Online DVD Rental vs the High Street
CommentsIS online DVD rental really better value than buying or renting on the high street?
We've crunched the numbers to find the answers whether you're an occasional renter or a dyed-in-the-wool film rental fanatic.
Online DVD rental vs high street rentals
By online DVD rental we mean buying from any of the UK's DVD rental by post companies.
Very light renter: less than 1 DVD a month
If you don't mind planning ahead a little bit online DVD rental can be cheaper than the high street even if you're a very light renter. PAYG services ask you to buy some credits and then redeem them when there's something you want to watch.
For pure convenience, though, the high street still wins out.
| Rent from... | Cost per rental |
|---|---|
| High street rental store |
£3.99 |
| Lovefilm PAYG | £1.99 |
| EasyCinema | £1.99 |
Light user: 1-2 DVDs a month
As soon as you become a regular DVD renter, online DVD rental starts to really pay off. The final online DVD rental deal listed from Blockbuster includes an in-store rental which means less planning ahead too.
| Rent from... | Cost per rental | Cost per month | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High street rental store |
£3.99 | £7.98 | |
| Lidl 2 DVDs a month |
£1.70 | £3.39 | |
| Lovefilm 2 DVDs a month |
£1.99 | £3.99 | |
| Blockbuster 3 DVDs a month (1 in-store) |
£2.16 | £6.49 |
Heavy user: 6 DVDs a month
| Rent from... | Cost per rental | Cost per month | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High street rental store |
£3.99 | £23.94 | ||
| Lovefilm Unlimited DVDs (1 out at a time) |
£1.66 | £9.99 | ||
| Blockbuster Unlimited DVDs (1 out at a time) |
£1.66 | £9.99 | ||
| Cinema Paradiso Unlimited DVDs (1 out at a time) | £1.58 | £9.49 |
Note that for better value (and, in particular, to watch movies on consecutive nights) there are various deals available with more than one disc out at a time.
Online DVD rental vs buying
Buy a DVD for around £8 in the shops and watch it twice and you're effectively paying £4 a watch.
With online DVD rental you're paying half that or less and you don't have to suffer the shame of having a copy of The Rock either.
Online DVD rental vs buying blu ray
When it comes to buying blu ray the savings are even bigger. Online DVD rental deals don't distinguish between DVDs and blu rays so it's even better value.
For more on this see our blu ray rental guide.
Comments
Leave a comment
Send us your comments below and we'll add them to this page.
(Please read our comments disclaimer first though).
We need your email address in case we need to get in touch regarding your comment. We won't share your email address with anyone else and (unless you choose otherwise, e.g. by subscribing to our newsletter seperately) we'll only use it for the purposes of contacting you regarding this comment.
Please read the following notice:
This guide may not include all of the products available in the market.
While we make every effort to ensure and maintain current and accurate information on this site, we do not keep all guides updated and this guide may contain prices, deals or facts which have now changed.
Readers are always advised to check the full details of any product with the relevant provider before applying, as well as to conduct their own research.
We aim to provide free reviews and comparisons of consumer products. To keep the site free, we are paid by some providers when new customers take products after they've clicked on our links. We don't allow our editorial content to be affected by those links, however we may not include all of the products available in the market.
Please read our full disclaimer for other important information that relates to the information and service we provide and your use of this site.
If you would like to get in touch with us you can contact us here »
Have a suggestion?
If you've an idea for a topic or a story you think we should know about we'd love to hear from you. Find out more about contacting us and how you can get in touch here »
Rent Films »
Rent Games »
Free Trials »
LoveFilm Review »
Blockbuster Review »
DVD Rental Guide »
Why not have a look around our other price comparison sections?
We also cover credit cards, loans, current and savings accounts and home media and mobile including broadband and bundles.
Keep up to date with the latest deals, product updates and market news from the Choose team.
Simply fill in your details below...
Have an opinion, want to make a suggestion or just fancy a natter?
Get in touch and we'll be pleased to see what we can do.
Unfortunately, we can't always be as helpful as we'd like, but where we can't help we will try to point you in the right direction instead.
Please read more about contacting us and how to get in touch here »
