Netflix hikes prices in UK as customers left 'frustrated'

Netflix has increased its subscription prices for customers in the UK.

The new price for a standard subscription without adverts, has risen by £2 to £12.99 a month, while the same subscription with adverts has risen by £1.

The streaming service's most expensive premium subscription - which allows people to watch on four devices at the same time - is also increasing by £1 to £18.99 a month.

Money blog: Follow latest financial news

The cost of adding extra members - people who don't live in the same household - will also increase by £1 across all subscriptions.

A spokesperson told media outlets the most recent price hike would allow Netflix to "continue to invest in programming and deliver more value for our members".

It comes less than a month after customers the United States, Canada, Portugal and Argentina faced similar increases.

In the US a standard monthly plan with adverts rose to $7.99 (£6.49), a standard plan without ads increased to $17.99 (£14.60) and a premium plan went up to $22.99 (£18.66).

Netflix said at the time it was changing prices due to a surge of new customers in the last three months of 2024.

The platform ended last year with more than 300 million subscribers - an increase of 41 million from 2023.

This eclipsed its previous best year, 2020, which saw it add 36.6 million subscribers as pandemic lockdowns saw people turn to the streaming giant for entertainment.

'Frustrated' customers

The hike in price was criticised by customers, including some who said they have already cancelled their subscriptions.

One person wrote on X: "I already quit after the last price rise, and haven't missed it at all. Netflix is a scam at this point."

While another added: "Netflix is raising their prices again, if so, please start giving us more.

"Maybe it's my age showing, but there hasn't been anything that is 'must see' on that platform any more. Please tell me I'm not alone."

And a third said: "Another £2 price increase from Netflix... yeah time to cancel. They don't bring out shows good enough any more for that price."

Read more from Sky News:Grenfell Tower will be demolishedMajor travel disruption in Greater Manchester

Ernest Doku, streaming and broadband expert at Uswitch.com, said the increase would be "frustrating" for customers.

"Netflix is certainly enjoying a dominant position in the streaming wars, and this latest round of price rises both highlights the increasing cost to compete, as well as its power to charge higher fees to lend access to some of the world's most popular content," he said.

Mr Doku added that if you have Netflix included as part of your broadband package, you will likely see the increase applied to your bill in the near future.

Sky News has reached out to Netflix for comment.