Hulu and Netflix are the top streaming services, however, they have their added benefits over each other. In this post, we’ll discuss which is better Hulu or Netflix, and help you choose between the better streaming service for your entertainment needs.
The choice of streaming service varies from person to person. It depends upon the shows you’d like to watch, and the money you’re willing to pay for streaming services. Hulu and Netflix deal in the same market, but they are different in terms of content. People often have this question, is Hulu better than Netflix? Or the other way round, the answer depends upon the person.
We’ll compare both these top streaming services in terms of content, price, availability, and user experience. In the end, this will provide you the clarity to make a choice. So, let’s find out the best for you in Hulu vs Netflix.
Hulu vs Netflix: The Comparison Report
Content:
Hulu and Netflix both offer top-notch content but the content they offer is quite different from each other.
Netflix provides original series and movies, the streaming service is said to spend more than $10 billion every year to produce original content. Netflix has popular shows like Squid Game, Stranger Things, and Narcos, the list is never-ending.
Hulu is more inclined toward TV networks. Hulu offers popular TV shows from ABC, NBC, and FX, which gives it access to tons of popular TV shows. Apart from this, Hulu also provides you the flexibility to choose add-ons like ESPN, HBO Max, etc at an extra price with its plan.
To choose between Hulu and Netflix you need to find out which streaming service provides the content you like the most. With Hulu, you get more Television oriented content, with popular movies of different genres. Netflix provides you with tons of original productions, and Netflix is home to many popular series and movies. Hulu also offers a plan with live TV channels which includes more than 60 channels like MTV, Discovery, CNN, etc.
Pricing
Netflix offers 3 plans, Basic, Standard, and Premium. Each of these plans comes with its unique benefit. If you’ve up to 4 four people to watch Netflix and want HD quality then you can opt for its premium plan. However, If you’re the only one who’s going to binge-watch Netflix then you can opt for the basic plan. Standard is what you can consider the middle ground. Here’s the table to help you understand the Netflix pricing structure.
Feature | Basic | Standard | Premium |
Price | $9.99 | $15.49 | $19.99 |
No. of streams | 1 | 2 | 4 |
HD support | No | Yes | Yes |
4K support | No | No | Yes |
Note- The price mentioned is for a monthly basis
Hulu has a different pricing strategy than Netflix. Hulu’s starting plan is a lot cheaper, if compared to Netflix, but the downside is that it comes with ad interruptions, if you’re good with ad interruptions, you can think about it.
Hulu’s basic plan offers SD quality and comes with ad interruptions. Meanwhile, Hulu offers bundles with ESPN, HBO, Showtime, etc. Let’s understand Hulu’s pricing with this table.
Feature | Hulu | Hulu (no ads) | Hulu + live tv |
Price | $6.99 | $12.99 | $69.99 |
Streams | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Hulu’s plan with live TV comes with a content library and live TV. The plan $69.99 comes with ads while $75.99 restricts ads for you. However, you can opt for add-ons for more content, if you want to increase your content options. The add-ons are ESPN, HBO Max, Showtime, Cinemax, and Starz.
In the battle between Hulu vs Netflix, both have their unique points, with competitive pricing. To make the task easier for you to figure out which is better Hulu or Netflix, let’s discuss few more points.
Device Availability
Netflix is available on a wide range of devices such as
- iPhones and IPads
- Android/Windows smartphones and Tablets
- Chromecast
- Apple TV
- Fire TV
- Roku TV
- Xbox 360 and Xbox one
- Nvidia Shield
- PS3, PS4
- Smart TVs: Hisense, LG, Panasonic, Phillips, Samsung, Sanyo, Sharp, Sony, and Vizio
- Blu-ray players such as Funai, LG, Magnavox, Panasonic, Toshiba, Samsung, Phillips, Sharp, and Sony
Hulu is available on a wide range of devices such as
- iPhones, Ipads
- Android phones and Tablets
- Android TV
- Apple TV
- Chromecast
- Roku
- Fire TV
- LG TV
- Samsung TV
- VIZIO SmartCast TV
- Fire tablets
- Xbox One
- Xbox 360
- Nintendo Switch
- Playstation 3 and 4
- Xfinity Flex and X1 set-top boxes
Hulu and Netflix both these streaming services are available on the majority of devices, the difference is Hulu is available on Nintendo switch while Netflix is not available. We are a point closer to finding out the best between Hulu and Netflix, so let’s discuss the user experience these streaming services provide.
User Experience
Hulu and Netflix both are premium streaming services that adhere to a wide group of audiences. They constantly make changes to their user interface to make sure the user gets a flawless experience on their platform. The bugs in their app and website can take a huge toll on their reputation, and can also lead to losing potential customers. However, they have been successful in giving their users the best experience.
Hulu and Netflix have sort of similar user interfaces and show the featured movies and shows on top of the screen. What sets Hulu apart is the section where you can find the list of TV channels like ABC, Cartoon Network, etc. User experience is the last point to help you choose the best streaming service for yourself. In this battle of Hulu vs Netflix, we have compared both these platforms in every term to help you make a perfect choice.
Hulu vs Netflix: Which streaming service is best for you?
Based on the comparison you have to find out your content needs. If you’re looking for some popular movies and shows, then Netflix is your choice. If you’re inclined toward television-oriented content then Hulu is your choice.
Hulu provides you the option to watch movies and shows along with the option to watch live TV, however, that would cost a tad higher. With Netflix, you can go to YouTube TV to watch TV shows along with Netflix’s original content. We have broken down things for you to help you make a perfect choice for yourself.
We hope you found this post on Hulu vs Netflix informative. We wish you a wise choice and a good time watching Hulu or Netflix.