Which Streaming Services Will Raise Prices in 2024?
Streamers spent much of 2023 hiking prices on ad-free streaming tiers. Are ad-supported plans next?
It was hard to keep up with the number of streaming platforms that raised prices in 2023. Essentially every major platform saw subscription rates increase on their ad-free plans during the course of the year, leading to a 25% increase in ad-free streaming prices industry-wide.
The Streamable has been tracking subscription video and live TV streaming platforms since 2017, helping keep customers apprised of price increases at all the top streaming platforms. Below, you’ll find our appraisal of which streaming services are most likely to raise prices again in 2024, and which (if any) are due to stand pat.
Which Streamers Have Confirmed Price Increases Coming in 2024?
Max
Although no date for a price increase has been confirmed, customers should expect Max to raise subscription costs in 2024. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said as much in September, indicating that the combination of content from HBO Max and discovery+ in May was more than enough to justify a bump.
“We think that there’s meaningful opportunity as we add quality content to Max and as we launch it around the world to move on price,” Zaslav said. “We think that the value that we’re creating and the amount of value we’re creating that we can get more price. When we have risen prices, we haven’t found any — we found that the loss to us has been very minimal.”
Max
Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library, along with 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. Thanks to the B/R Sports add-on, users can watch NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.
Paramount+
Paramount+ last rose rates when it combined its ad-free Paramount+ Premium plan with Showtime over the summer. At that time, prices increased from $4.99 and $9.99 to $5.99 and $11.99 per month depending on which tier you subscribed to, and CEO Bob Bakish made it clear in September that the increase wouldn’t be the last.
“Our plan is to raise [the] price,” Bakish stated bluntly. “Whether we do that in ‘25 or we do that in ‘24, we’ll see. Again, early days as we evaluate the, call it, impact of the price increase, but we believe there’s a lot of room to run there.”
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. The lineup includes “1883,” “Tulsa King,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “PAW Patrol.” Subscribers can watch the NFL, college football, The Masters, college basketball, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa, 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.
Netflix
Netflix pulled a bit of a switcheroo in 2023. In July, company CFO Spencer Neumann said that no new price hikes were coming to the service until at least 2024. However, just a few months later in October, Netflix broke that promise by raising rates on its most expensive Premium tier, as well as on its ad-free Basic plan that is no longer offered to new customers.
Netflix
Netflix is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 3,000+ movies, 2,000+ TV Shows, and Netflix Originals like Stranger Things, Squid Game, The Crown, Tiger King, and Bridgerton. They are constantly adding new shows and movies. Some of their Academy Award-winning exclusives include Roma, Marriage Story, Mank, and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.
Prime Video
Prime Video announced this week that as of Jan. 29, 2024, it will be incorporating ads onto its platform for all current subscribers. Users who want to stay ad-free will have to pay another $3 per month to upgrade to a new plan without commercials.
Users of the $15.49 monthly Standard plan are almost certain to see their price go up in 2024, so the only question is whether or not Netflix will hike rates on its Standard with Ads plan. That tier runs $6.99 per month now, and it would not be surprising to see the streamer add a dollar or two to its price now that it’s getting better sign-up numbers for that plan than it did at its launch.
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon 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 Amazon Prime Video Channels. Prime Video also offers exclusive live access to NFL Thursday Night Football.
Likely to Raise Prices in 2024: Everyone Else
Market conditions and demands from investors for stronger profits will mean that streaming services are likely to continue raising prices in 2024. Live TV services are also highly likely to keep raising prices, as carriage and retransmission fees for top cable channels continue to creep up.
Apple TV+
Apple TV+ last increased in price in October, jumping from $6.99 to $9.99 per month. The service also rose in price in 2022, and its increased interest in more live sports (which are quite expensive) combined with its dedication to high-quality original productions means another price hike seems quite likely.
Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is a subscription video streaming service for $9.99 a month that includes high-quality original shows and movies including Best Picture winner “CODA,” popular sitcom “Ted Lasso,” and dramas like “The Morning Show” and “Severance.” Apple TV+ is also home to MLB baseball games on Friday nights and MLS Season Pass.
Disney+
Disney+ executed its second round of price increases in less than a year in October, when its ad-free streaming tier rose in price from $10.99 to $13.99 per month. The company aims to see its streaming segment turn a profit this year, and the best way to make that happen is to raise prices for its streaming platforms once again. Like Netflix, it seems likely the next round of price increases at Disney+ won’t spare ad-supported customers.
Disney+
Disney+ is a video streaming service with over 13,000 series and films from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, The Muppets, and more. It is available in 61 countries and 21 languages. It is notable for its popular original series like “The Mandalorian,” “Ms. Marvel,” “Loki,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Andor.”
DIRECTV STREAM
DIRECTV STREAM last increased prices on all plans in November, so there’s a good chance that it will wait another few months before raising prices again. But DIRECTV endured some high-profile carriage disputes last year, and is mired in another with TEGNA even now. To bring those channels back, DIRECTV will have to pay TEGNA more, which indicates another price increase is on the horizon for customers.
