ESPN Plus price is going up (again) — here's how to avoid it

espn plus
(Image credit: ESPN)

Update: Hulu just got a price hike along with Disney Plus and ESPN Plus — here’s what we know.

Stop me if you've heard this one before, sports fans. ESPN Plus' price is going up next month. The increase is the service's second price hike in 2021, after the annual package price got bumped from $49.99 to $59.99 per year this past January. 

Effective August 13 (according to Engadget), ESPN Plus will now cost $69.99 per year or $6.99 per month, moving up from the current $59.99 (annual) and $5.99 (monthly) price options that exist now. That said, you don't need to spend more.

If you get the $59.99 annual plan before August 13, you stave off the price-hike for another 12 months. That's a savings of $11.89 vs the current monthly pricing, and $10 against the upcoming annual plan. This is likely a part of ESPN Plus' math about this, announcing the price hike a month before it happens, so it can get people to sign up for annual plans now, and lock them in long term.

That said, there's another way to avoid the jump. The price of the Disney Plus bundle, which packages Hulu and ESPN Plus together for $13.99 per month (savings of $6 per month right now, and $7 per month after August 13), isn't changing. 

It's also worth checking our ESPN Plus promo codes page for any coupons and price cuts. 

ESPN+
Save $12 and lock ...

If you get the annual <a href="https://go.web.plus.espn.com/c/221109/531511/9070?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fplus.espn.com%2Fufc%2Fppv" data-link-merchant="plus.espn.com"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">ESPN+ subscription before August 13, you can lock in the $5.99 per month price for another 12 months. 

Disney Plus

The <a href="https://disneyplus.bn5x.net/c/221109/564546/9358?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.disneyplus.com%2F" data-link-merchant="disneyplus.com"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Disney Plus bundle is the other way to avoid ESPN+'s price hige. This $13.99 bundle includes Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN Plus.

While we could suggest you spend the time to figure out how often you use ESPN Plus and cancel and resubscribe based on that, that might not be an option for you. 

ESPN Plus is a must-have subscription for anyone looking to watch UFC PPVs at home, and so we're betting that fight fans everywhere are annoyed. Not only do they have to spend the extra $5.99 on top of the individual PPV price, they now have to spend a buck more per month, too.

Henry T. Casey
Managing Editor (Entertainment, Streaming)

Henry is a managing editor at Tom’s Guide covering streaming media, laptops and all things Apple, reviewing devices and services for the past seven years. Prior to joining Tom's Guide, he reviewed software and hardware for TechRadar Pro, and interviewed artists for Patek Philippe International Magazine. He's also covered the wild world of professional wrestling for Cageside Seats, interviewing athletes and other industry veterans.