Streaming was supposed to replace cable. For most households, it now costs about the same. The average American family paying for four or more services spends $65–100 per month — well inside cable bill territory. If you've ever wondered exactly where all that money is going, here is the complete breakdown: every major streaming service, every tier, and what the total looks like if you subscribed to all of them at once.
Individual Service Pricing (All Tiers)
Prices are monthly in USD as of mid-2026. Annual plans typically save one to two months' cost compared to paying month-to-month.
| Service | With Ads | Ad-Free | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netflix | $7.99 | $15.49 | $22.99 (4K) |
| Hulu | $7.99 | $17.99 | — |
| Disney+ | $7.99 | $13.99 | — |
| Max (HBO) | $9.99 | $15.99 | $19.99 (Ultimate) |
| Apple TV+ | — | $9.99 | — |
| Peacock | $7.99 | $13.99 | — |
| Paramount+ | $5.99 | $11.99 | $11.99 + Showtime |
| Prime Video | — | $8.99 standalone | Included w/ Prime ($14.99/mo) |
| ESPN+ | — | $10.99 | — |
The "Subscribe to Everything" Worst Case
If you subscribed to every major service at the mid-tier ad-free price, here's what it would cost:
- Netflix Standard: $15.49
- Hulu No Ads: $17.99
- Disney+: $13.99
- Max Ad Free: $15.99
- Apple TV+: $9.99
- Peacock Premium Plus: $13.99
- Paramount+ with Showtime: $11.99
- Prime Video (standalone): $8.99
- ESPN+: $10.99
Total: ~$119/month — or $1,428 per year. That is more than a typical cable bill and the equivalent of a mid-range vacation. Most households don't subscribe to all of these simultaneously, but many pay for four or five without realizing it.
Bundle Pricing
Bundles can reduce the total, but only if you'd use every service in them:
- Disney+ + Hulu (with ads): $9.99/mo — saves about $6 vs buying separately
- Disney+ + Hulu (no ads): $19.99/mo — saves about $12
- Disney+ + Hulu + ESPN+: $24.99/mo (with ads) — saves about $8
- Disney+ + Hulu + Max: $29.99/mo (with ads), $35.99 ad-free — saves up to $12
- Hulu + Live TV: $82.99/mo — includes Disney+ and ESPN+; good if you need live channels too
The bundle savings look meaningful in isolation, but they only matter if you genuinely use all three services. Paying for a bundle that includes a service you never open is just paying more for less.
Annual Plans vs Monthly: The Real Savings
Every major service offers an annual plan at a discount equivalent to one to two free months:
- Netflix: No annual plan — monthly only
- Disney+: $139.99/year ($11.67/mo) — saves $24 vs monthly
- Hulu No Ads: $179.99/year ($15/mo) — saves $36 vs monthly
- Apple TV+: $99/year ($8.25/mo) — saves $21 vs monthly
- Paramount+: $59.99/year ($5/mo, with ads) — saves $12 vs monthly
Annual plans make sense for services you genuinely keep year-round — Netflix being the classic example. For services you intend to rotate in and out, the monthly plan is better: you avoid paying for months when you have nothing to watch.
What Most Households Actually Pay
According to various surveys, the average American streaming subscriber pays between $48 and $61 per month across all services. The gap between what people pay and what they actually watch tends to be around 30–40% — meaning roughly $15–25 per month goes to services that got barely any screen time that month.
The practical implication: the goal isn't to find a single cheap plan, it's to avoid paying for services during months when you have nothing to watch on them. That's the strategy that cuts bills the most without changing what you watch. Subscription rotation applied consistently typically saves households $300–500 per year.
Which Services Are Worth Keeping Year-Round?
Most financial advice around streaming agrees on one principle: the only services worth keeping as permanent subscriptions are ones you actively use every month. For most households, that usually means one of the following:
- Netflix — broad enough that there's almost always something to watch
- Prime Video — especially if you already pay for Amazon Prime shipping
- Disney+ — mandatory if you have kids; optional for adults
Every other service — Max, Hulu, Apple TV+, Peacock, Paramount+ — is best treated as a rotating subscription: subscribe for the months when your shows are airing, cancel when they're not. The shows are the same. The bill is dramatically lower.
Find out exactly what you're overpaying. Stream-Wiser builds a personalized subscription calendar around your watchlist — including which months you can safely cancel each service.
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