Every Streaming Platform That Raised Prices in 2026, Ranked Smallest to Biggest Hike

Streaming was supposed to be the cheap way out of cable. In 2026, that pitch is getting harder to sell. Almost every major platform has nudged its prices up this year, and the gap between a full streaming stack and an old cable bill keeps shrinking. These seven streaming platforms, including Apple TV, have hiked their prices this year.

We are ranking these price hikes by the percentage increase to the entry-level plan. Two of 2026’s price changes don’t fit that rule, so they sit outside this ranking. Amazon bumped the ad-free Ultra add-on from $2.99 to $4.99. It’s an extra charge stacked on top of the $8.99 Prime Video subscription, so there’s no entry-level price to compare it against.

For Plex, the lifetime Plex Pass went from $249.99 to $749.99 on July 1, a 200% increase that triples the cost overnight. And that follows a jump from $119.99 to $249.99 back in March 2025. Now, here’s the actual ranking.

7 ESPN (Select)

7.7% Increase

ESPN gets the gentlest bump of the bunch. The Select tier, which is the entry point, moves from $12.99 to $13.99 per month. It means that the annual Select plan goes from $129.99 to $139.99. ESPN Unlimited takes a bigger hit, climbing to $31.99 per month and $319.99 per year, up from $29.99 and $299.99.

The new pricing kicked in on August 20, 2026, for new and returning subscribers (via ESPN Support). If you’re already signed up, you won’t feel it until your first billing date on or after September 17, 2026.

6 Paramount+ (Essential)

12.5% Increase

Paramount+ got its increase out of the way early, with changes landing on January 15, 2026. The ad-supported Essential tier went from $7.99 to $8.99 per month. The ad-free premium plan moved from $12.99 to $13.99. The platform had already raised prices in June 2025, so subscribers who stuck around got hit twice in roughly seven months.

5 Netflix (Ad-supported)

12.5% Increase

Netflix raised prices across the board again, and the ad-supported tier, which is the cheapest way to watch, went from $7.99 to $8.99 per month. The rest of the price hike lineup includes:

• Standard: From $17.99 per month to $19.99 per month
• Premium: From $24.99 per month to $26.99 per month

Like Paramount+, this arrived not long after Netflix’s last round of increases in January 2025. It is a lot to ask, even for the platform most people treat as non-negotiable. It also lines up with what Ampere Analysis recently flagged (via Deadline). The ad-free tiers keep absorbing the largest dollar increases, while ad-supported plans stay comparatively cheap to keep advertisers happy.

4 Peacock (Select)

12.5% Increase

Peacock‘s entry-level ad-supported Select tier goes from $7.99 to $8.99 per month. New and returning subscribers pay the new rates from August 18, 2026. Existing subscribers see the change on their next billing date on or after September 17, 2026.

The upper tiers are also subject to major price changes. A Premium plan now costs $12.99 and a Premium Plus is $19.99, up from $10.99 and $16.99. Peacock has now raised prices four times in four years, and subscribers are clearly not happy with it.

3 YouTube Premium

14.3% Increase

YouTube Premium‘s Individual plan climbs from $13.99 to $15.99 per month, which is a $2 jump on an already pricey subscription. Meanwhile, a mellowed-down version, Premium Lite, has also seen the price increase from $7.99 to $8.99.

The Family Plan taking a $4 increase (from $22.99 to $26.99) is the number worth staring at. It’s still the best value on a per-person basis, but $26.99 puts it in the same conversation as Netflix Premium.

2 Apple TV

15.4% Increase

Apple TV is the latest in the list to announce a price hike for its subscribers, and the new pricing began almost immediately on Friday, August 28 (via Variety). The monthly price for the platform went up $2 from $12.99 to $14.99. Meanwhile, the annual price hit three digits, going from $99 to $119.

Apple TV spent years as the cheap, low-commitment option you would subscribe to for one show and cancel. At $119 a year, it’s no longer an impulse buy.

1 Crunchyroll (Fan Tier)

25% Increase

Crunchyroll takes the top spot by a wide margin. The entry-level Fan Tier jumped from $7.99 to $9.99 per month, which is a full quarter increase from before. According to the platform’s announcement, the changes started February 2, 2026.

There were price changes on all the tiers. The Mega Fan Tier bumped up the price from $11.99 to $13.99 per month. Meanwhile, the Ultimate Fan Tier went from $15.99 to $17.99 per month. Every tier goes up $2, but because the Fan Tier started lowest, it absorbs the steepest percentage increase. Anime fans without many alternatives for simulcasts are stuck wearing it.

What do you think of these price hikes? Let us know in the comments below!