Disney Plus was released on Nov. 12 and is attempting to do what Hulu once did to Netflix: Take a piece of the streaming pie. Should you consider Disney+ if you have Hulu? How does their programming compare?
When it comes to the competing entertainment options, here is everything you need to know about the latest addition to the streaming wars—and how Disney Plus compares to Hulu.
DISNEY PLUS PLANS7 day free trial |
|
| DISNEY+ | $6.99 |
| DISNEY+ BUNDLE
(with Hulu and ESPN+) |
$12.99 |
Hulu
Not long ago, Netflix only mailed DVDs and the Disney channel had two Zack and Cody series; it was a simpler time. Now, Disney has a streaming service, Netflix is the streaming service, and Hulu (a streaming service) has live TV. Hulu has done very well in establishing a foothold in the burgeoning industry, but it’ll be interesting to see how it exists post-Disney+.
Hulu has four packages: Basic for $5.99, Premium for $11.99, Basic with Live TV for $44.99 per month, and Premium with Live TV for $50.99. It has a vast array of movies and TV shows, and now Hulu with Live TV is the middle ground between TV and streaming. It’s one of the best cord-cutting options in terms of the comprehensive entertainment offered, featuring more than 50 live channels.
Not sure what to watch on Hulu? Here are the best movies on Hulu, what’s new, the best shows on Hulu, the sexiest movies you can stream on the service, Hulu documentaries, anime, and the must-see Hulu originals.
Looking for something more specific? Here are the best thrillers, serial killer movies, and action movies to get your heart racing, classic movies when you want a blast from the past, sad movies when you need a good cry, adult cartoons, and funny movies on Hulu when you need a good laugh.
Classic Hulu’s trump card? If you care about current TV shows on Fox, NBC, and cable, Hulu gets those episodes a day after they air live. Its original series are also well-reviewed and interesting.
To that end, Disney Plus is less a direct competitor and more of a low-cost supplement to Hulu households.
READ MORE:
- How to add Disney+ if you already have Hulu or ESPN+
- How to get Disney+ bundle if you already subscribe to Hulu and/or ESPN+
Disney Plus
Disney Plus is $6.99 per month and you can watch on up to four devices at once. Content is streamed in 4K HDR and you can even download content for road trips or plane rides when you don’t have service.
It arrived on Nov. 12 with more than 500 original movies and 7,500 episodes across mammoth genres like Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, and National Geographic. It’s an essential offering for families with children.
But the biggest story here is that a huge company like Disney has announced loud and clear that streaming is the future of home entertainment, and the best content is getting to streaming services faster than ever before. Instead of channel surfing for a re-run, we have entire databases constructed for us to find the best content quick and easy. And for most of you reading this, I’m not breaking any news. But in 10 years we may look back at Disney Plus as the day cable was struck its final blow, much like how Netflix marked the beginning of the streaming era a decade ago.
What’s on Disney+? Here’s everything we know:
Disney Plus bundle
Hulu has apparently read the writing on the wall and hedged its bets with Disney to make the best cord-cutting deal that there is: You can get ESPN+, Disney Plus, and Hulu for a total of $12.99 a month. This combination creates the single best home entertainment deal you can find, with Hulu’s shows, Disney Plus’ movies, and ESPN’s large catalog of live game rights. This is something that Netflix simply can’t compete with, and bundles like these will become more common as companies realize this is how modern households want to watch TV: Browsing vast libraries on their own time, with options for everyone.
No true cord-cutter wants to have seven different subscriptions after all.
If your question is Hulu or Disney Plus, the answer is both, with ESPN+ as the cherry on top.
READ MORE:
- Everything you need to know about Disney+
- How does Disney+ compare to Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, and Apple TV+?
- Here are all of the Disney+ titles available to stream at launch
- Every Marvel Cinematic Universe movie and show missing from Disney+ (and when they’ll show up)
- The best movies and TV shows streaming on Disney+
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