Netflix is raising the prices of all its plans making the basic plan now cost $9.99 per month, the Standard Plan comes at a $15.49 expense while the Premium plan will set you back by $19.99 every month.
The Basic Plan, which doesn’t include HD now costs an extra $1, Standard Plan goes up from $14 and the 4K plan rises from $18. The price hikes go into effect immediately for new subscribers. For existing subscribers, the changes will be rolled out “gradually,” with Netflix promising to email members 30 days before the price hike goes into effect.
Netflix hasn’t been the only streaming service that’s been raising prices lately, Hulu hiked the price of its ad-supported and ad-free tiers by $1 per month in October. However, the price hikes come during a successful but challenging moment for Netflix. The company already has a wealth of subscribers across the US, and adding more is a challenge — making price hikes an obvious answer for how it can make more money. At the same time, Netflix is now competing with several other serious streaming services for attention, including Disney Plus and HBO Max, and it’s been spending big on content to keep up.
“We’re updating our prices so that we can continue to offer a wide variety of quality entertainment options,” a Netflix spokesperson told Reuters. “As always we offer a range of plans so members can pick a price that works for their budget.”
Making comparisons to other streaming services, the basic Netflix plan is now twice as expensive as the $4.99 per month Apple TV+ subscription. The Premium plan is four times as expensive. The Disney+ subscription costs $7,99 in the US, while HBO Max costs the same $9.99 but does not limit the resolution to 480p. Of course, Netflix still has its original shows and movies that account for its user base, but that may change in the future as other streaming services are increasing the quality and bringing more original content.
