How many Netflix movies can I watch with 1GB?
According to Netflix, you use about 1GB of data per hour for streaming a TV show or movie in standard definition and up to 3GB of data per hour when streaming HD video.
Low: video quality is low and uses 0.3 GB per hour for each device. Medium: you get Standard Definition for 0.7 GB per hour for each device. High: You get High Definition for up to 3 GB per hour for each device. Ultra High Definition: for 7 GB per hour for each device.
Watching Netflix TV series or movies on the streaming site uses about 1GB of data an hour for every stream using standard definition video. Netflix uses 3GB an hour for each stream of HD video. Downloading and streaming actually use similar amounts of data, so it makes little difference if you're using WiFI.
Automatic – Netflix will select a data usage setting that balances data usage with good video quality. Currently, this will allow you to watch about four hours per GB of data. Wi-Fi Only – You will only be able to stream on the device while connected to Wi-Fi. Save Data – Watch about six hours per GB of data.
Automatic: The Netflix app selects a setting that balances data usage and video quality. You can watch about 4 hours per GB of data. Wi-Fi Only: Stream only while connected to Wi-Fi. Save Data: Watch about 6 hours per GB of data.
GB is short for Gigabyte - and is equivalent to 1024 megabytes (MB) or 1,048,576 kilobytes (KB). As a rough guide, 1GB of data would let you do one of the following: Watch one hour and 20 minutes of video at Standard Definition. Stream roughly eight hours of high quality music (320kbps)
A 1GB data plan will allow you to browse the internet for around 12 hours, to stream 200 songs or to watch 2 hours of standard-definition video. Nowadays, the key difference between mobile phone price plans is how many gigabytes of data it comes with.
- With the Netflix app open on your tablet or smartphone, select the menu icon. ...
- Select App Settings.
- Next, select Cellular Data Usage. ...
- Finally, just select your preferred settings — either Automatic, Wi-Fi Only, Data Saver, or Unlimited — and save your settings.
Streaming video
15GB gives you 21 hours of SD streaming. High definition (HD) streaming uses 2.5GB per hour. 15GB gives you just 6 hours of HD streaming.
Either way, using a hotspot to stream Netflix will quickly drain your data. If you're streaming Netflix from your home Wi-Fi, you'll want to make sure you have enough internet speed to go around. Here are the recommended data speeds for every Netflix stream connected to your Wi-Fi internet speeds.
Is it better to download or stream Netflix on data?
So, after all, does streaming use more data than downloading? The short answer is that with comparable quality of the file and without compression, they use more or less the same amount of data. For one-time viewing of a compressed file, or if you are fine with low-res, use streaming to save bandwidth (and time).
How much is 1GB of data? Ofcom's 2021 report states that phone users (on average) opt for 4.5GB of mobile data for the month. In comparison, a 1GB bundle is a fair bit below average. This is a reflection of how much data we use these days - 1GB simply isn't enough for most!

Even 1GB will be cutting it close, so for some breathing room we'd generally suggest at least 2GB. Meanwhile, if you're using mobile data much of the day, every day, or using data intensive things like video streaming and tethering regularly, you'll probably want at least 30GB – and even that might not be enough.
Using these figures, an average 90-minute HD film would use approximately 4.5GB of data. Binge-watch a 10-episode TV show in Ultra HD, with one-hour episodes, and that's a hefty 70GB of data.
A new level of entertainment
As you saw in the chart above, Gig Internet can easily get the entertainment you crave at your fingertips. For one, gigabit speeds allow for 4K streaming, which requires much more bandwidth (about five times as much) than a high-definition stream.
This means you'll use around 2 GB to stream a two-hour SD movie, 6 GB to stream the HD version or 14 GB for the 4K stream. A half-hour TV show would be 500 MB for the SD version, 1.5 GB for the HD version or 3.5 GB for 4K.
Exactly how quickly you'll burn through it will depend on what you're doing on your phone, with it lasting roughly an hour and a half if you're streaming standard-definition video, around eight hours if you're streaming music, through to several weeks if you're only sending and receiving basic emails.
1GB,3GB and 30GB is capable of the following: 1GB a month is roughly enough to: Browse for 11 hours. Send 16,000 emails without attachments or 300 with attachments.
To ensure you never run out of data, you'll probably need a monthly data allowance of around 20GB.
Most people need around 600 GB of data per month for their home internet connection. That gives you enough data to stream movies, play online games, and participate in video conferencing calls.
Can I watch Netflix without data?
To watch TV shows and movies offline at any time, download them from the Netflix app. Learn more about finding, downloading, and watching downloaded TV shows and movies below. Note: The Basic with ads plan doesn't include downloads.
If you have downloaded the Netflix app on your mobile device, you can actually watch many titles offline. This is great for when you're on a long car ride or plane trip and want to be entertained without using up all your data. Simply open the app and select the “Available for Download” option from the menu.
