It’s a great time to be a cord-cutter. We’ve never had more variety. But with that variety comes confusion and steadily mounting bills. How many services do you really use? Are there services you only use for one specific show? How many streaming services is too many?
One of the most frustrating aspects of cutting the cord is when you subscribe to a new service, only to discover a ton of duplicate content you’ve already seen. The future of streaming is exclusivity. We’ve come a long way since the first made-for-streaming series (Netflix’s “House of Cards” in 2013).
So which streaming services offer you the most exclusive bang for your buck? Reelgood partnered with Insider for a closer look.
Exclusive content by streaming service
Disney+ is the most exclusive service. A whopping 89% of its content can’t be streamed elsewhere. Between the huge Disney and 20th Century Fox catalogs, that’s a big advantage. (Total catalog: 311 TV shows/742 movies)
Netflix has been spending tons of money to build out its content. 83% of its catalog is only available there. (Total catalog: 2,069 TV shows/3,766 movies)
HBO Max gets to draw from the long history of the channel, along with Warner Brothers films. 72% of the HBO Max catalog is exclusive. (Total catalog: 606 TV shows/1,932 movies)
Paramount+ is playing catch-up. 41% of its TV catalog is exclusive, but only 23% of its movies are only found on the service. ViacomCBS is planning to sell $3 billion in stock to fund a streaming content binge.
Hulu has just 40% of its catalog exclusive. (Total catalog: 1,700 TV shows/916 movies)
Amazon Prime Video has the least number of exclusives with just 38%. But its catalog is the largest. (Total catalog: 2,161 TV shows/14,670 movies)
Since you’re not locked into a contract, the smart play might be to cycle through these services periodically. It’s rare you’d have a month where you’d need to watch all six. Some services also provide a discount for an annual rate, so that’s a consideration as well.
As always, The Streamable will keep you plugged in as content joins and leaves each platform, so stay with us to make sure you’re getting the most for your money.