Criterion Channel
Shares rank 19 of 20 streaming services by recommenders
Streaming service with a large library of classic and art-house films, which people recommend as a main subscription, including as a Netflix replacement.
Streaming service with a large library of classic and art-house films, which people recommend as a main subscription, including as a Netflix replacement.
5 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Large library of quality films
“I'm filling my head with quality and art that makes me feel and think now.”
Comment from 25 Nov 2025 in “What you can get for the price of a Netflix subscription” “which both have a substantial number of great films available to watch”
Comment from 31 Aug 2026 in “My experience has nuance, yours is a data point” Satisfying as a main service
“Criterion and Kanopy are working great for me as is.”
Comment from 5 Dec 2025 in “Netflix to Acquire Warner Bros” “I think I may just be happy with Criterion”
Comment from 24 Sep 2026 in “Disney+ and Hulu raise prices by up to 13 percent after doubling profits” Enough content to fill time
“the Criterion Channel could fill my time itself”
Comment from 15 Dec 2025 in “How Did the CIA Lose a Nuclear Device in the Himalayas?” “I'm filling my head with quality and art that makes me feel and think now.”
Comment from 25 Nov 2025 in “What you can get for the price of a Netflix subscription”
Other streaming services people recommend
The four most recommended other streaming services, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube Premium | 197 | 195 | 50% | 13 | 10 yrs10 owners | — |
| Netflix | 181 | 538 | 25% | 12 | 15 yrs10 owners | — |
| Nebula | 58 | 17 | 77% | 12 | 2 yrs5 owners | Approved |
| HBO | 32 | 32 | 50% | 7 | — | — |
| Criterion ChannelThis page | 5 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
All 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I think I may just be happy with Criterion”
“which both have a substantial number of great films available to watch”
“I recently replaced Netflix for Criterion”
“the Criterion Channel could fill my time itself”
“Criterion and Kanopy are working great for me as is.”
“I'm filling my head with quality and art that makes me feel and think now.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.