South African Netflix users will now be paying a bit more to stream some of the best television content available.
While it’s more expensive, Netflix’s subscription costs could very well still be more affordable than the alternatives. Depending on how greedy you are with your money or the content you’d like to access.
For the sake of fairness, we’re not including DStv subscription options in this comparison between streaming services. All you have to know is that it’s far more expensive to pay for DStv, internet service and streaming services on top of that.
DStv Premium currently costs R830p/m — just as a point of reference. Enough of that though, let’s see how Netflix stacks up against other streaming services available in South Africa.
Netflix vs the streamers 2021
| Platform | Mobile subscription | Base subscription | Premium subscription |
| Netflix | R50p/m | R160p/m | R200p/m |
| Amazon Prime Video | n/a | n/a | R87p/m |
| Showmax | R40p/m | R100p/m | R450p/m |
| Apple TV+ | R85p/m |
If you go on pricing alone, surprisingly, Apple TV+ takes the crown in SA as being the cheapest streaming service on offer. Unfortunately, it’s really not comparable to the others in terms of content — so that’s probably why.
You may be after value for money rather, in which case it’s clear Amazon Prime Video should be on your list. It offers a fairly large content library for only R87 (ish, it’s converted from $6) per month. Here you’ll get access to things like The Grand Tour, The Boys, Fleabag and many more Amazon Originals, including a wide range of films.
Then there’s Showmax, which is an interesting one — it offers heaps of local South African content, and the fairly overpriced Pro subscription at R450p/m adds some sports channels. So if you’ve dropped DStv and need that sports fix, this one may be for you. The R100p/m standard option also features licenced HBO content — which is the only legal way you’ll get to watch it in SA.
Basically, Netflix is expensive if you look at the other options, but still not really.
While it’s easy to get carried away and sign up for enough streaming services to start competing with DStv’s monthly cost, you’re bound to gain much more value in terms of content. You wouldn’t want to miss out on the recent Squid Game craze, now would you?