Hulu + Live TV price hike has me ready to cancel — here’s where I’m thinking of going

Opinion
By Henry T. Casey
published

I'm ready to leave Hulu + Live TV, and I might save up to $22 per month

A tablet with the Hulu logo surrounded by popcorn, soda, headphones and a cactus
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Hulu + Live TV never really impressed me — it was only good enough. So, when a price hike was buried inside of a press release about ad-supported versions of Disney Plus launching internationally I felt especially ticked off. 

For months now, I've spent $70 on Hulu's cable TV alternative, but I'd be spending $77 per month were I to stick around when price increase lands in October. And I can't rationalize this price increase. Even it arrives with $7 worth of price increases, including a Disney Plus price hike, those are for the ad-free versions. Hulu + Live TV's $77 version only gives you the ad-supported versions of its bundled subscriptions.

Frustrated, as this will be the third time I cancel one of the best cable TV alternatives this year, it's time to survey my options and look at why I want to leave.

Hulu joins the tide of rising prices

This was the year of the price hike in live TV services. With the exception of Philo (which doesn't have live sports or national broadcast networks such as NBC and FOX) everyone raised their entry-level rates in at least one way. 

Sling, oddly enough, rolled out a $5 price bump tied to ABC in select markets in March, after a $5 price hike for all last December. The rest? Well, they increased prices for all, while Fubo even added on a regional sports fee for many that you won't see until checkout.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Service (price hike date)Starting monthly price
Philo (2021)$25
Sling TV Blue (Mar.)$45 (in NYC) — $40 elsewhere
YouTube TV (April)$73
DirecTV Stream (April)$75
Fubo (Jan.)$75 (before regional sports network fees)
Hulu + Live TV (Oct.) $77 (as of October 2023)

Without context, this makes Hulu + Live TV the most expensive cable TV alternative. But that jump doesn't take into account the perks that have me considering staying around: Disney Plus and Hulu.

Right now, I am grandfathered into a bundle with ad-free Disney Plus and ad-supported Hulu ... and also ESPN Plus, which I don't need. This was once available as a $14.99 bundle, and would now cost $32.97 if you piecemeal it together. And I'm OK with getting ads on Hulu even when I don't like them: Hulu's content (more so than Disney's library of Pixar, Marvel and other movies) is seemingly built with ad-breaks in mind.

Whittling down my options

When it comes to live TV channels, I'm actually not as needy as you might think based on the fact that I keep switching services. All I really need is FX, TBS, TNT, USA and my local Fox broadcast network. 

Plus, I want some way to watch F1 live streams, which you can watch on ESPN networks, ESPN Plus and the $10 per month F1 TV Pro service. For the rest of my TV-watching, I'm good with on-demand services such as Max, Netflix and Peacock.

Those needs eliminate Philo (none of the above) and Fubo (no TBS or TNT), and gives me a strong set of options. I get to choose from the the best cable TV alternatives based on features like cloud DVR. And that's one area where Hulu + Live TV subscribers are rich:

Swipe to scroll horizontally
ServiceDVR capacityPaid upgrade
Sling50 hours200 hours costs $5 per month
Fubo1,000 hoursn/a
PhiloUnlimited (9 month limit)n/a
YouTube TVUnlimited (9 month limit)n/a
Hulu + Live TVUnlimited (9 month limit)n/a
DirecTV StreamUnlimited (9 month limit)n/a

Hulu, just like Philo, YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream gives you an unlimited cap for recordings. Sling, which I'll gripe about later here, only gives you 50 hours of DVR time, which I fill up in less than a month's time with a normal week's worth of professional wrestling recordings (yes, I know I have a problem).

This leads me to the one challenger I haven't talked about much here.

I want to leave Hulu + Live TV because of its interface

The Hulu homescreen scrolled down to the boxes for White Men Can't Jump (2023) and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace

(Image credit: Henry T. Casey / Tom's Guide)

The Hulu + Live TV interface suffers because someone decided (probably to cut down on costs) that Hulu and its live TV service should be in the same app. This means you (or at least I) can often click on a promoted show or movie, thinking it's a DVR recording.

On top of that, Hulu's "guide" view is basically hidden, because I guess it doesn't "deserve" a menu icon on the left side. Instead, you have to click down (or click through some menus) after opening a show. To nitpick, this is annoying because I don't want to just open the last channel I was on and mute that if it's something I don't like. I thought we moved on from cable TV.

The channel grid on YouTube TV

(Image credit: Henry T. Casey / Tom's Guide)

YouTube TV, however, has the best interface bar-none. Everything's smooth and intuitive, and it just works. Fast forwarding and rewinding is so smooth on YouTube TV (which had a head-start with YouTube).

Were it not for its 2023 price increase and lack of add-on services, I'd still be subscribed.

Outlook: So, where am I headed?

This brings us to my big table of options, which go as low as $55 per month. 

