The Best Bang for Your Binge (Pt 2)
Which streaming service is worth your one and only subscription?
Last week, I completed a thorough analysis of all the streamers, taking into account factors such as total number of subscribers, volume of content, quality of content, and cost. After crunching the numbers, I crowned Netflix as the reigning champion due to its steady performance across each of these categories.
However, that result left a sour taste in my mouth.
It was an interesting exercise to discover an objective winner based on measurable factors, especially considering that each streaming platform has its own unique strengths and weaknesses. But after writing that last letter, I felt less confident about picking a single service and saying, “That’s the one. That’s where I get the biggest bang for my binge!”
Ultimately, what determines value with streaming platforms is how much you actually use them, and that’s what I wanted to measure.
Over the past six months, I’ve been “clocking in” every time I watched content on a specific streaming service, resulting in a solid picture of which one I actually use the most. Today, I’ll dive into that data and make a final ranking of the streamers to answer the question: “What streaming service would I subscribe to if I could only choose one?”
Who knows, maybe you’ll end up canceling a couple of your own subscriptions.
Tracking every minute of content streamed for 6 months
During this six month time period, I watched 255 hours of content—approximately 42 hours of entertainment per month—meaning I spent about $2 per hour of streaming. Still cheaper than going to the movies!
Here are some highlights from my six months of tracking:
• Total Hours Spent Streaming: 255.26 hours
• Average Monthly Streaming Time: ~42.54 hours/month
• Average Session Length: ~1.37 hours/session
• Most Used Streaming Platform: Disney Plus
Despite having zero graphic design skills, I figured the results from this monitoring exercise would be best visualized in an infographic that highlights some of the key findings from my streaming habits.
First, I’ll address the elephant in the room—you, uncomfortably thinking, “Um… that’s a lot of Disney Plus you’re watching there, Spencer. Isn’t that, like, the streamer for children?”
I accept and embrace your judgment, and I’ll do my best to explain away the 73 hours I spent on Disney+. Late last year, my wife and I decided to start “rewatching” (aka having on in the background) all the Marvel Cinematic Universe films, starting with Iron Man. Obviously, these are long movies—and there are an infinite number of them, so the Disney+ numbers are inflated thanks to their deep library of superhero films. But regardless, I’m still watching the movies and using the service, so that has to count for something, right?
What surprised me most was how little I streamed from Netflix and Prime Video. On paper, both have a huge network effect, which means I should be watching the latest and greatest releases to keep up with the rest of the world. They also have massive content libraries, meaning there should be plenty of shows and movies for me to enjoy. And yet… my actual usage of these platforms over the past six months was just a little over 12% of my total watch time. Plus, Prime Video scored the two lowest-rated movies I watched during that time—further affirming the data that points to Prime Video having a relatively low percentage of quality content.
Then there are the middle-of-the-road performers, the ones that didn’t stand out in any particular category, like Paramount+ and Hulu. Aside from being inexpensive, both were lackluster in nearly every other metric.
With that being said, all signs point to Disney+ offering the greatest ROI for me. Based on the analysis from last week’s letter, combined with my actual usage data, Disney+ stands out for its cost-effectiveness and ranks as a strong performer across the other categories as well. Plus, I’ve clearly used it the most, even if a lot of that time was spent watching generic superhero flicks.
And yet… I’m not so sure about that result.
It feels a bit unfair (and very human) to spend over 20 hours building a statistical analysis, look at the definitive results, and then say:
I see your logic, all signs point to yes, and yet somehow… no.
From the Worst Streamer to the Best: A Ranking
Without further ado, here’s my finalized ranking of streamers from worst to best. If I had to start cutting services, this is the order I’d give them the axe.
Paramount+
Cost: Fairly priced—if you actually use it.
Content: I honestly don’t even know. I literally don’t watch anything here. I think Yellowstone was a hit? Star Trek is here, right?
Watch Time: Dead last.
Bonus: I’m sure Paramount+ has some good things going for it, but at some point, there are just too many streamers to subscribe to—and I don’t have the time to watch them all. This one has got to go.
