Unsurprisingly, Netflix is no longer offering the option to sign up to its Basic plan in the United States. The removal of the Basic plan means those looking for an ad-free viewing experience will now have to subscribe to a more expensive subscription tier.
Late last year, Netflix launched a new Basic with ads plan priced at $6.99 per month. Soon after the launch, however, the ad-supported plan was rebranded as the Standard with ads plan. Then, late last month, Netflix totally removed the option to sign up to the ad-free Basic plan in Canada.
Following that change in Canada, Netflix has also now removed the option to sign up to the ad-free Basic plan in the United States. As a result, those looking to sign up today can only choose between Standard with ads, Standard, and Premium.
Considering the Basic plan was priced at $9.99 in the United States, new subscribers have lost the option to sign up to an ad-free plan for under $10 a month. Following this change, the cheapest ad-free Netflix plan now costs $15.49 a month.
In an updated help post that confirms the removal of the Basic plan, Netflix explains that the cheapest ad-free tier is no longer available to those signing up for the first time or returning subscribers. The same help post does also explain that any subscribers currently signed up to Basic will be able to remain subscribed to the same plan.
As returning subscribers are no longer able to resubscribe to the Basic plan, this also means that any homes already signed up to Basic will lose the option to return to this plan if they change plans. Likewise, they will also lose the option to resubscribe to Basic if they temporarily cancel their subscription.
It is worth noting that the removal of the Basic plan is part of a wide range of changes that the company has been making recently, and in a bid to lower costs and maximize revenue.
For example, Netflix has also recently introduced new policies that restrict access to primary home locations, cracked down on password-sharing, and added new charges for additional members.
