix's recent crackdown on password sharing, it now costs an additional $8 a month to add an extra user to your account in the US. The fee will only apply to users who live outside of an account holder's household.
It also costs more to add another user to a subscription plan. Standard and Premium subscriptions are the only plans that offer extra member additions. Standard allows one extra member slot for $8 a month. Premium offers up to two extra member slots for $8 each monthly.
Quick tip: If you're interested in other streaming options, check out our guides to the best music streaming services and the top services to watch free movies online. And if you need a new media player to access your favorite services with, check out our guide to the best streaming devices.
Offer subject to change. Receive Netflix Standard with ads while you maintain 1 qualifying Go5G Next, Go5G Plus or Magenta Max line or 2+ Go5G or Magenta lines in good standing. Netflix account, plan availability & compatible device required. Alternative discount toward different Netflix streaming plans may apply. Not redeemable or refundable for cash; cannot be exchanged for Netflix gift subscriptions. Cancel Netflix anytime. Netflix Terms of Use apply: www.netflix.com/termsofuse. 1 offer per T-Mobile account; for existing Netflix members it may take 1-2 bill cycles during which time you will continue to be charged separately for any existing Netflix account. If you link an existing Netflix account to this offer, terminating the qualifying line(s) will not automatically cancel your Netflix membership, and Netflix will automatically resume charging your existing payment method that they have on file. Like all plans, features may change or be discontinued at any time; see T-Mobile Terms and Conditions at T-Mobile.com for details.
Offer subject to change. Receive Netflix Standard with ads while you maintain a qualifying line in good standing. Netflix account, plan availability & compatible device required. Alternative discount toward different Netflix streaming plans may apply. Not redeemable or refundable for cash; cannot be exchanged for Netflix gift subscriptions. Cancel Netflix anytime. Netflix Terms of Use apply: www.netflix.com/termsofuse. 1 offer per T-Mobile account; for existing Netflix members it may take 1-2 bill cycles during which time you will continue to be charged separately for any existing Netflix account. If you link an existing Netflix account to this offer, terminating the qualifying line will not automatically cancel your Netflix membership, and Netflix will automatically resume charging your existing payment method that they have on file. Like all plans, features may change or be discontinued at any time; see T-Mobile Terms and Conditions at T-Mobile.com for details.
With Netflix Standard with ads you can watch on up to two devices within a household at the same time. You can upgrade to Netflix Premium and watch on up to four devices in the same household at the same time for the discounted rate of $16, through your T-Mobile bill. Visit this page to upgrade now.
Log into My.T-mobile, select Account, and then select Manage add-ons. On the Manage data and add-ons page, add Netflix in the Services section. T-Mobile pays Netflix directly for you. For customers with an existing Netflix account, it may take one or two Netflix billing cycles for your billing to transfer to T-Mobile.
Comcast CEO Brian Roberts didn't specify a price for the bundle, which will be called StreamSaver, but said it will be "a vastly reduced" compared to other streaming services. StreamSaver will launch this month, Roberts said during a conference hosted by investment research firm MoffettNathanson, but did not give an exact date.
StreamSaver is the latest in a trend toward streaming bundles this year launched by media companies in hopes of driving growth while cutting costs. Entertainment and media giants have struggled to turn a profit on streaming, given the hefty costs of producing original content in the highly competitive video-on-demand market. Another problem plaguing streaming content providers is inconsistent subscription revenue due to customers frequently adding and dropping platforms depending on their cost and programming.
Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery in May announced they will offer a bundle that includes Disney+, Hulu and Max. Users of the new bundle, set to launch this summer, will have access to content from ABC, CNN, DC, Discovery, Disney, Food Network, FX, HBO, HGTV, Hulu, Marvel, Pixar, Searchlight and Warner Bros.
In a separate move, ESPN, Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery earlier this year announced the launch of an app this fall that will group together most of their respective sports content to U.S. users.
