Launch of Netflix Basic with ads on Apple TV

Four months after its first launch on other devices, the Netflix Basic with Ads subscription plan is finally available on Apple TV devices.

The new addition was first discovered on Reddit as part of the Netflix app’s 2.3.0 update on Apple TV. This was later confirmed by Netflix to TechCrunch.

Priced at $6.99/£4.99 per month, it’s the cheapest tier of the streaming service, saving you $3/£2 on the top tier – the Netflix option Basic standard.

Netflix told advertisers that subscribers at this level had doubled earlier this year; likely a response to energy bills and rising living expenses. It could also become even more popular when Netflix moves forward with its crackdown on password sharing.

In exchange for the lower cost, viewers have to make do with a handful of pre-roll and mid-roll commercial breaks – the number and duration is usually determined by the length of the show/movie. There’s also a more limited library than is available on ad-free tiers, with some big shows like The Office and Arrested Development missing.

You can see how ads work in more detail in my Netflix Basic with Ads level practice.

Users also have streaming quality capped at 720p (HD) and have no simultaneous streams available, as is the case at the basic level.

The Netflix app can be downloaded from the Apple TV app store and you can sign up for Netflix here. If you’re not sure how the Netflix Basic tier with ads compares to other subscriptions, check out our guide to find out which Netflix plan is right for you.