What’s up with YouTube Premium pricing?

Forums › Online streaming services › What’s up with YouTube Premium pricing?

dafman

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#323402 28-Nov-2025 17:47

Back in October, I cancelled YouTube premium family as the price was increasing from $29.99 to $39.99.

Since then, YouTube has, annoyingly, kept prompting me to reactive.

Yesterday, out of curiosity, from within the YouTube iOS app, I clicked on reactivate and was shocked to see the monthly cost to reactivate family is $51.99! I’ve checked it several times from both iphone and ipad and the displayed price is $51.99 per month.

However, if I log into YouTube via a browser, the reactivate price is shown as $39.99.

No idea what is going on, anyone else seen the $51.99 price?

MaxineN

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#3438315 28-Nov-2025 17:54

Apple is taking a cut.

Ramblings from a mysterious lady who's into tech. Warning I may often create zingers.

Stu

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#3438317 28-Nov-2025 18:00

As above. Some streaming service subscriptions, when paid via Apple or Google, are often higher than paying direct.

People often mistake me for an adult because of my age.

Keep calm, and carry on posting.

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dafman

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#3438320 28-Nov-2025 18:10

Stu:

As above. Some streaming service subscriptions, when paid via Apple or Google, are often higher than paying direct.

Price is 30% greater, simply because the payment channel is different, with a total lack of transparency.

Linux

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#3438327 28-Nov-2025 18:46

Apple tax clearly

richms

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#3438329 28-Nov-2025 18:50

dafman:

Price is 30% greater, simply because the payment channel is different, with a total lack of transparency.

Apple terms mean that they cant be transparent about it.

Even showing other pricing in a browser on the phone that you have opened up from the app will get you in crap with them.

Richard rich.ms

MaxineN

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#3438330 28-Nov-2025 18:52

Linux:

Apple tax clearly

Google do it to.

Ramblings from a mysterious lady who's into tech. Warning I may often create zingers.

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JayADee

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#3438345 28-Nov-2025 20:08

MaxineN:

Apple is taking a cut.

Wow, just wow.

johno1234

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#3438347 28-Nov-2025 20:20

UBlock does a great job in browsers

Handle9

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#3438350 28-Nov-2025 20:48

JayADee:

MaxineN:

Apple is taking a cut.

Wow, just wow.

How is it wow? Apple has been taking 30% since they have had an app store.

everettpsycho

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#3438374 28-Nov-2025 21:57

It's not the apple taking a cut I have the problem with, it's the terms that state you basically can't tell users that is what is going on, it's unclear that you are being charged more because of it and is borderline predatory. By all means take your 30% but it should be labelled as an apple pay surcharge like when you use a credit card at an eftpos machine has to tell you it's a surcharge because you elected to use that payment method.

The entire epic games lawsuit started because they called it out in fortnite knowing full well it broke the terms of service and had the legal action ready to go when apple did the inevitable pull of their game from the app store.

Linux

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#3438376 28-Nov-2025 22:17

johno1234:

UBlock does a great job in browsers

@johno1234 Sure does

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dafman

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#3438413 29-Nov-2025 09:44

Handle9:

JayADee:

MaxineN:

Apple is taking a cut.

Wow, just wow.

How is it wow? Apple has been taking 30% since they have had an app store.

This is a little different I reckon as the app experience is the same regardless of which payment channel I use. Paying the significantly lower amount via Google still gives me access to the full functionality of YouTube app from the App store.

Side comment: We have subscribed to Apple Music family which is $15 per month cheaper than YouTube premium. Apple Music is lossless, so an upgrade from Google, and I now watch YouTube on my phone on the Brave browser which blocks the adverts. So YouTube Premium has very little to offer me to return.

Tinkerisk

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#3438452 29-Nov-2025 12:56

Google (or any other data octopus) won't get any money from me, period.

It is their right to make demands and mine not to comply. For example, the request to remove my network ad blocker on YouTube, which has so far reliably resisted all announcements of restrictions. Their greed for data still seems to dominate.

However, I would not be surprised if they identify ‘me’ based on my interests, browser and machine data, which raises the question of whether these really correspond to reality, because you can also turn any version of a Windows PC of any screen resolution into an iMac or Linux PC with any other OS version and screen resolution online. What they do, can I do too. 😉

So the task is not to prevent data collection, but to give them false data. 😁

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