DIRECTV STREAM
DIRECTV STREAM is a live TV streaming service, which is essentially the streaming version of the DIRECTV service. All packages include local channels and at least 31 of the top 35 cable channels. New subscribers can get a free Gemini streaming device from the company, in which case the service is called “DIRECTV via Internet.”
ESPN+
ESPN+ was included in the October round of price increases at Disney+, but 2024 might be its last full year in existence. Disney wants to launch a streaming version of the full ESPN slate of offerings in 2025, and ESPN+’s content is likely to be folded into that platform. As such, the Mouse House will likely try to make all the money it can from ESPN+ while it still has the streamer.
ESPN+
ESPN+ is a live TV streaming service that gives access to thousands of live sporting events, original shows like Peyton’s Place, the entire library of 30 for 30, E:60, The Last Dance, as well exclusive written analysis from top ESPN insiders. Sports available on ESPN+ include NFL, MLB, NHL, UFC, College Football, F1, Bundesliga, PGA Tour, La Liga, and more.
Fubo
Fubo loves to experiment with its offerings, which is most recently demonstrated by the fact that it sunset, then restored its Premium plan in the span of just a few months this year. The streamer last raised rates in February when it added Bally Sports channels, and its willingness to tinker should leave customers wary about a potential new price increase this year.
Fubo
Fubo is a live TV streaming service with about 90 top channels that start at $79.99 per month. This plan includes local channels, 25 of the top 35 cable channels, and regional sports networks (RSNs). In total, you should expect to pay about $91.99 per month, after adding in their RSN Fee. Fubo was previously known as “fuboTV.”
Hulu/Hulu + Live TV
Like Disney+ and ESPN+, Hulu and Hulu + Live TV saw their prices rise in October. But like every other Disney streaming entity, the two have been contributing to a financial drag on the company to the tune of millions of dollars in losses per quarter. As such, Disney will do everything it can to boost revenues from Hulu and Hulu + Live TV, even as on-demand titles from Hulu are integrated onto Disney+.
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Hulu
Hulu is a video streaming service that gives access to thousands of full seasons of exclusive series, hit movies, kids shows, and Hulu Originals like “Only Murders in the Building,” and “The Handmaid's Tale.”
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Hulu Live TV
Hulu Live TV is a live TV streaming service with more than 70 channels for $76.99/month. Hulu + Live TV base plan includes local channels, 33 of the top 35 cable channels, and regional sports networks (RSNs). Subscribers get free access to Disney+ and ESPN+ at no extra charge.
Peacock
As The Streamable predicted, Peacock raised subscription prices for the first time in its history in July. But the $5.99/$11.99 per month price schedule is still one of the cheapest subscription rates in the entire industry, and NBCUniversal is reportedly gearing up to make a big push for NBA rights, which will be expensive. That revenue has to come from somewhere!
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,” and “The Office,” as well as original hits like “Poker Face” and “Bel-Air.” You can also watch live sports including NFL, MLB, WWE, Olympics, Premier League, NASCAR, French Open, College Football and Basketball, and PGA Tour. Premium Plus subscribers can stream their local NBC feed in all 210 markets.
Philo
Philo is probably the service on this list that’s least likely to raise rates in 2024. It doesn’t carry local channels or major sports networks, so it is less exposed to the most violent swings in carriage rates within the cable market. Still, Philo has not increased subscription prices since 2021, so there’s still a fair chance it will get a price increase in 2024, just to keep up with the market.
Philo
Philo is a live TV streaming service designed for entertainment lovers which includes 60+ channels for $25 per month. It’s an especially attractive option for fans of live TV who don’t watch sports.
Sling TV
Sling raised its subscription prices in November of 2022, rising from $35 to $40 per month on its Orange and Blue plans. Unlike Philo, however, Sling carries top cable channels like ESPN in its lineup, and that in particular leaves it vulnerable to more extreme carriage fee increases. At $40 per month the streamer is a great bargain, but whether it maintains that price through all of 2024 is doubtful.
Sling TV
Sling TV is a live TV streaming service that helps users save money with the option of two distinct plans. The $40/month “Sling Orange” plan offers about 30 channels, including Disney Channel and ESPN. The $40/month “Sling Blue” plan offers about 40 channels, including Fox and NBC local channels.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV raised prices from $64.99 per month to $72.99 in May. The true X-factor here could be NFL Sunday Ticket; 2023 was the first year YouTube TV became the home of the NFL’s out-of-market games package, and it attracted far fewer subscribers than it needed to for YouTube to profit from Sunday Ticket. To offset that problem, YouTube’s parent company Google may decide to raise prices on all YouTube TV subscribers to make up for that lost revenue.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV is a live TV streaming service with more than 60 channels for $72.99/month. This plan includes local channels, 32 of the top 35 cable channels, and regional sports networks (RSNs) in select markets. The service includes an unlimited DVR.