Canceling Disney+ or Hulu? What to try next
Canceling Disney+ or Hulu? What to try next
If another round of price increases has you ready to throw in the towel on a Disney+ or Hulu subscription, we’ll recommend some streamers to try next.
It’s happened again. For the fourth year in a row, Disney+ and Hulu have opted to raise prices on a selection of subscription plans. The damage appears limited to ad-free plans thus far; commercial-free tiers of Disney+ and Hulu are both increasing by $2.50 per month to $21.49, and the bundle of these two plans is jumping by $2 per month to $22.
If you’re a current Disney+ and/or Hulu subscriber and are fed up with never-ending price hikes, let us help by recommending some streamers to try next. We’ll also give our thoughts on who is best off canceling Disney+ or Hulu, and why some viewers might want to stay put, even with the price increase.
What to know about canceling Disney+ or Hulu and replacing it with a new service
Who should (and shouldn’t) cancel Disney+ and Hulu?
If you’re fed up with Disney+ and Hulu’s price increases enough to cancel your subscription, we completely understand. We’re all streaming subscribers ourselves, and as a Disney Bundle customer, I personally am exhausted by the unendingly rising cost of maintaining a subscription.
However, customers who are subscribed to the Disney+ and Hulu Premium bundle may want to at least think twice about canceling their accounts. This bundle is rising in price from $20 to $22 per month, but that still breaks down to just $11 per month for access to two ad-free streaming services, each with giant content libraries. Even at the increased price, it’s still a pretty good value overall.
Incongruous as it may seem, current Disney+ or Hulu Premium customers who don’t have the bundle and are considering canceling might actually want to upgrade to the Duo Premium bundle instead. Think of it this way: instead of canceling your current $19-per-month subscription to Disney+ or Hulu, you can combine both streamers for just $3 per month more than what you’re paying now.
How to cancel Disney+ or Hulu
If you’re dead set on canceling, we can help with that. Click here for step-by-step instructions on how to cancel a Disney+ subscription, and here for Hulu instructions.
Which streamers to try after canceling Disney+
HBO Max
HBO Max is our favorite replacement for Disney+ for a number of reasons. First, let’s get price out of the way: at $18.49 per month, HBO Max’s cheapest ad-free plan is $3 less expensive than Disney+ is now. Viewers can also sign up for an annual plan for $185 per year.
HBO Max also offers a content mix that resembles Disney+ in many ways. It has major franchises like DC Comics, Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings, as well as a library of prestige TV originals that stretches from “The Sopranos” all the way to modern hits like “Hacks.” Viewers who like the Marvel and Star Wars titles on Disney+ will find plenty to stay entertained with on Disney+.
Disney+ now offers a selection of live sports from ESPN, but HBO Max subscribers won’t miss them. Ad-free HBO Max customers get the Bleacher Report Sports add-on included with their plan, which offers all live sports airing on TNT, TBS, and truTV. This includes live MLB and NHL games, college football, contests from the annual NCAA Men’s March Madness Tournament, and more.
The streamer doesn’t have as much in the way of kids’ fare as Disney+ does, but it does include favorites from Cartoon Network, as well as time-tested characters like the Looney Tunes and Scooby-Doo. Plus, viewers can stream family-friendly favorites from Discovery, Food Network, HGTV, and Magnolia Network with an HBO Max subscription. It’s our favorite replacement for Disney+, and one of the closest one-to-one replacements available.
HBO Max
HBO Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library and exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Within HBO Max, B/R Sports allows users to watch live NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.
Other options
If HBO Max isn’t quite your speed, a Peacock subscription will offer kids’ fare from DreamWorks, including the “Shrek” and “Puss in Boots” movies. PBS Kids is a great choice for parents who are looking for a more educational replacement for Disney+, and Netflix has a little bit of everything, including plenty of children’s fare.
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Peacock
Peacock is a subscription video streaming service from NBCUniversal that includes original shows, blockbuster movies, and classic television series. Peacock is home to “Yellowstone,” “The Office,” and original hits like “Poker Face” and “Bel-Air.” You can also watch live sports and NBC programming, including the NFL, MLB, WWE, the Olympics, the Premier League, NASCAR, the French Open, college football and basketball, and the PGA Tour. Premium Plus subscribers can stream their local NBC feed in all 210 markets.
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PBS Kids
PBS Kids is a free online streaming platform serving toddlers and preschoolers. All content here is kid-friendly and safe. Children will learn lessons about emotional regulation, creative thinking, and problem-solving, with shows focused on science, reading, and more. Standout shows include “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood,” “Wild Kratts,” and “Molly of Denali.” It’s a must-have service for anyone with young children.
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Netflix
Netflix is a leading subscription-based video streaming service that offers on-demand access to an extensive library of over 3,000 movies, 2,000+ TV shows, and a growing collection of acclaimed Netflix originals. Renowned for producing groundbreaking content, Netflix has become a cultural powerhouse with hit originals like “Stranger Things,” “Wednesday,” “Squid Game,” “The Crown,” “Tiger King,” “Bridgerton,” “The Witcher,” and “Black Mirror.”
