Discovery+ Raises Prices for the First Time

For the first time since its launch in 2021, discovery+ has raised its subscription prices. Warner Bros. Discovery announced this week that beginning Tuesday, Oct. 3, the cost of the streamer's ad-free monthly subscription would increase in both the U.S. and Canada, with viewers in the latter market also seeing a price hike to the discovery+ ad-lite subscription.

The price hikes went into effect immediately for new subscribers, while existing subscribers will see their monthly rate increase on their next billing cycle on or after Nov. 2, Warner Bros. Discovery said. In the U.S., the cost of a new discovery+ ad-free monthly subscription rose from $2 from $6.99 to $8.99. The ad-lite subscription is not impacted by the increase and remains $4.99 per month. Canadian subscribers saw a similar price hike Tuesday, with the price of a new discovery+ ad-free monthly subscription also jumping $2 from $6.99 CAD to $8.99 CAD. Meanwhile, the ad-supported tier in Canada moved from $4.99 CAD to $5.99 CAD.

"This is the first time discovery+ has increased the price of a monthly subscription in these markets since launching in January 2021," the company said. "This will allow us to continue to provide can't miss-stories in the food, home, relationships, true crime, paranormal genres – plus so much more."

The price hike pushes discovery+ closer to fellow Warner Bros. Discovery-backed streamer Max. Formerly HBO Max, the streaming service rebranded in May as Max, a consolidated streamer that also includes content from discovery+, as well as HBO series and movies, Max Originals, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, HGTV, TCM, Food Network, and more. Max costs $15.99 a month ($149.99/year) for the ad-free version and $9.99 per month ($99.99/year) for the ad-supported tier. The "ultimate" ad-free version with 4K UHD resolution, 100 offline downloads and Dolby Atmos sound is available for $19.99 a month ($199.99/year).

Amid the rebrand, the company said it lost 1.8 million subscribers from April 1 to June 30, the quarter during which Max was launched, per Variety. The company's Q2 earnings report showed that streaming subscribers across WBD's HBO, Max and Discovery+ totaled 95.8 million.

The discovery+ price hike comes is just the latest example of streamers' rising subscription costs. On Oct. 12, both Hulu and Disney+ are set to raise the prices of their ad-free plans, with Disney+ Premium jumping 27% from $10.99 to $13.99 per month and Hulu's ad-free tier increasing 20%, from $14.99 to $17.99 per month. The monthly prices of both of Hulu's Hulu + Live TV packages will also increase by $7 per month. In July, NBCUniversal's Peacock streaming platform raised the price of its premium plan from $4.99 to $5.99 per month and the ad-free plan from $9.99 per month to $11.99. Recent reports also suggest that Netflix is eyeing an upcoming price hike for its ad-free plans.