Ready to Pay Even More for Disney+ and Hulu? Too Bad, It's Happening

(Photo Illustration by Jaque Silva/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

In bad news for video streamers, the price for Disney+ and Hulu is will increase on Oct. 17 for US customers. Disney buried the news in a press release about continuous playlists, arguing that the feature makes Disney+ "among the best values in streaming today."

Subscribers may disagree, as the price hikes will also hit ESPN+ and the Hulu + Live TV plan. Here’s the breakdown:

Disney+

Ad-supported Disney+ Basic is increasing from $7.99 to $9.99 per month.
Ad-free Disney+ Premium is going up from $13.99 to $15.99 per month.
Annual ad-free Disney+ Premium is also jumping from $139.99 to $159.99.
The Disney Bundle Duo Basic, which includes ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu, goes from $9.99 to $10.99 per month.

Hulu

Hulu's ad-supported plan is rising from $7.99 to $9.99 per month.
Annual fee for ad-supported Hulu jumps from $79.99 to $99.99.
Ad-free Hulu is increasing from $17.99 to $18.99 per month.
Hulu + Live TV (with ads) is rising from $76.99 to $82.99 per month.
Ad-free Hulu + Live TV will go from $89.99 to $95.99 per month.

ESPN+

ESPN+ is going from $10.99 to $11.99 per month.
Annual fee for ESPN+ jumps from $109.99 to $119.99.

It appears the only plan not getting an increase is the ad-free Disney Bundle Duo Premium, which will remain at $19.99 per month.

The impending price hike is slated to occur one year after the company implemented a similar increase that raised the ad-free Disney+ plan from $10.99 to $13.99 per month and the ad-free Hulu plan from $14.99 to $17.99.

Disney didn’t explain the price hike. But the company will report its fiscal Q3 earnings tomorrow, where it’ll break down subscription growth and profits for its streaming services. In the last quarter, Disney reported that its direct-to-consumer business, which includes Disney+ and Hulu, posted $47 million in operating income, a major reversal from a $587 million loss the year before.

The price hike will no doubt annoy subscribers. But that "continuous playlist" perk sounds like traditional TV channels that'll show pre-selected content. "Beginning September 4, ABC News Live and a playlist focused on preschool content will be available to all subscribers, with four additional curated playlists to follow later this fall," the company said.

The four other playlists will include "seasonal," "epic stories," "throwbacks" and "real life," each featuring content from Disney properties.

About Our Expert

Michael Kan

Principal Reporter

My Experience

I've been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I'm currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country's technology sector.

Since 2020, I've covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I've combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink's cellular service.

I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.

I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I'm now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I'm always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.

The Best Tech I've Had:

My first video game console: a Nintendo Famicom
I loved my Sega Saturn despite PlayStation's popularity.
The iPod Video I received as a gift in college
Xbox 360 FTW
The Galaxy Nexus was the first smartphone I was proud to own.
The PC desktop I built in 2013, which still works to this day.

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