Report: Netflix subscribers lead US SVOD services for second year
Parks Associates released its annual Top 10 List of US SVOD Services on November 10, 2026. The ranking draws from subscriber estimates through September 2026 compiled in the firm's Streaming Video Tracker. Netflix retains the leading position ahead of Prime Video for the second consecutive year. The top five services held identical positions from the prior year, signaling entrenched leadership among the largest providers in a market defined by expanding consumer choices and competing monetization approaches.
The complete 2026 ranking lists Netflix first, followed by Prime Video, Hulu, Disney+, Peacock, HBO Max, Paramount+, Apple TV, YouTube Premium and ESPN Select. Position stability characterized the upper half of the list. HBO Max advanced past Paramount+ to head the bottom five. These placements reflect subscriber trends measured through the third quarter and illustrate limited movement among established services despite ongoing platform proliferation.
Parks Associates' Streaming Video Tracker identifies 275 SVOD services, 141 AVOD services and 60 FAST platforms operating in the US market. The firm further counts 243 premium SVOD services, 85 TVOD services, 110 FAST channels, 55 ad-supported SVOD services and eight vMVPDs. These figures underscore the widening range of business models now competing for attention and advertising dollars.
Netflix reaches 67 percent of US internet households, an increase from 64 percent one year earlier. The service faces the task of balancing higher subscription revenue against customer retention. Advertising contributed 3.3 percent of Netflix revenue in 2025, and the company has since reduced its advertising revenue projections. Continued price increases require supporting content flow, user experience quality and sustained perceived value to avoid subscriber losses.
Apple TV reaches 22 percent of US internet households, up from approximately 20 percent in the third quarter of 2025. Although its content library remains smaller than many rivals, Apple TV secured 28 Emmys at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards. This total led all networks and streaming services, including HBO Max and Netflix, marking the first time Apple TV achieved this distinction.
Parks Associates research indicates that 58 percent of Disney+ subscribers and 69 percent of Hulu subscribers use ad-supported tiers. These adoption rates open additional monetization paths that combine subscription fees with advertising income for both services.
Michael Goodman, Director of Entertainment Research at Parks Associates, stated: "HBO Max couples a deep library of legacy titles, including The Sopranos, The Wire, Game of Thrones, and Friends, with hit new originals such as The Pitt and House of the Dragons. Gaining access to HBO Max's award-winning content library is one of the things that made Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) attractive to Skydance. Now that the acquisition is complete, the focus shifts to content strategy, bundling, and pricing, as well as how much the company can invest in streaming growth while managing significant acquisition debt."
Michael Goodman also observed: "The next phase of SVOD competition will be defined by how effectively providers balance subscription pricing, advertising revenue, and customer retention. Our research shows that 54 percent of US internet households subscribe to five or more SVOD services, yet household video spending is relatively stable. Consumers are willing to maintain multiple subscriptions, but providers cannot assume that more subscriptions will translate into more spending." The remarks address pricing pressures and retention dynamics across a multi-subscription environment.
Parks Associates will present further data at the ninth annual Future of Video: Business of Streaming conference scheduled for November 17-18 in Marina del Rey, California. Event sponsors include Adeia, InterDigital, OTT.X, Streaming Women in Media and TheDesk.net.