Best replacements for Hulu
Paramount+
Paramount+ is the only streamer that can rival Hulu’s general entertainment library. A Paramount+ Premium subscription, which features no ads during playback, a live stream of users’ local CBS station, the full SHOWTIME library, and the ability to download titles for offline viewing, costs $14 per month or $140 per year.
That’s more than $7 per month cheaper than a Hulu subscription, and viewers will be able to watch a little bit of everything with the service. Paramount+ is the next-day streaming home of primetime TV shows from CBS, making it a good replacement for Hulu, since that streamer offers on-demand titles from ABC and Fox.
Paramount+ also has a big selection of original TV shows and movies, including some of the most popular titles on TV, such as Taylor Sheridan’s titles “Lioness” and “Landman.” Star Trek titles past and present call Paramount+ home, and Premium subscribers can watch “Yellowjackets” and all the other shows in the SHOWTIME library.
On the sports front, Paramount+ Premium includes all live NFL games appearing on CBS in a viewer’s market on Sunday afternoons, as well as UEFA Champions League and NWSL matches, UFC events, and any live sports airing on a viewer’s CBS station, such as Men’s March Madness games, college football, golf, bull riding, and more.
Paramount Plus
Paramount+ is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 40,000+ TV show episodes from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., and more. Get free access with a Walmart+ subscription.
Paramount+ includes “1883,” “Tulsa King,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “PAW Patrol.” Subscribers can watch the NFL, college football, The Masters, college basketball, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, Serie A, and NWSL. The service also offers the option to watch your live CBS affiliate. The upgraded ad-free package includes premium movies and shows from Showtime.
Other options
Prime Video is a great replacement for Hulu, with a huge library of general entertainment, plus the ability to add more streaming subscriptions for additional fees. What makes Prime Video even better is that if you are an Amazon Prime member, you already have complimentary access to the streamer, whether you’ve ever used it or not.
Apple TV sticks to original shows and movies, but at $15 per month, it’s one of the cheapest ad-free offerings on the market. If you’ve purchased an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, MacBook, or other Apple device recently, chances are good that you’ve gotten a lengthy free trial offer to Apple TV included. That would be a great way to test out the service while saving money from your canceled Disney subscription.
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Prime Video
Prime Video is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 10,000+ movies, TV shows, and Prime Originals like “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” “Jack Ryan,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “The Boys,” and more. Subscribers can also add third-party services like Max, Showtime, STARZ, and dozens more with Prime Video Channels. Prime Video also offers exclusive live access to NFL Thursday Night Football.
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Apple TV
Apple TV (formerly known as Apple TV+) is a subscription video streaming service for $14.99 per month, offering a growing slate of original series, films, documentaries, and specials. Unlike other platforms that combine licensed titles with originals, Apple TV is built entirely around exclusive programming, making it the home of critically acclaimed hits such as “Ted Lasso,” “Severance,” “The Morning Show,” and “Silo.” Its lineup continues to expand with award-winning dramas, comedies, family-friendly shows, and blockbuster original films like “CODA,” which won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Best replacement for the Disney Bundle
The best replacement available for the Disney+ and Hulu Premium bundle is the Apple TV and Peacock bundle that viewers can access from either streamer’s website. This bundle combines the ad-free, prestige TV-filled library of Apple TV with the general entertainment of Peacock.
The resulting bundle, which starts at $18 per month, has beloved hits like “Love Island USA,” “The Office,” “Ted Lasso,” “The Traitors,” “Widow's Bay,” and a huge selection of the most popular shows on streaming at the moment.
Sports fans will love the ability to stream NFL, NBA, college football games, and much more on Peacock, plus MLB games, F1 races, and MLS matches on Apple TV. All in all, this bundle is a more-than-capable replacement for Disney+ and Hulu, and is $4 less than the Disney Duo Premium bundle, though you’ll have to be willing to accept ads on Peacock to get that price.
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Apple TV
Apple TV (formerly known as Apple TV+) is a subscription video streaming service for $14.99 per month, offering a growing slate of original series, films, documentaries, and specials. Unlike other platforms that combine licensed titles with originals, Apple TV is built entirely around exclusive programming, making it the home of critically acclaimed hits such as “Ted Lasso,” “Severance,” “The Morning Show,” and “Silo.” Its lineup continues to expand with award-winning dramas, comedies, family-friendly shows, and blockbuster original films like “CODA,” which won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
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Peacock
Peacock is a subscription video streaming service from NBCUniversal that includes original shows, blockbuster movies, and classic television series. Peacock is home to “Yellowstone,” “The Office,” and original hits like “Poker Face” and “Bel-Air.” You can also watch live sports and NBC programming, including the NFL, MLB, WWE, the Olympics, the Premier League, NASCAR, the French Open, college football and basketball, and the PGA Tour. Premium Plus subscribers can stream their local NBC feed in all 210 markets.
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