Streaming Price Increases in 2026: Every Hike, Tracked

Streaming prices move in small steps, announced on quiet weekdays and applied to your account about a month later. This page keeps the record: every 2026 increase with dates, what each major service costs right now, the longer price histories, and the rights you have when a price goes up. It gets updated the same day a new hike is announced.

The 2026 price-hike log

Here is every US increase announced in 2026 so far, in order. Dates are the announcement or new-subscriber effective date; existing subscribers usually follow about a month later.

Two names people expect on this list aren't on it. Disney+ and Hulu haven't raised prices in 2026; their most recent increase was October 21, 2025, though Disney has announced a September 17, 2026 rise for ESPN plans and the ESPN-containing Trio bundles, with standalone Disney+ and the Duo bundles left out of that round. HBO Max's latest came the same day as the 2025 change. And YouTube TV held its base plan at $82.99 this year, adding cheaper genre plans ($54.99 to $71.99) instead of another hike.

For both Peacock and Apple TV+, 2026 marks the fourth increase in four years. One norm worth knowing, stated outright by Peacock: a promo price you locked in before the hike runs through the end of its promo period. The increase catches up with you at renewal.

Current streaming prices

What the major services cost right now. All prices are US and current as of September 7, 2026; figures are monthly unless a year is named. Fubo is missing on purpose: no 2026 price for it held up at verification, and a stale number helps nobody.

Timing note: Peacock's new prices reach existing subscribers at billing on or after September 17, 2026, and Apple TV+ gave existing subscribers about 30 days' notice from August 28. If you subscribed before those dates, your next statement may still show the old number, once.

The long view: Netflix, YouTube TV, and Spotify

Zoom out and the pattern is compounding: small steps every year or two that add up to far more than any single announcement suggested. Three histories tell it.

Netflix price increase history (Standard plan)

That's $10.99 to $19.99 since January 2019, up 82%, while Premium went from $13.99 to $26.99 over the same stretch, up 93%. No single Standard step was bigger than $2.50; five of them nearly doubled the bill.

YouTube TV price history (Base plan)

From $35.00 at launch to $82.99 is a 137% climb in under eight years. In 2026 the base price finally held, and the answer to price criticism was cheaper genre plans, not a rollback.

Spotify price history (Premium Individual)

Twelve flat years, then three increases in 31 months, adding 30% in total. The long freeze wasn't a policy; it just hadn't ended yet.

Your rights when a price goes up

As of August 2026 there's no federal rule setting how much warning a subscription service owes you before a price increase. The concrete rights live in state law, and two states have real ones.

New York, effective November 5, 2025 (General Business Law 527 and 527-a): auto-renewal services must notify you of material changes, price included, at least 5 business days and at most 30 days before they take effect, through the contact channel you chose. For the increase itself the statute gives companies a choice: get your advance affirmative consent, or let you cancel any time within at least 14 days of the first increased charge and refund the remaining term prorated. Either way, the cancel-and-refund route is yours when nobody asked you first.

California, effective July 1, 2025 (AB 2863): services must give clear and conspicuous notice of material price or service changes, send an annual reminder that the subscription is still renewing, and let you cancel online at will if you signed up online.

Those are the two we have verified in depth, but they are not the whole map: other states impose their own requirements, and Minnesota, for one, requires notice of material changes to covered subscription agreements with cancellation information included, on pain of the change being void. If your state has an auto-renewal law, it may give you more than company practice does. In the 2026 hikes above, the standard industry move was to charge new subscribers immediately and email existing subscribers roughly a month ahead; Netflix, YouTube Premium, and Apple TV+ all did versions of this.

What to do about a hike

A price increase is a decision point someone else scheduled for you, with about a month between the announcement and your first bigger charge. Four calm options, in the order worth checking:

1. Keep it, on purpose. If you watch weekly, $2.00 more may still be fine. The only bad outcome is paying the new price without ever deciding to.
2. Drop to the ads tier. The gap is real money now: Netflix with ads is $8.99 against $19.99 for ad-free Standard, $11.00 a month apart. HBO Max with ads is $10.99 against $18.49. Check the ads tier's fine print for the titles and features you care about before switching.
3. Pause instead of canceling. Some services offer a pause option on the account page. Worth checking before you cancel outright.
4. Rotate. Cancel now, come back when there's a season you want, ideally on a promo. Our streaming deals guide covers when the real discounts land and the lock-in math.

If canceling is the move, the general method and your state-by-state rights are in how to cancel subscriptions, with exact steps in the Peacock, Spotify, and YouTube TV guides. A hike email is also a natural moment for a five-minute subscription audit: the statement showing the new price usually shows an old subscription you'd forgotten.

About this tracker

This page is updated the same day a new price increase is announced; the log above shows the most recent verification date. Prices are US-market and drawn from the announcements and help pages listed under References.

FAQ

Which streaming services raised prices in 2026?

Ten so far, as of September 7, 2026: Paramount+ (January 15), Spotify (February billing), Sling TV (February), Crunchyroll (February), Netflix (March 26), YouTube Premium (announced April 13), Prime Video's ad-free tier (April, replaced by the $4.99 Prime Video Ultra), Apple Music (reported July 17), Peacock (August 18), and Apple TV+ (August 28). Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max have sat 2026 out so far; each last raised prices on October 21, 2025.

How much has Netflix gone up over the years?

