Seven price-hike entries have already put 2026 ahead of the six Nerdist recorded across all of 2025. That earlier tally averaged roughly one increase every other month, according to its previous streaming price tracker.
Seven is a snapshot, not a definitive count of services: Disney+ and Hulu share one entry, while YouTube’s entry covers both video and music subscriptions. The more useful question is how each increase changes your bill, especially as avoiding ads keeps getting more expensive.
Table of Contents
All the Streaming Price Hikes in 2026
1. 10/13/26 – Discovery+ Raises Prices Immediately After Merger
Discovery+ raised its U.S. subscription prices immediately after Paramount’s merger with Warner Bros. and the formation of Skydance Corp., according to Nerdist’s account.
- The ad-supported plan increased by $1 to $6.99 per month.
- The ad-free plan increased by $2 to $11.99 per month.
2. 9/23/26 – Disney+ and Hulu Raise Prices for the 4th Time in 4 Years
Disney+ and Hulu raised prices for the fourth time in four years. This round makes the push toward bundles particularly clear: adding the second service through a bundle costs just 50 cents more than buying either service alone.
- Disney+ Premium and Hulu Premium, their nominally ad-free standalone plans, each rose from $18.99 to $21.49 per month, an increase of about 13%.
- The Disney+/Hulu Premium bundle increased by $2, from $19.99 to $21.99 per month.
- The standalone ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu plans each rose from $11.99 to $12.49 per month.
- The Disney+ and Hulu bundle with ads stayed at $12.99 per month. It was the only option in this group without a price increase.
That 50-cent difference compares one standalone subscription with the corresponding bundle, not two separately purchased subscriptions with the bundle. Nerdist’s criticism is straightforward: paying for both Premium services separately makes little financial sense at these prices.
Nerdist sees the changes as an effort to move subscribers into bundles. It offers two possible reasons: bundled customers might be less likely to cancel, or additional Hulu subscriptions might improve the service’s reported performance. Neither is an established motive.
The longer-term increase is steep. Ad-free Disney+ cost $10.99 per month in 2023, so its price has nearly doubled in three years. The Hollywood Reporter reports that streaming inflation since 2022 has run about three times faster than the broader inflation rate.
Then there’s the question of what paying extra actually removes. Nerdist links these increases to its earlier reporting on Disney+ allowing advertising even on plans labeled ad-free, questioning how clearly that label describes the viewing experience.
3. 8/26/26 – Apple TV Sets Price Hike
Apple TV’s monthly subscription rose by $2, from $12.99 to $14.99. Its annual plan went from $99 to $119.99. Nerdist describes the annual increase as $20, although the listed prices differ by $20.99.
Apple One became more expensive, too. Its Individual plan increased by $2 per month, from $19.95 to $21.95. The bundle includes Apple TV, Apple Music, Apple Arcade, storage, and other features.
Nerdist praises recent Apple TV offerings, including Widow’s Bay and Severance, but questions whether liking any one show justifies repeatedly paying more for the subscription carrying it.
4. 8/18/26 – Peacock Raises Prices for All Tiers
After a stretch without another increase in this tracker between April and August, Peacock raised prices across every tier. It was the service’s fourth increase in four years.
- Peacock Select monthly: $7.99 to $8.99, an increase of $1 per month.
- Peacock Premium monthly: $10.99 to $12.99, an increase of $2 per month.
- Peacock Premium Plus monthly: $16.99 to $19.99, an increase of $3 per month.
- Peacock Select annual: $79.99 to $89.99. Those prices represent a $10 annual increase, although Nerdist’s accompanying description calls it a $20 increase.
- Peacock Premium annual: $109.99 to $129.99, an increase of $20 per year.
- Peacock Premium Plus annual: $169.99 to $199.99, an increase of $30 per year.
Peacock gave this explanation: “These price changes allow Peacock to continue to create the best experience for its viewers, remain competitive in the marketplace, and deliver unique content across all genres. Current annual subscribers, or any users on active promotional offers, will continue at their current prices until those plans or offers expire. Subscriptions will then renew at the new price.”
Nerdist’s objection is the gap between that explanation and the bill: subscribers can measure the extra dollars immediately, but the statement doesn’t quantify the promised improvements to content or the viewing experience.
5. 4/10/26 – YouTube Premium Raises Its Costs
YouTube accounted for the tracker’s third price-hike entry of 2026, with increases covering YouTube Premium, YouTube Premium Lite, and YouTube Music.
- YouTube Premium rose by $2 per month, from $13.99 to $15.99.
- YouTube Music rose by $1 per month, from $10.99 to $11.99.
- YouTube Premium Lite rose by $1 per month, from $7.99 to $8.99.
- The YouTube family plan rose by $4 per month, from $22.99 to $26.99. It allows up to six people in the same household to access the account.
This was YouTube Premium’s first increase since 2023. YouTube cited new improvements to Premium as the reason. Nerdist is skeptical of that explanation, seeing another instance of service improvements being used to justify higher subscription costs. Its coverage also includes an accompanying YouTube video.
6. 3/26/26 – Netflix Increases Costs Across All Subscription Tiers
Nearly three months into 2026, Netflix delivered the tracker’s second increase of the year. Every streaming subscription tier went up by $2 per month.
- Standard with Ads increased from $6.99 to $8.99 per month.
- Standard without ads increased from $17.99 to $19.99 per month.
- Premium increased from $24.99 to $26.99 per month, edging closer to $30.
Nerdist reports no added perks accompanying these increases. Its coverage of the Netflix changes also points out that they arrived only about a year after the platform’s previous price hike.
7. 3/13/26 – Prime Video Increases Price of Ad-Free Tier
The first increase in this 2026 tracker arrived in March, when Prime Video raised the additional charge for its ad-free tier for the first time.
Removing ads previously cost $2.99 per month on top of a Prime subscription. That extra charge increased by $2 to $4.99 per month, according to Nerdist’s report on the ad-free Prime Video tier. That isn’t the total subscription price: the underlying Prime cost remains separate.
Nerdist sees the increase as a possible push toward ad-supported subscriptions. Its criticism goes beyond the immediate $2: if subscribers accept ads to avoid higher bills, what prevents those ad-supported plans from becoming more expensive as well?
How Many Streaming Price Increases Will We See in 2026?
The tracker has reached seven entries, one more than its full-year 2025 total, but the final 2026 count isn’t known. Nerdist estimates that someone subscribed to most of these services is now paying at least around $17 more per month than in 2025. That isn’t a universal bill increase; the amount depends on which plans someone holds.
The source, originally published on April 8, 2026, leaves several consumer questions open: will subscribers decide they’ve had enough, will accepting ads protect them from further increases, or will subscribing and canceling become how they manage these costs? The unchanged Disney+/Hulu ad-supported bundle and the increases to other ad-supported plans already illustrate why choosing ads doesn’t put a ceiling on the price.
