A Netflix account is intended to be shared by people who live together in the same household. People who do not belong to the household must use their own account to watch Netflix. Netflix users can pay extra when they share their account with users from another household.
The streaming giant wants to make the subscriptions of these accounts more expensive by making an additional payment, so that they can legally share a Netflix account. Netflix is continuously working to combat illegal account sharing. According to the company’s terms and conditions, you are allowed to share an account within a household, but not outside of it.
Pay extra to share Netflix account
Account owners can purchase an additional member spot and invite people outside their household to use Netflix. Additional members have their own profile, account and password, but their membership is paid for by the person who invited them to join.
Additional members can enjoy many of the same benefits as other Netflix members:
- Unlimited access to award-winning series, films, documentaries and more.
- Freedom to be at home or traveling watch on an internet-connected device with the Netflix app installed
- The same audio and video quality as the member who invited them.
- Their own profile, account and password.
Operation of subaccounts
Subaccounts are paid sub-accounts that are connected to a main subscription. The main user pays the full price of a standard or premium subscription and can link additional sub-accounts for a reduced price. In the Netherlands, a premium subscription costs 15.99 euros per month, and you can add an additional member for €3.99 per user.
You can link a total of two sub-accounts to a standard or premium subscription, the cheapest basic subscription cannot be shared.
All sub accounts get their own profile with viewing history, recommendations and their own login details. This offers more benefits and ensures that everyone always has access to the service. If the user decides to start their own account, they can transfer viewing history and Netflix data.
In addition, Netflix has made it possible to transfer current profiles to sub-accounts or standalone accounts so that viewing history, preferences, lists and recommendations are transferred.
Add an additional member to your account
- Go to the Netflix page: Invite an additional member
- If necessary, log in with your Netflix account
- Choose Next one.
- Review and confirm your new payment amount and new billing date.
- Select Buy now.
- Enter the name and email address of the additional member
- Choose whether you want to transfer an existing profile or have the additional member create a new profile
- The person will receive an email from Netflix with a unique invitation link.
Differences between regular and extra member accounts
- Additional members can watch Netflix on any device, but only one device at a time.
- Additional members can also download titles, but on only one phone or tablet at a time.
- Additional members can only have one profile and cannot create an additional profile.
- Additional members must activate their account in the same country as the account owner.
- The additional member’s profile can be a new profile or a eligible profile that has been transferred from the account owner who invited the additional member.
- The profile can have different age ratings, but cannot be a Kids profile.
- Additional members cannot use parental controls on Netflix.
How Netflix detects devices within a household
When using Netflix, your main location is determined. The streaming giant then uses data such as IP addresses, location, device IDs and account activity from devices logged into the Netflix account to check if anyone in the household is watching Netflix.
When a device outside your household logs into an account or is used repeatedly, Netflix may ask you to confirm that device before it can be used to watch Netflix or change your Netflix household. The type of subscription determines how many devices can be used to watch Netflix at the same time, as long as these devices belong to people from the same household.
Netflix on vacation
Of course you can continue to use the streaming service on holiday. If you use Netflix, you will be at a different address, but that should not cause any problems. In the background, Netflix checks from which locations streaming is taking place. If these are always different addresses, Netflix knows that the account is being shared ‘illegally’. If you always watch from the same address and suddenly watch it somewhere else, Netflix assumes that this is temporary and therefore a holiday.
“Subscribers will not pay any additional costs when using their own account abroad. We want members to be able to enjoy Netflix anywhere, anytime. This involves permanent sharing of accounts between households. If a device outside the household signs into an account or an account is accessed from a location outside the household, we may ask to authenticate that device by sending a verification code”the streaming service explains on their website.
Tolerance policy off the table
Multiple profiles can be linked to a Netflix account, with five profiles for a premium subscription. These can be used within one household and watch four streams simultaneously. This is allowed within a family, but this function also works if you share the account with friends, family or others outside your home address.
Netflix previously tolerated account sharing outside of a household, but they are now taking steps to combat this. It is contrary to their terms of use. They regularly block accounts when they notice that the subscription is being abused. The users will then no longer have access to the service and in some cases will not even be able to create a new account.
The subaccounts offer a solution. The total price can easily be shared by the users and everyone still gets a cheaper price.