With so many Apple subscription services available today, your wallet may take a hit. Apple One claims to be the answer, but is it really worth it?
It can be challenging to determine which of Apple’s various Apple One subscription bundle pricing tiers is the best deal. We’ll address the issue of the cost before moving on to the specific service components.
Apple One Cost
For potential Apple One subscribers, there are three monthly pricing alternatives:
- $14.95/month for Apple One Individual.
- $19.95/month for Apple One Family.
- $29.95/month for Apple One Premier.
The Individual plan is exactly what it says it is: a single Apple ID subscription to Apple One. Five family members can enjoy the same services under the Family tier. Additionally, you receive four times as much cloud storage, but if all five slots are filled, it still provides less space per person than the Individual option.
Apple News+ and Apple Fitness+ are two additional services that are included with the Premier package. Additionally, it provides 2TB of shared storage, a tenfold increase of iCloud. If all five spots are filled, that works out to 400GB per person.
The Premier tier provides the best value and the most discounts, but only if the extra storage and services are important to you. So that you know what you’re getting for your money, let’s take a quick look at each service.
Apple Music ($9.99/month for individuals; $14.99/month for families)
Apple Music is in direct opposition to services like Tidal, Spotify, and YouTube Music. Over 75 million songs, with a growing collection, are on the service, claims Apple. In fact, practically all well-known artists are there and well-represented.
Our research shows that certain lesser-known musicians aren’t on Apple Music, even though you can locate them on YouTube. However, the overwhelming majority of Apple Music subscribers are unsatisfied with the selection.
The best music streaming service in the business is Apple Music. We really appreciate the carefully prepared collection that enables you to familiarise yourself with the discographies of new musicians.
For this service alone, there are four price tiers. There are also Student ($4.99/mo) and Voice ($4.99/mo) options in addition to the two already mentioned. Given that not everyone is eligible for the student plan and that the voice plan is only available with Siri, we are not factoring in these specific price plans.
Apple Arcade (Family Sharing, $4.99/mo.)
When it comes to hardware optimization, support for gaming accessories like gamepads, and high-end game experiences for mobile devices, iOS has traditionally been well ahead of Android. However, the same problems with free-to-play and microtransaction-heavy games exist on iOS and Android.
Apple Arcade is serving as a “Netflix” for games, somewhat like Xbox Game Pass. You have complete access to a carefully curated library of games that is always expanding as long as you remain a subscriber.
Games on the Apple Arcade are promised to be high-quality and free of microtransactions. You can access everything if you pay your monthly price. Your entire family can play together on iPhones, Macs, iPads, and Apple TVs for roughly $5 per month thanks to Family Sharing, which is also included by default.
Apple TV+ (Family Sharing for $4.99/month)
Apple’s response to Netflix and Amazon Prime Video is Apple TV+. It delivers top-tier Apple-produced original series and movies in a variety of genres.
There are some true jewels here, including Ted Lasso, Foundation, and The Morning Show, despite the fact that the range of episodes is far lower than the libraries provided by rival services.
Although there is a tonne of great stuff available to view and more is constantly being added, we don’t believe Apple TV+ is deserving of a stand-alone, ongoing subscription. It makes more sense to sign up for a month, watch every episode, and then cancel the service once more.
Apple iCloud+ (Beginning at $0.99/month)
All Apple accounts are provided with 5 GB of free cloud storage, which can be used to store backups of user data and images. You will have to pay for additional space if you need it.
Although Apple’s pricing model is a little strange, a single user may purchase 50GB of space for just $1 each month. Then, iCloud storage costs $2.99 for 200GB and $9.99 for 2TB. Family sharing is an option for the 200GB and 2TB versions.
Although we wish there were more intermediate tiers and larger tiers for professional users, Apple’s iCloud service is genuinely helpful for everyone with one or more Apple devices. We do, however, concede that it seamlessly integrates into the ecosystem and advise all owners of Apple devices to purchase iCloud storage.
Apple News+ (Apple One Premier Only; Family Sharing: $9.99/mo)
Apple News+ might be a good fit if you’re tired of encountering paywalls when seeking for news online. It functions via the Apple News app. You will have access to various expensive paid news sources and periodicals as part of your subscription cost.
This seems fantastic, but you won’t be able to use the service if you don’t reside in the US, Canada, Australia, or the UK. The flat rate does, however, include Family Sharing. This means that your family group of up to six individuals can use the app to get premium news.
There are more than 200 publications available, some of which have older issues. However, as far as we can tell, no magazine’s whole run is available. Everyone is guaranteed to find something they enjoy in these magazines because they cover a wide range of topics.
On the newspaper front, you’ll have access to The Wall Street Journal, the LA Times, and the Toronto Star. Apple News+ is a great deal, especially when you take the cost of magazine and newspaper subscriptions into account. You might pay the same amount for just one issue, especially when compared to applications like Zinio.
Apple Fitness+ (Only Apple One Premier, $9.99/month)
With its appeal to tech enthusiasts and fitness enthusiasts, the Apple Watch series has been a huge success for Apple. Apple unveiled the Fitness+ program after becoming a key participant in the wearable industry.
Owners of Apple Watches have access to at-home exercises taught by certified instructors thanks to this service. The aim is to pair this with your Apple Watch’s fitness tracking and educational videos to make sure you’re meeting your fitness goals.
After setting up Apple Fitness+, which requires an Apple Watch, you may follow workouts on your iPhone or iPad without the watch. Naturally, none of the live measurements will appear on the screen if you are not wearing your Apple Watch. The workout can also be displayed on your TV using AirPlay, although the metrics are not yet visible there either.
When Is Apple One Worth It?
It makes sense to pay $6 less for the same service if you already utilize all four of the features offered by Apple One’s individual tier. The primary drawback of this tier is that it only provides 50GB of iCloud storage. Therefore, you’re better off paying individually if you require more than that (and we believe 200GB of iCloud storage to be the ideal amount).
The family plan is the most cost-effective option for two people who can share the 200GB of iCloud storage, but it excludes News+ and Fitness+ and has very little amount of storage if there are more than two of you.
Recommendations from us:
- If you live alone, are content with 50GB of cloud storage, and have no interest in News+ or Fitness+, consider purchasing Apple One Individual.
- If you only have four people in your household and don’t care about News+ or Fitness+, choose Apple One Family.
- The Premier tier should be given to everyone else.
Even if you don’t use all the services, there is still a lot of value in each tier. To make sure you’re saving money, add up the costs of the individual subscriptions for the services you use vs the ones you don’t.