Buying all eight major streaming services separately, ad-free, now costs about $151 a month. Four years ago a similar lineup ran roughly $90.
That is a jump of nearly 70%, and the climb is speeding up. Streaming prices across the market rose 11.8% over the past 12 months. In 2023 the average increase was 17.7%.
Who raised the most
Apple TV+ has seen one of the biggest rises. It launched in 2019 at $4.99 a month and has since gone up 200%, even though its library remains smaller than most of its main competitors. Apple raised the price 50% in the past year alone, and Peacock’s plans rose by roughly the same amount.
HBO Max is the notable exception. Its price is up 23% over six years, less than most rivals, though HBO entered streaming at a higher price than the newer services.
Faster than inflation, faster than cable
Bureau of Labor Statistics data show consumer prices rising by an average of 3.84% a year since 2019. Streaming has outrun that by a wide margin, even as companies add cheaper, ad-supported plans.
Cable and satellite have also crept up. A Hollywood Reporter analysis of the same data found annual increases averaging 3.9%, leaving aside the late 1980s, when deregulation caused a temporary surge. Cable is no bargain, though. Full packages from providers such as Spectrum and DirecTV can top $170 a month.
Rotating subscriptions
Unlike cable, streaming lets people cancel at any time and come back when a show or sports season starts. More viewers now rotate services rather than keeping all of them active year-round. That can cut the bill, but it changes how people watch: viewers may have to wait for a season to end, or for a show to move to another platform, before they subscribe.
The days of paying for one service and finding most of what you want in one place are largely over.
