Surprise Price Hike: YouTube Premium Hit $14/month

Google has quietly raised the prices for YouTube Premium and YouTube Music Premium without any official announcement.

The cost of YouTube Premium has increased by $2, now priced at $14 per month, while the annual subscription price has increased to $140, saving $28 compared to paying monthly.

Similarly, YouTube Music Premium now costs $11 per month, matching the price increases made by Apple and Amazon for their music services.

Apart from ad-free viewing, offline playback, and background playback (which lets videos continue to play even while the app is minimized or the phone screen is off), YouTube Premium offers a number other advantage. On some platforms, it also makes higher-quality 1080p streaming possible.

Google had previously increased the cost of the family Premium plan to $23 per month, which would take effect the next month for current monthly members.

However, some users who subscribed to the service when it was called YouTube Red in 2018 and priced at $10 are still being honoured at the old rate.

In addition to price increases, YouTube has taken action against ad-blockers, which let users watch videos without adverts.

YouTube has taken measures against ad-blockers that allow users to watch videos without ads. Some users have encountered pop-ups warning that their video playback will be blocked unless they turn off their ad blockers or allow the site.

YouTube justifies the presence of ads, as they support the platform to remain free for billions of users globally. For an ad-free experience, the company suggests subscribing to YouTube Premium.