Why You Can Trust CNET Sorry, April Streaming Is Kinda Heavy. You Should Keep All These Services
Your streaming bills could be a little high with Fallout, Dead Boy Detectives and the Shōgun finale arriving this month.
- Though Kourtnee hasn't won any journalism awards yet, she's been a Netflix streaming subscriber since 2012 and knows the magic of its hidden codes.
Welcome to April, where shows like Ripley, Fallout, Kaiju No. 8 and Under the Bridge will debut on four different streaming platforms. NCAA games and the NBA playoffs will also be available to stream on Max, along with a new episode of Quiet on Set. If you have Disney Plus and Hulu, you're now able to watch Hulu content on the Disney Plus app, making it more convenient to catch new installments of American Horror Story, Shōgun, X-Men '97 and Bluey all in one place. So many choices.
We know it'll be hard to keep up. Depending on your tastes, you may need to decide each month if you want to cancel a service because of costs and the content that's currently available. With that in mind, I'd like to offer one tactic: Churn like ice cream. In other words: rotate.
Make it work by subscribing, canceling, watching other services and then resubscribing, ensuring the services you want are on rotation. Rotating streaming services can mix things up and save you cash when Netflix, Disney Plus, Max and others don't have the content you want to watch at a given time. Just remember to shut off autorenewal for your monthly subscriptions. This method may not fly if you're sharing your streaming accounts, but if you can work it out, go for it.
Here are my suggestions for which platforms to keep or cancel for April, based on new shows and movies (I didn't consider live TV streaming services) coming to each platform. Your preferences may be different, but if nothing else, I urge you to consider the concept of rotating for savings. It's simpler than you may realize, and don't forget, a VPN can come in handy, too.
Read more: 50 TV Shows We're Looking Forward to Watching in 2024
That's not Hot Priest, it's Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley in Netflix's new series.
April Streaming Rotation
| Keep | Cancel | |
| Prime Video | X | |
| Hulu | X | |
| Netflix | X | |
| Apple TV Plus | X | |
| Starz | X | |
| Disney Plus | X | |
| Paramount Plus | X | |
| Max | X | |
| Peacock | X |
Yes to these streaming services in April
Prime Video: It's time for Fallout, one of the most-anticipated live-action releases of the year. The show debuts on Prime Video on April 11 with all eight episodes. You can also stream Them: The Scare, on April 25, which is the second season of the series. And if you're a fan of the National Women's Soccer League, Friday night matches will air throughout the month. Remember, Amazon now charges $3 monthly if you want to stream without ads.
Netflix: All six seasons of Sex and the City head here on April 1, but a slew of movies and originals are hitting Netflix too. Don't miss Parasyte, Dead Boy Detectives and these drops:
- Ripley (April 4)
- Parasyte: The Grey (April 5)
- Scoop -- film about Prince Andrew's 2019 BBC interview (April 5)
- The Antisocial Network: Memes to Mayhem (April 5)
- What Jennifer Did (April 10)
- Woody Woodpecker Goes to Camp (April 12)
- The Circle, season 6 (April 17)
- The Upshaws (April 18)
- Rebel Moon Part 2: The Scargiver (April 19)
- Anyone But You (April 23)
- City Hunter (April 25)
- Dead Boy Detectives -- part of The Sandman universe (April 25)
Disney Plus: You can continue to stream new episodes of X-Men '97 and Star Wars: The Bad Batch this month. If you have kids, Bluey is the big deal in April. Stream two new episodes: Ghostbasket (April 7) and the extended special, The Sign (April 14). Wish comes to Disney Plus on April 3. If you have both Disney Plus and Hulu, you can also watch Hulu's shows on the app.
Hulu: Shōgun streams each week until its finale on April 23, so keep Hulu. You can also watch Abbott Elementary and the new premieres below:
- Vanderpump Villa (April 1)
- FX's American Horror Story: Delicate, part 2 (April 4)
- The Fable - an anime series (April 6)
- Blood Free - a K-Drama (April 10)
- Under the Bridge starring Lily Gladstone (April 17)
- Welcome to Wrexham, season 3 (April 19)
- Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story (April 26)
- FX's The Veil, starring Elisabeth Moss (April 30)
Max: A new episode of the Quiet on Set documentary will arrive on April 7, and The Sympathizer debuts on April 14 at 9 p.m. ET. You may want to drop the service after streaming Quiet on Set or the Tokyo Vice finale on April 4, but don't cancel if you're watching NCAA and NBA games on the B/R sports tier on Max.
You can probably skip these services
Starz: Only keep Starz if you want to watch Saw X (April 19), Mary & George -- which debuts April 5 -- or if you're still streaming BMF. Otherwise, you can binge the TV series in May when their seasons conclude.
Peacock: This one is up in the air for April, but we advise you to keep your Peacock subscription if you scored a deal or want to watch live sports, reality TV or big network shows. Every season of Community lands here on April 1, and the animated film Migration arrives on April 19. You can stream new weekly episodes in the Chicago franchise or for Below Deck as well.
Apple TV Plus: While Loot season 2 premieres on April 3, it's also season finale time for The New Look (April 3) and Manhunt (April 19). Cancel Apple TV+ if you're finished watching these titles, or if you're not interested in Major League Soccer.
Paramount Plus: You can skip this one until May to save money. But fans of Star Trek: Discovery can strap in for the final season that premieres on April 4, and you can hold on to your subscription if you want to stream Knuckles on April 26. All six episodes will drop on that date.
Watch Knuckles in April or May.
Patience will save money on streaming
If FOMO isn't a thing for you, waiting until most or all of the episodes of your favorite series are available on a service is a wise strategy. That way, rather than pay for a service for several months to cover the six- to 10-week run of a show, you can catch up on everything by subscribing for one month. And then repeat the cycle again. This works well if you don't mind being a binge-watcher.
For example, Star Trek: Discovery's final season has 10 episodes that will end on May 30, so why not wait until May or June to get Paramount Plus? Max's The Sympathizer and the new X-Men series on Disney Plus will wrap their seasons in May. Avoid paying for two or three months of these services when you can wait to watch these shows in full anytime in the spring or summer.
You can wait until May to watch the final season of Star Trek: Discovery.
Think about how much you're paying per month for each streaming service you have, and do the math. Netflix is $7 to $23 (plus extra member fees), and Paramount Plus starts at $6. Apple TV Plus is $10. Disney Plus is anywhere from $2 to $25 depending on bundles, Max costs $10 to $20, Hulu starts at $8 and Starz runs $10. Peacock has a base rate of $6 a month. Should you decide to rotate, set yourself a calendar reminder to alert you when it's time to re-subscribe or cancel.
Check back with us in May for another streaming service rundown.