Are you looking to binge-watch some of your favorite childhood movies or occupy your children for a couple of hours? Disney+ might be the perfect solution. If you’re considering buying a subscription or even using a free trial, here’s what you should know about the price, plans, and different special features of the streaming service.
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All you can stream: $8 or $80
The Disney+ pricing model is simple: After an increase in price in March, Disney+ is now $8 per month (or $80 per year), up from $7 per month (or $70 per year). There are no other tiers of service and no other monthly prices. There’s no minimum commitment to get this price, and you can cancel at any time.
While the Disney+ catalog isn’t yet as deep or as wide as that of Netflix or Amazon Prime Video, Disney makes sure you’ll get a lot of great features to compensate as it grows its content choices.
Every account can stream in up to 4K resolution, with HDR on the movies and shows that support these standards. Some of the titles that are in HDR use Dolby Vision, which offers even better picture quality than HDR10, the base HDR format. Dolby Atmos also makes an appearance, though titles that support this amazing surround-sound format are limited to newer productions.
You can run up to four simultaneous streams, which should help when the family can’t agree on what to watch. With up to seven user profiles per account, you won’t have any trouble keeping recommendations relevant for every family member, and it’s unlikely you’ll hear screaming over who raced ahead on the latest season of your chosen binge show.
What is Disney+ Premier Access?
Disney+ first introduced Premier Access in September last year with the release of Mulan, which was a great way to bring features to audiences in lieu of theaters being closed due to the pandemic. Since then, Disney has released Raya and the Last Dragon through Disney Plus Premier Access and has the premieres of Cruella and Marvel’s Black Widow set to hit the service on May 28 and July 9, respectively. Each film costs an additional $30, which is steep, but if you consider the cost of a couple of theater tickets and the ridiculous price of popcorn, plus the fact that you can watch them as many times as you like (it’s yours as long as you’re a Disney+ subscriber) with as many people as you like, it’s a pretty good deal.
Even more with Hulu
But wait, there’s more! Because Disney owns Hulu via its purchase of 21st Century Fox, you can add a Disney+ subscription to your Hulu account. The price remains the same, but you can simplify your streaming life by accessing both content catalogs within one user interface.
More still with ESPN
Speaking of bundles, let’s not forget that Disney owns a majority share of one of the biggest sports broadcasting brands: ESPN. So, the astute executives at Disney have decided that you need a reward if you go all-in with a triple play of the company’s streaming services. The combination of the three packages isn’t pricey on its own. But if you sign up for Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu, you can save $5 a month on these services’ separate costs. All three will currently run you just $14 per month.
That said, if you need Disney content for your children and then sports or more mature content for adults, this bundle is a valuable deal. You will have the chance to access all of the services at a discounted price, all through one single interface.
Is the Disney+/Hulu/ESPN+ bundle worth it?
Whether or not the triple bundle is worth it ultimately comes down to whether or not you will use all three. Disney+ now costs $8 per month, and Hulu’s basic package (the one in the triple bundle) costs $6 per month. That means there are no savings if you purchase the plans separately or together. ESPN+ also costs $6 per month, so there are no savings if you just use ESPN+ and Disney+. If you want the plan for ESPN+ and Hulu alone, the plan will actually cost you $2 more per month.
However, if you plan on getting all three, the plan will save you $6 a month, so if you’re a sports fan and plan on getting streaming services for the family, too, it’s a good deal.
How to get Disney+ for free
There are a variety of ways to get extended free trials for Disney+. Here are some of the best ways to get the service for free.
Verizon
If you aren’t interested in paying for the Disney+ service, but you are a Verizon customer, you could be in luck. All current and new Verizon users with unlimited data plans have the opportunity to get six months’ worth of Disney+ entirely free. Fios and 5G broadband users are also eligible for this free year. When the six months end, though, the deal is up. Disney+ will start charging users the regular subscription costs, so be sure to unsubscribe if you’re uninterested in the service or if it doesn’t fit your budget. You may find, though, that the service is well worth the price.
If you sign up before the end of May, you can get the Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN bundle included in your plan for free, so don’t miss out if that sounds appealing to you.
Xbox Game Pass
For Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, the plan now also includes a 30-day free trial to Disney+. You can redeem the offer from any Game Pass app (including iOS and Android ones), but you will still need to download Disney+ to enjoy the content.
Disney works with companies all the time to promote the streaming service, so check this page often to see what products and services are offering free trials to Disney+.
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