Does Ring Doorbell Require A Subscription?

Ring Doorbell does not require a subscription to use. You can receive alerts, view live real-time video, use two way talk and answer notifications as they happen all completely for free. However, a subscription is required to save video and audio to the cloud. With a Basic Ring Protect plan, you can save, review, and share video recordings from your Ring Doorbell to your Ring account. The data is stored in the cloud and accessible any time through the Ring app on your phone. Ring Protect plans are available in a monthly or annual subscription and can be purchased with the Ring app.

Is a Ring Doorbell Worth It without a subscription? A basic Ring Protection Plan costs $3.99 per month or $39.99 per year. You save $7.89 with an annual subscription. The basic level subscription is good for one Ring Doorbell or camera. All the live features are exactly the same whether you have a subscription plan or not. You’ll see live real-time video and audio from the Ring on your phone, be able to use two-way talk and receive alerts. But none of it will be recorded and saved.

The Basic Ring Protection Plan is essentially hard drive space where you can save all your interactions using the Ring. Every time it senses motion and turns on or when someone presses the button, you’ll have the option of saving the video in cloud storage. This may come in handy for some people, but others see it as a waste of money.

With the more expensive Pro Protection Plan you also get 24/7 monitoring which is a nice security feature to have. But it costs $20 per month or $200 per year. A $40 savings when you buy the annual plan.

Can I Use Ring Doorbell Without A Subscription?

Ring Doorbell does not require a Ring Protect Subscription Plan to use. Without a subscription, you can still view real-time video, use two-way talk and receive notifications as they happen. The only thing you can’t do without a Basic Subscription is record and save video.

A Basic Ring Doorbell Subscription costs $3.99 per month pr $39.99 per year. When you buy the annual subscription it saves you $7.89 per year. The Basic plan works on just one device or camera. Once you purchase a subscription, the Ring Doorbell will save video and audio interactions in the cloud. You’ll have the ability to access, share and delete recorded video with the Ring App on your Phone.

If you upgrade to a Plus Subscription plan, you get all the benefits of a Basic plan plus an extended warranty for your Doorbell. And the Plus plan works on all your Ring devices, not just the Doorbell. A Plus Subscription costs $10 per month or $100 per year. That’s a $30 savings when you buy the full year.

The best plan is called Pro. It costs $20 per month or $200 per year. A $40 annual savings. With pro you get a bunch of additional benefits including 24/7 professional monitoring which allows you to call emergency responders when a security threat is detected by the Ring Alarm.

You can use a Ring Doorbell completely for free without paying for a monthly or yearly subscription. But you won’t get video recording of any kind, 24/7 monitoring or any of the other benefits a subscription plan provides.

Ring Protection Plans

There are 3 subscriptions available for a Ring Doorbell called Ring protection Plans. They come with a variety of additional features at different price points.

Basic: The Basic level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $3.99/month or $39.99/year and covers one device. With a Basic plan your Ring Doorbell will record video and audio to the cloud.
Plus: The Plus level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $10/month or $100/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus an extended warranty.
Pro: The Pro level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $20/month or $200/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus the extended warranty of the Plus plan and a lot more, including 24/7 professional monitoring.

	BASIC	PLUS	PRO
Price	$3.99/Month or $39.99/Year	$10/Month or $100/Year	$20/Month or $200/Year
Video History For Up To 180 Days	✔	✔	✔
Video Saving & Sharing	✔	✔	✔
Snapshot Capture	✔	✔	✔
Person Alerts	✔	✔	✔
Rich Notifications	✔	✔	✔
10% Off Select Products At Ring.com & Amazon.com	✔	✔	✔
Download Up To 50 Videos At Once	✔	✔	✔
Extended Warranties For All Devices		✔	✔
24/7 Professional Monitoring			✔
Alarm Cellular Backup			✔
Alexa Guard Plus			✔
24/7 Backup Internet With Optional Extra Data			✔
Digital Security By Eero Secure			✔
Ring Edge With Local Video Storage			✔
Save Up To $100 Or More On Your Home Insurance			✔

Some of these features may require Ring Alarm pro. For more information and full details about all Ring’s features and functions, visit the official Ring Doorbell website at Ring.com.

What Can I Do With A Ring Doorbell Without A Subscription?

A Ring Doorbell will have full real-time functionality with or without a subscription plan. The main thing you won’t be able to do without a subscription is record video. Without a plan, all the interactions that occur with the Ring Doorbell will be lost.

Here are some of the things you’ll be able to do with your Ring Doorbell without a subscription:

Real-Time Video & Audio With Notifications

You’ll have access to a live, real-time view from your doorbell camera at any time streamed directly to your phone through the Ring App.

When your Ring Doorbell senses movement within its motion sensor range or someone presses the doorbell button, you’ll receive a notification on your phone. With your phone, you’ll be able to see real-time video of whoever is at your door and you’ll be able to talk with them through the app.

In addition to video, every Ring Doorbell also has a built in microphone enabling two-way talk so you can speak with whoever is at your door.

