I paid full price for Disney+ for years – are cheaper plans really worth considering?

Ever since it first launched back in 2020, I’ve been a big fan of Disney+. In fact, thanks to the huge catalogue of content – which includes Disney, Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel – it’s been a subscription that I’ve never cancelled. Sadly, like everything in life, it has gotten a lot more expensive over the years. When it went live in the UK, users could access all of the best streaming features, including the ability to download movies onto devices, access 4K Ultra HD content, and not be disturbed by adverts for just £5.99 per month.

That’s now a distant memory. Those taking out Disney+ plans today are offered three ways to stream.

These include Premium, which is priced at £12.99 per month (or £129.90 for a year upfront) and includes 4K access, Dolby Atmos support for improved sound, watching on four devices at the same time, being able to download movies onto phones and tablets, plus not having to sit through adverts.

SEE THE DISNEY+ PLANS HERE

Next is the Standard option, which reduces the quality to 1080p, limits the number of concurrent streams to two, and switches off Dolby Atmos audio support.

Standard is cheaper. It’s priced at £8.99 per month (or £89.90 for a year upfront).

Finally, there’s the Standard with Ads plan, which costs just £4.99 per month.

As the name suggests, this bundle features sponsored messages whilst streaming, but that’s not all.

Those signing up for Standard with Ads also can’t download anything to watch away from Wi-Fi, can only view in HD, and can only have two gadgets streaming at the same time.

Unlike its two more premium siblings, which offer a lower price if you pay for a year up front, Standard with Ads can only be purchased via a monthly subscription.

SEE THE DISNEY+ PLANS HERE

So why am I sticking with Premium?

Firstly, if I’m going to watch a blockbuster Avengers movie on my big TV, I want the best picture and sound quality – pin-sharp 4K Ultra HD is only available when paying more.

Although I don’t mind adverts, I travel a lot, and not being able to download films or boxsets is a big reason why the basic plan doesn’t work for me.

With a house full of people using Disney+, I also like that those four concurrent streams are available, as it stops any arguments.

Yes, £12.99 is expensive, but I don’t want to downgrade and lose features I genuinely use.

However, not everyone agrees with me or thinks you need to spend all that money.

Deputy Technology Editor Henry Burrell is perfectly happy with the Standard with Ads plan he pays for and sees no reason to switch.

I pay just £4.99 per month for Disney+ because it offers me all the access I need for £8 less than the most expensive option. I also prefer paying on a rolling monthly basis, as my wife and I find we go through phases of wanting to binge a new series (Abbott Elementary, The Bear), and then not using the service for a few weeks, so paying on an annual basis is a waste of our money.

I haven’t missed not being able to download content to my iPad when I travel. In fact, I didn’t even know this was a restriction of the Standard with Ads plan – that’s how much it doesn’t bother me.

SEE THE DISNEY+ PLANS HERE

As for being limited to only two streams at once, again, this is not an issue for me. It might be if you are a larger household, but our account is usually just streaming on the living room TV or the iPad depending on where we are sitting.

Tech-wise, I am not fussy when it comes to TV screens, so our living room TV does not support 4K, therefore there’s no point in me paying for 4K streams. And I couldn’t tell you what Dolby Atmos is (I don’t think anyone can, really) – all I know is I’ve paired my two HomePod Mini speakers as a stereo pair via my Apple TV box plugged into my ageing TV and their audio chops more than suffice.

Finally, of course, the ads. They do not overly bother me – I’d rather save money and pay monthly to have the flexibility of cancelling Disney+ at any time. I’m more careful these days of not mindlessly paying for four or five streaming services that I don’t really use, which is easy to do and I have done in the past when paying annually.

During a 45-minute show, we find we get one ad break at the start and one in the middle. Yes, it is a bit annoying, but that’s the trade-off.

We even watched the film A Real Pain the other day, and Disney only placed an ad reel at the beginning, with no ads throughout the duration. Perhaps this will change in future (or perhaps Disney doesn’t put ads during films that address the Holocaust), but for now it’s a service I’m perfectly happy with for £4.99 per month.