Is Netflix still worth your hard-earned dollars in 2022?

With a new month drawing near, it’s time to ask the all-important question: Should you drop that Netflix bill and save yourself $15 a month?

That’s ultimately a question only you can answer for yourself, but it’s one a lot of people have found themselves wondering lately. A recent survey of 1,000 Americans by Reviews.org found that 25 percent of respondents plan on dropping Netflix this year, which is a pretty high number for the streaming service that, well, made streaming a thing. 

So, let’s figure out if Netflix is worth keeping around or if that $15 can be better spent elsewhere.

How much does Netflix cost again?

As of September 2022, there are three plans available for Netflix subscribers:

• Basic: $10/month, standard-definition quality

• Standard: $15.49/month, HD quality

• Premium: $20/month, 4K quality

The only difference between the three tiers for now is streaming quality. There are no restrictions on which devices you can use to watch Netflix or anything like that if you decide to pay less for it. Netflix is also one of the only streaming services that up-charges for 4K access; HBO Max, Disney+, and Prime Video all include that for free.

There is one major caveat to all of this: Netflix plans on launching a cheaper, ad-supported tier by early 2023. We don’t know all the details yet, but theoretically, that could replace the standard-def version of Netflix that frankly doesn’t make much sense in a world where almost every display is 720p or better now.

Is Netflix worth the money?

As always, this comes down to personal taste, but there are some objective measures by which Netflix has a real argument as being worth the monthly hit to your bank account.

For starters, the sheer quantity of trendy titles on Netflix make a subscription feel necessary just to keep up with watercooler conversations at work. Recent examples of zeitgeisty Netflix shows and movies include Squid Game, Dahmer, Drifting Home, and Do Revenge. It can feel impossible to keep up with pop culture and participate in group chats without at least knowing a little bit about what’s big on Netflix at any given moment.

Netflix’s efforts to bring foreign titles to American audiences shouldn’t be ignored, either. While both are unfortunately only available in dubbed form on the app, the Indian epic RRR and the French antifa thriller Athena are two of the best movies I’ve seen this year, and both were easily available to me thanks to Netflix. The approach isn’t perfect, but the movies being watchable at all is a godsend.

But, for all the effort Netflix puts into stuff that’s exclusive to the service, it’s been lacking in non-exclusive classics lately. Legendary sitcoms like The Office and Frasier used to be Netflix mainstays, but have since moved onto other platforms. Personally, the removal of King of the Hill years ago was a tragedy. 

Put simply, Netflix is now the place you go to watch things that are only on Netflix, and there are a whole lot of those. Not all of it is good or worthwhile, but considering how good the best Netflix titles are (and the fact that you can still watch Better Call Saul there), I’d say Netflix is still worth the price…for now.