Prime Video is replacing its current Ad-Free add-on with a new tier called Prime Video Ultra. Starting April 10 this year, the existing subscription will be renamed and it will cost $5 per month in the US. Before now, you paid $3 to remove ads. That’s a $2 price increase. The justification for this change is that there are new features awaiting you.
Pay extra to remove Amazon's ads
According to Amazon's announcement, the new Prime Video Ultra plan adds up to five simultaneous streams, which was previously three. You also get a boost up from 25 to 100 downloads for offline viewing and access to 4K/UHD streaming with Dolby Atmos audio.
Prime Video does offer a lot of content that would make these features worth it, including newer movies, popular TV shows, originals, and even live sports. But it’s a mix of included content and paid extras, so not everything is automatically part of the subscription.
Delivering ad-free streaming with premium features requires significant investment. This structure aligns with other major streaming services while ensuring customers have the flexibility to choose how they want to watch.
Prime members will continue to enjoy the core Prime Video benefit, including HD/HDR and now Dolby Vision, at no additional cost with their Prime membership.
Regular Amazon Prime members will still get the standard service included in their membership, which now offers HD, HDR, Dolby Vision, four simultaneous streams, and up to 50 downloads. However, ads will remain visible.
Streaming companies may argue that ads help offset the high costs of producing and licensing content. But it's still a bit unfair since you're paying for the service already.
Prime Video Ultra is only available in the USA
Although Prime Video itself is available in many countries through Amazon Prime or standalone Prime Video subscriptions, the new Prime Video Ultra tier is currently launching only in the United States.
If you're outside the country, you won't have access to it and you can still use Prime Video normally. If you mainly watch a few shows and the ads don’t bother you much, you can keep your Standard plan. It's not worth extra for features you previously considered part of the standard experience.
Another thing to consider is that Prime membership bundles many benefits you can take advantage of besides streaming. They include faster shipping, Prime Gaming, Prime Music perks, and shopping discounts.
But if you've thought of canceling, you wouldn't be the first. Many Reddit users have voiced how the change is making them consider canceling Prime or switching services, even after up to 16 years of loyalty.
Even if you leave the service, streamflation is still happening across the industry where even Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, Max, and Paramount+ have all raised subscription prices or pushed premium features into more expensive tiers.
Ad-supported tiers, piracy websites, and media-center or aggregator platforms seem to be the alternatives people are turning to now, with users pairing Stremio and Real‑Debrid as a cheaper solution.
