Many Amazon Prime customers were annoyed when advertisements were added to the Prime Video streaming service.
Those frustrations are likely to continue with Amazon’s next plan to make money from its popular video streaming service.
Amazon just announced that Prime Video Ultra will be a new subscription tier required to access ad-free content.
Prime Video Ultra, launching on April 10, 2026, will cost Prime subscribers an additional $4.99 per month.
This replaces the much scrutinized $2.99 per month “Ad Free” subscription that Amazon forced on Prime users who wanted to avoid commercials in 2024. Prior to that, all of Prime Video’s content was ad-free.
If you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber and don’t want to pay for this, don’t worry. Prime subscribers will still receive the ad-supported tier of Prime Video at no additional cost.
“Delivering ad-free streaming with premium features requires significant investment, and this structure aligns with other major streaming services while ensuring customers have the flexibility to choose how they want to watch,” Amazon said via press release. “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.”
Let’s take a look at what Prime Video Ultra will offer consumers.
Prime Video Ultra: What We Know So Far
On April 10, 2026, Prime Video’s Ad Free subscription will become Prime Video Ultra. It will cost $4.99, up from the $2.99 per month that Ad Free subscribers paid.
Here’s a quick rundown of what you can expect from Prime Video Ultra if you pay the additional monthly fee:
An ad-free viewing experience. This subscription tier is how you avoid having commercials inserted into your content.
An increase in concurrent streams. Prime Ad Free offered three concurrent streams (and the ad-supported tier is getting a boost to four), but Prime Ultra will jump to five. That means you can have up to five devices on the same account watching Prime Video content at the same time.
Better “quality” streaming options. If you want the best performance on your TV, you may find the upgrade is worth the price. The Prime Video Ultra tier will unlock access to 4K/UHD and Dolby Atmos capabilities. All tiers of subscription have HD, HDR and Dolby Vision capability.
Increased downloads. If you like viewing Prime Video content offline, your ability to do so will increase with the new Ultra subscription. You’ll get 100 downloads, which is a significant jump from the 25 that Ad Free provided. (It’s worth noting that the ad-supported customers are also getting a boost in this area, from 25 to 50.)
You can lower your cost by making an annual commitment. Much like you can save money on your Amazon Prime subscription by opting into paying annually, you’ll also be able to save with an annual subscription to Prime Video Ultra. The cost is $45.99, which is roughly a $14 per year savings compared to paying monthly.
The biggest difference between the Prime Video included with your Amazon Prime membership and the new Prime Video Ultra plan is ads. Standard Prime Video includes commercials, while Ultra is the ad-free option.
Even if you don’t want to pay the additional $4.99 per month, you can still access things like Thursday Night Football, Prime Video original shows and Amazon’s extensive movie catalog.
Prime Video Ad-Supported vs. Prime Video Ultra
Amazon provided a useful chart to help understand what will and won’t be included on each tier of subscription moving forward:
Comparison via Amazon
Which version of Prime Video is right for you? Does the price increase for ad-free bother you? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the Clark.com community.
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