Amazon Prime Video vs. Netflix: Which is worth paying for in Singapore?
Note: This article was first published on 20th December 2016.
Amazon Prime Video just launched in Singapore last week, so we now have two major video streaming services to choose.
You can get a free 7-day trial on Amazon Prime Video, with an introductory price of US$2.99 (~S$4.25) per month for the first six months, then US$5.99 (~S$8.50) per month. Netflix charges you S$10.98 for the Basic subscription which lets you stream at 720p, S$13.98 for the Standard subscription which gives you Full-HD videos for two devices simultaneously, and the S$16.98 Premium plan lets you stream in 4K for up to four devices at once.
But because of international licensing issues, we’re not getting the full Amazon Prime Video or Netflix catalog on our tiny island. So is either worth paying for? And if you only wanted to get one, which would you get? To find out, I ran both catalogs through lists of the most highly-rated movies and TV shows, as ranked by Rotten Tomatoes.
Top 100 movies of 2016
I first searched for the top 100 movies of 2016. Now, this list is unfair, as some of these movies are still showing in the cinemas or haven’t been released yet, like Arrival. Keeping that in mind, Amazon Prime Video scores 1/100, while Netflix scores 5/100.
Top 100 movies of 2015
This list is fairer than the previous one, but the scores don’t improve much. If you want to catch up on the best movies of 2015, you’re out of luck on either service. Amazon Prime Video scores 0/100 and Netflix scores 13/100.
Movie number five, ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens,’ is a good/bad example of how the labyrinth of international movie rights confounds viewers. While ‘The Force Awakens’ isn’t available in Singapore, it isn’t available on Netflix US as well — but it is available on Netflix Canada.
Top movies of the past 30 years
Okay, so far, not so good. What if you want to catch the number one film of the year, for the last 30 years? Amazon Prime Video still flails at 0/30, while Netflix scores 7/30. That’s still a low score, but if you ever wanted to catch up on the ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, ‘The Truman Show’ or ‘LA Confidential,’ Netflix has you covered.
Top 100 movies of all time
What if you’re a film buff who wants to watch the greatest 100 movies of all time? Here, Amazon Prime Video scores 2/100, while Netflix scores 19/100.
That’s almost 20% for Netflix, which is still a failing mark, but it’s the highest score it’s had for movies so far. That makes Netflix a better place for classic movies like ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ ‘The Godfather’ and ‘E.T.,’ than it is for newer movies like ‘Zootopia.’
Top TV series of 2016
How about TV shows? According to Rotten Tomatoes, these are the best series you can catch right now. Amazon Prime Video scores a low 1/24, while Netflix scores 4/24. It’s still a bad score for Netflix, but it has the leg up when it comes to TV. Three of the top 24 shows, ‘The Crown,’ ‘Marvel’s Luke Cage’ and ‘Narcos: Season 2’ are Netflix originals.
Top TV series of 2015
When it comes to last year’s TV series, Amazon Prime Video does 0/10, while Netflix has 3/10 of the best TV. Hardly scores to cheer about, but once again, Netflix has the critical advantage. All three of its scores are Netflix originals.
Top 100 TV series of all time
Rotten Tomatoes doesn’t keep a list of the top TV shows of all time, so I hopped onto IMDB for this list (it’s a top 250 list, but I capped it at 100 for my own sanity). IMDB’s list is more diverse than Rotten Tomatoes’ previous lists; there aren’t any Korean dramas but there are documentaries and anime in the list.
When it comes to the best TV, Amazon Prime Video has 1/100, while Netflix has 23/100. It’s still a failing score, but Netflix outranks Amazon Prime Video by a wide margin — unless you really want your ‘Seinfeld,’ in which case Amazon Prime Video has all the seasons, and Netflix has none.
Amazon Prime Video or Netflix, which is worth paying for?
So is either Amazon Prime Video or Netflix worth paying for in Singapore?
When it comes to a catalog of the best movies from 2016, 2015, the number one movies of the past 30 years and the top 100 movies of all time, Amazon Prime Video scores 3/330, while Netflix scores 44/330. Netflix wins, but it’s hardly a winning score — 44/330 is a 13% mark, which nets you an ‘F9’ in school exams everywhere. While Netflix isn’t a great place for newer movies, it is a slightly better place for classic films, for example, if you’ve ever wanted to catch Roman Polanski’s masterpiece ‘Chinatown,’ it’s there.
How about TV? Amazon Prime Video has 2/134 of the best TV shows, while Netflix has 30/134. Once again, Netflix ‘wins’ with a 22% mark — better than it did with movies, but still a weak victory. However, if we put aside the sparseness of its catalog for a moment, Netflix is doing some of the best TV today with its Netflix Originals; with series like ‘The Crown,’ ‘Stranger Things’ and ‘Narcos.’
When it comes to the total tally? Amazon Prime Video has a final score of 5/464, while Netflix has a final score of 74/464. Neither score is inspiring, but it seems clear — unless you really want to catch ‘The Grand Tour’ or ‘Seinfeld’ on Amazon Prime Video, you’re better off paying for Netflix in Singapore. Netflix also has the advantage of letting you download some shows to your mobile app for offline viewing.
Now, you should know that movies and TV shows are constantly being added to and taken off Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, so today’s ratings should be taken as a snapshot in time rather than a definite accounting. Keep in mind too that the comparison list isn’t exhaustive, and admittedly, not everyone wants to watch critically acclaimed movies all the time, maybe you just want to watch ‘Anchorman’ today instead of ‘Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy.’
Even so, the scant selection in Singapore makes me understand why people go through the hassles of VPNs and smart proxies to subscribe to services in the US — which is something that Netflix actively bans and is also a gray area. And even then, Netflix’s movie selection in the US is already shrinking, so you might not be getting that much more for your troubles.
On the flip side, Amazon Prime still works with VPN services (at the point of publishing this article) and if you don't mind jumping a small hoop to pay for yet another service and some configuration at the router level, there's plenty to watch from the Amazon Prime service in USA that makes the subscription more worthwhile.
What if you love movies more than TV?
If you’re a movie buff, Netflix probably won’t do it for you — it has a better TV selection than movies. There is one place in Singapore that has a great selection of streaming movies, and that’s iTunes.
‘Captain America: Civil War,’ for example, is set to debut on Netflix US on Christmas (who knows when it’ll land here), but it’s already there on iTunes Singapore. Pixar’s movies, which are eight of the past 30 years’ number one movies, are all on iTunes.
However, catching movies on iTunes will cost you. Unlike Amazon Prime Video or Netflix, where you pay one fee per month to watch anything in their catalog, you pay per movie on iTunes. Buying ‘Civil War’ will cost you S$21.98, while a Netflix Standard subscription costs S$13.98 per month. To be fair, not all movies cost the same — as of this writing, there’s a deal on ‘Deadpool’ for S$9.98. You can also rent some movies for a lower cost, ‘The Incredibles’ costs S$14.98 to buy, but S$5.98 to rent.
Read next: Not sure how to get on Netflix? Here’s everything you need to know to get started.
