There are so many competing streaming TV services it’s easy to sign up for a bunch without realizing how much you’re actually paying for them all—especially when they start raising their prices. And with Disney+ hiking its monthly fee today, this is as good a time as any to review recent changes to your streaming plans, confirm how much you’re being charged, and consider canceling the ones you aren’t watching enough.
Recent TV streaming plan changes
Disney+
Disney+ has increased its subscription price by $1, to $7.99 per month, and its yearly subscription by $10, to $79.99, effective today. The price for the Disney+ bundle, which includes Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+, is also going up, from $12.99 to $13.99 per month (the ad-free version will run you $18.99). The changes will apply to new and existing subscribers—although in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, the price change won’t take effect until August 23.
Netflix
Netflix recently soft-launched a password sharing prevention feature that prods users into buying a subscription if they’re borrowing a password from someone outside their household. While it hasn’t been widely implemented, don’t be surprised if your $8.99 basic plan becomes a truly single stream subscription later this year.
Earlier in 2021, Netflix raised prices on its popular standard plan (1080p and two simultaneous streams) from $12.99 per month to $13.99 per month. Its premium plan (4K video and four simultaneous streams) also increased from $15.99 to $17.99 per month. These changes are now in effect for both new and old subscribers.
Paramount+
Paramount+ is a new streaming TV service, replacing CBS All Access. It costs $9.99 per month for their ad-free service, or $5.99 per month with advertising, which matches the pricing tiers of CBS All Access. Just to be confusing, the ad-supported rate will drop to $4.99 starting in June, but subscribers at this level will subsequently lose live streaming access to their local CBS affiliate.
If you were already a CBS All Access subscriber, your membership has already automatically been transferred to Paramount+. If you haven’t joined up yet, you can take advantage of a deal: Sign up between now and the end of March and you can save 50% on an annual plan with the promo code “YEAR.” You’ll also get a one-month free trial; starting April 1, the standard free trial will be shortened to one week.
Hulu
Hulu also hiked prices late last year, increasing the cost of its live TV product from $54.99 to $64.99 per month. The ad-free option increased from $60.99 to $70.99 per month. Hulu’s VOD-only plans remain $5.99 per month with ads and $11.99 per month for no ads.
Other services
Here are the current prices for other services you might also subscribe to:
Amazon Prime Video: $12.99 per month
HBO Max: $14.99 per month
ESPN Plus: $5.99 per month
Peacock Premium: $4.99 per month ads, $9.99 ad-free
YouTube TV (which includes live TV): $65 per month
Time for a streaming TV audit?
To be fair, creeping price hikes will likely only affect your overall streaming bill by a few dollars each month, even if you have more than one service (the average person has five paid TV subscriptions during the pandemic).
But these rate increases can add up over time without you noticing, as all of them rely on “evergreen” automatic payments and yearly renewals via your credit card. That means if you want to cancel, you have to go out of your way to opt out of renewal. The danger comes in the fact that it’s easy to overlook these increases over time, which can be substantial—just look at Hulu’s live TV plan, which has gone up by $25 per month over the last few years. That’s a lot of money if you aren’t paying attention to what you’re being charged.
If you’re unsure how much you spend each month on streaming TV, perform a subscription audit: Scan your credit card bills or email account for various subscription services, tally the cost, and decide which ones to keep and which ones to cancel (for more about subscription audits, read this Lifehacker post).
Since these services typically seem to bump up their prices late in the year, you might want to set up a corresponding annual subscription audit reminder in your calendar—it could be an easy way to save money.
This story was originally published in Dec. 29, 2020 and updated on March 26, 2021 with new information.