Disney Plus: What is it? Should you get it? Everything you need to know.

Disney announced well over a year ago that the company plans to launch its own streaming service that would compete directly with services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and plenty of others. Disney Plus formally launched late last year and quickly became one of the most popular streaming services in existence. 

So what is Disney Plus, what does it offer, and what else should you know about the service? This master guide serves as the place to find answers to all your Disney Plus questions. Don’t already have Disney Plus? Check out the free 7-day trial!

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What is Disney Plus?

Disney Plus is your one-stop-shop or all your favorite Disney Content. It’s not just Disney, there’s also tons of content from brands including Pixar, Marvel Studios,  National Geographic, and Star Wars universe. There’s even some content from the Disney-owned Fox network, including the vast majority of Simpsons episodes.

Check it out: Our favorite Simpsons episodes available on Disney Plus

For now, most of the content consists of Disney’s massive library of pre-existing shows and movies. This includes newer content as well as Disney classics straight from the Disney Vault. Of course original content is also part of the plan, and there are already some great exclusives to be found here — including the highly popular Star Wars show, The Mandalorian.

Disney Plus represents enormous value for consumers, especially families. Instead of paying individually for all your favorite Disney movies or shows, Disney Plus gives you access to its entire library for a monthly fee. Disney Plus is also being very aggressive with adding highly anticipated new Disney movies to its library relatively soon after they leave the theaters. For example, you can already get Frozen 2 or Onward on Disney Plus!

Can I get Disney Plus in my country? 

Disney Plus first launched back on November 12 to the following markets:

• Canada
• Netherlands
• United States

Since then, it’s expanded to other countries including:

• Australia
• New Zealand
• UK
• Ireland
• Germany
• Italy
• Spain
• Austria
• Switzerland

It’s also worth noting that Disney Plus has recently launched in India, though the arrangement is a bit different, as its actually part of the India-based Hotstar streaming service. You can learn more about Disney Plus in India here.

So what about other countries not listed above? Disney Plans to expand to dozens of new countries over the next two years. While the timeline could change, right now here’s a rough guideline on when to expect it:

• France: April 7
• Belgium, Portugal, and the Nordics: Summer 2020
• Latin America: first half of 2020
• Eastern Europe: early 2021
• Asia Pacific: between later 2020 and through 2021

How much is Disney Plus?

For those in the United States, Disney Plus will set you back just $6.99 a month, though you can save extra money by paying $69.99 up front for an annual subscription. 

Pricing outside of the United States varies:

• Canada: $8.99 CAN per month, $89.99 CAN for a yearly subscription
• Netherlands: 6.99 euros per month, $69.99 euros for a yearly subscription
• Australia: $8.99 AUS, $89.99 AUS for a yearly subscription
• New Zealand: $9.99, $99.99 for a yearly subscription
• India: 1,4999 INR yearly, or 399 INR for a “lighter” version that won’t include Disney Plus original content
• UK: s £5.99 a month in the UK, £59.99 for a yearly subscription
• Most other European countries: €6.99 per month, €69.99  for a yearly subscription

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How do I sign up for Disney Plus?

Before signing up for Disney Plus, check the list and above ake sure that it has launched in your region. If it is, signing up is really easy. Click here for a quick guide on how to do it. If you don’t mind the short of it, the easiest way is to head over to Disney Plus’ website and sign up there.

Also interested in Hulu and ESPN Plus? There’s a bundle for that.

Disney Plus is available in the US bundled with Hulu (with ads) and ESPN Plus. The price for getting all three streaming services is only $12.99 a month. The only catch is no free trial with this bundle.

By combining Hulu, ESPN Plus, and Disney Plus you pretty much have something for every member in the family: the sports lover, those who want to watch the latest TV shows right after they air on Hulu, and (of course) Disney fan! To subscribe for the bundle, hit up the link below:

Order Disney Plus-Hulu-ESPN Plus bundle

See also:

• How to sign up for the Disney Plus, ESPN, and Hulu bundle
• Bundling Disney Plus with no-ads Hulu and ESPN Plus is now much easier

Have Verizon or thinking about switching to Big Red? You can get Disney Plus for free!

