Do you remember when the streaming revolution was supposed to let us swap expensive cable TV bills for a more affordable, a la carte viewing experience and we all jumped on board?
Well, as PCMag reports, while your Netflix membership may still be cheaper than a Comcast or Spectrum TV subscription (for now, at least), the cost ticks up if you also need HBO Max for The Pitt and The White Lotus, Disney+ to fly through the Marvel universe, Paramount+ to binge the entire Taylor Sheridan catalog, and Apple TV for critically acclaimed fare like The Studio, Pluribus, Severance and Shrinking.
Not helping matters is a constant stream of price hikes and plan adjustments. And don’t even think about splitting the cost by sharing a password. Mooching off your old roommate’s sister’s login is now largely a thing of the past as major streaming services continue to crack down and seal up loopholes.
This “stream-flation” trend is reportedly driven by rising costs for content, live sports rights, and a push toward profitability, with almost all major platforms now charging more than in previous years.
The latest: Netflix is raising prices across the board; its most expensive plan is now nearing $30 per month. And they’re not the only one. From late 2025 to early 2026, HBO Max, Apple TV, Paramount+ and Disney+/Hulu all hiked their rates. Next up, Prime Video is raising prices on its ad-free tier, effective April 10.
After doing away with its Basic plan, Netflix now has three tiers: Standard with ads (was $7.99, will now cost $8.99/month), Standard (no ads was $17.99, will go up $2 to $19.99/month), and Premium (was $24.99, will now set you back $26.99/month). You’d think a company would want as many people on its most expensive plan as possible, but the ad-based tier has proven popular and lucrative, hence the demise of the Basic plan.
If you don’t keep close tabs on your subscriptions, it’s easy to miss a cost increase. A subscription that started at $4.99 per month can easily creep up to $9.99. So if you have a half dozen or so video-streaming services, plus music streaming or cloud storage, it quickly adds up.
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