Disney+ subscribers in the UK, brace yourselves for another hit to your wallets: the streaming service is quietly rolling out another price hike for UK subscribers, set to take effect from October 17.
This latest increase (which we’ve recently predicted, as it comes along a US price increase) will see the Standard plan jump to £8.99 per month, while the Premium plan soars to £12.99 monthly – with the annual plans seeing major increases as well (see the full list of changes below).
Existing subscribers (both annual and monthly) will be billed the new price starting from their next billing cycle on or after November 21.
Some users have already started receiving notifications about the upcoming changes, and the reaction has been far from positive, with some questioning whether they’ll continue their subscriptions in light of this latest price increase.
The Evolution of Disney+ UK Pricing
When Disney+ first graced our screens in March 2020, it arrived with a straightforward, competitive offering: a single tier priced at £5.99 per month or £59.99 annually.
This initial package was a cord-cutter’s dream, boasting 4K streaming, four concurrent streams, and ad-free viewing – all at a price point that undercut many competitors.
However, as with all good things in the streaming world, this honeymoon period couldn’t last forever.
February 2021 saw the first price adjustment, coinciding with the introduction of the Star content hub. The monthly fee jumped to £7.99, with the annual subscription increasing to £79.90.
Despite the price bump, the service maintained its premium features, still representing solid value given the expanded content library.
The real shake-up came in November 2023, when Disney+ introduced a three-tier system:
Standard with Ads: £4.99/month, offering Full HD quality and two concurrent streams, but with adverts and no downloads.
Standard: £7.99/month or £79.90/year, providing Full HD quality, two streams, and download capability.
Premium: £10.99/month or £109.90/year, featuring 4K UHD & HDR quality, four streams, Dolby Atmos audio, and downloads.
This restructuring meant that existing subscribers who wanted to maintain 4K quality and four concurrent streams, without adverts, faced a substantial 37.5% price increase by moving to the Premium tier.
The New Price Hike: Breaking Down the Numbers
Fast forward to October 2024, and Disney+ is about to hit our wallets again, with some big changes to the pricing structure.
From October 17, subscribers will see the following changes:
| Plan | Old Price | New Price |
|---|---|---|
| Standard with Ads | £4.99/month | £4.99/month |
| Standard (Monthly) | £7.99/month | £8.99/month |
| Standard (Annual) | £79.90/year | £89.90/year |
| Premium (Monthly) | £10.99/month | £12.99/month |
| Premium (Annual) | £109.90/year | £129.90/year |
The Standard tier is seeing a £1 monthly increase, which might not sound like much, but it adds up to a 12.5% hike. The Premium tier is taking an even bigger leap, with a £2 monthly increase – that’s an 18.2% jump.
For those who prefer to pay annually, the picture isn’t any prettier. The Standard annual plan is increasing by £10, while the Premium annual plan is shooting up by £20.
The only silver lining? The ad-supported tier is staying put at £4.99/month. But let’s be real – having to sit through adverts on a paid streaming service isn’t exactly a cause for celebration.
Existing subscribers aren’t off the hook either, though they’re getting an extra month before this takes place: You’ll see the new prices applied at your next billing date on or after November 21.
How To Lock In The Old Disney+ Prices
If you’re not keen on paying more for your Disney+ fix, there’s still a chance to outsmart the price hike – but you’ll need to act quickly.
Until October 16, new subscribers can sign up for an annual plan at the current rates, securing the lower price for a full year.
This applies to both the Standard and Premium tiers. If you’re already on a monthly plan, consider switching to annual before the deadline to lock in the savings.
Of course, the downside is that you’re signing up for full year – losing the flexibility cord cutting gives you, of easily starting and stopping streaming services.
The Password Sharing Crackdown and Extra Members Fee
As if the price increase wasn’t enough to digest, Disney+ is also tightening its grip on account sharing, with the introduction of their ‘Extra Members’ feature last month.
This new scheme allows subscribers to add one person outside their household to their account – for a price, of course.
The Extra Member gets their own login and profile, but must be at least 18, reside in the same country as the main account holder, and can’t have an active or cancelled Disney+ subscription.
The cost? It’s £3.99/month for those on the Standard with Ads tier, and £4.99/month for Standard and Premium subscribers.
This effectively ends the era of casual password sharing on Disney+. While it provides an official method to extend your subscription beyond your household, it comes with a financial sting.
It’s worth noting that Extra Member pricing is always monthly, even for those with annual subscriptions.
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With any price increase it questions the value of the subscription. I don’t watch much on Disney.
I’ll wait until notification and then cancel.
I started on the cheap entry-level trial a couple of weeks ago. First thing I noticed was the unending, repetitive ads pushed at every possible moment. The second was that the content was either ancient stuff seem many times before, or utter bloody pastel pink, cheap production drivel. Utter crap. Not even worth the 1.99 I was paying : cancelled.
Im on an annual, and with the last lot of rises, i thought they were being a bit on the crass side of things, but this one means i’ll be letting it lapse and thats that. I’m not going to pay through the nose again and again for the same thing, with heavily inconsistent quality and no rhyme-or-reason to when something is released compared to other parts of the world.
Disney+ was a great idea but its just a shambles now, and the price rises like this makes it off-limits for me!