If you are a current or new subscriber to select Verizon Wireless’ unlimited 4G or 5G plans, you can get a full year of Disney Plus for free. This deal is also available for new customers for Verizon’s Fios internet and 5G home internet services. The great news is that you can even add ESPN Plus and Hulu to the mix for just $6. That means you’ll get all three services for basically the price of one. Can’t beat that!

Check it out: Here’s how to get Disney Plus for free as a Verizon customer

What platforms and devices support Disney Plus?

Disney Plus is available on a wide variety of platforms devices. Here’s a list of what’s been confirmed:

• iOS, including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch devices
• Apple TV set-top boxes, including integration with the new Apple TV app. It will allow customers to sign up for the service inside the app
• Android, including Android-based phones and tablets (specific OS version not yet revealed)
• Android TV-based devices, including the Nvidia Shield.
• Google Chromecast and devices that have Chromecast built-in
• Microsoft Xbox One game consoles
• Sony Playstation 4 game consoles
• Roku, including all Roku sticks, set-top boxes, and TVs that have the Roku OS installed
• Amazon Fire TV-based sticks, set-top boxes, and TVs
• PC desktop web browsers 
• Samsung smart TVs from 2016 to the current models.
• LG smart TV models.
• Vizio SmartCast TVs from 2016 to the current models.

 The company has not confirmed Disney Plus support for the Nintendo Switch console. However, an early promo slide for the service did show Disney Plus running on that device. It’s possible it will be added in the future.

One thing to note, while the device you use to watch Disney Plus will offer the same content across the board, only Android and iOS devices will allow you to download your shows for offline viewing. 

• Here’s how to download Disney Plus movies and shows
• Check out these special keyboard shortcuts when watching Disney Plus on a PC

Does Disney Plus support 4k? And if so, what devices do you need?

Yes, Disney Plus supports 4K on a variety of devices! Devices include:

• Roku devices and TVs that support 4K
• Microsoft Xbox One
• Sony Playstation 4
• Appl TV
• 4K capable Android TV based devices
• Chromecast Ultra and 4K devices with Chromecast functionality baked in
• LG Smart TVs

That’s not necessarily a complete list, but it’s close. As for what you can watch in 4K? Quite a few Disney Plus movies and TV shows support 4K streaming. That includes all of the classic and prequel Star Wars films, which are being presented in 4K for the first time on the service. The Force Awakens and Rogue One also support 4K.

All of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies on Disney Plus support 4K streaming, as do all of the Pixar CGI feature films. A selection of films from Disney’s cel and CGI animated movies can be streamed in 4K, including classics like Frozen, the original Lion King, and more. A selection of live-action Disney Plus movies also supports 4K resolution, like Pirates of the Caribbean, The Princess Diaries, and The Santa Clause.

Many of the original TV shows and movies on the service support 4K streaming, including The Mandalorian, High School Musical: The Musical – The Series, Noelle, and Lady and the Tramp. You can tap or click on the “Details” section of the Disney Plus TV show or movie you want to watch to find out if it does support 4K streaming.

For more on what to watch in 4K on Disney Plus, as well as a full list of supported devices, head to our Disney 4K guide.

What’s on Disney Plus? A look at all the shows and movies 

Disney Plus will have access to hundreds of movies and thousands of TV shows from its 90 years of content. This includes all those great animated films and live-action movies from the Disney brand, including the Disney Vault full of classics such as Snow White, Cinderella, The Lion King, and many more. Disney will also feature all of the Pixar movies you know and love, as well as tons of Star Wars shows and films. Marvel fans will find the vast majority of their favorite movies, and there are even some TV shows from the National Geographic Channel.

