DISNEY RAISES DISNEY+ AND HULU SUBSCRIPTION PRICES AGAIN

The Walt Disney Company has raised subscription prices for Disney+ and Hulu, marking the fourth increase in four years for both services. Ad-free standalone plans for Disney+ and Hulu each rose by around 13 percent, from $19 to $21.49 or $21.50 per month depending on the report, while plans with adverts increased from $12 to $12.49 or $12.50 per month. The Disney+ and Hulu bundle without adverts rose from $20 to $22 per month, while the ad-supported version of that bundle held at $13. Bundles including ESPN also increased, with the Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Select package rising from $20 to $22 with adverts and from $29 to $33 without. According to one report, the changes take effect for new subscribers immediately, with existing subscribers seeing the higher price on their next billing cycle. The most expensive tier, combining Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Unlimited, remains at $45 per month.

The increases follow Disney's most recent previous price rises in October 2025 and come after the company raised prices for its ESPN streaming service on 17 September. Disney+ launched in 2019 and has raised prices annually since December 2022, while Hulu, which launched in 2008 and came under Disney's full control in 2025, has also increased prices each October since 2022. Disney has said it plans to launch a single combined app for Disney+ and Hulu by the end of the year, a move outgoing chief executive Bob Iger outlined during the company's first-quarter earnings call in February. Disney+ currently ranks third among US streaming services behind Netflix and Amazon Prime, with Hulu in sixth place; combined, the two account for close to a quarter of all subscription streaming views, according to one report.

Disney reported that revenue from Disney+ and Hulu combined rose 11 percent in its most recent quarterly results, with operating income for the two services up 116 percent year-on-year to $712 million, compared with Netflix's reported operating income of $4.19 billion in its latest results. Netflix's ad-free plans start at $20 per month, with a $27 option for 4K, while its ad-supported tier remains at $9. Technology analyst Paolo Pescatore said Disney "needs to tread carefully" with pricing, noting that while the company has some room to raise prices given its brand strength, consumers are becoming "more selective" and increasingly likely to subscribe intermittently rather than permanently.