There was a time when you could hop onto Netflix and feel like you had pretty much any movie or show at your fingertips. Those years are long gone. Now consumers have a growing number of streaming providers all clamoring for attention, splitting up the media catalog against dozens of services and making finding the best one a surprisingly difficult task.
In the past year, numerous streaming services have raised prices on subscription tiers. There’s been rounds of layoffs at HBO, Netflix and more. Streaming services like Netflix, HBO Max (now simply Max), Disney+ and more that once promised to do away with ad breaks have been hard at work creating ad-based subscriptions. And while bundle prices have also increased, Warner Bros. Discovery decided to combine its HBO Max and Discovery+ platform under one roof. The Walt Disney company now plans to do the same thing with Hulu and Disney+ over the course of 2023.
Now that it’s so hard to parse the grand scheme of services, prices, bundles, and who has what content, it’s best to become selective about which subscriptions you dive into. With that being said, we’ve tried to pick and choose what the best service is for different kinds of users, whether you’re looking for something cheap or you’re a big Star Trek fan. Also, check out our other lists of little-known streaming services and free channels for every streaming device.Jump to:
Streaming prices have been increasing across the board, but so have the number of cheaper, ad-based subscription tiers. As some companies have taken hits in recent months, there’s a good chance some streaming prices could go even higher. We’ll soon see Paramount+ subscription hikes even as it gets ready to merge with Showtime.
The are are few sub-$9.99 subscriptions you can find now, and a good rule of thumb is if it’s less than $10, it’s probably an ad-based subscription tier. Even though Netflix ad-based subscription service has been slow to see any uptick in subscribers, these tiers have proved to be some of the fastest growing services since they’ve come on the scene. These ad-based services do offer a way to save, but your mileage may vary heavily depending on how frequent the ad breaks are and just how many promotions you can stomach. Soon, there likely won’t be any major streaming service without an ad-based tier. AMC, for instance, just debuted its ad option in April. Hell, even YouTube might be aiming for a new, ad-supported linear streaming service.
There’s a number of bundles on offer that help users save. There’s the Disney Bundle, making owning basic versions of Hulu, Disney+, and ESPN+ cheaper on the whole, with a $20 premium tier for no ads at all. Hulu is the one streaming service that really gets around, although it’s supposedly about to be consolidated into Disney+. There’s bundles combining Hulu with Starz and Hulu with Showtime.
No service is getting cheaper any time soon, though some are changing the display quality for different tiers of service. Netflix announced its ad-based subscription would boost its ad-based tier from 720p to 1080p. At the same time, HBO’s ‘Max’ platform is transferring its 4K/HDR with Dolby Atmos content from its $15.99 plan to its $19.99 one this May.
Considering the constantly shifting nature of streaming services, we’ve tried to narrow down the top picks in a number of categories, hopefully saving you money and time with a curated streaming selection.
It would be pretty old hat to talk about how the first major streaming service to popularize today’s subscription model remains the best overall. But in writing this guide—considering every topic this list covers (from documentaries, to anime, to cartoons, and so on)—Netflix is regularly a top contender.
It doesn’t have the best UI. A subscription doesn’t grant you any bonuses save for a growing selection of mobile games. But as much as people (rightfully) complain about the streaming service’s efforts to kill password sharing, Netflix simply has the most varied content selection with quality shows in practically every category. Anime? Check. Documentaries? Check. Premiere drama? Nostalgia? Checkity check.
Netflix is in a tenuous position. It can’t subsist on every new season of Stranger Things alone. Subscriber number growth isn’t as much a shoo-in as it was just two years ago. The platform has cancelled several beloved shows, and its third-party content is regularly cycled on and off the platform, so users are forced to consider other options once their binging exhausts everything they may want to watch. But for now, Netflix’s variety remains its greatest strength.
For bundles, it really doesn’t get much better than Disney’s three-in-one “Trio Premium” deal. Hulu already exists in plenty of other bundles, but if you’re at all interested in any Disney-owned content, whether that’s Star Wars, Marvel, or Pixar, the more the deal does become worth it. Even more so if there’s a person in the house who wants to watch live sports, though ESPN+ is going to come with ads.
