Is Netflix Basic with Ads Worth the Money?

Netflix Basic with Ads is launching in early November, but is this new subscription plan worth getting? That is the big question everyone has about this ad-supported plan that Netflix has been talking about for most of 2022.

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With a launch date set for November 3rd, 2022, Basic with Ads will reduce the price of the Netflix Basic plan by $3 and introduce four to five minutes of ads every hour. Each ad will last between 15 and 30 seconds, which means you’ll get interrupted from watching your shows or movies by between eight and 20 ads every hour.

Another big difference is that some movies and shows will be unavailable. However, we don’t know exactly which movies and shows will be absent in the Netflix Basic with Ads subscription plan at the time of writing.

A photo of a television displaying the McMillions home page on HBO Max

There is a lot more youneed to know about Netflix’s Basic with Ads subscription plan, but besides the ads and lack of content, the Basic plan and Basic with Ads offer pretty much the same.

Is Netflix Basic with Ads Worth Getting?

with the purpose of understand whether Basic with Ads is worth getting, we have to learn what you gain and lose.

First of all, it’s pretty clear that you’ll save $3 every month. You’ll get to watch the same 720p content you could watch with the Basic plan, and it’s possible to’t share this account with any family members since you can only watch content on one device at a time.

A man holds an iPhone and is watching Interstellar on Prime Video

Therefore, by going for the Basic with Ads plan, you won’t lose any Netflix functionality, as there are no such restrictions as we’ve seen whencomparing Netflix with Ads with other streaming services.

However, on top of losing access to some content, you’ll also lose hours of your time every month. As we already mentioned, you’ll get about four to five minutes of ads every hour. Assuming you watch about five to six hours of Netflix every week, that’s about two hours of ads every month.

A collage showing stills from The Walking Dead, The Wire, House of Cards, Line of Duty, Manifest, and the Man in the High Castle

Ultimately, no matter how well-targeted or how relevant the ads are, is spending two hours of your time watching ads every month worth $3? We really don’t think so. Those are two hours you can spend watching more content, relaxing, reading, or whatever else you want, especially given how busy our lives are. You can even use that time tolearn a new profitable skillthat could make you more than $3 every month.

To Get or Not to Get: Basic with Ads

With only $3 as the difference between watching five minutes of ads every hour and watching none, we really don’t think getting Basic with Ads is worth it. Granted, $3 might be a huge difference to some of us, but some Netflix alternatives cost even less money.

We take at look at the best Netflix alternatives, of which there are a surprising number—both free and paid.

laptop with netflix logo

Quality apps that don’t cost anything.

Flagship price, mid-range phone.

Who asked for these upgrades?

Now, I actually finish the books I start.

Some subscriptions are worth the recurring cost, but not these ones.

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