TL;DR
Americans are paying 19% more for digital subscriptions than in 2020, with Disney+ and Apple TV+ posting some of the sharpest price hikes, prompting many households to cancel or trim services.
Why This Matters
Digital subscriptions have quietly become a core household expense alongside groceries, utilities, and health care. From TV and music to cloud storage and video tools, recurring fees now hit bank accounts every month, often on autopay.
A new analysis from DepositAccounts, a platform owned by LendingTree, finds that prices across 15 popular digital services are up 19% on average since 2020, after adjusting for inflation. That is a meaningful jump for families already squeezed by higher living costs.
These services are no longer optional extras for many people. Streaming platforms have replaced cable, apps power remote work, and cloud services back up family photos and documents. As subscriptions climb, they can erode savings, add to credit card balances, and limit room for unexpected bills.
The trend also signals a maturing streaming and app market. After years of aggressive discounting to win customers, major platforms are turning to price increases, bundles, and ad tiers to boost profit. For consumers, that means closer scrutiny of what they truly use and what they can live without.
Key Facts & Quotes
DepositAccounts researchers reviewed 15 widely used services, including video streamers like Hulu and Spotify, cloud storage, and business tools such as Zoom Pro, to track price changes over six years. Overall, they say Americans now spend about one-fifth more on these products than in 2020.
On average, U.S. consumers pay for 4.5 digital services, at a total cost of about $84 per month, or roughly $1,008 a year, according to the same analysis. A January survey of 2,000 adults by DepositAccounts found that one in three had canceled at least one paid digital subscription in the previous six months because of rising prices.
Disney+ stands out. The ad-free plan now costs $18.99 per month, more than double its price six years ago once inflation is taken into account, the report found. Disney raised the ad-free tier in September 2025 while promoting bundles that include Hulu and ESPN.
Apple’s streaming video service has also seen sharp increases. The standard Apple TV+ plan has climbed 108% since 2020 on an inflation-adjusted basis, DepositAccounts said. “We’ve kind of gotten used to seeing notes from these subscription services saying we’re raising our costs by $1, $2, $3,” Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree, said in a recent interview, adding that for people with 10 or 15 subscriptions, those changes “add up to real money over the course of the year.”
Streaming now makes up about 48% of all TV viewing in the United States, surpassing both broadcast and cable, according to audience measurement firm Nielsen. Not every service is more expensive, however: DepositAccounts reports that Apple’s iCloud storage prices are down nearly 20% since 2020, and Apple Music prices have fallen more than 12%.
What It Means for You
For many households, digital subscriptions now resemble a second utility bill. The latest update from DepositAccounts suggests an annual cost of around $1,000 for the typical user, before add-ons like premium sports or extra storage.
That makes it worth reviewing bank and card statements for little-used services, downgrading to ad-supported tiers, or rotating platforms instead of keeping everything year-round. With streaming now the top way Americans watch TV, more price changes and new bundles are likely as companies compete for attention and profit.
For people on fixed or near-fixed incomes, especially older adults, tracking these charges can help protect budgets and reduce the risk of overdrafts or mounting card balances. As platforms keep testing how much they can charge, consumers’ willingness to cancel may be the strongest check on further increases.
How closely do you track your own digital subscriptions, and what would prompt you to finally cancel one?
Sources: DepositAccounts digital subscription inflation study (2026); DepositAccounts consumer subscription survey (January 2026); Nielsen U.S. TV viewing share data (2025).