Classic content from The Disney Channel is also available on Disney Plus. That includes shows like Duck Tales to Hannah Montana, with thousands of episodes and over 100 movies.

Disney Plus also has a number of family-themed TV shows and movies from its recent Fox purchase. That includes The Simpsons, with all 30 seasons available from day one on the service.

Of course, not everything Disney has ever made will be found on the service, yet. Because of a current contract with Netflix and others like HBO, some shows and movies won’t make their way to the service until a bit later. Disney plans to transition all its content away from the competition over the next few years.

As we mentioned earlier in this guide, Disney Plus will have plenty of exclusive content too! Here’s a full list of every exclusive show or movie on the service right now:

• Noelle – a Christmas movie starring Anna Kendrick as the daughter of Santa Claus. The movie also stars Bill Hader.
• Lady and the Tramp – a live action-CGI remake of the classic Disney animated film.
• The Mandalorian – A 10-episode live-action TV series based in the Star Wars universe. It centers on an unnamed Mandalorian bounty hunter. The series has been renewed for a second season, due in fall 2020.
• High School Musical – The Musical: The Series – A TV series reboot of the popular Disney Channel movie series. The show has already been renewed for a second season.
• The World According to Jeff Goldblum – A NatGeo series centering on actor Jeff Goldblum and his look at interesting things on the planet. The series has been renewed for a second season, due in fall 2020.
• The Imagineering Story – A six-part docuseries that focuses on the works of the Imagineers. They have combined art and engineering to bring the Disney parks attractions to life.
• Sparkshorts – Disney’s Pixar animation group has a number of exclusive shorts that can be streamed now on Disney Plus.
• Pixar in Real Life – Another Pixar-based series, but this one is not animated. Instead, this docu-series will see classic Pixar movie characters interact with real humans in a “Candid Camera” type of way.
• Forky Asks A Question – A series of shorts featuring Forky, the new character from Toy Story 4.
• Encore – Former students reunite to once again stage their high-school musical as adults.
• Marvel’s Hero Project – A series about kids who are making a difference in their communities.
• IOne Day at Disney – A feature-length documentary that will look at the lives of Disney employees around the world. It was filmed during one day on the job, February 21, 2019. After the feature film is released, Disney Plus will show One Day at Disney short subjects every week, and each will focus on just one employee in the Walt Disney company.
• Togo – a movie based on the real-life story of a sled dog, Togo, and his master who have to transport a diphtheria serum to Nome, Alaska in 1925.
• Diary of a Female President – A show about a 12-year old Cuban-American girl who is destined to become the President of the United States. This show will actually be ade by CBS Studios, rather than by Disney.
• Pick of the Litter – A docuseries about six dogs being trained to be guide dogs for the blind.
• Timmy Failure – a movie based on the popular children’s book series of the same name
• Stargirl – a movie based on the young adult novel of the same name
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars – The seven and final season of the cult-favorite animated TV series set in between Star Wars: Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith.
• Be Our Chef – Families complete to cook dishes, with the winning dishes to be offered at Disney’s theme parks.
• Shop Class – Students compete to create new and cool gadgets.

Looking for more to watch? Click here for a full list of every movie and show on Disney Plus right now!

Curious about what new content we can expect on the service in the future? Here’s a quick look at just some of the original films and TV shows coming to Disney Plus in the future:

• Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Candace Against the Universe – A new animated movie based on the classic Disney Channel series
• Secret Society of Second Class Royals – This movie centers on a princess who is second in line to the throne of her kingdom, who discovers she has superpowers.
• Lizzie McGuire – This is a sequel series to the popular Disney Channel teen comedy show. It will feature Hillary Duff reprising her role as the title character, who is now 30 years old.
• Monsters at Work – A TV show based on the universe of Pixar’s Monsters Inc and Monsters University animated films
• The Sandlot  – A show based on the cult hit kids baseball film
• Chip ‘n’ Dale – A new reboot of Disney’s animated show featuring the two chipmunks Chip and Dale
• Untitled Star Wars: Rogue One prequel series – a TV show that centers on rebel spy Cassian Andor, played by Diego Luna, before the events of Rogue One
• Untitled Star Wars: Obi-Wan series – Ewan McGregor will return to the role he took on during the Star Wars prequel movies in this series. Currently, this series is on “indefinite hold” in terms of production but it has not been canceled.
• Falcon and The Winter Soldier – A Marvel series that teams up two of the superheroes that have been previous teammates of Captain America.
• WandaVision – A Marvel series that focuses on The Scarlet Witch and Vision couple
• Loki  – A six-episode TV show based on Loki, the popular Marvel Studios supervillain. Actor Tom Hiddleston will reprise that role for the series.
• Hawkeye – Jeremy Renner will return to his role as Marvel’s top archer in this series.
• Ms. Marvel – A Marvel Studios series centering on the Pakistani-American superhero of the same name.
• Moon Knight – Yet another Marvel Studios series, this one telling the story of Marc Spector, a dark vigilante with moon-based powers
• She-Hulk – The gamma-powered woman who is also a lawyer will be the subject of another Marvel Studios series.
• Marvel What If – A animated series that takes a look at how the Marvel Cinematic Universe would look if certain events had happened differently.

That’s just a small taste of what is to come. For more details on upcoming Disney Plus shows and movies, head here! Also check out our guide to the upcoming Disney Plus Marvel TV shows and upcoming Disney Plus Star Wars features.

What about all of that Fox content and Hulu?

As mentioned, Disney has now acquired much of the content of 21st Century Fox. That means Disney will have the movie and TV rights to franchises like Aliens, Predator, Planet of the Apes, and the X-Men-Deadpool Marvel Comics characters. However, Disney Plus will launch for a family audience, which means that much of Fox’s franchises, which are made for an older audience, won’t show up on the Disney streaming service.

However Disney chairman Bob Iger has stated that a number of former Fox franchises will be rebooted in some way for Disney Plus. Specific movie franchises that were mentioned included Home Alone, Night at the Museum, Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Cheaper by the Dozen.

The good news for Disney is that it now effectively controls all of Hulu. It originally owned 30 percent, and then it bought the 30 percent share once owned by Fox. Recently, it made a deal with Comcast to buy the remaining interest it has in Hulu in about five years, but Comcast also agreed to give operational control of the service to Disney.  Hulu currently has about 20 million subscribers. Disney has indicated that it could offer content of the properties that it bought in the Fox deal on Hulu, rather than on Disney Plus.

More recently, shows that were slated originally for Disney Plus have now been moved to Hulu. That includes the recently released TV adaptation of High Fidelity, and the upcoming Love, Simon show (now to be titled Love, Victor).

The best shows and movies on Disney Plus

As you can tell, there’s a fair amount of content on Disney Plus and the list continues to grow. To make it easier to find the shows you like, the Android Authority team has put together specific guides that dive into various genres, as well as our thoughts on the best movies and best shows: 

• Best Pixar movies on Disney Plus
• Best Star Wars movies on Disney Plus
• Best Disney Plus Marvel movies
• Best Christmas movies on Disney Plus

Just looking for what’s new? Check out the list of what’s new to Disney Plus this month.

Disney Plus interface and features

The Disney Plus app and UI include special sections for Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and National Geographic brands There will also be sections in the interface so users can see all of the service’s movies, TV shows, and original content. It recently added a “Continue Watching” section so users can see which movies and shows they stopped watching in the middle, so they can quickly resume them.

Users will be able to create up to seven custom individual profiles. Kids can see the shows and movies they are interested in, while their older parents can see their preferred content.

Disney Plus also has a Kids Mode. It includes parental controls so moms and days can keep their sons and daughters from seeing content that’s out of their age group.

