= Value
= Design
= Service

Value Rating: Includes prices at all DVD rental levels and our assessment of what you actually get for your money.

Design Rating: Includes how well the website interface is designed and easy to use; there are some really aggravating online DVD rental sites out there.

Service Rating: This measure of customer service--which includes DVD turnaround times--is the least "scientific" rating, relying mainly on reports we've gathered from the net.

Titles: The estimated total number of available DVD titles. The market leaders boats 75,000+ titles, but an online DVD rental company stocking around 10,000 titles (far more than an average video store) will probably have all the DVD titles you'll ever want.

Phone Support: Only some DVD rental companies offer a real customer service phone number; important as it can be very frustrating and slow trying to use email.

Distribution Centers: This is important to weigh, as a company with a distribution center far from where you live can take several days longer for DVDs to reach you, depending on the mailman's efficiency. The top few companies have enough centers to provide close, blanket mail coverage.

Free Trial: These are usually a standard two weeks. Read the Terms on each DVD rental company's site if you're pursuing a free trial, as many have strict requirements for cancellation. If you're very cheeky you can "free trial hop" down the list and enjoy free DVD rentals for over six months before choosing the provider for you.

Prices: In dollars per month (tax not included) for standard, unlimited 1 and 3 disc at-a-time DVD rental subscriptions. This does not include volume discounts sometimes offered for paying a year in advance--see the individual DVD rental company reviews for this information.