YouTube Premium has announced another round of price hikes for its subscription services, affecting users in multiple countries outside the United States. The increases are set to roll out in November, adding to a trend of rising costs for the platform over the past several years. Subscribers in regions including Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East are facing some of the steepest jumps, with price hikes as high as 50% in some cases.
Countries like Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland are seeing particularly notable increases. In Norway, the price for an individual YouTube Premium plan will rise by approximately 42%, from $11.33 to just over $16. Sweden’s family plan price is increasing by 43%, jumping from $17.57 to $27.38 per month. Other European nations, such as Ireland, Belgium, and Italy, are also experiencing significant hikes, with family plan costs rising from €18 to €26, and individual plans increasing by €2, to €14 per month. Switzerland is seeing similar jumps, with the family plan rising from 24 CHF to 34 CHF, and individual plans going up to 18 CHF from 16 CHF.
These increases come on the heels of earlier price adjustments, including a rise in the U.S. market in mid-2023 and a separate international increase in late 2023. This latest round of changes has spurred frustration among users, many of whom have taken to online forums to express their dissatisfaction and discuss potential cancellations of their subscriptions, particularly for family plans.
YouTube Premium’s new prices now place the service as one of the more expensive streaming options on the market, surpassing competitors such as Spotify and Apple Music. However, with YouTube’s unique combination of ad-free video content and music streaming, users face limited alternatives. Some are weighing the option of switching to other music platforms, but for video streaming, the lack of direct competition leaves few choices beyond paying the higher fees or enduring YouTube’s increasingly frequent ads.
In addition to subscription price hikes, YouTube has been exploring new ways to monetize its regular user base, including the introduction of unskippable ads and the recent announcement of Pause ads, which will display when users pause a video on smart TVs. These changes are part of a broader shift by the platform to maximize its revenue as competition intensifies in the global streaming market.
The new pricing structure has not yet affected subscribers in the United States or Canada, where YouTube Premium costs remain at $13.99 for individual plans and $22.99 for family plans. However, as international customers brace for higher bills starting in November, it remains unclear whether further increases will follow in other regions.
