Netflix is available in over 190 countries, but the price you pay depends heavily on where you live. A Standard plan ranges from just $3.99/month in Turkey to $15.49/month in the US — a nearly 4x difference for the same content.
Why Does Netflix Price Discriminate?
Netflix uses purchasing power pricing — a strategy where prices are adjusted based on what each market can afford. This is actually similar to what the Burger Parity Score measures:
- Cheaper markets (India, Turkey, Egypt) get lower prices to maximize subscriber count
- Wealthier markets (US, Switzerland, Norway) pay premium prices
- Competitive markets (UK, Germany, Japan) are priced to compete with local streaming services
Netflix Prices Around the World
Here are some notable prices for the Standard plan (converted to USD):
- 🇹🇷 Turkey — $3.99 (cheapest in our index)
- 🇮🇳 India — $4.49
- 🇧🇷 Brazil — $5.99
- 🇵🇱 Poland — $8.49
- 🇯🇵 Japan — $9.99
- 🇬🇧 UK — $12.99
- 🇺🇸 USA — $15.49
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland — $18.99 (most expensive)
The VPN Factor
Some users try to access cheaper Netflix pricing through VPNs. Netflix has cracked down on this practice, but it highlights an interesting economic reality: the same digital product has dramatically different "real" costs depending on your location.
Netflix's pricing strategy is essentially purchasing power parity in action — the same concept behind our Burger Parity Score.
What This Tells Us
Digital services like Netflix, Spotify, and YouTube Premium are interesting BPS components because they reveal how companies perceive each market's willingness to pay. Unlike physical goods (which have shipping and tariff costs), digital products can be priced purely on demand — making them a cleaner signal of purchasing power.