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With the new ad-supported plan starting at $7.99 monthly, Disney Plus remains one of the more affordable streaming services, especially when considering bang for your buck. Nonetheless, recent price increases have sent people back to the internet for answers. This guide has everything you need about Disney Plus' plans, content library, and streaming bundle.
Disney Plus was available on quite a few devices at launch, and the list of devices that support the platform has only grown over the past few years. So whether you're on a phone, laptop, TV, or gaming console built in the last five to six years, chances are Disney Plus is available right now or soon.
Disney Plus is available on nearly all the best Android phones, tablets, and Apple devices. The benefit of using Disney Plus on a phone or tablet rather than watching on a smart TV or laptop is that on these devices, you can download videos for offline playback, which is something you can do on up to 10 devices per Disney Plus account, meaning everyone on the plan can keep a few videos downloaded in case of emergencies like being trapped on a Wi-Fi-less flight. Note, however, that you can only download content with a Disney Plus Premium plan and other bundles: it's not available with the entry-level Disney+ Basic plan with ads.
Like all modern streaming services, Disney Plus lets you stream directly from Disneyplus.com on Windows, MacOS, Chromebooks, and even Linux computers. However, you can't download videos for offline playback when streaming through the browser (unless you're using a Chromebook), but you have some handy keyboard controls.
While Disney didn't release a Universal Windows Platform (UWP) app at launch, despite having already done most of the work needed to make one release an Xbox One app, the Disney Plus UWP app launched in late 2021 and is available now in the Microsoft Store for both Windows 11 and Windows 10 PCs.
On the gaming console side, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles, and last-gen devices like the PS4 and Xbox One are supported. I honestly believe that gaming consoles are the best for watching Disney Plus because you can use your controller triggers to fast forward and rewind more efficiently than using the on-screen controls. And, by watching on your console, you can quickly go back to gaming when you're done watching.
No mobile consoles are currently supported on the mobile console side of the equation, although Disney has hinted at bringing Disney Plus to Nintendo Switch. However, we have no concrete timeline for when or if it could launch on Switch.
It's worth noting that Disney Plus also supports HDMI and AirPlay connectivity, so that you could connect your laptop to a TV, for example, or wireless cast content from your Apple mobile device to an AirPlay-enabled big screen or media streaming device.
Of course, most Smart TVs have Disney Plus apps at the moment, including Android TV-supported smart TVs from Sharp, AQUOS, and Sony Bravia; LG Smart TVs running WebOS 3.0 and above; Samsung Tizen Smart TV's (2016 models or newer); Hisense smart TVs; and Vizio SmartCast TV models released in 2016 and later.
While most films and series on Disney Plus are only available in HD, the list of titles available in glorious 4K UHD (Ultra High Definition) continues to grow. To stream this content, you'll need a 4K Ultra HD or HDR device, TV, or display and a high-speed internet connection of at least 25Mb. Luckily, there are tons of streaming devices that support 4K entertainment. You'll also need the Disney+ Premium tier.
As of right now, there are two main Disney Plus plans: Basic and Premium. The Basic plan has limited ads and costs $7.99 per month, while the ad-free Premium plan is $13.99 per month (or $139.99 for a year). In addition to having no ads, the Premium plan will also let you download unlimited content for offline viewing on up to 10 devices.
The Disney Bundle is also a popular option for subscribers, giving you instant access to Disney Plus, Hulu, and even ESPN Plus for one discounted monthly rate. Disney Plus now lets you customize your entertainment a bit by offering three different versions of the bundle.
These options may look strange to you if you've already been enjoying the Disney Bundle for a while. If you're an existing subscriber, check your email: you should've been automatically transferred to the "Legacy" tier. For $18.99 monthly, you will retain your access to Disney Plus (no ads), Hulu (with ads), and ESPN Plus (with ads).
Disney has prided itself on its Vault, which has extensive content dating back decades. While the Disney Vault strategy was starting to decay in the digital age, Disney Plus now hosts most of the Disney Vault alongside an impressive array of content from Marvel, Lucasfilm, Fox, and National Geographic. Right now, Disney Plus has over 500 films and more than 15,000 TV episodes, including most of the films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars, alongside hit original series like The Mandalorian and the Marvel show Echo.
