Netflix Users Are Saying Goodbye After Latest Price Hike, “Canceling After 20 Years”

Price hikes are always unpopular among Netflix subscribers, but for many, this latest round is the final straw. Netflix raised all of its subscription prices last week without warning, announcing the change in a letter to shareholders before sharing it with customers themselves. At a time when inflation is taking a serious toll on just about everyone, this was a perfect chance for Netflix users to reconsider whether the service is really worth it to them. Some announced that they had not canceled for years — even decades — but now they were finally taking a break. Some said they will be back when a particular show or movie premieres, but others are finished with Netflix on principle.

On Tuesday, January 21st, Netflix shared its earnings report form the fourth quarter of 2024, which included its plans for the immediate future. It said that price increases would go into effect that day for all of its subscription plans — the Standard with Ads tier went from $6.99 per month to $7.99 per month, the Standard tier went from $15.49 to $17.99, and the Premium tier went from $22.99 to $24.99. Even the optional fee to add an extra household went up from $7.99 to $8.99 per month.

Doing the math, this brings the yearly cost of the Premium plan up to about $300 per year before sales tax and without any extra households. That was enough for Reddit user u/krazykatz911 to give up on the service foor good. They called it “Just plain ripoffs,” noting, “I’ve been a customer for 20 years. The content is garbage. A lot of the shows/movies are in different languages. Which is fine but allow the user to select what languages they only want to see. Not mix it all together and you have to start playing it to find out.”

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“A lot are old and available free on prime anyway,” the post went on. “They keep raising the rates like it’s something people can’t live without. I got 4 streaming services for less than half of what Netflix wants a year. Goodbye greedy Netflix.”

Many commenters agreed, though of course not all of them. Some said they were canceling their subscription until their favorite show returned, which may not be long if they watch one of the big hits like Stranger Things, Wednesday, or You. Some of these were just looking to save money, but others hoped that their cancellations would send a message to Netflix and make the company regret the price hikes.

As always, the price increase also raised a conversation about strategies for pausing subscriptions without canceling them. Netflix even provides this option so customers can save a few months’ worth of fees without ending their membership altogether. For some, the dance of pausing subscriptions and restarting them is too much hassle, and is just another indignity alongside the price hikes. For others, it’s the last benefit that still makes streaming preferable to the old cable system.