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College is expensive, but there are fortunately a number of streaming services that offer substantial student discounts that can help give your wallet a break. Students on a budget can take advantage of several deals from popular streaming services, including film, TV, and music offerings. If you plan out your spending and snag the right discounts, you can now enjoy several streaming services without breaking the bank.
To help you decide what to sign up for, we rounded up the best streaming service deals that are currently available for college students in the US. We've also compiled a list of popular streaming services that don't offer any sort of student discount so that you don't waste your time trying to find one.
Verification procedures vary from service to service, with most now using third-party verification platforms like SheerID to look into your student status. Be sure to check each platform's website for full details.
Amazon Prime
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Amazon offers a discounted plan for college students called Amazon Prime Student. The program includes a six-month free trial for new members and each month after the trial costs $7.49. An individual membership to Amazon Prime costs $14.99 a month, so by claiming the student membership, you get 50% off the standard price.
The student plan includes access to Prime Video where you can watch shows like "Fleabag," "Invincible," and "The Boys." Prime Video is also the home to several original films, like "Being the Ricardos" and "Air."
In addition to Prime Video, student members receive fast and free shipping on millions of eligible items, discounts on services like three months of Calm for free, and more exclusive deals that are further explained in our breakdown of Amazon Prime Student.
Hulu
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Hulu offers their basic ad-supported plan to college students for $1.99/month until they graduate as a part of their Hulu Student Deal plan. The Hulu Basic Plan normally costs $7.99 a month, so the student discount saves you about 75%.
Hulu Basic offers access to Hulu's full catalog of movies and original series. Hulu also features a big selection of network shows, including popular series like "Grey's Anatomy," "The Bachelor," and "Bob's Burgers." You'll also be able to stream Emmy Award-winning Hulu originals, like "The Handmaid's Tale," "The Great," and "The Dropout."
Paramount+
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Similar to Hulu, Paramount+ offers their ad-supported plan to college students at a discounted rate. You can claim a 25% discount on the Essential Plan, which brings the price down to around $4.50 a month. Unlike most streaming service deals, current college students can lock in this discount for four years, even if they graduate.
With Paramount_, you can watch CBS shows like "NCIS," "Criminal Minds," and "Ghosts," along with movies like "Mean Girls," "Top Gun: Maverick," and "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning." This is also the streaming service where you'll find all of the "Yellowstone" prequels. The service features content from Paramount, CBS, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, BET, and The Smithsonian Channel.
The platform also includes original series like "The Good Fight" and "Star Trek: Discovery." Take a look at our full guide to original shows and movies on Paramount+ for more information about current and upcoming titles.
Peacock
Peacock
Peacock now has a student deal that reducess the monthly cost by about two-thirds of what it normally would be. The Peacock Student Discount goes for $1.99 per month, as opposed to the standard monthly rate of $5.99. Students who continue to meet verification standards can renew their discount every year.
A Peacock account comes with access to several beloved sitcoms, including "The Office," "Parks and Recreation," and "30 Rock." The streaming service also has a variety of original TV shows, like "Poker Face" and "Apples Never Fall," as well as several top-rated films, including all eight "Harry Potter" movies. Peacock is also where you'll find this year's Academy Award for Best Picture winner, "Oppenheimer."
Apple
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Apple's student streaming plan combines subscriptions to Apple Music and Apple TV+ for just $5.99 per month. With Apple Music at a regular monthly rate of $10.99 and Apple TV+ at a rate of $9.99, this student deal is more than 70% off in total.
College students are eligible for this discount for up to four years as long as they remain enrolled in school.
With Apple TV+ you can stream original series like "Ted Lasso," "For All Mankind," and "The Morning Show." Apple Music allows you to stream over 75 million songs from your favorite artists without any interruptions from ads. You can also download music to supported devices for offline listening.
Spotify
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Spotify is another company offering an exclusive deal for college students that combines music with streaming services. You can get Spotify Premium Student for $5.99 a month after a one-month free trial. The discount also comes with Hulu's ad-supported plan thrown in, so it's a great deal.
The student plan is $5 cheaper than the individual Spotify Premium plan which costs $10.99 a month. To retain access to Spotify Premium at this discounted rate, students must verify they are still enrolled in college every 12 months. The Spotify Premium Student bundle is valid for a maximum of four years and you're only eligible for it if you haven't tried Premium before.
YouTube Premium
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YouTube Premium offers $6 off their individual plan to students, along with a one-month free trial for new customers.
This streaming service doesn't offer many original movies or shows, but for a discounted rate of $7.99 a month you can watch YouTube without ads, keep videos running in the background, and use the YouTube Music Premium app. The regular individual YouTube Premium rate is $13.99, so this isn't a bad deal.
Annual verifications are required to keep the student discount.
Streaming services without student deals
Though student discounts have become common, there are a few streaming services that don't currently offer any student deals. The following services don't have any active student discount offers:
It's worth noting that Discovery+ only got rid of their student discount in June of 2023, but subscribed students were allowed to keep the discount for the remainder of their verified year. So, if you've recently started getting charged $4.99 per month, it's because your year was up.
Additional streaming deals
For more streaming recommendations, take a look at our guide to the best streaming services. And, if you're looking for a compact smart TV or media player ideal for watching any of these apps in a dorm or apartment, check out these home entertainment gift ideas for college students.
Amazon
Hulu
Paramount Plus
Discovery
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Spotify
YouTube
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