Prime Video
Cost: Baked into a dozen other Prime perks, making it feel like a “deal.”
Content: Massive catalog. Insane, even. But the quality is all over the place, you practically need a data scientist to find the good stuff.
Watch Time: Never top of mind, which results in low engagement.
Bonus: A content warehouse masquerading as a streaming service — overwhelming in options, underwhelming in connection.
Netflix
Cost: Actually on the higher end ($14/month), but the experience feels bargain-bin.
Content: Overflowing with mid-tier sludge and expensive flops.
Watch Time: Shockingly low.
Bonus: Subscriber numbers might create FOMO for the occasional hit, but overall, the bang just isn’t worth the binge.
YouTube TV
Cost: Probably paying way too much for how little live TV I watch.
Content: It’s live TV. For me, that means sports; for my wife, that means Hallmark during the winter.
Watch Time: A decent amount, but half of that is commercials.
Bonus: Outside of football, March Madness, and the Olympics/World Cup, I’m not really using this.
YouTube Premium
Not exactly a “streamer,” but have you ever watched YouTube without ads? It’ll change your life.
Cost: Expensive!
Content: Your content library is basically the entire internet. Learn to code or watch monkeys throw poop at tourists—your choice.
Watch Time: Tons of short bursts; I’m watching YouTube several times a day for learning and entertainment.
Bonus: I could go back to ad-supported YouTube if I had to… but I really don’t want to.
Disney+
Low cost, universally appealing content, and high personal usage make Disney+ a strong ROI.
Cost: Dirt cheap ($5 for me).
Content: A strong catalog for both nostalgia (Pixar, Marvel) and modern bingeing (insert one of the hundreds of Star Wars shows).
Watch Time: Highest number of hours logged—I actually use this one.
Bonus: There’s no denying I use this service, but if it disappeared tomorrow… I’m not sure I’d miss it that much.
Hulu
Not flashy, but dependable for a good show and the rare gem that sticks with you.
Cost: One of the cheapest.
Content: A weird but charming mix of buzzy originals, FX prestige, and reality TV trash.
Watch Time: Not massive, but respectable.
Bonus: I can’t ignore the fact that two of my highest-rated shows during this period came from Hulu: Catch-22 and Say Nothing. When it delivers, it delivers big.
Apple TV+
The most refined offering in the lineup—a curated, high-quality experience that feels more like cinema than streaming.
Cost: Not bad.
Content: Elite. It’s HBO in a turtleneck. I just finished Severance Season 2, and it was mind-blowing.
Watch Time: Looks light, but I only subscribed for half of the tracking period.
Bonus: Apparently, watching Apple TV+ makes you better than everyone else. Who knew?
MAX
Max wins because it consistently delivers something worth watching — whether it’s a slow-burn drama, a comfort rewatch, or a hot new release.
Unlike Netflix’s throw-it-all-at-the-wall approach, Max actually appears to be trying to make good shows. I rarely feel like I’ve wasted my time and that alone makes the mid-tier cost feel justified. Sure, Max may have lost some of its HBO Game of Thrones prestige sheen, but it’s still the streamer I trust to hit play without regret.
Cost: Mid-tier.
Content: I could spend endless hours watching from Max’s deep and rich library. You could argue they’ve passed their prime, but in my opinion they’re still consistently releasing watchable shows like The White Lotus and The Last of Us.
Watch Time: Excluding YouTube subscriptions, this is second only to Disney+ for me.
Bonus: Max nails the balance between intriguing new releases and high-quality comfort classics, which keeps it in the regular rotation.
And just like that… (Yes, that’s a Sex and the City quote—also on Max), we have a true winner.
The Bel
As long as it has Real Housewives of (fill in the blank), Summer House and Southern Charm. I'll pay for it ; ). My reality needs their reality so my mind can turn to jello a few times a week for a short time.
I always look to you and Mitchell for recommendations. So if you say Max is the winner I will look to that service for content worth watching!