Apple is hiking the monthly subscription cost for Apple TV+ by a third to $12.99 per month, with new subscribers paying the increased rate starting August 21.
It's the first Apple TV+ price rise since October 2023, when Apple raised the monthly cost to $9.99. Now the service is going to cost $12.99 per month.
That increased fee applies from August 21, 2025, to all new subscribers. In a statement seen first by Variety, Apple said that existing users will get the increase from their next renewal date.
It's not clear, though, whether that simply means that any existing user whose subscription started on August 20 would stay on the lower rate until September 20. Apple said instead that existing subscribers will get the higher prices within 30 days of their next renewal date.
Apple has also said that the increase applies to both the US and selected international markets, but has yet to specify which countries will be included.
There is no word yet on whether this means there will be any change to the cost of Apple One, the bundle of services that includes Apple TV+. As of publication time, Apple One fees have not changed.
How Apple TV+ compares
Apple TV+ has always had the smallest library of titles out of all of the streamers, but it's also had critical and ratings success with series such as "Ted Lasso," and "Severance." Apple TV+ is also the only streamer that does not offer an ad-supported tier.
This also means that Apple TV+ is the sole streamer to charge just one price. At present, Netflix offers three prices:
- Standard with ads: $7.99/month
- Standard: $17.99/month
- Premium: $24.99/month
The two standard options provide 1080p resolution, while the premium one increases that to 4K.
Apple TV+ movie "CODA" is the only streaming film to win a Best Picture Oscar
Disney+ currently offers 11 different price tiers, plus 2 further optional add-ons, though these rates include various combinations of bundles comprising Disney+ with Hulu, ESPN, or HBO Max. The cheapest Disney+ option is $9.99 per month, which includes ads.
There are multiple combinations of options to get Disney+ ad-free, but the lowest cost monthly one is $15.99. Disney+ does offer an annual subscription for $159.99, which brings the per-month cost down to $13.33.
The closest to Apple's new $12.99 fee is Paramount+, which offers an ad-free version for that same price. Paramount+, though, also offers a discounted annual subscription which brings the per-month cost down to $9.99.
So Apple is not the cheapest of all the streamers, and if users are willing to accept ads, then it can be as much as five bucks more than Netflix or Paramount+.
Yet this isn't a case of comparing Apple and oranges. If shows a user likes are on Netflix, then a lower cost for Paramount+ is meaningless.
Apple can make a case that it is offering the most in terms of an ad-free experience for less than its main rivals, Disney+ or Netflix. But it can also make the case that it's first and only streamer to have won an Oscar for Best Picture, and it's the only one willing to invest in the highest-cost dramas, such as Pachinko.
