Ring and Arlo are two of the more well-known brands when it comes to the best video doorbells. Unfortunately, both of these companies have also recently raised the price of their subscriptions, meaning you'll be paying more over the long run if you want to access functions as basic as saving video clips.
Ring increased the price of its Protect Basic Plan for the second year in a row from $3.99 to $4.99. Back in 2022, that very service was just $2.50 per month, or half of what it costs now. A week prior, Arlo was in the hot seat for hiking up the price of its subscription, from $4.99/month to $7.99/month. This is a worrying trend considering two of the biggest home security manufacturers have increased the prices of their services back-to-back for two years running.
Subscription plans are nothing new for the best security cameras. They provide valuable services like cloud storage. For example, Ring doorbells can provide a live view of your doorstep. But to view recordings you have to pay for a subscription and there's no local storage option to avoid it. While you don't have to pay to use your Ring to receive notifications when someone is there, it's useless if someone steals a package and you have no footage of the event. Video recordings are the main reason most people buy a security camera so these companies effectively have us at their mercy even if they decide to keep raising the price every year.
Plenty of owners find the subscription to be worth it. After all, $50 for the year is relatively cheap for peace of mind. However, the plans being raised thus far are for single-camera subscriptions only. This narrows the gap between the multi-device plans to make them seem like a better deal—the more you buy from one brand the better the value you get.
But in addition to the pricey initial hardware costs, the rising prices are drawing attention to a very real subscription fatigue problem. That's why we're seeing negative feedback in online threads and some calling to boycott. It's less so about the extra $10 per year—and more about how these companies can dictate when and how much to raise their prices. Luckily there is a way you can survive the tide of rising cloud video storage plans.
The best security cameras you can use without subscription
Simply avoid subscriptions entirely by purchasing security cameras that support local video storage. You can buy cameras that let you record to a USB drive or SD card and access it over your own home network rather than host it on their own servers. While you might miss out on more advanced features like AI event detection, this is a big step for what I consider core functionality—the ability to view footage at any time. If you want the best balance of security and affordability, the cameras below are some of the best options you can buy right now.
At the end of the day its the devil you know. Arlo and Ring make some of the best security cameras we've tested. Admittedly, I come from a Ring Protect household which makes sense because I've helped my parents install the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 at their front door, Ring Stick Up Cams on the sides of the house aimed at the backyard, and the Ring Floodlight Cam out front facing the driveway. For them, the subscription is a small price to pay because they bought into the ecosystem entirely. But it is frustrating to know that the price can creep up each year without seeing any advancement in-app features that the extra money goes to. Meanwhile, it becomes more of a hassle to switch out equipment down the line with each device added.
This is why I opted for a Wyze Video Doorbell Pro and Wyze V3s throughout my own place, its hardware is not only super affordable but more versatile. Going forward I will be looking at equipment from Reolink, Eufy, and Wyze because not only are their initial investments lower, but they also give you excellent value without a subscription cost that climbs up over time.
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