Streaming was supposed to be the cheap alternative to cable. That promise is gone. A new analysis from THR shows streaming prices have gone up more than three times faster than inflation since 2022, with some services now costing three times their original price.
The Price Increase by the Numbers
Apple TV now costs three times its original price since it launched in 2019 at $4.99, a 200% increase — despite having the smallest content library among major streamers. Disney+ isn’t far off. It launched in 2019 at $6.99 with no ads and now costs $11.99 with ads, a 172% increase.
Paramount+’s cheapest tier is up 80% in five years. Netflix Premium is up 125% since 2013. Apple TV went up 50% in the past year alone, and Peacock’s tiers went up about 50% too.
Here’s how the worst offenders compare:
- Apple TV — up 200% since 2019
- Disney+ — up 172% since 2019
- Netflix Premium — up 125% since 2013
- Paramount+ (cheapest tier) — up 80% in five years
- HBO Max — up 23% over six years
HBO Max is the exception, going up only 23% over six years. HBO has been sold as a premium offering for decades, and it launched its streaming service in 2020 at a higher starting price than its rivals. Even so, HBO Premium now costs just $3 more than Peacock Premium Plus.
What It Costs to Watch Everything
Subscribing to all eight major streamers, without ads or package deals, now runs about $151 a month. Four years ago, that same lineup cost about $90.
Streaming rates went up 11.8% in total over the past 12 months. The greatest rise came in 2023, when streamers went up a rate of 17.7%. A THR analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data found cable and satellite prices went up a rate of 3.9% each year, aside from an increase tied to deregulation in the late 1980s when the index hit 14%. That increase came from federal action, not a hit show.
Consumer prices in total have gone up a rate of 3.84% each year since 2019, double the Federal Reserve’s 2% goal. That has added up to a 33% rise in the cost of living. Streaming’s yearly increases of 10 to 15% add up fast on top of that.
Key Facts
- Apple TV: $4.99 (2019) → now costs three times as much, up 200%
- Disney+: $6.99, no ads (2019) → $11.99, with ads, up 172%
- Netflix Premium: up 125% since 2013
- Paramount+ cheapest tier: up 80% in five years
- HBO Max: up 23% over six years
- All 8 major streamers, no ads: $90 (four years ago) → $151 now
- Streaming rates in total: up 11.8% over the past 12 months; up 17.7% in 2023
- Cable/satellite: up 3.9% each year, per Bureau of Labor Statistics data
Is Cable Any Better?
No, unless a viewer is deeply devoted to sports or relies on the Hallmark Channel, whose lineup includes My Christmas Cowboy this December. Fully stocked packages from Spectrum and DirecTV cost north of $170.
One choice making the rounds, credited to Gen Z viewers, is service switching: subscribe to one streamer for a month or two, watch what’s needed, cancel, then move to the next. It means falling behind on some shows and missing out on group chats about them — but as THR notes, nobody actually gathers together during a break except in HR training videos.
Streaming didn’t just catch up to cable’s old price habits. On paper, it’s beating them. Whether viewers keep paying — or start switching through Netflix, Disney+, Max and Peacock one month at a time — is the only question left.
Source: hollywoodreporter.com
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