While Disney Plus still has room to improve when it comes to grouping content in categories for easy marathoning, you'll find dedicated collection tabs for franchises like Frozen, Aladdin, 101 Dalmatians, and Home Alone under the Disney section. Meanwhile, the Marvel section of the platform groups existing films under the five current phases of the MCU. You'll also find a tab with every movie in the MCU listed in Timeline Order.
There are differences in available content between countries. For instance, French law forbids theatrically released films from being put on a streaming service in that country for three years, so don't expect to see brand new MCU movies on Disney Plus in France until months after they're released in North America unless Disney manages some true shenanigans or gets that law changed somehow.
So far, however, the differences between the available content in the United States, Canada, and the Netherlands have been small, mainly because a few more of the recent Marvel and Disney films are currently unavailable.
Disney also began rolling out the new Star section of the Disney Plus app in countries where Hulu is unavailable. Currently accessible to subscribers in Australia, Austria, Canada, Europe, Germany, Italy, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, and the UK, the Star brand page on Disney Plus features movies and TV shows from Disney Television Studios, FX Productions, 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures.
Disney Plus is just one of the major digital platforms Disney serves in this new streaming era. It's the largest, for sure. But it's also just one part of the puzzle. The various Disney Plus Bundle tiers allow you to subscribe to Disney Plus, ESPN Plus, and Hulu for one simple monthly payment.
The third arm of the trifecta is Hulu, which Disney also controls. It's where you'll find all the on-demand content you've come to know from that service, as well as original shows like The Handmaid's Tale, The Great, and Only Murders in the Building. In addition, Hulu is where much content planned initially for Disney Plus ends up as Disney tries to keep Disney Plus to more family-friendly fare, so the bundle will be the only way to ensure that you can see all of the content coming down the pipeline.
As a streaming service geared toward families and kids, parental controls on Disney Plus are pretty simplistic: you can set up a child's profile and set it only to allow content with a specific rating. Unfortunately, Disney's content filter works based on the MPAA and U.S. television rating systems rather than age-based restrictions. So you'll have to decide if you want your child to see only G/TV-G content or allow TV-Y7 and TV-Y7/FV.
As mentioned earlier, the most popular Disney Plus deal is the Disney Bundle. This deal gives users access to Disney Plus, ESPN Plus, and ad-supported Hulu for one single payment starting at just $9.99 monthly. It gets a little complicated, but the short version is that if you have separate accounts on each of the three services, you can link them together in a virtual bundle via a single email address. You pay Disney Plus once a month, and Disney Plus applies credits to ESPN Plus and Hulu for their base subscription. You can also keep the various Hulu add-ons like Hulu with Live TV and/or No Ads with Disney Plus for an extra fee.
This is the best deal in streaming today. Since the Disney/Fox content that's deemed too adult for Disney Plus will go to Hulu, this bundle ensures that you'll be able to watch all the content under Disney's big umbrella. You'll also be able to watch all the sports on ESPN Plus like UFC fighting.
Sign up for Verizon's Unlimited Plus plan and get the Disney Bundle for $10.00/line, built into the monthly cost of the plan. That's a decent saving every month, not to mention instant access to three great streaming services: Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN Plus without ads for Disney Plus (with ads for Hulu and ESPN Plus).
Disney Plus has already proven to be a worthy contender for seasoned services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The content available on Disney Plus is quite impressive. The pricing is even more so, with the Disney Bundle costing less than a Netflix Premium subscription. This has made it easy for many to switch to Disney's offerings.
However, when comparing Max to Disney Plus, things may get a little more complicated. The ad-free Max plan costs $15.99/month, three dollars more than the Disney Bundle, but it also comes with thousands of titles that are likely to entice even the most passionate Disney fans. Instead of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you'll get titles like The Batman and Justice League, not to mention Studio Ghibli films and popular series like Friends, The Last of Us, and Game of Thrones. Now that Max (formerly HBO Max) has merged with Discovery Plus, you'll find even more content from networks like TLC, HGTV, the Food Network, and CNN. That being said, Disney Plus remains a clear winner for kid-friendly content.
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