Are you a Netflix Natasha or a Prime Video Pete? With so many different video streaming services vying for your attention, it can be difficult to figure out which ones to keep and which ones to cut. 

But with living costs rising all the time and a limited amount of time available to watch their hit shows, it makes sense to pick the ones that are going to offer you the most value and entertainment. We’ve gone through the major services, compared their offerings, and looked at who they’re most likely to appeal to. So let’s see who you might be when it comes to the big streamers.

Who: Netflix Natasha

Persona: Natasha’s a busy mum who wants a wide range of entertainment for her family, from reality TV and drama for her, big movies for her husband, and lots of choice for the kids.
Why Netflix is right for Natasha: The biggest name in streaming also offers the largest selection of original programming, from major hits like The Crown and Stranger Things, to star-studded movies like Don’t Look Up and Red Notice. It also has a wealth of children’s content, plus specific kids profiles which keeps appropriate content walled off for young viewers. Netflix has made a push for awards recognition with prestige films like The Irishman and Roma, but its 2023 slate looks to be much more broad, with sequels to Adam Sandler’s Murder Mystery and Chris Hemsworth’s Extraction. As it lost subscribers last year, it has become much more hits-driven, and as a result it can feel more algorithmically-driven. The prices have also crept up steadily, especially if you want to watch in 4K, with the Premium service now comfortably the highest of all streamers at £16/month. Nonetheless, Netflix is a behemoth with a mountain of great shows and movies and is probably the right streamer to go for if you only have one, including for mums like Natasha.

Subscription: £4.99 (with adverts), £10.99 (Standard), £15.99 (Premium) per month
Strengths: More shows and movies than anyone else, great range of content, huge hits like Stranger Things
Weaknesses: Price across non-ad tiers, expensive for 4K, limits on concurrent streams
 

Who: Apple TV+ Andy 

Persona: Andy’s a huge gadget fan with a 4K OLED TV, all of the Apple devices including iPhone, iPad and Apple TV box, and he loves original programmes that have lavish production values and big-name stars.
Why Apple TV+ is right for Andy: All of Apple TV+’s content is original and new, meaning you don’t get any legacy shows like Friends or Parks and Recreation like you do on most other services. As the biggest company in the world, it’s fair to say that Apple has some pretty deep pockets when it comes to budgets, and it’s all up there on screen, from the Hollywood stars that seem to be essential to every single production, to the absolutely stunning opening titles, special effects and cinematography in its shows. It’s fair to say that Apple TV+ has had far more misses than it has hits, and it’s rare that you’ll be at a dinner party where someone tells you to watch one of their shows, but those who have tuned in have found some really stellar shows. Ted Lasso is still the service’s most famous show, but shows like Severance, Slow Horses, Pachinko and For All Mankind have all been critical darlings that have topped end-of-year lists. 4K, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos are also offered as standard, and it’s a relatively cheap subscription price.

Price: £6.99 per month
Strengths: Some great quality shows, brilliant technical presentation in 4K, big name stars, lavish production 
Weaknesses: Some really mediocre shows, no Android mobile app (yet), nowhere near the breadth of content of other services
 

Who: Prime Video Pete

Persona: Pete’s a retired IT manager who buys a lot of items online from Amazon, including essentials for the house, groceries and books for his Kindle. He has lots of Alexa-powered smart devices around the house, loves the other services offered by Amazon such as photo storage, and likes action shows and movies starring Kiefer Sutherland and Chris Pratt, or written by Jack Ryan.
Why Prime Video is right for Pete: Let’s be honest, the majority of people subscribing to Prime Video are probably Amazon Prime customers who do it primarily for free delivery and the wealth of other very good services offered by the company to Prime subscribers. Amazon doesn’t really have the original hit shows that Netflix and Disney+ has to entice their audiences, but what it does have is a wealth of fantastic legacy content, including all the Bond films, and shows like Parks and Recreation. It also specialises in original action movies and TV series like Jack Reacher, The Boys and Bosch that really appeal to a mainstream audience. It’s also the place where you’re most likely to find big, recently-released films like The Suicide Squad, as well as recent Oscar winner Everything Everywhere All At Once. It also has a lot of content available in 4K without any extra cost and does have some prestige award-winning shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Hacks, Fleabag and The Handmaid’s Tale.
 

Price: £8.99 a month or £95 a year
Strengths: Great for recent movies, high quality 4K at no extra cost, subscription price has lots of other benefits  
Weaknesses: Relatively lacking in “must watch” shows, over-indexes on action fare, spent lots on disappointing Lord of The Rings show
 

Who: Disney+ Daisy

Persona: Daisy’s a self-confessed nerd who loves anything Star Wars and Marvel related, and loves keeping up with social media to dissect all the movies and shows from those huge universes. She also likes animated movies from Pixar on the weekend, as well as US shows that she can watch with her partner on an evening.

Why Disney+ is right for Daisy: Of all the services on this list, Disney+ is the most well-rounded, with loads of great legacy content, a steady stream of big and award-winning movies direct from the cinema, must-see exclusive content for Marvel and Star Wars nerds, plus some really excellent adult dramas from the US. While it’s not got the breadth of content as Netflix, or the wealth of reality TV, many people will feel it’s more essential than Netflix due to its exclusive content and reasonable price tag. The quality of its recent Marvel and Star Wars shows has definitely dropped, and the appeal of both franchises seems to be on the wane, but for now remain essential viewing for many because of their interconnected nature. There’s a wealth of great movies on Disney+ including awards favourites like The Banshees of Inisherin, fantastic US shows like The Bear and Dopesick, and of course all the Disney classics that will appeal to kids (and wind parents up when they see them for the 100th time). Even better, 4K is included as standard, and while the price has crept up recently, it's still cheaper than most other services.

Price: £7.99 a month or £79.90 a year

Strengths: Really high-quality content across the board, truly diverse catalogue, loads of big new movies landing regularly  

Weaknesses: Marvel and Star Wars content recently dropped in quality, not much reality TV