YouTube Premium is the latest subscription service to raise its prices, increasing costs for users who pay for ad-free and enhanced features.
The standard individual YouTube Premium plan will increase by $2 to $15.99 per month, up from $13.99, beginning with customers’ next billing cycle, the company told subscribers Friday. YouTube Premium offers several benefits, including ad-free video streaming, offline downloads, background playback and access to YouTube Music, which is similar to Spotify and Apple Music.
The price of YouTube’s family plan, which allows up to six people in the same household to share access, will increase by $4, bringing the monthly cost to $26.99.
Annual subscriptions are also increasing, with the yearly individual plan now priced at $159.99.
YouTube Premium Music will also be impacted by the price changes. The monthly cost will rise by $1 to $11.99, up from $10.99. As of March 2025, YouTube said its Music and Premium services had more than 125 million paid subscribers worldwide.
Meanwhile, YouTube Premium Lite, the lower-cost option with fewer features, will also increase by $1, bringing the monthly price to $8.99 from $7.99.
This is the first U.S. price increase for YouTube Premium plans since 2023, the company said in a statement.
"This change allows us to maintain the features our members value most: ad-free viewing, background play, and a massive library of 300M+ tracks on YouTube Music. We continue to offer several plans, ensuring subscribers can choose the option that works best for them,” the statement added.
YouTube’s announcement come a month after Netflix raised its U.S. prices, with its ad-supported plan increasing by $1 to $8.99 per month. Its standard ad-free plan went up by $2, while the premium tier saw the largest jump, rising by $4 to $26.99 per month.
Music streaming has also become more expensive. Spotify increased its Premium pricing in January, saying periodic adjustments help maintain the platform and support artists. The individual plan rose from $11.99 to $12.99 per month, the duo plan increased from $16.99 to $18.99 and the family plan climbed from $19.99 to $21.99.
In September, the cost of Disney+ with ads rose from $9.99 to $11.99 per month, while the ad-free Disney+ Premium plan increased from $15.99 to $18.99 per month. Hulu also saw a price hike, with its ad-supported plan rising by $2 to $11.99 per month.
