Stan is sometimes referred to as “the Australian Netflix” and is a popular alternative to the streaming giant. It’s an affordable and easy-to-use platform with an impressive catalogue. It includes a wide selection of films and TV shows and is an excellent choice if you’d prefer to avoid Netflix or Prime Video. 

Additionally, Stan is fantastic for sports fans. The Stan Sports add-on gives you complete access to a huge range of major events. Click below to discover more. 

How Much Does Stan Cost?

Since its launch, Aussie streaming service Stan has been adding new content every few days, catering both for mainstream audiences and those whose tastes are more alternative. Subscribers can stream in SD, HD, or 4K to multiple devices simultaneously — making Stan particularly good value for families and shared households.

When you sign up for Stan, you can include Stan Sport, which comes with an additional fee. They’re all reasonably priced and frankly, even if you were to get a premium plan with Stan Sport included, the fee would still be cheaper than taking four people out for a meal once a month. You can see the current prices below: 

Can I Watch Stan for Free?

It isn’t immediately obvious from their website, but Stan does offer free trials for new customers. It does vary depending on where you live, but they tend to be between 7 and 30 days. Once the trial period is over, it automatically switches to a paid subscription, so we recommend remembering the date just in case. 

Is Stan Worth It?

You’re spoiled for choice with streaming services nowadays, but we were very impressed with Stan. It’s got a sizeable catalogue of films and TV series, plus it’s a homegrown institution, so it wins an extra point for that. There is less content than Netflix, but it does look to have been more carefully selected, and there’s not as much filler. In layman’s terms, that means you don’t spend as long scrolling through obscure B-movies to find something good to watch. Sign up for Stan and you’ll have plenty to keep you entertained. 

Stan Features

There are a few nice features that make the platform easy to recommend. Such as:

• Homegrown content – Stan is heavily invested in authentic Australian films and TV. If you’re enthusiastic about locally made shows, Stan is the platform for you.
• Pay-Per-View – This one is for the boxing fans. You can add Stan Pay-Per-View (formerly Stan Events) to your subscription and enjoy major boxing events in high definition. 
• Downloads – If you need to travel somewhere with a limited internet connection, you can still watch your favourite films and TV shows on Stan. Almost everything can be downloaded and watched offline. 

Stan Sport 

We could have covered this in the previous section, but felt that it deserved a separate mention. The Stan Sport add-on is the ideal choice for fans of rugby, football, combat sports, and more or less any athletic competition. Stan has exclusive streaming rights to several major sporting events, including:

What’s on Stan?

Even without including sports, there’s a lot to enjoy on Stan. The platform has a reputation for bringing lots of the best-rated American and British TV dramas to Australian audiences, and it’s got a healthy mix of comedies in there too. There’s an impressive range of films, as well as a children’s section.

Perhaps the best incentive to subscribe though, is the Stan originals. These don’t tend to attract as much publicity as their competitors on Netflix, but they’re entertaining and arguably, better quality. 

For instance, the Wolf Creek TV series (2016) was a spin-off of a major horror film and had us gripping the furniture with tension. The Surfer (2019) was a psychological drama that earned rave reviews, and Nitram (2021) was a tense and gut-wrenching psychological drama. There’s great stuff on there, and it’s worth exploring further. 

What’s New on Stan?

Stan updates its library regularly, with new shows and films added every month. The sporting content is structured around the time of year, so if it isn’t UEFA cup season, don’t be surprised if new games aren’t being uploaded. 

Unlike Netflix, which tends to add content every Friday and Saturday, Stan takes more of a drip-fed approach. The service typically adds one or two titles each day, but this does make it less overwhelming when perusing the new releases. 

Best Stan Alternatives

If you’ve already got a Stan subscription and want to try something new, there are numerous alternatives you can fall back on. For instance:

• Netflix – This is the closest comparison. Netflix and Stan have a lot in common, even a similar interface. The Netflix library is larger, although Stan’s is geared more towards an Aussie audience and has a better selection of sports
• Prime Video – Like Stan, Prime has an impressive collection of films and TV series, and has a similar range of sporting events too. Prime has one major advantage in that it can be linked to additional streaming services (like Shudder, for example), but these do require extra fees, and the costs can build up if you’re not careful.
• Binge – this one is another homegrown service. Binge is cheaper than Stan, but also has a smaller library. That being said, what they’ve got is terrific. Thanks to partnerships with major international groups like Warner Bros, they’ve got a few cultural zeitgeists like The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and Breaking Bad to enjoy.

If you’d like to see how much Stan costs compared to other subscription services, click here.

Sign Up to Stan Today

Some of the Compare TV staff swear by Stan and reckon it’s better than Netflix. It’s definitely worth exploring the service if you’re a sports fanatic, as it’s cheaper than dedicated providers like Kayo Sports. 

But even if you don’t know your Bledisloe Cup from your Premier League, Stan is worthwhile. It’s got plenty of TV and films to enjoy, so we’d recommend trying it yourself. 

Stan FAQs