Another streaming service is getting a price hike

Starting January 15 2026, Paramount+ will raise prices in the US.

The Essential plan with ads will go from $7.99 to $8.99 per month, and the Premium plan without ads will rise from $12.99 to $13.99.

Paramount is also set to retire free trials and tighten discount promotions, so the era of easy try-before-you-pay is coming to an end.

According to Paramount (via The Verge), the $1 bump will help fund new features and a stronger slate. It actually follows a familiar pattern as prices rose in 2023 and again this past June, with recent increases in Canada and Australia as well.

On the content side, there’s a clear bet to keep people subscribed. During Skydance’s first months in charge, Paramount Plus added 1.4 million subs to reach 79.1 million total, and it struck a $7.7 billion deal to bring live UFC fights to the service. So if you were wondering what your extra dollar helps cover, well, that’s a good hint. 

We can also see some tech promises here, as Paramount says it’ll upgrade the stack behind Paramount Plus and Pluto TV while leaning more on AI for personalisation and recommendations. That’s table stakes in streaming now, but if it cuts down the “endless scroll” and makes live sports and new shows easier to find, most folks won’t complain.

Long story short, if you’re on Essential, plan for an extra dollar a month. And if you’re on Premium, it’s another dollar for the ad-free tier. Free trials for a quick binge are ending as Paramount pushes people straight into paid plans. Price hikes are spreading across streaming, and Paramount Plus just joined the 2026 wave.

Whether this will affect UK pricing remains to be seen. It’s been another year of streaming rises, with Netflix upping its prices earlier in 2025.