Hulu is one of the cheaper streaming services but comes with a smaller library of content and less original content than many bigger providers. For the lower price, you’re also opening yourself up to ads in some of your TV shows and movies.
The ad-free option ends up being more expensive than many of the other big streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Apple TV, and even Disney Plus.
How Much is Hulu A Month?
Hulu starts at $6.99 per month or $69.99 per year, and that includes ads during some of your TV shows and movies, you can upgrade your plan to remove most ads, but that eliminates the price benefit you get.
Hulu Ads and No Ads plans come with the same access to movies and tv shows. You get two simultaneous streams from the same Hulu account and maximum video quality that your internet connection and device can handle.
Hulu Pricing Plans
Hulu Ad and No Ad plans offer the same content, so the only difference is if ads will bother or interfere with your viewing enough for you to upgrade to a much more expensive option.
Live TV through Hulu gives you access to channels that traditionally come with cable tv, such as live sports, news, daytime dramas and soaps, weather, and a host of channels like BET, Comedy Central, MTV, and many more.
The downside to Live TV with Hulu is that it’s costly, so you need to determine if you really need that option or whether you could get the same content for cheaper for free or through other streaming services.
The add-on streaming services like HBO Max don’t offer any discount by using Hulu, so it’s just a single place to access and control your streaming options.
| Cost | Free Trial | Hulu – Ads | Hulu – No Ads | Disney Plus | ESPN+ | LIve Network TV | |
| Hulu Ads – Student Discount | $1.99 / Month | ✓ | |||||
| Hulu Ads | $6.99 / Month or $69.99 / Year | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
| Hulu No Ads | $12.99 / Month | ✓ | |||||
| Disney Bundle – Ads | $13.99 / Month | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| Disney Bundle – No Ads | $19.99 / Month | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| Display Plus Bundled – Ads + Live TV | $69.99 / Month | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Display Plus Bundled – No Ads + Live TV | $75.99 / Month | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Service Add-On | |||||||
| Unlimited Screens | $9.99 / Month | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
| Cloud DVR for Live TV | $9.99 / Month | ✓ | |||||
| Additional Streaming Service Add-On | |||||||
| ESPN+ | $6.99 / Month | ||||||
| HBO Max | $14.99 / Month | ✓ | |||||
| Cinemax | $9.99 / Month | ✓ | |||||
| SHOWTIME | $10.99 / Month | ✓ | |||||
| STARZ | $8.99 / Month | ✓ |
Does Hulu Have Ads?
Hulu does have ads in both options you can choose from. Hulu offers a $6.99 / Month plan, which you can upgrade to no ads for $12.99 / Month, which is a significant jump in price.
You can get the Disney Plus Bundle + Live TV with ads for $69.99 / Month or remove the ads for $75.99 / Month.
To pay for the no-ads option adds a lot of cost to Hulu, which puts it in a higher price range than most other streaming services, so if you decide to do that, consider if Hulu is the best option for you.
Does Hulu Have Free Trials?
Hulu offers their Hulu with Ads plan for a 30-day free trial with no limitations, which you will need a credit card to sign up for, and if you don’t cancel within 30 days, you will be charged.
To sign up just go to Hulu and provide your details.
To cancel your Hulu subscription at any point, you can log in and go to your account; under your account will be a Cancel Subscription option.
The cancellation will allow you to pause your subscription for 12 weeks, cancel any specific services such as Live TV or Unlimited Screens, or you can actually cancel the entire account.
Is Hulu Free with Amazon Prime?
Hulu is not free with Amazon Prime, and you can’t get Hulu through Amazon Prime Video. They are independent and competing services that do not provide bundles or deals together.
In some situations, you may get deals on Hulu when purchasing Amazon Fire devices, but those types of deals are not guaranteed but may be worth checking if you need a new Amazon Fire device.
Some cell phone carriers bundle streaming services like Hulu into some of their plans, so check your cell phone provider to see what they offer, but Sprint currently offers Hulu for free with some plans.
What is the Cheapest Way to Get Hulu?
Hulu provides a 30-day free trial that you can take advantage of; after that, your cheapest option is the $6.99 / Month, or if you can commit to 1 year, then it’s only $69.99.
Hulu Student Discount
If you’re a student, you can get Hulu with Ads for only $1.99 / Month, which is a great deal whether Hulu will be your primary streaming service or not.
Spotify offers a bundle for students that provides Spotify, Hulu with Ads, and SHOWTIME Premium for only $4.99 / month.
Is Hulu Worth It?
From my perspective, I don’t think Hulu is worth the cost; it’s only barely below other streaming services, but you need to deal with advertisements, and that’s not something I want.
If you pay for Hulu No Ads, then the subscription cost is well above the standard streaming service price, and the library of content is much smaller than Netflix or Amazon Prime Video.
Hulu is best for
Hulu is best for anybody that wants the specific original content that Hulu provides, which is good content, and you may want to buy a one-month subscription once in a while to watch it.
Anybody looking for access to Live TV that they’ve been missing with streaming services will also want Hulu as it’s one of the few places you can watch such a wide variety of channels.
Click here to sign up for Hulu.
Hulu is not for
Hulu is not for anybody looking for a massive range of original programming and an extensive content library for a low monthly cost without ads.
If you’re looking for a wider range of live TV with unlimited cloud DVR then there are better options, such as YouTube TV.