Disney Plus vs the competition – is Disney Plus worth it?

Disney Plus has a ton of content, but it’s still pretty light on the exclusives, even if Disney is working hard to change this. Disney also tends to focus on family-friendly content, so more mature-themed shows are basically nonexistent. If you’re looking for family-friendly viewing and love what Disney produces, it’s an absolute no brainer. This is further helped by its relatively low price tag, at least compared to many competitors.

• Disney Plus review – a great start!
• Disney Plus is a nostalgia buffet, but is that enough?

Prefer programming that’s a bit more on the adult side? Netflix might be a better choice for many. For more direct comparisons, hit up the articles below:

• Disney Plus vs Netflix
• Disney Plus vs Apple TV

Other Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How long will it take for new movies to reach Disney Plus?
A: The answer to that varies. Recently we’ve seen Onward and Frozen 2 come to the service crazy fast, due to the pandemic. But typically, you’ll in for a wait of 5-8 months after theatrical release.

Q: How many profiles on Disney Plus can you have?
A: You can have seven profiles per account. Each profile can pick a different avatar, with more than 200 available from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and the Star Wars universe. 

Q: Does Disney Plus have parental controls?
A: Yep it sure does! That said, they are pretty basic. You can filter out what kinds of content they can watch based on the rating. That’s pretty much it for Disney Plus parental controls and honestly, most of Disney’s content was already family-friendly enough that it’s not a major issue. Unfortunately, there are no options for time limits or anything like that, at least for now. 

Q: how many people can stream Disney Plus at a time?
A: Four devices can stream simultaneously. 

Q: Can you share a Disney Plus account with friends and family?
A: Yes, Disney recognizes that some will share and while it encourages users to get their own accounts, for now they are allowing it. That said, they claim to have backend technology that helps them identify who is sharing accounts and could crackdown if it hinders the service’s growth. So far though, Disney Plus doesn’t seem to have a growth issue!

Q: Does Disney Plus have ads? 
A: No, Disney Plus is ad-free. That said, some users will see a Starz add one time when finishing the sign-up process as part of a deal with Starz to get more content on Disney Plus sooner, but this is seemingly happening at random and won’t affect most users (and even if it does, it’s a one-time ad!)

Q: How many subscribers does Disney Plus have?
A: Likely around 30 million or more! While we haven’t had an update from Disney in a bit, back in early February it announced 28.6 subscribers. Since then it’s launched in more markets, and the coronavirus pandemic has likely led to even more sign-ups from bored folks stuck at home.

Q: I need to know how to turn off subtitles on Disney Plus but can’t figure it out.
A: While it’s easy to overlook, turning on or off subtitles on Disney Plus isn’t hard at all. For most devices: Simply tap on the screen to reveal control buttons, select subtitles from the top right corner. You’ll now be given the option to select on or off. For Roku users, just hit the asterisk symbol on your remote. For Apple TV users? Swipe down from top of Apple TV’s remote touchpad. Swipe over to subtitles, select off.

Q: How long is Disney Plus free trial and has it changed with COVID-19 going around?
A: While a lot of streaming services have extended trails to 30 days, Disney Plus isn’t one of them. You get 7 days. 

Q: I want to know how to gift Disney Plus to someone. Can I?
A: Yes, you can gift Disney Plus to others, easily! You can buy a one-year gift subscription for US residents for $69.99. 

Q: Will Disney Plus content be the same in all countries?
A: While Disney hasn’t announced plans to intentionally have exclusive content for specific regions, it’s possible existing streaming rights could affect when and what is on in different areas. Additionally, countries like France forbid a movie that was launched in theaters from coming to a streaming service for the first three years of its life. 

Q: I’m not getting my money’s worth out of Disney Plus. How do I cancel?
A: Cancelling is easy. Check out this guide for the exact steps you need to take. 

So what are you waiting for? Sign up for Disney Plus now, and take advantage of the 7-day free trial!

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