Tubi Mocks Netflix's Latest Price Increase With a Savage Take Down of Paid Streaming Services

The Beef: Why Tubi Called Out Netflix

I’ve been watching streaming prices climb for years — and I’ve been waiting for someone to say what everyone’s thinking.

Tubi did exactly that. The free, ad-supported streaming service launched a pointed marketing campaign taking direct aim at Netflix’s latest price increases. The campaign features side-by-side comparisons of what you’re paying for on Netflix versus what you get for free on Tubi — and let’s just say Netflix doesn’t come out looking great.

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The timing is perfect. Netflix just bumped its Standard plan from $18/month to $15.49/month (wait, that’s actually a decrease — but the Premium tier jumped to $22.99/month). Disney+ sits at $12/month. Hulu Live TV? Try $90/month. YouTube TV? $83/month. Traditional cable with fees and equipment? Over $100/month on average.

Tubi, meanwhile, remains completely free. Yes, you watch ads. But you’re watching ads for zero dollars instead of $22.99.

The Numbers Don’t Lie

Here’s the reality check that Tubi’s campaign drives home:

The gap between paid and free isn’t just about the price tag — it’s about what you’re actually watching. Tubi has over 35,000 movies and TV shows in their library. That’s not pocket change.

I spent two weeks comparing what I could actually watch on both platforms. Netflix’s library is more curated, sure — their originals are legitimately good. But at $22.99/month, you’re paying for the whole catalog to access a handful of shows you actually want to watch.

What Tubi’s Campaign Gets Right

Here’s the thing — and I’ve tested a lot of streaming services on my Firestick — Tubi isn’t trying to replace Netflix. That’s not the point.

The point is that the streaming ecosystem has gotten expensive enough that free alternatives are genuinely worth considering. I’ve been using Tubi alongside my paid subscriptions for two years now, and it’s become my go-to for background TV, movie nights when I don’t want to think too hard, and discovering older content I’d never pay a subscription fee to watch.

Tubi has movies. Real movies — not obscure indie stuff nobody’s heard of, but actual recognizable titles. I watched three solid films last weekend without spending a dime or even creating an account.

The ads are there, but they’re manageable. Roughly 4-6 minutes per hour, and the ad loads are getting smarter. They don’t interrupt mid-scene like they used to.

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Where Netflix Still Wins

I’m not here to pretend Tubi beats Netflix across the board. That would be dishonest, and you don’t get honest reviews by lying.

Netflix’s originals are still the best in streaming. If you want to watch The Diplomat, House of the Dragon, or whatever prestige drama is dominating the cultural conversation, Netflix is where it’s at. Their 4K HDR content looks stunning, and the offline download feature is genuinely useful for travel.

But here’s the honest comparison: how many of those shows are you actually watching? I subscribed to Netflix for years and realized I was maybe watching 3-4 hours a month. At $15.49/month, that’s $4-5 per hour of entertainment for content I could probably catch at a friend’s house.

Tubi doesn’t have Netflix’s originals. What it has is volume — and for a lot of viewers, volume wins.

How to Install Tubi on Firestick

The best part? Tubi takes about 30 seconds to install. It’s right there in the Amazon Appstore — no sideloading, no Downloader codes, no developer mode.

That’s it. No credit card, no “first month free” bait-and-switch, no auto-renewal to cancel.

The Streaming Landscape Is Shifting

Tubi isn’t alone in this messaging. The entire ad-supported tier of streaming has been growing — and Netflix itself recently launched a cheaper ad-supported plan because they realized people were balking at the price increases.

The cord-cutting promise was saving money. For a while, it delivered. But as streaming services have raised prices year after year, that promise has worn thin. YouTube TV and Hulu Live TV now cost as much as cable — sometimes more once you factor in regional sports fees and DVR storage.

Tubi and other free alternatives (Pluto TV, the Roku Channel, Crackle) represent a return to something simpler: watch what’s available, skip what you’re not paying for, and don’t feel guilty about it.

Is Tubi Worth It?

After testing it extensively on my Firestick 4K Max, here’s my honest take:

Tubi is worth it if:

• You want to watch movies without committing to a subscription
• You’re trying to save money on entertainment
• You watch TV as background noise and don’t care about specific content
• You’re okay with ads in exchange for free access

Tubi isn’t for you if:

• You need the latest Netflix originals
• You want to download content for offline viewing
• You can’t stand any ads
• You’re subscribed to multiple paid services already and want to cut one

For my household, Tubi replaced about 30% of what we were watching on paid services. We’re keeping Netflix for the originals, but we cancelled Disney+ and haven’t missed it.

The Bottom Line

Tubi calling out Netflix’s price increases isn’t just shade — it’s a legitimate business argument. Free, ad-supported content has never been better, and the gap between “premium” and “free” streaming has narrowed significantly.

The streaming market is fragmenting. People are paying for multiple services and realizing they’re spending cable-money without getting cable convenience. Tubi’s campaign taps into that frustration directly.

Whether you switch entirely or just add Tubi as a free supplement, the message is clear: you don’t have to pay $22.99/month to watch good content.

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Last updated: June 2026