From YouTube watching to movie nights, it’s hard to imagine living without streaming video these days. But if you’re with an ISP or phone carrier with a hard data cap, I understand if you’re leery about streaming to your heart’s content—no one wants a The Summer I Turned Pretty binge-watch to end with expensive data fees.
Don’t settle for grainy video quality to stretch your data just yet, though! I pulled out the spreadsheets and dug through the fine print to figure out how much data popular streaming services use. Here’s what you need to know about streaming video and data usage.
How much data streaming video uses
Between factors like video length, streaming quality, and viewing devices, it’s virtually impossible to lock down the exact amount of data you’ll use while watching video.
That said, streaming video and data usage come down to two factors: length and video quality. Unsurprisingly, streaming in 4K requires more data than standard definition, and extended watch sessions will consume even more data.
How much more data? Let’s do some quick math to find out.
First, here are the minimum internet speed requirements for four of the major streaming services.
(Of course, you’ll need more than 5 Mbps to have functional home internet service. We typically recommend an internet plan with at least 100 Mbps download speeds for streaming video.)
And straight from Netflix and Disney+, here’s how much data it typically takes to stream video. (These ballpark numbers also apply to live TV streaming services like YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV, which usually stream in 1080p.)
How much data streaming video on TV uses up
| Streamer | Data used for 720p streaming (1 hour) | Data used for 1080p streaming (1 hour) | Data used for 4K streaming (1 hour) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netflix | Up to 1 GB | Up to 3 GB | Up to 7 GB |
| Disney+ | Up to 0.7 GB | Up to 2 GB | Up to 7.7 GB |
While this might not seem like a lot by itself, the real problem comes if you’re part of a larger household or a regular streamer. Let’s say you’re watching around three hours of YouTube TV and two hours of 4K Netflix every weeknight. That’s around 20GB of data per day or up to 100GB a week.
We’ll budget this out with an example family to show how one night of streaming can add up over time.
Does streaming video use up a lot of data?
| Household member | Streaming example | Streaming example | Streaming example | Data used in one night |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Person 1 | Watch the local news (1 hour) | Catch up on Grey’s Anatomy (1 hour) | n/a | 6 GB |
| Person 2 | Watch afternoon NFL games (4 hours) |
Scroll YouTube (1 hour) |
Watch evening NFL game (3 hours) | 22 GB |
| Person 3 | Scroll TikTok (2 hours) | Watch YouTube (2 hours) | Catch up on Wednesday (2 hours) | 30 GB |
| Person 4 | Watch Twitch stream (3 hours) | Watch YouTube (2 hours) | Scroll TikTok | 18 GB |
Once you multiply that by four people over a month, it’s easier than you’d expect to bust past 1 TB of monthly data. (And if you’re trying to stream video on a cell phone? Save yourself the time, and just upgrade to unlimited premium data.)
How to save data while streaming video
It’s never fun to have to eye your data meter every day to avoid overage charges. But even if fully unlimited data or a better cell phone plan isn’t an option for you, that doesn’t mean that you’ll be stuck between a rock and a hard place. Use these simple tips to lower your monthly data usage for streaming.
Adjust video quality settings
Nearly all major streamers allow you to adjust your app’s streaming video quality to reduce data usage. You can typically find these options within your streaming app’s settings or by logging into your account management page on a web browser.
Look for free Wi-Fi
Internet providers like Spectrum and Xfinity offer complimentary Wi-Fi hotspots to their subscribers. Additionally, big box stores like Target and Home Depot have free Wi-Fi for customers—if you’re waiting for the family to finish shopping, use these connections to save data while you’re scrolling TikTok.
Log your hours
Trying to cut down on your screen time? Most newer smartphones have screen-time logging features that log how often you’re using specific apps. If you’re trying to cut down on your TikTok and YouTube time, use these apps as a gentle reminder to touch grass occasionally.
Why you should trust us
Our internet and streaming experts have spent hundreds of hours testing and researching services as part of our regular streaming service, internet, and TV coverage. For this guide, I drew from our existing streaming and tech support coverage to highlight the best ways to conserve mobile data.
Check out our How We Rank page to learn more about our methods.