Motion Detection Alerts

Ring Doorbell has motion sensors built in which can detect motion within its detection field. When someone presses the doorbell, or the camera detects motion, you’ll receive an alert on your phone or on any other device you’ll connected the Ring.

Then with just a click you’ll enter ‘Live-View’ on your device. Once in “Live-View”, you’ll be able to see and hear what’s in front of the doorbell’s camera. The camera has a much wider field of vision than the motion sensors.

Ring’s detection algorithm is one of the best and allows you to set up areas as “activity zones” and prioritize alerts. This limits the amount of false alerts you’ll receive due to things like cars driving by. This feature isn’t free without a subscription when you buy other video doorbells like Nest.

Ring also prioritizes motion alerts based on where the motion occurred. Close motion being a higher priority than motion detected far away from the Ring. This also help eliminate false alerts.

Amazon Echo & Ring Chime

You’ll be able to pair your Ring Doorbell with other Amazon devices like Echo and Ring Chime absolutely free. Although there are additional benefits available with a subscription plan.

Pairing a Ring Doorbell with a Ring Chime is a great idea if you want the Ring to function like a regular doorbell. Without a Chime, pressing the doorbell button will still alert your phone but it won’t make a sound throughout the house.

Theft Protection

If your Ring Doorbell is stolen, you can report the theft within 15 days to get a free replacement. This is a free service available even if you don’t have a subscription. However it does require you call the police, file a report and send a copy of the report and photos of the damaged area to Ring.

What Can I Do With A Ring Doorbell With A Subscription?

There are 3 subscriptions available for a Ring Doorbell called Ring protection Plans. They come with a variety of additional features at different price points.

Basic: The Basic level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $3.99/month or $39.99/year and covers one device. With a Basic plan your Ring Doorbell will record video and audio to the cloud.
Plus: The Plus level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $10/month or $100/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus an extended warranty.
Pro: The Pro level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $20/month or $200/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus the extended warranty of the Plus plan and a lot more, including 24/7 professional monitoring.

In addition to all the standard features and functions that come without a subscription, you get a lot of additional benefits for your Ring Doorbell with a subscription.

Here are some of the additional functions you’ll gain access to with a Ring protection plan:

Video Recording

With all 3 plans you’ll gain access to cloud based video recording. Whenever the doorbell camera turns on, due to sensing motion or someone pressing the doorbell button, the Ring will record all its interactions to the cloud.

Data is stored securely and privately in the cloud where you can interact with it any time through the Ring App.

Saved videos can be shared, played, saved or deleted through the app.

This feature essentially turns your Ring Doorbell into a security camera that you can access anywhere in the world using your Ring App and the internet.

Of all the features available to a Ring Doorbell by purchasing a Ring Protection Plan, this is the best. And it’s available with just the Basic level subscription plan. Without video recording, all your video and audio interactions will be lost.

Having a saved video and audio log of anyone that approaches your home can be a benefit for a number of reasons. And best of all it only costs $3.99/month or $39.99/year.

Video Sharing

Once a video is recorded to the cloud by your Ring Doorbell it can be downloaded and shared. This can be a big help if your using a Ring Doorbell as part of a home security system because you can send recorded footage to the Police.

Snaphot

The snaphot function on your Ring Doorbell comes in handy when you want to see what’s going on in front of your home doorbell but don’t want to stream video. The snapshot feature will take a picture with the Ring Doorbell and send it to your phone. You can take a snapshot once or set the Ring to send pics on a preset time-frame. For example, you can tell the camera to send you a pic every 30 seconds, 3 minutes, etc.

Discounts

You’ll receive a 10% discount on purchasing select Ring devices on Ring.com and Amazon.com.

What’s Included With A Ring Protection Plus Subscription

When you buy a Ring protection Plus subscription plan you gain all the benefits of the basic plan with a few additional benefits. These include subscription service to all your Ring Devices instead of just the one device and an extended warranty for all your Ring Devices.

The Plus level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $10/month or $100/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus an extended warranty.

What’s Included With A Ring Protection Pro Subscription

When you buy a Ring protection Pro subscription you gain all the benefits of a basic and Plus level subscription plus a few additional benefits like 24/7 monitoring.

The Pro level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $20/month or $200/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus the extended warranty of the Plus plan and a lot more, including 24/7 professional monitoring.

Ring 24/7 Professional Monitoring

Ring’s 24/7 monitoring is my favorite part about the Pro level subscription plan.

Without a Pro subscription, you have to monitor the alarm by yourself. This can be a pain if you’re at work, away on vacation, sleeping or just busy doing something else. And manual monitoring doesn’t automatically contact emergency services when a security threat is detected.

This means that if you receive an alert while you’re eating, sleeping, working out, working, etc., you have to manually check your phone to determine the cause of the alert and call the authorities yourself. Ring 24/7 professional monitoring does this for you.

With a Ring Protection Pro Subscription, Ring will professionally monitor your alarm system with monitoring centers.

