Key Takeaways
- Nearly half of Americans who drop a video streaming subscription end up returning within a year, according to Antenna, which researches the subscription economy.
- Surveyed consumers say the top reason they dropped a subscription was to save money.
- Streaming has become a bigger drag on budgets, with average bills for both ad-free and ad-supported plans rising in recent years.
Remember that time you canceled Netflix to save a few bucks? If you’re like most Americans, you didn’t stay away for long enough to cover much more than a tank or two of gas.
Nearly half of people who drop a video streaming plan resubscribe within a year, according to research from Antenna, which analyzes the subscription economy. Many return even sooner, with 25% rebounding within three months and 34% within six, the analysis said.
Streaming has become a bigger drag on budgets, with the average bill for ad-free plans growing 23% and the average payment for ad-supported subscriptions increasing 25% in the past two years, Antenna said. Netflix (NFLX) raised prices about $1 to $2 earlier this year, while Walt Disney (DIS) increased rates for Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ this fall.
Reducing monthly spending is the top reason consumers canceled or planned to cancel a streaming service, according to surveys conducted in 2023 by KPMG. But 20% added a streaming service based on the content it offered, that report said.
With streaming starting at about $8 a month, going a year without it could save those on a budget a little under $100 a year. That’s about enough for two entrees, a bottle of wine and gratuity at the Red Lobster in Times Square.
The streaming industry’s average monthly net churn, a measure of subscriber dropoff, is about 3%, according to Antenna. “Video streaming is settling into a more mature and sustainable growth model,” its report said.