Netflix has announced a policy shift aimed at ensuring only members of the same household use a single account. The company has indicated that it will begin enforcing this rule next year if it determines that the home-based requirement is not being met, which could lead to an additional charge for sharing a subscription outside the household.
A dedicated help page from Netflix clarifies that users who do not live together will need to watch content on their own accounts. This approach is designed to keep account access tied to the household where the service is primarily used.
Netflix explains that it checks compliance with the home requirement by examining several signals, including IP address, device identifiers, and overall account activity. With these data points, the service can determine whether the home Internet connection is being used to access the account from a location that does not match the primary residence.
When a user accesses Netflix from a different network or from a device outside the home, such as during travel, the company may verify the device and confirm that the user is authorized to view the account. This verification step helps ensure that access remains within the intended household boundaries.
The intent behind these measures is to prevent other people, even friends or relatives, from using the same account over the long term. In recent years, Netflix has allowed sharing to some extent by offering plans that support several simultaneous streams, with the cost typically shared among multiple users.
Netflix has been explicit about its stance: only people living with the account holder should use the subscription. It has warned that detecting sharing with non-household members will trigger an additional fee to the primary account holder, a model that has already been tested in markets such as Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru. Netflix has stated that this policy will roll out to other regions over time, based on its quarterly results and financial updates.
The company notes that the additional charge will not be applied automatically in every case. It has recently announced features that give users the option to transfer configured profiles to a new account and to create subaccounts for extra members, which may involve an extra payment. These changes are part of Netflix’s broader effort to balance household viewing with the ability to share content in a controlled manner.
Today, Netflix offers multiple subscription tiers that vary by price and the number of devices that can use the service simultaneously. Plans have historically allowed access on one, two, or four devices at once, with the overall viewing quality increasing with the tier. As the policy evolves, the company may adjust these offerings to align with the household-centric model and to reflect the need for authorized access. This ongoing update is framed as a move toward more predictable usage and fair access within households across regions.
Additionally, Netflix has announced adjustments to plan structures and pricing that may accompany the new household verification framework. For instance, an upcoming Basic plan with advertisements is being introduced, delivering a lower monthly price in exchange for occasional advertising during programming. Such options are presented as ways to accommodate different viewing preferences while maintaining the integrity of household access rules.