Streaming Wars: How Does Amazon’s Price Hike Stack Up to Netflix & Hulu Costs?
Written by
Dawn Allcot
Edited by
Nicholas Morine
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Are you contemplating canceling your Amazon Prime subscription after the $20 per year price hike? Is the service still worth it?
If you’re in it for the free, fast shipping and you buy a lot from the world’s largest ecommerce retailer, it probably pays to keep your Amazon Prime subscription. The streaming video service is an added bonus, in that case. But if you primarily pay for Prime to get access to original streaming content — plus movies and classic shows on demand — you’ll want to compare Prime to its closest competitors, Netflix and Hulu.
As of February 18, 2022, new customers will pay $139 a year for Amazon Prime, up from $119. Monthly subscribers will experience a hike of $2 per month, up to $14.99 from $12.99.
Hulu, on the other hand, still costs $12.99 per month for ad-free viewing, or just $6.99 with ads. Netflix costs $9.99 for the basic plan, which allows streaming on just one screen at a time, without HD resolution. The standard plan permits viewing on two screens at a time for $15.49 with HD viewing available, and the premium plan allows you to stream on up to four screens at the same time in HD or Ultra HD when available.
Depending on your needs, the Netflix Basic plan or Hulu’s ad-free plan, which allows streaming on two screens, could look like the better value. But you should keep in mind that you can also get Amazon Prime Video (without the shipping services) for $8.99 per month, making that service the better deal if you’re only in it for streaming.
You won’t want to make a choice without considering the original shows on each service. Netflix boasts a lineup that includes Cobra Kai, Stranger Things, The Crown, and other top shows. In 2021, the 10 biggest original series’ available on streaming were only on Netflix, according to Business Insider.
However, Amazon Prime also has its share of exclusive hits, including The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Good Omens. Another new series, Reacher, shows lots of promise as well.
With only a few dollars difference between each of the top streaming services, you should define the better value based on your family’s viewing preferences and your opinions on what qualifies as this era’s “must-see” TV programming.
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