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Header Cell - Column 0 PriceWhy I'd want this
Hulu + Live TV (with Disney Plus and ESPN Plus)$77Less thinking, all channels
Sling Blue ($45) + F1 TV Pro ($10) + Disney Plus with no ads ($14)$69When I want Disney Plus ... for Loki season 2
Sling Blue ($45) + F1 TV Pro ($10)$55The default until F1 season is over
Sling Blue ($45) + F1 TV Pro ($10) + Hulu with ads ($8)$63When I want Hulu
Sling Blue ($45) + F1 TV Pro ($10) + Hulu and Disney Plus with ads ($10)$65When I'm OK with more ads
Sling Blue ($45) + ESPN Plus, ad-free Hulu and Disney Plus ($25)$70When I want the least ads
YouTube TV$73If I don't want Hulu or Disney Plus

Month to month, starting this October, I'm going to need to pay close attention to how much I actually want and need Hulu and Disney Plus. The aforementioned price hike hits right after Loki season 2 begins, which has to be somewhat intentionally-timed. 

But if Loki's return doesn't "hit" for me, and no Hulu or other Disney Plus shows do? I could be saving $20 per month while trying to ignore Sling's paltry DVR capacity. My guess, though, is that I'll get Sling Blue, F1 TV Pro and Disney Plus — and still save $8 per month. That's about 10% of Hulu + Live TV's monthly bill.

I know this is all an extremely personal streaming shopping experience that I'm explaining, but I do so with a specific intent. To encourage you to make sure you're making the most of the money you spend on streaming. 

More from Tom's Guide

Henry T. Casey
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.

7 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Jbelkin
    Yea, Hulu Live has the worst guide/interface of all time.

    But Hulu Live andYouTubeTV I think are the only ones that has all the 4 networks (I think PBS is only on YouTubeTV) so if you want the major sports ... and of course, ESPN includes MNF ... for football fans, some do not even offer the option of NFL Network + RedZone as an extra option at all so ... like everything, it's complicated ... but at the end of the day, it's still 1/3 to 1/4th the price of cable for the same channels.
    Reply
  • dboyxx
    I recently cancelled Directv and found that ESPN+ only broadcasts the F1 race itself and none of the practices, qualifilyings, or pre-show.

    I ended up grabbing F1 Pro at the yearly rate. 9 months of racing so saves ya about $10 a year
    Reply
  • justbecauseisaidso
    As someone who had Sling for a few years, I can safely say that the user interface was not great. And it was incredibly buggy (would regularly freeze, restart, disconnect from TV is using casting or return to Smart TV's home screen). For a while I thought it could have been my connection, but this happened elsewhere when I would cast or even just stream from my phone (and I'd test the connection prior). I'm interested to see your take on it or if improvements have been made in the last 6-8mos, but I struggled with it before I ended up getting an antenna again and using NOW through Xfinity with my Internet service. So far so good at the introductory rate of $20/mo.
    Reply
  • ATLL2112
    justbecauseisaidso said:
    As someone who had Sling for a few years, I can safely say that the user interface was not great. And it was incredibly buggy (would regularly freeze, restart, disconnect from TV is using casting or return to Smart TV's home screen). For a while I thought it could have been my connection, but this happened elsewhere when I would cast or even just stream from my phone (and I'd test the connection prior). I'm interested to see your take on it or if improvements have been made in the last 6-8mos, but I struggled with it before I ended up getting an antenna again and using NOW through Xfinity with my Internet service. So far so good at the introductory rate of $20/mo.
    I've had Sling for years and have never had that issue. Perhaps it's related your TVs software? I have a Roku TV.
    Reply
  • ATLL2112
    Why not just get Sling Blue+Orange?

    It's like $63 after tax and you get all the cable channels you listed, plus more obviously, and you also get NBC, Fox, and ABC.

    You also get ESPN, ESPN 2, and ESPN 3, which would give you access to every f1 race, qualifying, sprint, as well as P3, not sure if they air the first 2 practice sessions. ESPN 3 carries f2 and f3 if I'm not mistaken.

    It's like $5 more than getting Sling Blue and F1TV, but you get access to ESPN this way.
    Reply
  • ATLL2112
    Jbelkin said:
    Yea, Hulu Live has the worst guide/interface of all time.

    But Hulu Live andYouTubeTV I think are the only ones that has all the 4 networks (I think PBS is only on YouTubeTV) so if you want the major sports ... and of course, ESPN includes MNF ... for football fans, some do not even offer the option of NFL Network + RedZone as an extra option at all so ... like everything, it's complicated ... but at the end of the day, it's still 1/3 to 1/4th the price of cable for the same channels.
    You can get PBS for free through their own streaming app. Don't think it carries live, but you get everything on there as it airs iirc
    Reply
  • justbecauseisaidso
    ATLL2112 said:
    I've had Sling for years and have never had that issue. Perhaps it's related your TVs software? I have a Roku TV.
    I don't think that's it. Like I said, I used it across multiple TVs in different locations. I used both casting and directly logging in to Roku, AppleTV, Xfinity Flex, Smart TVs -- all had the same issues. I had good luck with YouTube TV for a while, but much like this article, when the price hike jumped from $64.99 to over $70, I tapped out. I will subscribe to other streaming services, but rotate them based on time of year, content, etc.
    Reply