“Nothing is certain except death and taxes,” Benjamin Franklin apparently said in 1789. If he were alive today, he may very well have added, “… and streaming subscription price increases.” Yes, that’s my way of saying that — despite reports to the contrary — YouTube TV is jacking the price of its base subscription by $10 per month starting January 13, 2025, according to the following email sent to customers on December 12:
YouTube TV has always worked hard to offer you the content you love, delivered the way you want, with features that make it easy to enjoy the best of live TV.
To keep up with the rising cost of content and the investments we make in the quality of our service, we’re updating our monthly price from $72.99/month to $82.99/month starting January 13, 2025.
We don’t make these decisions lightly, and we realize this has an impact on our members. We are committed to bringing you features that are changing the way we watch live TV, like unlimited DVR storage and multiview, and supporting YouTube TV’s breadth of content and vast on-demand library of movies and shows.
The price of your YouTube TV Base Plan membership will change in your first billing cycle on or after January 13, 2025, and will be charged to your payment method on file going forward. To view your current plan, go to Settings > Membership for updated information. If you are currently on a trial or promotional price for the Base Plan, that promotion is still honored and unchanged.
This announcement makes YouTube TV the most recent streaming service to hike its prices. Earlier this year, Sling TV made a similar move, as did Peacock and Paramount+.
YouTube TV’s last increase happened in April 2023, when it bumped the monthly fee from $65 to $73 — a 12.3% increase. Today’s announcement represents a similar (13.6%) increase.
Yes, YouTube TV price increases are seemingly unavoidable, which means it’s time to remind you that you still have choices — these are the best YouTube TV alternatives.