With more and more people turning their backs on traditional television in favor of streaming their shows and movies, the number of companies offering their own streaming platforms has increased quite a lot in recent years. While more choice can sometimes be a good thing, however, the wide variety of services available can also cause headaches for those trying to figure which, if any of them, are worth their hard-earned money.
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Due to the growing amount of exclusive and original content, it's becoming increasingly common for consumers to subscribe to multiple services. For people with plenty of disposable income this may not be a problem, but those operating on a limited budget may have to think carefully about their choices. Price is certainly an important part of the equation, but so too is the quality of the content that each platform has to offer.
7 YouTube Premium ($11.99)
Notable Content: Mind Field, Origin, Impulse, Wayne & Champaign ILL
YouTube has been pushing its Premium service pretty hard over the past year or so, but at $11.99 a month, it is a pretty tough sell. Aside from being able to watch videos without adds, there are very few real benefits to actually subscribing and given the ease with which adds can be avoided using browser plugins, even that may not be worth much to some users.
There is some content that is only available to YouTube Premium members and the ability to download videos for offline viewing is a nice touch as well. Ultimately though, there's just nowhere near enough original content to make it worth most people's whiles. It does really help creators, but then so too do sites like Patreon, which presumably provide them with a much larger cut.
6 HBO Max ($14.99)
Notable Content: Raised By Wolves, The Nevers, The Wire, Barry & The Sopranos
HBO is responsible for some of the best television dramas of all time, but its offerings in recent years have arguably been a little lackluster. For those who have somehow never gotten around to watching the likes of The Sopranos and The Wire, it might be worth a look, but at $14.99 a month, it's not exactly cheap.
It is possible to bring this price down to around $9.99 a month by purchasing an annual subscription, although there's perhaps an argument to be made that the platform lacks the volume of shows and movies needed to keep viewers engaged for a full calendar year. This doesn't seem likely to change anytime soon either.
5 Apple TV+ ($4.99)
Notable Content: Mythic Quest: Raven's Banquet, Defending Jacob, See, Servant & Ted Lasso
The biggest problem with Apple TV+ as things stand is the distinct lack of original content. That's not to say that there's nothing worth watching on the platform, but instead that there's simply nowhere near enough of it to keep viewers hanging around for more than a month or two. That said, its low pricing and ongoing promotions may be enough to convince some.
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At just $4.99 a month, Apple TV+ is the cheapest of all of the major streaming services and can actually be picked up for free by purchasing certain Apple products. This initially lasts for 12 months, although many people have had their free period extended by an additional six months; presumably due to the delay in getting new content onto the platform caused by the ongoing pandemic.
4 Hulu ($5.99)
Notable Content: The Handmaid’s Tale, Casual, PEN15, The Looming Tower & Runaways
Hulu's cheapest plan comes in at a rather modest $5.99 a month, although those wishing to enjoy an add-free experience will have to pay an extra $6. Given that those who opt for the "No Ads" package lose access to a handful of shows though, many will likely opt to stick with the cheaper package.
The platform has an excellent selection of shows and movies available, although arguably falls behind some of the bigger providers when it comes to original content. That's not to say that there aren't some very good Hulu Original series, but some may be a little disappointed with the lack of variety that's on offer.
3 Amazon Prime Video ($8.99)
Notable Content: The Man in the High Castle, Carnival Row, The Boys, Good Omens & Goliath
Amazon Prime Video can be incredibly frustrating at times, but, on the whole, it's a fairly solid and reasonably priced service. It comes in at $8.99 a month, although is currently free of charge for Amazon Prime members. Given that an annual membership works out at around the same price as 12 months of Prime Video, it may seem like a fairly compelling proposition for those who order a lot from the online retailer.
When it comes to content, Prime Video has an excellent selection of movies and shows and a decent amount of original content too. There's no "Skip Intro" button and the user interface could perhaps do with a little more work, but this shouldn't be too much of a problem for most people. What can be incredibly annoying, however, is that the platform is often missing one or two movies from certain movie franchises and so it's always a good idea to check availability before diving into a multi-part movie series in order to avoid disappointment.
2 Disney+ ($8)
Notable Content: The Mandalorian, WandaVision, Muppets Now, Noelle & The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Disney's acquisitions over the past decade or so have placed the company in a very powerful position when it comes to streaming. Through Fox and its own strong back catalog, it has an excellent library of shows and movies to offer while in Marvel and Star Wars, it has the original material needed to attract and appease the younger generations.
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Unlike Apple TV+, Disney+ has really hit the ground running. There's been a near constant stream of high quality original shows and, if the company's plans are anything to go by, it seems unlike that this will change anytime soon. The service costs $8 a month, which many will feel is a reasonable price to pay in order to watch the latest Star Wars and comic book shows.
1 Netflix ($8.99)
Notable Content: Stranger Things, The Witcher, Castlevania, Bojack Horseman & Atypical
Having led the way for so long, executives at Netflix may now find themselves looking over their shoulders, although for the meantime, at least, they remain just ahead of the competition. That might not be the case for too much longer though, especially if the company continues to flirt with the idea of stamping out account sharing.
The price of Netflix has risen several times over the past few years too, with a standard subscription now costing $8.99 a month. Given that 4K content and multi-screen access are still locked behind a premium membership though, users can expect to pay double that amount if they want access to these features. Thankfully, there's a great selection of movies and shows on the platform which arguably justifies this cost and the quality of Netflix Originals has improved a lot as of late as well.