Netflix Cuts 1,000 Jobs, 6% of Staff, in 2026 Layoffs

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Last updated: October 14, 2026

Netflix is cutting roughly 1,000 jobs — about 6% of its global workforce — in its largest round of layoffs in more than four years, according to an internal memo reported Wednesday. The cuts land as the streamer grapples with slowing viewer-engagement growth, a crowded competitive field, and lingering investor unease over its unsuccessful bid for Warner Bros. Discovery earlier this year.

Media · Business · October 14, 2026

Netflix’s Biggest Cuts in Four Years

About 1,000 jobs are going as the streamer reshuffles resources toward content amid slowing growth and a crowded field.

Jobs Cut

~1,000

About 6% of global workforce

Stock Price

~$71

Down more than 40% over the past year (split-adjusted)

Market Cap

~$295.6B

As of Wednesday’s trading

H1 2026 Engagement Growth

~2%

Below Wall Street’s growth expectations

The Cuts, By the Numbers

Netflix is eliminating approximately 1,000 positions — roughly 6% of its worldwide staff — in its largest reduction since 2022, according to an internal memo reviewed by trade press. The memo reportedly said the cuts would have “the greatest impact to our product, tech, legal, and HR teams.” Netflix has not issued a broad public statement beyond the internal communication, and affected employees are being notified by their managers, with the process and timing varying by country. The move follows several smaller rounds of cuts earlier in 2026, including dozens of positions eliminated from the product division in February.

Why Now: Slowing Growth and a Crowded Field

The layoffs come after a stretch of underwhelming results by Netflix’s own standards. Viewer engagement rose only about 2% in the first half of 2026, a figure that has drawn scrutiny from Wall Street given the company’s historically higher growth rates. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos told a Bloomberg conference earlier this month that the company is “not growing as fast as I want us to.” Netflix has also gone an unusually long stretch without a breakout hit on the scale of its biggest past shows, with several returning series posting season-to-season viewership declines, and the company finished a rare third place at this year’s Emmy Awards, behind Apple TV and HBO. Its unsuccessful bid earlier this year for Warner Bros. Discovery — which ultimately went to Paramount Skydance in a $110 billion deal — unsettled some investors who read the attempted acquisition as a sign Netflix needed a major deal to reaccelerate growth. In response, the company says it’s shifting more investment toward live sports, podcasts, and creator-driven content.

What Executives Are Saying

Co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters framed the cuts as a reallocation rather than a response to distress, telling staff: “Our business is strong and growing, and we remain on track to deliver our full-year forecast.” They described the current media landscape as “one of the most dynamic times in the history of entertainment” and said the company needs to be “disciplined about where we prioritize our people and resources” and make “focused choices” across the business. Executives have separately denied that the Warner Bros. Discovery bid signaled any need for a transformative acquisition, maintaining that Netflix’s growth plan remains organic and content-led.

Why It Matters

The cuts underscore how much the streaming landscape has shifted from pure subscriber growth to cost discipline and content-portfolio bets, a dynamic also visible in other tech and media layoffs this year. Netflix now competes not just with traditional streamers but with the newly combined Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery and with deep-pocketed tech platforms like Amazon (Prime Video) and Alphabet (YouTube), both of which can subsidize content spending with other business lines in ways a pure-play streamer cannot. Disney, too, has leaned harder into live sports and bundling as a differentiator — the same playbook Netflix now says it’s pursuing. Shares have fallen more than 40% over the past year on a split-adjusted basis, reflecting investor skepticism about whether cost cuts alone can reaccelerate growth without a new content catalyst.

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