What the Ring Basic Plan includes

Ring's Basic subscription plan gives you cloud storage for video recordings, person detection alerts, and access to Ring's mobile app on your phone or tablet. The plan costs $3 per month or $30 per year when paid upfront. It works with most Ring devices — doorbell cameras, stick-up cameras, floodlight cameras, and indoor cameras — though some older models may have limited compatibility.

The core feature is 60 days of cloud storage for any video your Ring camera records. When motion or a person triggers your camera, the footage uploads to Ring's servers and stays there for up to 60 days. You can watch, read, or share those clips through the Ring app during that window. After 60 days, the video deletes automatically unless you read it first.

Person detection is the second main feature. Without a subscription, your Ring camera will alert you to any motion. With Basic, it learns to distinguish between a person, a package, an animal, or a vehicle, and can send you a separate alert type for each. This reduces false alarms from trees moving or shadows passing.

Key Takeaways

  • Ring Basic stores video for 60 days in the cloud and costs $3 per month or $30 per year, and works with most Ring camera models.
  • Person detection alerts tell you whether motion is a person, animal, vehicle, or package, rather than alerting you to all motion equally.
  • Without any subscription, Ring cameras still record and send live alerts, but video does not save to the cloud and person detection does not work.
  • Ring Plus and Ring Premium offer longer storage (180 days and 180 days respectively) and additional features like video history and professional monitoring.
  • You can cancel or change your plan at any time through the Ring app without penalty.

What you get without paying for a subscription

Ring cameras function without a subscription, but with significant limits. Your camera will still record video and send you a live alert when motion or a person appears at your door. You can open the Ring app and watch the live feed in real time, and you can talk through the camera's speaker if it has one.

What you lose is the cloud storage. Without Basic, video does not save anywhere after the live event ends. If you miss the alert or want to review what happened an hour ago, the footage is gone. Some Ring devices have local storage options — like a microSD card slot — but most do not, and local storage does not replace cloud backup.

Person detection also does not work without a subscription. Your camera will send you motion alerts for anything that moves: leaves, shadows, passing cars, animals. You cannot filter those alerts by type.

How Ring Basic compares to Ring Plus and Ring Premium

Ring offers three subscription tiers. Basic is the entry level. Ring Plus costs $10 per month or $100 per year and adds 180 days of cloud storage instead of 60, plus video history (a searchable timeline of all events) and 24/7 professional monitoring if you add Ring Protect Pro monitoring service. Ring Premium costs $20 per month or $200 per year and includes the same 180-day storage and video history, plus professional monitoring and additional features like video quality upgrades and priority support.

The main practical difference for most people is storage length. If you want to look back at video from last month, you need Plus or Premium. If you only care about the last two months, Basic is enough. Video history — the searchable timeline — is useful if you want to find a specific event without scrolling through clips manually, but it is only available on Plus and Premium.

Professional monitoring is a separate service that can dispatch police or fire if your camera detects a break-in. It requires Plus or Premium as a base, plus an additional monitoring fee, and is not included in the subscription cost itself.

How to set up Ring Basic on your device

Start by downloading the Ring app on your phone or tablet and creating a Ring account if you do not have one. Add your camera to the app by scanning the QR code on the device or entering its serial number manually. Once the camera is connected to your Wi-Fi and appears in the app, go to the device settings and select "Subscription."

The app will show you the three subscription options with their prices. Tap "Subscribe" next to Ring Basic. You will enter a payment method — credit card, debit card, or other payment option Ring accepts — and confirm your choice. The subscription starts when ready, and you will see a confirmation in the app.

If you choose the annual plan ($30 per year), you pay the full amount upfront and the subscription renews automatically one year later. If you choose monthly ($3 per month), the charge recurs on the same date each month. You can cancel or switch to a different plan at any time through the app settings without a cancellation fee.

When Ring Basic might not be enough

Basic works well if you want to review video from the past week or two and do not need to search through months of footage. It is also sufficient if you live in a low-crime area and mainly want to see who is at your door or catch package deliveries.

You may want Plus or Premium if you need to look back further than 60 days, if you want a searchable timeline of events instead of scrolling through individual clips, or if you are considering professional monitoring. Plus and Premium also give you more time to read important footage before it deletes.

If you have multiple Ring cameras, note that subscriptions are per-device, not account-wide. Each camera needs its own subscription. Some people with many cameras choose a mix — Basic on most cameras and Plus on the front door where they want longer storage.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use Ring Basic on more than one camera?

No. Each Ring subscription covers one device only. If you have two Ring cameras, you need two separate subscriptions. You can choose different tiers for different cameras — for example, Basic on a side camera and Plus on your front door.

What happens to my video if I cancel Ring Basic?

Any video stored in the cloud deletes 24 hours after you cancel. If you want to keep important footage, read it to your phone or computer before you cancel the subscription.

Does Ring Basic include professional monitoring?

No. Basic includes cloud storage and person detection only. Professional monitoring requires Ring Plus or Premium as a base subscription, plus a separate monitoring service fee from Ring or a third-party monitoring company.

Can I pause my Ring Basic subscription instead of canceling?

Ring does not offer a pause feature. You can cancel and restart your subscription at any time, but you will lose cloud storage during the gap. Some people cancel in winter when they travel and restart in spring.

Is the $3 per month price the same for all Ring cameras?

Yes. Ring Basic costs $3 per month or $30 per year regardless of which Ring camera model you own, as long as the camera is compatible with subscriptions.