ad tier – Netflix says its ad-supported plan now has 250M monthly users, expands to 15 new countries, and tests AI-driven ad personalization amid a Texas lawsuit.
Netflix’s ad-supported subscription option has surged into mainstream scale, with the company reporting more than 250 million monthly active users on the tier.
The figure was disclosed during Netflix’s Upfront presentation. a moment when the streaming giant typically lays out its advertising ambitions for the year ahead.. The company said this latest user count represents a sharp jump for the plan. reflecting how quickly ad-based viewing is gaining traction as subscription costs climb.
Netflix’s own timeline underscores that momentum. The ad-supported tier had 70 million users in 2024, and that number rose to 94 million in 2025—before expanding further to the reported 250 million monthly active users.
The company also signaled continued geographic expansion for its ad-supported offering.. Starting next year. the Basic with Ads tier will roll out in 15 additional countries: Austria. Belgium. Colombia. Denmark. Indonesia. Ireland. the Netherlands. New Zealand. Norway. Peru. Philippines. Poland. Sweden. Switzerland. and Thailand.
Basic with Ads was originally introduced in 2022. and Netflix’s rollout pattern suggests it has treated advertising as a parallel growth engine to its traditional subscription business.. In practical terms. it’s also an increasingly compelling alternative for viewers who are reacting to higher monthly prices across streaming services.
Netflix has acknowledged that cost pressure is part of the broader environment. The company said it increased all monthly subscription costs by a dollar earlier this year, a move that can make ad-supported plans more attractive to customers willing to trade price for commercials.
Beyond user growth and new markets, Netflix’s Upfront presentation spent time on artificial intelligence—this time explicitly tied to advertising. The company said it started using AI in its ads last year, and it is testing additional capabilities that would shape how ads appear to each viewer.
One of the potential applications described involves “personalized ad loads and frequency caps” that adjust in response to viewing behavior. The idea, as Netflix framed it, is to dynamically determine both how many ads a member sees and how often those ads repeat, based on what the person watches.
For advertisers and audiences alike. that kind of automation matters because it targets a long-running challenge in streaming advertising: balancing effectiveness with tolerance.. If frequency limits adjust dynamically, it could reduce repetition for some viewers while still allowing advertisers to reach audiences efficiently.
Yet Netflix’s advertising ambitions are unfolding under legal scrutiny. The company is currently facing a lawsuit from Texas that alleges it illegally sells user data to ad tech companies.
Netflix, however, disputes the claim. The streaming service said the lawsuit is “based on inaccurate and distorted information,” positioning its defenses around the integrity of its data practices and how advertising partners interact with user-related signals.
Meanwhile. the combination of faster ad-tier growth. broader international expansion. and more AI-driven ad customization is likely to raise expectations for how Netflix will manage privacy and targeting.. As the ad business grows from millions to hundreds of millions of monthly users. the stakes around compliance. transparency. and advertising technology integration tend to intensify.
For viewers. the biggest practical change may be less about the headline user figure and more about what “Basic with Ads” means in daily viewing—especially as new countries come online and ad experiences become more personalized.. A plan that starts expanding globally and learns from viewing behavior can deliver different ad rhythms from one subscriber to another. which may feel more relevant to some. while raising fresh questions for others about control and clarity.
Netflix ad tier Basic with Ads Upfront presentation AI advertising streaming subscriptions ad personalization data lawsuit
So basically Netflix is turning into cable now.
250M seems fake or like they’re counting everyone who ever clicked an ad. Still, I guess people will pay less just to see commercials lol.
Wait, the Texas lawsuit is why they’re doing AI ad targeting? That sounds backwards—like the lawsuit is the cause of the personalization? I dunno but ads just feel creepy.
If Basic with Ads is expanding to all these countries, then my guess is the commercials will get louder and more frequent. They also raised prices $1 so of course the ad plan looks “better.” But then they say AI in ads started… started like when, 5 minutes ago? I’m confused and annoyed already.