Fortune in December reported that AppleTV+ and Paramount+ were mulling bundling their streaming services. Former Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish stepped down from his role in April, a management shift at the media and entertainment company as it considers a potential merger or sale (Paramount is the owner of CBS News.)
Netflix announced Wednesday that the streaming giant has secured the exclusive rights to air two NFL games on Christmas Day this upcoming season, and at least one Yuletide game each of the next two years. While we won't know the matchups until the full 2024 NFL schedule is revealed Wednesday night, Netflix is already celebrating the blockbuster deal.
Assuming you subscribe to each service for the entirety of the 18-week NFL regular season, that means you'll have to shell out nearly $165 just to watch games on those four streaming platforms. Add on YouTube TV for $72.99 per month and NFL Sunday Ticket for $349 to cover every other game next season, and you're looking at spending nearly $900 to watch football.
Now, there are ways to lower the cost by only subscribing to certain platforms during the months they host NFL games. But with so many streaming services out there, Axios media reporter Kerry Flynn noted that it can be difficult to keep track.
"When myself and other users look at their monthly credit card bill, it's looking a little alarming with all those individual line items of those services," she said. "So really there's that like price sticker shock."
Earlier this year, ESPN, FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery announced they were planning to combine their sports offerings into a new streaming package that will be available later this year. The new service will reportedly bring together coverage of the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, college football, the FIFA World Cup, and golf, tennis and cycling events.
With its contracts and fees, cable TV is nowhere near cheap. The alternative is a suite of streaming services, but paying for multiple subscriptions -- or even a live TV streaming service like DirecTV Stream -- could also rival your cable bill. According to a 2023 report from Leichtman Research Group, 83% of US households have at least one streaming service, with over 50% of us subscribing to four or more.
These days, you can sever the cord completely and solely use streaming services like Hulu, Disney Plus or YouTube TV. You can also keep satellite or cable TV as your main dish while subscribing to a couple of streaming platforms on the side. There's also the option to watch 100% of what you want on cable TV only.
All those choices can quickly become overwhelming, but don't worry. Here, we do the math to break down how you can save money in most parts of the US with the best combination of cable, streaming and internet. (You can also find out how much you can save shopping at Costco compared with a regular supermarket, and if it's cheaper to buy Xbox Game Pass or individual games.)
To compare the price savings between streaming and cable, we started with monthly cable costs across a handful of US cities. While streaming service pricing is the same no matter where you live, we crunched numbers for major cable companies in New York, San Francisco, Houston, Atlanta, Kansas and Michigan. Here's what we found using a representative provider from each city.
If those numbers seem low at first sniff, that's because they don't include taxes and fees, which make up a significant part of monthly costs for cable. They differ based on location, equipment and service type (like regional sports networks), so it wasn't possible to accurately include them in the prices above. Additionally, we made these calculations using rates for basic internet, which ranges from 200 Mbps to 400 Mbps for most cities featured this graph.
The tables above reflect the average cost after any promotional one-year or two-year pricing expires. Pricing also excludes discounts for autopay and paperless billing, which is typically $10 across the board. Competition in metropolitan areas like New York can drive prices down versus places such as Kalamazoo, Michigan or rural Kansas, so you may be spending a little more or less based on what's available.
Be aware that most internet plans available today should be fast enough to stream Netflix, even in 4K quality. The "slowest" budget plan we saw was 25Mbps (AT&T), but Netflix recommends a minimum of 5Mbps for 1080p or 15Mbps to get 4K. This means even the most basic connection should work fine if you only need to stream to one TV at a time. If you have a larger household, then a 50Mbps or even 100Mbps plan should be sufficient, and we found that most budget plans offered this.
The cheapest option? Get the least expensive internet plan you can and subscribe to Netflix, Disney Plus, Max and Hulu -- separately or all together -- and skip live TV. If you prefer other platforms such as Apple TV Plus ($10 a month), Peacock ($6 per month with ads) or Starz ($10), substitute them below.
90f70e40cf