Disney+ and Hulu add to the growing trend of streaming inflation

Disney has increased subscription fees for its streaming services, marking the latest price rise in a wider industry trend. The company bumped the ad-free Disney+ and Hulu bundle to $21.99 per month from $19.99, while individual ad-free plans for each service are now $21.49 monthly, up from $18.99. Ad-supported standalone plans for both services were also raised to $12.49 per month. The changes are visible on Disney+’s support page and were first reported by Bloomberg. The price moves follow several other platform increases across streaming: Peacock and Apple TV raised rates in August, and Netflix implemented hikes earlier in the year. Disney+ launched in 2019 at a $6.99 monthly introductory price and has steadily moved away from that entry-level level as the company works to make streaming a more profitable part of its entertainment business. Streaming has become an increasingly important revenue source for Disney. In its third-quarter 2026 results, the company reported that entertainment streaming revenue from Disney+ and Hulu climbed 11% year over year to $5.5 billion, attributing growth to subscriber gains and the effects of earlier price increases. Beyond raising prices, Disney is exploring other ways to expand its streaming footprint. Reported plans under consideration include a free tier for Disney+, which would position the service more directly against ad-supported platforms such as YouTube and Tubi. The company has also rolled out a “Playlists” feature intended to help viewers discover and continuously watch curated content, and it recently hired Karandeep Anand as its first chief technology officer; Anand previously served as CEO of Character.AI, a firm Disney had accused of infringing its intellectual property.