Streaming subscribers are facing another round of higher prices, with Disney increasing the cost of several Disney+ and Hulu plans as the company continues to look for ways to make its streaming business more profitable.
The latest increases come about a year after Disney’s previous major streaming price adjustment and follow similar moves from other major services.
Under the new pricing, Disney’s ad-free Disney+ and Hulu bundle will cost $21.99 per month, compared with $19.99 previously.
The standalone ad-free plans are also getting more expensive. Disney+ and Hulu will each cost $21.49 per month, up from $18.99.
Customers who subscribe to the individual ad-supported Disney+ or Hulu plans will also see an increase, with each service rising to $12.49 per month.
Disney has updated the pricing information on its support pages. Bloomberg was the first to report the changes.
Streaming Prices Continue to Climb
Disney’s latest increase is part of a broader trend across the streaming industry.
Services that once competed heavily on low monthly prices have increasingly raised subscription fees as companies try to improve the economics of streaming.
Peacock and Apple TV raised their prices in August, while Netflix also increased its rates earlier this year.
The shift marks a significant change from the early days of streaming, when inexpensive subscriptions were a major selling point for consumers moving away from traditional cable and satellite television.
Disney+ Is Far More Expensive Than When It Launched
When Disney+ debuted in 2019, the service cost $6.99 per month for its basic subscription.
Since then, Disney has repeatedly adjusted its pricing as it has invested billions of dollars in original programming and worked to make its streaming operations profitable.
The latest increase means some Disney+ customers are now paying several times the service’s original monthly price.
For Disney, however, the strategy appears to be producing results.
Disney’s Streaming Business Keeps Growing
Streaming has become an increasingly important part of Disney’s broader entertainment operation.
In its third-quarter 2026 results, Disney reported that entertainment streaming revenue from Disney+ and Hulu increased 11% to $5.5 billion.
The company attributed the growth to a combination of subscriber gains and the financial impact of earlier price increases.
That performance gives Disney more incentive to continue looking for ways to increase the amount of revenue it generates from its streaming audience.
But higher subscription prices can also make it harder to attract new customers, particularly as households increasingly subscribe to multiple streaming services at the same time.
Disney Could Explore a Free Streaming Tier
Disney may be looking beyond subscription price increases as it considers the next stage of its streaming strategy.
The company has reportedly explored launching a free, ad-supported version of Disney+.
Such a service would give Disney another way to reach viewers who aren’t willing to pay a monthly subscription. It could also put the company in more direct competition with free streaming platforms such as YouTube and Tubi.
The free model could allow Disney to generate advertising revenue from viewers who might otherwise never become paying Disney+ subscribers.
Disney+ Adds a New Way to Watch
Disney is also experimenting with how people discover content on the platform.
Earlier this month, the company introduced Playlists, a feature designed to provide continuously updated selections of programming around specific themes and interests.
The feature is aimed at making the service feel less like a traditional streaming library and more like a constantly refreshed viewing experience.
That could become increasingly important as streaming platforms compete not only for subscribers but also for the limited amount of time people spend watching video.
Disney Is Also Reshaping Its Technology Team
The company’s streaming strategy is evolving on the technology side as well.
Disney recently appointed Karandeep Anand as its first chief technology officer.
Anand previously served as CEO of Character.AI, an artificial intelligence company that Disney had previously accused of intellectual-property infringement.
His appointment highlights the growing importance of technology and AI to Disney’s digital operations as the company looks to improve its streaming products and compete in an increasingly technology-driven entertainment market.
The New Streaming Reality
Disney’s latest price increases underline how dramatically the streaming business has changed since Disney+ launched.
The era of inexpensive streaming subscriptions is gradually giving way to a market where companies are prioritizing profitability, advertising revenue and higher average revenue per subscriber.
Disney is pursuing several strategies at once: raising prices, expanding its advertising business, experimenting with new ways to surface content and potentially introducing a free tier.
For consumers, however, the immediate takeaway is simpler: Disney+ and Hulu are getting more expensive again, adding to a broader industry trend that is making a large collection of streaming subscriptions increasingly costly to maintain.
