(Credit: Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Don't miss out on our latest stories. Add PCMag as a preferred source on Google.
Your subscription to watch IT: Welcome to Derry, Peacemaker, Task, The Chair Company, The Pitt, and many other TV shows and films is about to get more expensive. HBO Max is the latest streamer to implement a price hike, effective immediately.
HBO Max's Basic with Ads plan is rising $1 a month to $10.99, up from $9.99. The annual subscription is jumping to $109.99 from $99.99.
The HBO Max Standard subscription is increasing by $1.50 a month to $18.49, up from $16.99. The yearly subscription is $15 more per year, rising to $184.99 from $169.99.
The top-end package sees the largest increase at $2 per month. It’s now $22.99 per month, up from $20.99 for HBO Max Premium. A yearly subscription goes up $20 to $229.99.
The price rise takes effect immediately for all new customers. Those with a current sub will see the price increase whenever they renew after Nov. 20; HBO Max will give them a 30-day notice.
This marks the second price increase for HBO Max over the last 18 months. The price of the ad-free tier went up in June 2024 to coincide with House of the Dragon season two. However, this is the first price rise for the HBO Max ad-supported tier since it was introduced in May 2021.
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said recently that HBO Max was underpriced. "The fact that this is quality—and that’s true across our company, motion picture, TV production and and streaming quality—we all think that gives us a chance to raise [the] price," he said at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference.
Most major streaming services have recently increased their prices. Just today, Disney+'s $2 price hike went into effect; its cheapest ad-free plan now costs $18.99 a month.
HBO Max, meanwhile, is also in the middle of enforcing a password-sharing crackdown. So, don't count on splitting the cost with a friend or family member.