Hulu’s price is going up soon — here’s when and how much

News
By
published

You're going to spend more on Hulu, because that’s what we needed

Hulu on a tablet next to food and headphones
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Hear that? That's the sound of Hulu getting slightly pricier in the near future. As announced to subscribers via email, the standard ad-supported and ad-free Hulu plans will both go up by $1 starting on October 8, 2021.

Hulu has long been one of the cheaper streaming services, at $5.99 per month with ads. After the price bump, it will still be one of the most-affordable, but at $6.99 per month. The ad-free Hulu rises from $11.99 to $12.99 per month.

While this is welcome news to nobody (well, aside from shareholders of parent companies Disney and Comcast), it does serve as a reminder that anyone with both Hulu and Disney Plus should probably just get the Disney bundle (which throws in ESPN Plus). More on that below.

In the email to subscribers, which Tom's Guide received, Hulu included the specific dates for customer billing cycles, so you can know when you could pause or cancel your account to avoid the hike. 

Hulu's made a big to-do for a while about being the cheaper one, lowering its price from $7.99 to $5.99 in 2019. That announcement happened shortly after Netflix had raised its prices, so it's clear that someone at Hulu said enough is enough and it's time to start making more money (they're clearly giving more original content now). 

Heck, Netflix raised its prices once more since that 2019 price bump, so Hulu's arguably shown some comparable restraint at least.

Hulu price hike

(Image credit: Hulu)

Why get the Disney bundle

And that includes people like myself who never have reason to touch ESPN Plus, the third arm of the Disney Bundle (Hulu, Disney Plus and ESPN Plus). That package costs $13.99 per month, and it's going to be about a dollar less than Hulu and Disney Plus bought on their own, since Disney Plus is $7.99 per month.

So even if you're not the kind of sports fan who needs ESPN Plus (it's a must-have for UFC PPVs), the Disney bundle just makes sense. The Disney bundle combines all three of those services for just under $8 less than it would cost to subscribe to them all outright ($21.97 per month). 

Sure, that price will go up some day, but then you can just cancel ESPN Plus. That's the perk of monthly subscriptions.

TOPICS
Henry T. Casey
Henry T. Casey
Managing Editor (Entertainment, Streaming)

Henry is a managing editor at Tom’s Guide covering streaming media, laptops and all things Apple, reviewing devices and services for the past seven years. Prior to joining Tom's Guide, he reviewed software and hardware for TechRadar Pro, and interviewed artists for Patek Philippe International Magazine. He's also covered the wild world of professional wrestling for Cageside Seats, interviewing athletes and other industry veterans.