Streaming services continue to raise prices, making it harder for cord cutters to manage their ever-growing subscription bills. Hulu is the latest company to announce a price increase along with Disney+.
Netflix has always charged more than its competitors — January 2022 was the latest price increase. However, now that Netflix has launched a cheaper ad-supported tier, it’s possible that more consumers will want to switch to the platform.
Rising prices aside, there’s a lot going on with both Hulu and Netflix. However, some subscribers may have to make the difficult choice of dropping one or the other. Here are our thoughts on how Netflix and Hulu compare, and why we think each streaming service is the most cost-effective.
Netflix’s Original Content Library Is More Robust
Netflix has been in the streaming business for 15 years, so it’s no surprise that it has a sizable content library, with original titles being the biggest driver of subscriber growth.
From hits like ‘Wednesday’, ‘The Squid Game’, ‘Stranger Things’, ‘Bridgerton’ and ‘Ozarks’ to big-budget movies starring Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans and more from ‘The Gray Man’ , with a variety of entertainment options.that is largely endless. Netflix owns the distribution rights to most movie studios, as well as TV shows like NBC’s “Good Girls” and Showtime’s “Shameless.”
Hulu’s original content is nothing to sneeze at, with top titles like “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Only Murders in the Building,” “The Dropout,” “Nine Perfect Strangers,” and “Tell Me Lies.” The streamer has some massive amounts of originals, but the library isn’t as deep as Netflix’s.
Image credit: netflix
Netflix’s binge streaming model is another major reason subscribers enjoy the service. For most titles, the streaming service uploads an entire season of the show, as opposed to Hulu, where he rolls out one episode per week.
In 2022, Netflix will win 26 Emmy Awards after being nominated for 105. ‘Squid Game’ made history as the first non-English series to win the Outstanding Drama category. By the way, Hulu has won him only 10 Emmys after his 58 nominations. This was a new record for streamer nominations.
Another thing that sets Netflix apart from Hulu is its selection of interactive series such as ‘Bandersnatch’, ‘Cat Burglar’, ‘Trivia Quest’ and the latest trivia series ‘Triviaverse’.
Netflix has also expanded into movie franchises, something Hulu has yet to fully achieve. Netflix has confirmed a sequel and spin-off show to ‘Gray-Man’, as well as a spin-off ‘Stranger Things’ series.The streaming giant has also acquired the rights to ‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’ and ‘Knives Out 3’ as well as his Acquired for $450 million.
Image credit: netflix
Additionally, the company will make reality TV history with the upcoming competitive series Squid Game: The Challenge. The series will have his 456 participants, making it the largest reality TV cast ever.
While we’re talking about the topic of reality TV, let me add that Netflix misses the bar in this category. For example, the unscripted series “Is It Cake?” Did. The romance show “Love is Blind” was a hit for the service, but that show, “The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On,” had his Rotten Tomatoes audience score of 11% of him.
So even though Netflix is churning out addictive true-crime, drama, documentary, and stand-up comedy specials, streamers have come under scrutiny for its reality TV offerings.
Hulu is good for fans of reality shows
Hulu is one of the best reality shows after Discovery+.Hulu’s “The Kardashians” and “The D’Amelio Show is doing well for streamers, and its biggest draw is its extensive selection of traditional TV shows that Netflix lacks.
Hulu’s vast TV catalog is thanks to relationships with ABC, FX, Fox, Food Network, Freeform, TLC, and many other content partnerships. The streaming service was hit hard when it lost the licensing deal for the next day’s episode of the Bravo show with NBC. Peacock now owns the exclusive rights to those next-day accesses, forcing Hulu to remove his on-demand episodes of shows like “Saturday Night Live” and “The Voice.” . However, we still have rights to older titles such as ‘Law & Order SVU’, ‘Friday Night Lights’ and ’30 Rock’.
Image credit: Hulu
Plus, select Hulu Live TV from Bravo, Comedy Central, E!, Freeform, Hallmark Channel, Lifetime, MTV, Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, Discovery, History, National Geographic, ESPN, CNN, Fox News, ABC News and more.
Netflix’s ad-supported plans are Hulu’s newest competitor
Hulu and other ad-supported streaming services have faced tougher competition since Netflix launched its low-cost ad-supported plans earlier this month.
Netflix’s new “Basic with Ads” plan is $6.99 per month, a little cheaper than Hulu’s $7.99 per month ad plan. Netflix also has a standard plan for $15.50 per month, which is comparable to Hulu’s ad-free plan for $14.99 per month.
Netflix promises about 4-5 minutes of commercials for every hour of content, and ads are only 15-30 seconds long. Also, newer Netflix movies only show pre-roll ads, while older movies show mid-roll and pre-roll ads, on par with Hulu.
Netflix’s cheap plans have their downsides, aside from sitting around watching ads. Not only is there a low-quality 720p video of him, but viewers can only stream from one of his devices at a time, and offline viewing is not available.
Hulu’s advertising plans also don’t support offline viewing. However, you have the option to watch videos up to 1080p, and some content is available in his 4K. To watch Netflix content in his 4K, subscribers will have to pay $19.99 per month for his premium plan.
Also, Hulu’s advertising plan allows subscribers to stream on two devices at a time, while Netflix’s “Basic with Ads” only allows one device at a time.
Most notably, licensing restrictions prevent Netflix subscribers from accessing approximately 5% to 10% of Netflix’s content catalog. The company said it is renegotiating with studios to bring more content to its ad-supported tier.
Hulu also has licensing issues with one of its ABC shows, “Grey’s Anatomy,” so even on an ad-free plan, the show still shows ads. The ad-free tier of Hulu Live TV also shows ads for some on-demand titles.
Hulu’s Disney Bundle Is A Good Deal
Combining Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu at discounted rates, the Disney Bundle offers a wide range of entertainment for the whole family at a great value, including on-demand movies and TV shows, sports programming, original content and more.
As of late 2022, the ESPN+, Disney+, and Hulu bundle plan with ads is $14.99/month, and the Disney bundle of Hulu, Disney+, and ESPN+ without ads is $19.99/month.
Hulu has add-on channels
Hulu’s premium add-on channels are an optional cherry. Subscribers have the option to add premium subscriptions such as HBO, Showtime, Cinemax and STARZ for an additional cost of $8.99 to $14.99 per month.
If you have Hulu Live TV, you can also get the add-on for just $4.99/month. Add-ons include Spanish Channels, Entertainment and Sports. Hulu Live TV subscribers can also stream simultaneously to an unlimited number of supported devices for an additional $9.99/month.
Netflix does not offer add-ons.
And the winner is…
it’s up to you. If you value a large and unique content library and want to stream all episodes of your favorite shows in one weekend, Netflix is for you. If you value access to a wide variety of traditional TV shows, especially reality TV shows, and bundle or include additional subscription services in your plan, Hulu is a great choice.