- Open your phone's Settings app.
- Tap Network & internet. Internet.
- Next to your carrier, tap Settings .
- Tap Data warning & limit.
- If it's not already on, turn on Set data limit. Read the on-screen message and tap Ok.
- Tap Data limit.
- Enter a number. ...
- Tap Set.
Even on cell phone plans with unlimited data, there will be a cap for how much data you can use as a mobile hotspot. Once you reach that limit, the data will be deprioritized, which basically means your data speed will slow way down until your limit starts over the following month.
Watching in SD, you can enjoy about 15 hours of streaming, or between 6 and 7 movies on 15 GB. If you're watching in HD, though, you've only got about 5 hours before your hotspot data runs out. We don't recommend using a hotspot to stream in 4K — you'll only get 2 or so hours if you have 15 GB.
For example, you need about 2.5 to 7.5 Mbps (megabits per second) to stream HD videos on your mobile device. This means you'll use approximately 1.5 to 3 GB per hour to stream HD video on Netflix. If you opt for standard definition (SD), your consumption will be about 1 GB of data per hour, at about 2 to 3 Mbps.
Over-the-Air TV. Over-the-air (OTA) TV is a great way to catch your local channels without spending the big bucks for cable. OTA TV offers high-definition television broadcasts from your local television stations. All you need to start is a TV and a digital antenna.
For example, if you don't already have a Netflix subscription you won't be able to stream on Netflix using Unlimited Video; if you do already have a Netflix subscription, as long as you're logged in to the service you'll be able to stream unlimitedly without eating your data.
For most trips, 3GB or 5GB of data will be enough to cover common internet usage. However, if you are planning on using the internet more or if you are traveling for a month or longer, you might want to consider cards with up to 7GB of data.
High definition (HD) streaming uses 2.5GB per hour. 100GB gives you 40 hours of HD streaming. 4K Ultra HD streaming uses about 6GB per hour. 100GB gives you 16 hours of 4K streaming.
What's the point of downloading on Netflix?
The new Netflix Downloads For You feature will download recommendations for users based on their watching history and these titles will be available for you to watch when you have no internet connectivity.
Apps. Apps are likely the biggest data users on your phone. Anything that needs to connect to the Web to update, refresh, or download will use cell data. This means all your social media and streaming apps, from Facebook to Twitter, Spotify to Netflix, will quietly eat up your data.
Stream in SD when you can (and want to)
Being selective of what you watch in HD or 4K can save you a lot of data. Most streaming services like Netflix and Hulu let you choose the video quality under your account settings.
The weighted average reached 495.5 gigabytes in Q3 2022, a smidge ahead of 490.7GB average seen in Q2 2022, and a 13.9% increase from the year-ago average of 434.9GB, said OpenVault.
- Browsing 14 web pages a day.
- 16 minutes of Facebook a day.
- 90 minutes of video on Netflix a month.
- 12 hours of listening to Spotify a month.
You can send and receive text (SMS) and multimedia (MMS) messages through the Messages app . Messages are considered texts and don't count toward your data usage. Your data usage is also free when you turn on chat features.
1GB Can Get You Up to 18 Hours of Music Streaming
If all you want to do is stream music from Spotify, Apple Music, or Pandora, 1GB of data can last you up to 18 hours. For most people, that means more than enough time to listen to all of their favorite songs and podcasts.
Maximum data: Watch about 20 minutes of video for 1GB of data.
One Gigabyte (GB) is approximately 1000 Megabytes (MB).
So a 4GB USB Stick will hold approximately 3.8GB of data as the other 0.2GB is needed to store the firmware needed for the operations to run. If we look at your average ripped . avi or . mpeg film, which is approximately 700mb for a 90min feature-length film, your 4GB stick would hold approximately 5 full movies.
Can flash drive hold movies?
It depends on how much space is on your flash drive and how big your movies are. If you only have a 500 MB flash drive and a movie takes up 1 GB, it won't fit on the flash drive. You may need to get an external hard drive (which is basically a big flash drive) to store your movies.
A standard definition (SD) movie that you download to your device for streaming tends to be between 1 GB and 2 GBs, while high definition (HD) videos are twice that, ranging from 2 to 4 Gigabytes.
Activity | 1GB data is equal to... |
---|---|
Downloading or streaming music | 200 songs |
Downloading or streaming video (SD) | 2 hours |
Downloading or streaming video (HD) | 30 minutes |
Skype voice call | 30 hours |
With a 1GB flash drive you could hold over 230 of them... that's over 7 hours of video content.
1 GB per hour in standard definition (SD) 3 GB per hour in high definition (HD) 7 GB per hour in 4K Ultra HD (UHD)
A new level of entertainment. As you saw in the chart above, Gig Internet can easily get the entertainment you crave at your fingertips. For one, gigabit speeds allow for 4K streaming, which requires much more bandwidth (about five times as much) than a high-definition stream.