These are the steps taken by Ring when an alarm is triggered:

An agent from Ring support will contact you via phone once the alarm detects a threat.
You’ll have to provide a password to confirm your identity.
If you’re unable to answer the call, they will immediately contact the first person on your emergency call list who will provide the verbal password.
If neither you nor anyone in your emergency list responds, they will dispatch local law enforcement to your location.
If someone does answer the call and make confirmation with a password, authorities will be sent upon request.

Ring will also get help in the event of break-ins, smoke and carbon monoxide detection, floods, and freezing temperatures.

In my opinion this is one of the best security features Ring offers. if you use your Ring Doorbell for security purposes and not as simply a doorbell I’d recommend it.

Cellular Backup

With a Pro subscription, you’ll also receive cellular backup. This is used as a backup connection in case your internet connection fails.

Even if your WiFi and internet connection fail, Ring will connect to a cellular backup and keep your Ring Security System up and running. This is very useful in the event of a power outage or loss of WiFi connectivity. But it’s only available with a pro subscription and the Ring must be in range of a cellular signal.

Is There A Monthly Fee For Ring Doorbell?

No, there is no monthly fee to use a Ring Doorbell. You’ll have access to all its live, real time features like video, audio, two-way talk and can respond to notifications as they happen. But you won’t be able to save any of the interactions. To save video and audio to the cloud you need a Basic subscription plan which costs $3.99/month or $39.99/year.

You can upgrade your subscription plan to Plus which costs $10/month or $100/year to cover all doorbells and security cameras at your home. It includes everything the Basic level subscription offers plus an extended warranty for all your Ring Devices.

There’s also a Pro plan which costs $20/month or $200/year which also covers all your devices and has the extended warranty. But it also provides a bunch of other features like 24/7 professional monitoring. This allows you to notify emergency responders any time a security threat is detected by the Ring Alarm.

What Happens If I Don’t Subscribe To Ring?

Every Ring Doorbell comes with a trial subscription plan so you can test out all the doorbell’s features. If you don’t subscribe to Ring by the end of the trial, all your recorded videos will be erased and new events will not be stored. You’ll still receive Ring and Motion Alerts on your phone, view live video ad audio and receive notifications as they happen. They just won’t be recorded any more.

To be clear, using all the basic real-time video, audio and notification functions of a Ring Doorbell are 100% free whether you have a subscription plan or not. But you lose all the video recording features.

Do I Have To Get A Ring Doorbell Subscription?

No. Your Ring Doorbell’s basic features and functions like instant alerts, Live View, Two-Way Talk, and so on, work without a subscription. Ring Protect Plans offer additional features for those who want them but are not necessary to use the device.

All you need to use a Ring Doorbell is the device itself, an internet connection, WiFi and a smartphone or other similar wireless device that can use the Ring App.

Will A Ring Doorbell Record Without A Subscription?

No. Without a subscription plan a Ring Doorbell does not record video or audio. All the other real-time features like live video and audio, two way talk, alerts and notifications still work without a subscription. But you can’t record video or audio to the cloud.

A Ring Doorbell does not have internal storage or wiring to a hard drive. So without a subscription plan it doesn’t have anywhere to record to.

How Long Does Ring Doorbell Save Video Without Subscription?

A Ring Doorbell does not save video without a subscription. You still have access to all the Ring Doorbell’s real-time features like video and audio, two-way talk, alerts and notifications to your phone, but the Ring does not record them.

How Much Is A Ring Doorbell Subscription?

Ring Doorbell subscriptions are called Ring Protection Plans. There are 3 plans available to a Ring Doorbell with different pricing and features.

Basic: The Basic level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $3.99/month or $39.99/year and covers one device. With a Basic plan your Ring Doorbell will record video and audio to the cloud.
Plus: The Plus level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $10/month or $100/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus an extended warranty.
Pro: The Pro level Ring Doorbell subscription costs $20/month or $200/year and covers all your Ring Devices. It includes all the features of a Basic plan plus the extended warranty of the Plus plan and a lot more, including 24/7 professional monitoring.

A Ring Doorbell does not require a subscription to work. Without a subscription, you’ll still get real-time video and audio, two way talk, alerts and notification sent to your phone as they happen. All the doorbell’s features and functions will work normally including motion sensing. But it won’t record and all your interactions will be lost.

Can I Use Other Devices With My Ring Doorbell Without A Subscription?

Yes, you can connect other devices that work with your Ring Doorbell even without a subscription. This includes Ring Echo and Ring Chime. However, there are additional features and functions that become available with a Ring protection Plan.

To connect your Ring Doorbell with other compatible Ring Devices, use the Ring App.

Summary: Does Ring Doorbell Require A Subscription?

Ring Doorbell does not require a subscription to use. You’ll receive alerts, view live real-time video, use two way talk and answer notifications as they happen all completely free. However, a Basic subscription is required to save video and audio to the cloud. With a Basic Ring Protect plan, you can save, review, and share video recordings from your Ring Doorbell to your Ring account. The data is stored in the cloud and accessible any time through the Ring app on your phone. Ring Protect plans are available in a monthly or annual subscription and can be purchased with the Ring app.

If you have any questions email any time.