Starting early next year, streaming with Paramount+ is going to cost a little more.
The company announced that U.S. prices will rise on January 15, 2026, the second such increase in under two years. The Essential plan (with ads) will go up by $1 to $8.99 per month, while the Premium plan (ad-free) will also rise by $1 to $13.99 per month.
Annual plans will also jump—$89.99 for Essential and $139.99 for Premium, though they still offer a modest discount compared to monthly billing.
Why the Price Hike?
The move comes just months after Skydance Media’s $8 billion acquisition of Paramount Global, a deal that merged the studio’s film, TV, and streaming operations under new leadership. CEO David Ellison said in a letter to shareholders that the changes “will fuel continued reinvestment in the user experience and deliver an even stronger slate of programming for our customers in the year ahead and beyond.”
Paramount+ ended the third quarter of 2025 with 79.1 million subscribers, up slightly from the previous quarter. Revenue from its direct-to-consumer division jumped 17% year-over-year to $2.17 billion, thanks in part to rising ad sales and a surge in paid subscribers.
But growth comes at a cost. The streaming service plans to invest more than $1.5 billion in new content in 2026 — including original series, UFC programming, and feature films. Its commitment to UFC programming is anchored by a recent seven-year, $7.7 billion deal that makes Paramount+ the exclusive home for the mixed martial arts promotion’s events.
The company also renewed its five-year deal with South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone in a $1.5 billion pact that brought the show’s streaming rights back to Paramount+ after a five-year stint on HBO Max, calling the animated franchise its “top subscriber-acquisition driver”.
Still One of the Cheaper Options
Ellison said the streamer will ramp up its movie output to 15 films a year while maintaining a focus on franchises that already perform well. That includes Mission: Impossible, Star Trek, and Tulsa King, as well as CBS stalwarts like Survivor and Tracker.
Even after the price increase, Paramount+ insists it will remain “one of the most competitively priced” streaming platforms in the U.S. — cheaper than Netflix’s standard plan and roughly on par with Disney+. The adjustment mirrors similar moves abroad. The company confirmed recent or upcoming price hikes in Canada and Australia, citing global content investments.
For now, Paramount+ will also change how it reports its subscriber base, counting only paying customers instead of including free trial users, a small but telling shift that reflects where the streaming wars are heading.
It’s a delicate balance: spend more, charge more, and hope subscribers stay loyal. But with Ellison steering the new Paramount Skydance era, the company seems ready to bet that fans will pay for quality, especially if it comes with South Park and the UFC under one roof.