Prime Video Cost: Monthly And Annual Subscriptions Explained

Prime video is either free or costs $8.99 per month, depending on whether someone is already a Prime member. There are also annual and student plans available that can help to save on the cost. Regardless of how a Prime Video subscription is created, subscribers get access to all of the same content, including Amazon Originals.

Compared to other streaming services, Prime Video is one that often slips under the radar. However, Amazon has been making big moves recently, and drawing more attention to its video subscription service in the process. Whether it is to watch Thursday Night Football or Amazon Originals like The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, to take advantage of the various Prime Video Channels, or just wanting access to a substantial video library, Prime Video is worth considering these days.

Anyone with an Amazon Prime membership already get access to Prime Video at no additional cost. Although Prime is primarily a way to save on Amazon.com shipping costs, there are some additional benefits that come with membership. One of which is unlimited access to Prime Video. If not already a Prime member, Amazon offers a 30-day free trial to test the membership program out. The monthly cost of Prime is $14.99 in the US, and it’s possible to sign up for an annual plan, priced at $149 per year.

For those less interested in the full Prime membership, it’s also possible to sign up to just Prime Video. This won’t affect the subscriber’s access to the streaming service and can greatly help to save on the cost. The standard price of the standalone Prime Video subscription is $8.99 per month. At present, Amazon does not offer an annual plan just for Prime Video.

Amazon also offers a special student-only membership tier which further helps to lower the cost. Technically, the Amazon Prime Student membership is a cheaper version of the full Prime membership plan, but it still includes access to Prime Video and at a cheaper rate. If signing up on a monthly basis, Amazon Prime Student costs $7.49 per month. To save further on the cost, an annual Amazon Prime Student membership is available at $69 per year.

Amazon Prime or just Prime Video?

Whether it’s worth signing up for a full Amazon Prime membership or just Prime Video depends on the needs of the home. As there is no difference in the general Prime Video experience offered to Prime members and Prime Video-only subscribers, consumers will need to weigh up the other benefits and the additional cost. At $8.99 per month, a standalone Prime Video subscription costs similar to other streaming services. At $14.99 per month, however, it is expensive when compared to other monthly subscriptions.

That higher Amazon Prime cost does also include two-day shipping on eligible items, access to more than two million songs through Amazon Music Prime, and various Prime Gaming benefits. If opting for the annual plan, all of these benefits, including Prime Video, work out to be $11.58 per month on average. That’s roughly $2.50 per moth more than the standalone monthly subscription.

Of course, if none of these additional benefits are of interest, then there is not much point paying for them. In this case, simply opting for the $8.99 standalone Prime Video subscription is likely to be the best option. Amazon does offer a free trial for Prime Video, so there is no harm in testing out a standalone subscription before making the first payment. As automatic billing is in effect, the Prime Video subscription will need to be manually canceled before the end of the free period if wanting to avoid being billed for the first paid month.

Prime Video Cost Summary

A standard Prime Video subscription costs $8.99 per month and there’s currently no annual plan to save on the cost. However, if already signed up for Amazon Prime, members get access to Prime Video as well for free. Prime members can simply log in to the Prime Video app using their existing Amazon account details and immediately start watching.

While there is no option to save on the cost of Prime Video with an annual plan, there is the option to sign up to Amazon Prime on an annual basis. Amazon also offers a discount on the cost of Prime to eligible students. In fact, some people may also find that they are eligible for Prime Access, potentially reducing the cost of a Prime membership, with Prime Video included, down to as little as $6.99 per month.