Full list of ways to save on your Netflix subscription as costs set to rise next month
MILLIONS of Netflix customers will see their bills hiked next month as the streaming giant increases the cost of its subscriptions.
New and existing subscribers will be affected by the change, which could add up to £24 to their yearly bill.
Customers who signed up to the streaming service after February 6 already pay higher prices.
But the streaming giant has emailed existing customers to thank them for being “valued” members and to let them know how much their bill will rise by.
Those with a Standard membership will see their bill rise by £2 to £12.99 a month.
Meanwhile, Premium members will be charged £18.99 – £1 more than before.
The cost of the Standard subscription with adverts will increase by £1 to £5.99 a month.
Meanwhile, the fee to add extra members to your plan will also increase.
It will now cost £5.99 a month to add an Extra Member without ads, an increase of £1.
Meanwhile, the price to add an Extra Member with ads is increasing by £1 from £3.99 to £4.99.
Customers were sent the email 30 days before their next billing date – when the hike will come into force.
The first batch of emails were sent at the beginning of this month, which means some subscribers have just days to act before the hike comes into effect.
But there are things you can do now to avoid being hit by the bill hike.
Buy a bundle
You could save up to £95.88 a year if you ditch your separate Netflix plan and opt for a TV package which includes it.
Sky, Virgin Media and EE TV all offer packages with Netflix, which make them one of the cheapest ways to add Netflix to a pay TV bundle.
At Sky you can get Netflix’s cheapest plan with ads included as part of your package.
NETFLIX PRICE CHANGES IN FULL
Here's what you need to know...
Netflix Standard with Ads
Price: £5.99 (up £1 from £4.99)
- Ad-supported, all but a few movies and TV shows available, unlimited mobile games
- Watch on 2 supported devices at a time
- Watch in 1080p (Full HD)
- Download on 2 supported devices at a time
Netflix Standard
Price: £12.99 (Up £2 from £10.99)
- Unlimited ad-free movies, TV shows, and mobile games
- Watch on 2 supported devices at a time
- Watch in 1080p (Full HD)
- Download on 2 supported devices at a time
- Option to add 1 extra member who doesn’t live with you
Netflix Premium
Price: £18.99 (Up £1 from £17.99)
- Unlimited ad-free movies, TV shows, and mobile games
- Watch on 4 supported devices at a time
- Watch in 4K (Ultra HD) + HDR
- Download on 6 supported devices at a time
- Option to add up to 2 extra members who don’t live with you
- Netflix spatial audio
Picture Credit: Netflix
This includes customers who are subscribed to Sky’s Essential TV package, which costs just £15 a month.
The package also includes a Discovery+ subscription and access to Sky Atlantic.
A customer who chooses to bundle a Netflix Premium subscription with their Sky package would pay an additional £11 a month through their Sky bill.
This is £7.99 a month less than the £18.99 charged by Netflix for the same plan when it is purchased directly.
By bundling the two together you could save £95.88 a year.
Switch to a cheaper plan
If you pay for Netflix Premium but do not need all the added extras then switching to a Standard plan could save you £6 a month, or £72 a year.
Meanwhile, you could save £13 a month, or £156 a year, if you swap from a Premium plan to a Standard one with adverts.
You may be able to save if you are happy to compromise on the number of devices you can stream on at the same time, the picture quality or the number of devices you can download TV to watch at any time.
Become an Extra Member
If you want to share Netflix with a family member or friend but you do not live together then ask them to add you as an Extra Member on their plan.
The plan is similar to having your own subscription and you will have your own account, password and profile.
But doing this could save you a lot of money.
Splitting the cost of a Standard subscription would bring the cost down to just £9.49 a month.
Save without a TV licence
If you stream all of your TV and do not watch any live programmes or anything on BBC iPlayer then you do not need a licence.
You could save up to £169.50 a year by not renewing your licence.
The cost of a licence will rise to £174.50 from April 1, so not renewing could save you even more money.
Free Netflix with your mobile phone contract
Sometimes mobile phone contracts include Netflix for free.
For example, Netflix is available as an Inclusive Extra on some EE plans.
You can get it when you take any Android phone, SIM, tablet or laptop on a pay monthly plan which includes at least one Inclusive Extra.
Once you have chosen Netflix as an Inclusive Extra at the checkout you will be sent a text from EE and from Netflix with an activation link.
Keep an eye out for them when you are looking to switch mobile contract and want to subscribe to Netflix.
Shop around to make sure you are getting the best deal.
If the mobile contract is more expensive than others on offer then it could wipe out any savings you would get from having Netflix included.
WATCH TV FOR FREE
Pluto TV
Pluto TV is another free streaming service with more than 100 channels.
Anyone can access Pluto TV for free on the web or on your iPhone and Android device.
Virgin Media has just made it available via some of its boxes – but bear in mind you’d need to pay a TV licence and take out a contract with Virgin to take advantage of this.
Amazon Freevee
Amazon Prime Video may be the first thing you think of but the retail giant also has a growing free alternative.
Freevee is home to exclusives like Judy Justice.
It’s the new home of Neighbours too, which is set to return later this year.
But there’s some classic on-demand content too.
The L Word, Nashville and Parks and Recreation are among the shows available.
All4
All4 is the main source of on-demand programmes from Channel 4, E4, Film4 and More 4.
The service is free to use and funded by advertisements.
All4 offers a free and extensive library of both classic shows and more recent programmes, including complete box sets of some of our most popular series like Gogglebox.
UKTV Play
If you’re a fan of Dave, Drama, W and Yesterday then the UKTV Play is the place for you.
The latest featured shows include Meet The Richardsons, Annika and Great British Railway Journeys.
You’ll have to sign up to start watching – and there are ads.
ITVX
ITV now drops many new and exclusive shows online before they’re shown on ITV1.
There’s also a load of other shows, including more niche interest like anime.
Free trials
You should take advantage of free trials to keep more of your hard-earned cash.
Some trials are as short as seven days, while others last an entire month.
For example, Amazon Prime Video offers newbies 30 days streaming for free.
Now TV also offers weekly free trails for Sky Cinema and Entertainment packages.
But any savvy savers must remember to unsubscribe to any subscriptions before the end of the trial period or risk incurring further charges.
Customers can also nab a free trial of streaming services when buying new technology.
Some Apple technology purchases will include a free trial of Apple TV+.
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