Disney Plus has lost millions of subscribers since its peak, but the exact count shifts with each earnings report

Disney Plus reached its highest subscriber count of 150.2 million in late 2022, then shed roughly 13 million subscribers over the next year and a half. The company stopped reporting subscriber losses in detail after mid-2023, so the current total is harder to pin down—Disney now groups Disney Plus with Hulu and ESPN+ in combined reports. As of early 2024, Disney Plus alone likely sits somewhere between 110 and 120 million subscribers, though the company does not break out that number publicly anymore.

The cancellations came in waves tied to specific events: price increases in December 2022 and October 2023, the removal of password-sharing features, and competition from other streaming services. Unlike the early pandemic years when Disney Plus gained subscribers faster than almost any service in history, the platform now faces the same churn that Netflix, Hulu, and others have dealt with for years.

Key Takeaways

  • Disney Plus peaked at 150.2 million subscribers in late 2022 and lost roughly 13 million by mid-2023, though exact current numbers are no longer disclosed separately.
  • Major cancellation waves followed price increases in December 2022 and October 2023, when Disney raised subscription costs and introduced an ad-supported tier.
  • The company stopped reporting Disney Plus subscriber counts separately in 2023, now grouping the service with Hulu and ESPN+ in combined financial reports.
  • Cancellations accelerated when Disney removed password-sharing features and when competitors like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video expanded their content libraries.

When Disney Plus lost the most subscribers

The largest wave of cancellations happened between October 2022 and September 2023. Disney reported losing 4 million subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2022 (October through December), then another 4 million in the first quarter of 2023 (January through March). The second quarter of 2023 saw an additional 4 million leave. These losses coincided with two price increases: one in December 2022 that raised the ad-free plan to $10.99 per month, and another in October 2023 that pushed the premium tier to $13.99 per month.

The password-sharing crackdown also drove cancellations. Disney began enforcing restrictions on account sharing in November 2022, requiring users outside a household to pay for their own subscriptions. This policy mirrored Netflix's earlier move and affected millions of people who had been watching on shared accounts without paying.

Why Disney stopped reporting separate subscriber numbers

Starting in the third quarter of 2023, Disney combined Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN+ into a single subscriber metric called "Disney Entertainment." This bundling makes it impossible for outside observers to know exactly how many people subscribe to Disney Plus alone. The company reported 150.6 million combined subscribers across all three services as of the end of 2023, but did not break down how many belonged to each platform.

Analysts estimate Disney Plus holds roughly 70 to 75 percent of that combined total, which would put it between 105 and 113 million subscribers. However, these are educated guesses based on earlier trends and market research—not official figures. Disney's decision to stop reporting separate numbers makes it harder for investors and the public to track whether the service is still losing subscribers or has stabilized.

How Disney Plus cancellations compare to other streaming services

Netflix also lost subscribers in 2022 and 2023, but recovered faster. Netflix shed 1.3 million subscribers in the first half of 2022, then gained 5.5 million in the second half after introducing an ad-supported tier and cracking down on password sharing. By contrast, Disney Plus continued losing subscribers through 2023 even after introducing its own ad tier in December 2022.

Hulu and ESPN+ have shown different patterns. Hulu (with ads) has remained relatively stable, while ESPN+ has grown steadily as Disney bundled it with Disney Plus and Hulu at discounted prices. The bundle strategy—offering all three services together for less than the sum of their individual prices—appears designed to keep people from canceling any single service.

What drove people to cancel

Price increases were the most cited reason. When Disney raised prices in December 2022, the ad-free plan jumped from $10.99 to $10.99 (no change) but the premium plan went from $11.99 to $13.99. In October 2023, the ad-free plan climbed to $13.99 and the premium plan to $19.99. For households watching on multiple devices or in different locations, these increases made the service less attractive than competitors.

Content gaps also mattered. While Disney Plus launched with strong back-catalog appeal—decades of Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars films and shows—the service slowed its release schedule in 2023 to cut costs. Fewer new releases meant fewer reasons for casual viewers to keep paying month to month. Simultaneously, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video expanded their libraries, giving subscribers more options elsewhere.

Password-sharing restrictions hit a specific group hard: college students, adult children, and extended family members who had been watching on shared accounts. When Disney enforced the policy, millions of these users either had to pay for their own subscription or stop watching.

The bundle strategy and its effect on cancellations

In October 2023, Disney introduced a bundle that combined Disney Plus (with ads), Hulu (with ads), and ESPN+ for $14.99 per month—cheaper than Disney Plus alone at its new price. This bundle was designed to reduce cancellations by making the overall cost more attractive and by tying Disney Plus to services that appeal to different audiences. Someone who might cancel Disney Plus for lack of new content might keep the bundle for ESPN+ sports coverage or Hulu's broader entertainment library.

The bundle appears to have slowed the rate of cancellations, though Disney does not report whether bundle subscribers are more or less likely to cancel than single-service subscribers. By grouping all three services into one financial metric, Disney made it impossible to know whether Disney Plus itself is still losing subscribers or whether the bundle is straightforward shifting people from single subscriptions to bundled ones.

What the cancellation trend means for Disney Plus going forward

The era of rapid growth for Disney Plus is over. The service will likely continue to lose some subscribers to price sensitivity and competition, but the bundle strategy suggests Disney is prioritizing revenue per user over total subscriber count. A smaller but more profitable subscriber base—especially one locked into a bundle—may be more valuable to Disney than the 150 million peak it reached in 2022.

Future cancellation rates will depend on content releases, price stability, and how aggressively Disney competes on cost. The company has signaled it will focus on profitability rather than growth, which means fewer blockbuster releases and more reliance on the bundle to keep people subscribed. This approach differs from Netflix's early strategy of spending heavily to gain subscribers first, then raising prices later.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many people have canceled Disney Plus since it launched?

Disney Plus gained roughly 150 million subscribers by late 2022, then lost about 13 million by mid-2023. The company no longer reports Disney Plus subscriber numbers separately, so the total cancellations since launch cannot be calculated precisely. Estimates suggest the service currently has between 105 and 120 million subscribers, but this is based on analyst estimates rather than official figures.

Is Disney Plus still losing subscribers?

Disney stopped reporting separate Disney Plus subscriber numbers in 2023, so there is no official answer. Analysts believe the rate of cancellations has slowed since the bundle was introduced in October 2023, but without separate reporting, it is impossible to know whether Disney Plus itself is still shrinking or whether the bundle is straightforward masking subscriber movement between services.

Why did Disney stop reporting how many people subscribe to Disney Plus?

Disney combined Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN+ into a single metric to simplify financial reporting and to highlight the bundle strategy. This also makes it harder for investors and competitors to track whether individual services are gaining or losing subscribers. The company reports 150.6 million combined subscribers across all three services but does not break down the split.

Did the price increase cause the cancellations?

Price increases in December 2022 and October 2023 coincided with the largest waves of cancellations, and surveys showed price was the top reason people cited for leaving. However, content gaps, password-sharing restrictions, and competition from other services also played a role. It is unlikely any single factor caused all the cancellations.

Is the Disney Plus bundle worth it?

That depends on whether you watch content on all three services. The bundle costs $14.99 per month with ads or $24.99 without ads. If you would pay for Disney Plus alone ($7.99 with ads or $13.99 without), Hulu ($7.99 with ads or $17.99 without), and ESPN+ ($10.99), the bundle saves money. If you only want one service, it is not worth the cost.