Disney+ also offers a bounty of extra services, including 4K Ultra HD streaming in Dolby Vision, HDR10, and Dolby Atmos. It also includes unlimited downloads on up to 10 devices. One of Disney’s bundles used to cost just $14 for both Disney+ without ads and Hulu with ads, but no longer.
Alternatively, the “Trio Basic” tier offers all three services but with ads. Disney+ with ads is distracting, but manageable. However, Hulu with ads can be a dreadful experience with near constant ad breaks and limited commercials dragging out watch time to absurd degrees. In that way, it’s hard to recommend any version of Hulu with ads, unless you have a strong stomach for constant interruptions.
As we noted before, Disney, Hulu, and ESPN will soon combine under one app. The company has not revealed pricing information on its new service, but things will likely change for this bundle in the next few months.
Linear TV is still around, and as streaming services become more expensive, the prospect of old-school television lineups becomes more appealing, though not any less expensive. The Hulu + Live TV package is easily one of the better options out there for giving you both a little bit of streaming content with Hulu and Disney+, and a whole lot of TV depending on your area.
Since the $68.99/month Live TV Only option is just $1 cheaper, there’s practically no reason to stick to just watching Hulu’s live content. In addition to the base tier that includes Hulu streaming, Disney+, and ESPN+ with ads, there’s also the more expensive $82.99/month tier to get it all without ads. If all you’re interested in is Live TV, then it’s hard to justify the extra $13 a month, though it does become a contender if you want to combine our best bundle with the spontaneity of live content.
Some of the add-ons are relatively cheap. The Español Networks add-on is an extra $5, though you may only get marginal impact from paying $10 for unlimited streams as long as they’re connected to your home network.
YouTube TV used to be a strong contender, but the service just recently announced it would increase the price of subscription from $65 to $73 a month. It now costs more than Hulu’s service, though YouTube did bring down the price of the 4K add-on.
You’ll have to deal with ads with Pluto TV, but what you get in return is more than 100 channels on offer. You might not find exactly what you want, but isn’t that half of the point of live TV? Where else can one veg out on absolutely free episodes of Star Trek: Voyager without having to worry about what episode they pick and whether they’re in the mood for it?
As the running battles between the major streaming services settles into a costly cold war, one of the best differentiators between different platforms is the content you can’t get anywhere else. You have to take both numbers and quality into account, as well as the variety on offer. At least in those last two points, Netflix has all the widest variety of drama, comedies, animation, and kids content.
No, not all of it is quality, but there are so many solid shows and movies available on the platform that it’s honestly hard to compare. No, you can’t get Star Wars, but you can’t get The Witcher, Stranger Things, Bridgerton, or The Dragon Prince on any other streaming service.
HBO has a reputation for “prestige” content for a reason, even if the company behind it was recently on a tear cancelling several beloved animated shows and upcoming movies. It doesn’t change that shows like The Last of Us and Game of Thrones: House of the Dragon are only available on HBO.
Beyond those big budget shows that defined our last few decades of TV, there’s enough exclusive documentaries, films, animated works, and more to wet the beak. Beyond all that, there is enough integration with Studio Ghibli, Crunchyroll, Adult Swim, the DC catalog, Turner Classic Movies, and Cartoon Network to make the steep monthly price a little more worthwhile.
What essentially amounts to an advertisement for Prime Video is also one of the best free, ad-supported streaming services available. Most other free services offer a wash of content that truly ranges in quality. FreeVee has a significant selection of both recent and older films, and there’s plenty of good ones in there. There are also limited runs of free “Movies of the month,” sporting titles such as the first three John Wick films.
Amazon is starting to change its strategy surrounding its free, ad-based streaming platform. Though it’s an awkward name for a platform, FreeVee does offer a good range of major motion pictures and a few TV shows. In May, Amazon Source: Gizmodo