Since January 2019, Standard has gone from $10.99 to $19.99 a month, up 82% across five increases. Premium went from $13.99 to $26.99, up 93%. The with-ads plan launched at $6.99 in November 2022 and costs $8.99 as of August 2026. The most recent increase across all plans landed March 26, 2026.

Do they have to tell me before raising my price?

It depends on your state, as of September 2026. New York requires notice at least 5 business days before a price change, and the company must either get your advance consent or offer a 14-day cancel-with-prorated-refund after the first increased charge (law effective November 5, 2025). California requires clear notice of material price changes (effective July 1, 2025), and other states have their own rules, Minnesota among them. Industry practice in 2026: new subscribers pay immediately, existing subscribers get an email about a month ahead.

Can I get a refund if the price went up?

In New York, sometimes. Under the law effective November 5, 2025, a company that did not get your advance consent to an increase must let you cancel within at least 14 days of the first increased charge and refund the remaining term prorated. Outside New York we know of no general refund right for a price increase, though other states regulate the notice; a polite request to support can still work, but it's discretionary.

This guide is educational, not financial or legal advice. Details change; check the linked sources for anything that matters to your situation.

References

• Amazon, Prime Video Ultra announcement: https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/prime-video-ultra-ad-free-streaming-subscription ($4.99/month US; replaced the prior ad-free option; 4K, five streams, 100 downloads)
• New York GBS 527-a: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/GBS/527-A (5-business-day notice floor; consent or 14-day cancel with prorated refund)
• Minnesota Statutes 325G.57, subd. 3: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/325G.57 (notice of material changes with cancellation information; violating changes void)
• TechCrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/28/apple-tv-is-raising-its-subscription-prices-again/ (Apple TV+ $12.99 to $14.99, Aug 28, 2026)
• 9to5Mac: https://9to5mac.com/2026/08/28/apple-announces-price-increase-for-apple-tv-and-apple-one-subscriptions/ (Apple TV+ August 28, 2026 increase: monthly to $14.99, annual $99 to $119; Apple One repricing; existing-subscriber notice)
• 9to5Mac: https://9to5mac.com/2026/08/24/espn-streaming-prices-are-going-up-along-with-disney-and-hulu-bundles/ (the September 17, 2026 ESPN and Trio-bundle increases; standalone Disney+ and Duo bundles unchanged)
• TechCrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/18/peacock-is-raising-prices-across-all-of-its-streaming-plans/ (Peacock Aug 2026 tiers)
• Peacock Help: https://www.peacocktv.com/help/article/price-increase (existing-subscriber date Sep 17; promo pricing honored)
• CNBC: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/26/netflix-raises-prices-across-all-streaming-plans.html (Netflix March 2026 prices)
• CNBC: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/15/spotify-subscription-price-premium-us.html (Spotify Feb 2026 prices, incl. Student)
• CNBC: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/06/03/spotify-price-increased-again.html (Spotify June 2024 hike)
• Variety: https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/paramount-to-hike-prices-in-early-2026-1236574467/ (Paramount+ Jan 15, 2026 monthly and annual prices)
• Quartz: https://qz.com/youtube-premium-price-increase-us-2026-041326 (YouTube Premium April 2026 increase)
• Cord Cutters News: https://cordcuttersnews.com/sling-tv-is-raising-its-price-this-month/ (Sling TV Feb 2026 prices and locals fees)
• Yahoo Tech: https://tech.yahoo.com/streaming/articles/crunchyroll-increases-subscription-prices-streaming-121318474.html (Crunchyroll Feb 2026 tiers)
• Apple: https://www.apple.com/apple-music/ (current US Apple Music tiers, checked September 5, 2026: Individual $11.99, Family $19.99, Student $6.99)
• Tom's Guide: https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/streaming/what-streaming-costs-in-2026-the-price-of-netflix-disney-plus-max-and-more (Apple Music July 2026 increase report; 2026 price roundup)
• TechCrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2025/09/23/disney-is-raising-the-price-of-disney-hulu-subscriptions-next-month/ (Disney+ and Hulu Oct 21, 2025 prices)
• CNBC: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/10/21/hbo-max-raising-prices-all-plans.html (HBO Max Oct 21, 2025 prices)
• Deadline: https://deadline.com/feature/streaming-subscription-prices-ad-tiers-1236195912/ (Prime Video standalone and ad-removal pricing)
• Variety: https://variety.com/2024/digital/news/youtube-tv-raises-price-increase-2024-1236247063/ (YouTube TV Dec 2024 increase to $82.99)
• DealNews: https://www.dealnews.com/features/youtube-tv-subscription-cost/ (YouTube TV 2026 base held; genre plan prices)
• Android Police: https://www.androidpolice.com/youtube-tv-price-increase-history/ (YouTube TV price history since 2017)
• MovieWeb: https://movieweb.com/netflix-subscription-changes-guide/ (Netflix price history cross-check)
• Ashurst Perkins Coie: https://www.ashurstperkinscoie.com/insights/update/new-york-and-colorado-update-auto-renewing-subscription-requirements (NY GBL 527/527-a duties and 14-day refund right)
• Kilpatrick: https://ktslaw.com/en/insights/alert/2024/10/california-latest-automatic-renewal-law-amendments-take-effect-in-july-2025 (CA AB 2863 notice, reminder, and online-cancel duties)