PRICE HIKE: Disney+ and Hulu Raise Costs for Nearly All Subscriptions

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On the same day Disney+ announced details on its new ad-supported streaming subscription, Disney also revealed that prices are going up for existing customers across several of its streaming TV properties.

During its earnings call on August 10, 2022, Disney announced plans for a sweeping change to the pricing model for four major streaming TV services in the coming months: Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ and Hulu + Live TV.

The popular Disney Bundle, which gives users a combination of the first three mentioned above, also will see a price increase.

Existing subscribers to both Disney+ and Hulu can expect to pay more for their current offerings, but there are some actions you can take to mitigate the damage to your wallet.

Let’s walk through what we know and how it impacts each service.


Disney+

Good news: Disney+ will have a new ad-supported tier that will be available to customers on December 8, 2022.

Bad news: The price for that tier of subscription will be the same as Disney+ is charging for the ad-free experience now. If you want to continue with ad-free Disney+ as a standalone subscription, you will be charged $10.99 per month beginning in December.

Here’s a breakdown of the monthly price changes for Disney+:

Subscription TypeCurrent Monthly PricingNew Monthly Pricing (effective Dec. 8)
Disney+ ad-supportedn/a$7.99
Disney+ ad-free$7.99$10.99

If you’re considering the new ad-supported version of Disney+, you may be wondering what the ad environment will look like.

According to recent reporting, Disney+ plans to keep ads off kid profiles altogether. That may ease the concern of parents who are concerned about the type of commercials their children could be exposed to on the kid-friendly service.

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For adult profiles, Disney’s original plans include an average of four minutes worth of ads per hour of content viewed.


Hulu (on-demand)

Hulu’s standalone on-demand video streaming service (not live TV) will also see a price increase. And this one is coming sooner than Disney+.

Effective October 10, 2022, Hulu customers will pay at least one more dollar per month for access.

Here’s a breakdown of the monthly price changes for Hulu:

Subscription TypeCurrent Monthly PricingNew Monthly Pricing (effective Oct. 10)
Hulu ad-supported$6.99$7.99
Hulu ad-free$12.99$14.99

It’s worth noting that customers usually can find a discount deal on Hulu’s standalone on-demand service at various points in the year. National Streaming Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales have happened in the past. It may be worth monitoring those to see if a better price becomes available, at least temporarily.


ESPN+

Disney previously announced that a price increase was coming for ESPN+ as a standalone product. It reaffirmed those plans during the earnings call.

Just in time for football season, ESPN+ will increase from $6.99 per month to $9.99 per month on August 23, 2022. The annual subscription price also will jump from $69.99 to $99.99 per year.

These price increases apply to both new and existing customers who pay for this service by itself.

Here’s a breakdown of the monthly price changes for ESPN+:

Subscription TypeCurrent PricingNew Pricing (effective Aug. 23)
ESPN+ monthly$6.99$9.99
ESPN+ annual$69.99$99.99

ESPN+ has recently become the streaming home for the NHL and now also features select MLB and college football games.

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The Disney Bundle

As you may have guessed by now, all of these changes will have an impact on The Disney Bundle effective December 8, 2022.

For those who aren’t familiar, The Disney Bundle is a subscription to Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu all rolled into one discounted price. Hulu + Live TV subscribers also receive the bundle as part of their subscription, but even those prices will be impacted.

In addition to increasing prices on the bundles, it also has created some new bundling options to include the new ad-supported version of Disney+.

Here’s a breakdown of the new bundle offerings:

Bundle TypeCurrent PricingNew Pricing
Disney+ (with ads), Hulu (on-demand, with ads)n/a$9.99
Disney+ (with ads), Hulu (on-demand, with ads), ESPN+ (with ads)n/a$12.99
Disney+ (no ads), Hulu (on-demand, with ads), ESPN+ (with ads)$13.99$14.99
Disney+ (no ads), Hulu (on-demand, no ads), ESPN+ (with ads)$19.99$19.99

If you’re a Hulu + Live TV subscriber, you will see the following pricing options for your bundles:

Bundle TypeCurrent PricingNew Pricing
Hulu + Live TV channels, Disney+ (with ads), Hulu (on-demand, with ads), ESPN+ (with ads)n/a$69.99
Hulu + Live TV channels, Disney+ (no ads), Hulu (on-demand, with ads), ESPN+ (with ads)$69.99$74.99
Hulu + Live TV channels, Disney+ (no ads), Hulu (on-demand, no ads), ESPN+ (with ads)$74.99$82.99

Note that the basic Hulu + Live TV customers who are currently paying $69.99 per month can effectively avoid a price hike by accepting that their Disney+ will contain ads. That seems like a choice that many streamers would be wise to make to keep their entertainment costs in check.

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