Is Prime Video Worth It?

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If you’re one of the 140 million Amazon Prime members in the U.S., you may or may not have realized that you also have access to all of Prime Video. But don’t worry, you’re not alone; it’s estimated that just 40% of Amazon Prime members utilize Prime Video.

That’s really a shame because, aside from free two-day shipping, Amazon’s on-demand streaming service is one of the best perks to being a Prime member. With Prime Video, you can enjoy Amazon’s well-curated acquisitions of popular content, as well as Amazon Originals that you won’t find anywhere else, including the Emmy-nominated “The Boys” and the Golden Globe and Emmy award-winning “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”

But did you know that you don’t have to pay for a full Amazon Prime membership to gain access to all those thousands of movies and television shows on Prime Video? If you don’t want Amazon Prime for some reason, you do have the option to subscribe to Prime Video on its own. We think one deal far outweighs the other, but we’re going to break down all the details to help you decide if Prime Video is really worth your money.

What Does Prime Video Cost?

To gain access to Prime Video content, you can choose from a few different options. You can sign up for an Amazon Prime membership, which includes access to Prime Video and a multitude of other benefits. Or, you can simply subscribe to just Prime Video to watch shows and movies without the other benefits.

• Amazon Prime Membership: $12.99 per month or $119 per year (which gets you down to$9.91 per month).
• Prime Video Membership: $8.99 per month

Note: if you’re new to Amazon Prime or Prime Video, you’ll get your first 30 days free with either one of the above options.

Even better, current students at U.S. colleges or universities can get a six-month free trial of Prime Student, then pay just $6.49 per month or $59 per year to get all of the benefits of a Prime membership — including Prime Video — plus other special savings. That’s a pretty stellar way for students to save money, if you ask us.

What Do You Get With Prime Video Subscriptions? 

With a Prime Video subscription, you gain access to over 20,000 movies and more than 2,000 shows. All subscribers can create up to six different viewer profiles (including age-restricted kids profiles), and as many as three videos can be streamed from the account at the same time.

You can also pay extra to add individual Prime Video channels — like Showtime, STARZ, AMC+ and EPIX — to your account for easy access to all of your favorite content in one hub. Sometimes, you can catch a really good deal that will net you one of these add-ons for a lower price through Amazon than you’d pay to get it on its own.

Also note that you can rent or buy additional movies and TV episodes that are not Prime eligible. You can make these purchases even without a Prime membership. 

If you opt to sign up for the full Amazon Prime membership, not only will you enjoy all of Prime Video, but you’ll also get the following benefits:

• Free two-day shipping on all Prime-eligible items
• Millions of ad-free songs through Amazon Music
• Free games and other goods with Prime Gaming
• Try before you buy with Prime Wardrobe
• Thousands of free eBooks

What Can You Watch on Prime Video?

With a growing lineup of Amazon Originals and an ever-rotating selection of hit movies and popular TV shows, there’s truly something for everyone to watch on Prime Video.

Popular TV Shows and Amazon Original Series:

• The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
• Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan
• The Boys
• Homecoming
• Hunters
• The Expanse
• Good Omens
• Absentia
• Bosch
• Modern Love
• Agatha Christie’s The Pale Horse
• The Man in the High Castle
• Mozart in the Jungle
• Fleabag
• Undone
• Upload
• Them
• Making the Cut
• House
• Animal Kingdom
• Downton Abbey
• How I Met Your Mother
• Vikings
• Psych
• Monk
• Grimm
• Suits
• Bones

Movies, Live Sports and Documentaries on Prime Video:

• Knives Out
• Sound of Metal
• The Tomorrow War
• One Night in Miami…
• Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse
• Radioactive
• Coming 2 America
• Honey Boy
• Small Axe
• Blow the Man Down
• Selah and the Spades
• Troop Zero
• The Big Sick
• Late Night
• The Report
• Paterson
• Gotti
• Jaws
• Midsommar
• The Sweetest Thing
• Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
• I Am Not Your Negro 
• Beautiful Boy
• Thursday Night Football
• #Unfit: The Psychology of Donald Trump
• LuLaRich

Popular Kids Content on Prime Video:

• Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny
• If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
• Clifford the Big Red Dog
• Pete the Cat
• Peppa Pig
• Bubble Guppies
• Dora the Explorer
• Spongebob Squarepants
• Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood
• Wallace & Gromit
• Reading Rainbow

Who Would Like Prime Video Best?

Garnering awards buzz and cult followings, the expansive lineup of Amazon Originals across all genres ensures that there’s a little something for everyone to enjoy on Prime Video. Fans of superheroes-gone-bad will love “The Boys,” while action fans will be drawn to “Jack Ryan,” the series starring John Krasinski, and “Without Remorse,” the action thriller starring Michael B. Jordan. The streamer is even home to its own powerful dramas, like the award-winning film “The Sound of Metal” starring Riz Ahmed.

On the flip side, comedy fans will enjoy the multi-award-winning series “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” and “Fleabag.” Even the dreamy, emotional, genre-bending animated series “Undone” (from the creative team behind Netflix’s “Bojack Horseman”) has acquired quite a cult following of its own.

It’s clear that Prime Video has carefully curated a slew of content to cover a broad swath of entertainment, ensuring that it can garner interest from all types of fans. (Even their abundance of kids’ content is almost comparable to Disney+!) And while one particular movie or series might pull you in, there’s a seemingly endless amount of equally enjoyable content right behind it to hold your attention and make your membership worthwhile in the long run.

How to Subscribe to Prime Video

Signing up for Prime Video or an Amazon Prime membership is easy when you follow these steps in your web browser:

1. Go to Amazon.com/gp/video/signup.
2. Create or log into your account and you’ll see a page asking you to confirm your details.
   1. If you want to subscribe to a monthly subscription of Amazon Prime, click the yellow button at the bottom that says Start Your Free Trial. (Or, a button to continue to the next step if you have already benefited from a free trial previously.)
   2. If you’d rather sign up for a different plan, click the Change button to the right of the Plan section. From there, you’ll see additional options to pay for Amazon Prime annually or subscribe to a monthly subscription of just Prime Video. Make your pick and click Continue.
3. If you don’t currently have billing information stored in your Amazon account, you’ll be asked to update your payment information.
4. Now you’re all set to watch Prime Video!

How to Cancel Prime Video

To cancel your Prime Video or Amazon Prime membership, follow these steps in your web browser:

1. Go to Amazon.com/AmazonPrime.
2. Here, you can manage your Prime subscription by either changing plans or cancelling entirely.

If you just want to cancel an add-on Prime Video Channel:

1. Go to Manage Your Prime Video Channels.
2. Find the subscription that you no longer want.
3. Click Cancel Channel to confirm.

Bottom Line: Our Verdict

If you order from Amazon a few times per month, then an Amazon Prime membership is definitely worth it on its own and your access to Prime Video (and all the other myriad membership benefits) are just the cherry on top. 

But let’s say that you sign up to Prime Video alone. If you were to watch 30 hours of content per month, it would cost you just $0.30 per hour. That’s pretty comparable to the other top streaming providers out there — namely Netflix’s base plan — and you’ll get just as much quality entertainment. 

With so much classic content, blockbuster hits, awards season buzz and new Amazon Originals dropping all the time, we’d have to say Prime Video is definitely worth it, even when purchased on its own.

That said, we absolutely recommend getting the full Amazon Prime membership to score the best bargain. Paid annually, it’ll cost you less than $2 more per month for all those extra benefits. And that value is really quite difficult to beat considering that no other streamer can offer such wide-reaching service and convenience with their entertainment lineup.

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