The Complete History of Mubi Price Hikes
Introduction
Originally known as the Auteurs, London-based Mubi mostly went under the radar when it first released in 2007. It had a unique concept. Instead of just gathering a library to stream, Mubi updated their library everyday with one new arthouse film suggestion from their curators. It was first offered in Europe at £2.99/month. When it arrived in America, Mubi promised unique picks at $4.99/month, a different proposition from what other streaming sites offered.
However, like other streamers, Mubi was not immune to price hikes. Since then, their monthly plan tripled in cost. They still offer plenty of indie fare, but they have shifted their distribution strategy, expanding beyond the screen and into cinema theaters worldwide. That meant plenty of changes for the streamer as a whole. Because of this, we decided to look into their price hikes in order to see the future costs for their American subscribers.
Mubi Price Hikes
July 2017. From $4.99 to $5.99 (Mubi monthly plan)
Mubi often announces their price hikes directly to subscribers rather than creating new press releases, so it was hard to hunt down the first time Mubi raised their prices. We noticed a price hike of $1 for their monthly around 2017.
- Mubi monthly plan: $5.99/month (+$1)
Mubi was mentioned to offer a yearly plan, though the exact number wasn’t mentioned. The price hike also follows Mubi’s expansion into in-theater film distribution, picking up titles like The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki and Weirdos for screening in America.
January 2018. From $5.99 to $8.99 (Mubi monthly plan)
Subscribers noticed another price hike early 2018 for both monthly and yearly plans.
- Mubi monthly plan: $8.99/month (+$3)
- Mubi yearly plan: $71.88/year
Mubi made huge changes to their platform at this time. They pushed their forum section lower and limited the character limits for audience film reviews, which some viewers felt detracted from the communal experience.
2021. From $8.99 to $10.99 (Mubi monthly plan)
Mubi continued to build up their presence online and offline. After securing an investment with Summit Partners in 2021, Mubi distributed festival favorites like Swallow, Songs My Brother Taught Me, and First Cow. Because of this, Mubi was able to have some titles stay longer in their catalog. As such, they also increased prices for both their monthly and yearly plans.
- Mubi monthly plan: $10.99/month (+$2)
- Mubi yearly plan: $83.88/year (+$12)
At this time, Mubi debuted their Mubi Go feature in America at the same price of their monthly plan. The streamer expanded online through creating an add-on for Amazon Prime Video. Prime users were able to watch some of Mubi’s library at a discounted rate of $5.99/month on top of their existing Prime plan.
Outside of distribution, Mubi published Mubi Notebook in magazine form, reaching out to filmmakers around the globe for their thoughts on the medium. They launched English and Spanish-language podcasts as well.
2023. From $10.99 to $12.99 (Mubi monthly plan)
Two years later, Mubi increased their monthly price by another $2. They also increased the cost of their yearly plan at least twice since 2021.
- Mubi monthly plan: $12.99/month (+$2)
- Mubi yearly plan: $107.88/year (+$24)
Mubi continued their work in theatrical distribution, bringing films like Petite Maman, Drive My Car, and Decision to Leave to American audiences. They also launched their own film festival, with their first American stop in Chicago.
2024. From $12.99 to $14.99 (Mubi monthly plan)
In 2024, Mubi increased the rates of their plans to their current prices. At this time, they acquired a majority stake in European film distributor Cinéart, and they also released The Substance to critical and commercial acclaim.
- Mubi monthly plan: $14.99/month (+$2)
- Mubi yearly plan: $119.88/year (+$12)
For American moviegoers, Mubi also expanded their Mubi Go plans to other major cities across the nation. As of writing, this option is available for Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington DC.
- MUBI Go monthly: $19.99/month
- MUBI Go yearly: $167.88/year
Mubi also raised prices on their Amazon Prime Video channel for the first time. From $5.99, Prime users found their add-ons shooting up to $14.99/month in 2025.
Mubi Future Price Hikes
Mubi has an interesting future ahead of them. As one of the few services offering movies both online and offline, it will be interesting to see where they will move forward, though as they grow, it’s likely that their prices will too. We anticipate their next price hike to occur in 2026, increasing by $2 for their monthly plan.
Why do we think that? There’s a lot in store for Mubi. They’re continuing to grow Mubi Go across the United States, so we think that would affect the price for their Mubi Go plans. They also have a slate of films yet to be released over the year, which would likely tie into that as well.
The biggest factor for the rise would likely be the investment made by Sequoia Capital. According to Summit Partners, that round of investment would be used for “content acquisition, original productions, global brand-building and M&A”. That means over time, it’s likely that we’ll see more films pop up in Mubi’s library, from filmmakers around the world, and maybe even from Mubi themselves as a studio. It’s also likely that they’ll continue to acquire smaller distributors to bring their movies to a wider audience. Rarely is an investment made without thought for profit, so it’s likely that subscriptions would rise in response. Hopefully, the cost would be worth it for their subscribers.
In any case, we’ll keep checking over Mubi’s price hikes, as well as hikes on other streamers, for cord-cutters to stay informed.
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