Apple sells Apple Arcade for $6.99 per month or $49.99 per year, Apple Fitness+ for $9.99 per month or $79.99 annually, and Apple Creator Studio for $12.99 per month or $129 per year, according to its US product pages. Paying yearly instead of monthly saves $33.89 on Arcade, $39.89 on Fitness+ and $26.88 on Creator Studio over 12 months, by our math.
That makes Arcade’s annual plan the best deal of the three in percentage terms, at about 40% off. Creator Studio’s annual discount is the smallest, at about 17%.
The savings, calculated
The savings below are our own arithmetic, based on Apple’s listed US prices. We multiplied each monthly price by 12 and subtracted the annual price.
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| Plan | Monthly price | 12 months at monthly price | Annual price | Saving per year | Saving |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Arcade | $6.99 | $83.88 | $49.99 | $33.89 | 40.4% |
| Apple Fitness+ | $9.99 | $119.88 | $79.99 | $39.89 | 33.3% |
| Apple Creator Studio | $12.99 | $155.88 | $129 | $26.88 | 17.2% |
| Creator Studio, students and educators | $2.99 | $35.88 | $29.99 | $5.89 | 16.4% |
Spread across 12 months, the annual plans work out to about $4.17 a month for Arcade, $6.67 for Fitness+, $10.75 for Creator Studio and $2.50 for the student and educator plan.
When an annual plan pays off
The catch with any annual plan is that you pay up front. If you would cancel after a few months, monthly billing is cheaper. Here is the point where the annual plan wins, again by our math:
- Apple Arcade: seven months at $6.99 costs $48.93, just under the $49.99 annual price. If you would keep Arcade for eight months or more ($55.92), the annual plan is cheaper.
- Apple Fitness+: eight months at $9.99 costs $79.92, seven cents less than the annual price. You need to stay nine months or more ($89.91) for the annual plan to come out ahead.
- Apple Creator Studio: nine months at $12.99 costs $116.91. At ten months ($129.90), monthly billing passes the $129 annual price.
- Creator Studio for students and educators: ten months at $2.99 costs $29.90, nine cents under the $29.99 annual price. The annual plan wins from 11 months ($32.89).
In short, Arcade’s annual plan is the easiest call. Creator Studio’s annual plan only makes sense if you are sure you will use it for most of the year.
Family Sharing makes the numbers better
All three subscriptions can be shared, which cuts the cost per person:
- Apple says you can share Apple Arcade “with up to five people at no extra cost.”
- Apple Fitness+ can be shared with up to five family members, and Apple says each one “gets their own personalized Fitness+ experience.”
- A standard Apple Creator Studio subscription can be shared with up to five other family members. Apple says the student and educator plans “are for individual use and cannot be shared through Family Sharing.”
For a family of six, Arcade’s annual plan works out to about $8.33 per person per year, by our math.
Use the free trial first
Each service has a trial, so you can test it before committing to a year:
| Service | Free trial for new subscribers | With a new device |
|---|---|---|
| Apple Arcade | None listed on Apple’s page | 3 months with an eligible device |
| Apple Fitness+ | 1 month, then $9.99 per month or $79.99 annually | 3 months with an eligible device |
| Apple Creator Studio | 1 month, then $12.99 per month or $129 per year | 3 months with an iPad or Mac purchase |
Apple’s Arcade page also points to a one-month Apple One trial. Apple One bundles Arcade with other services and costs $21.95, $27.95 or $39.95 per month depending on the plan.
How to switch to an annual plan
On iPhone or iPad, Apple’s support steps start the same way for every subscription:
- Open Settings and tap your name.
- Tap Subscriptions.
- Tap the subscription you want to change.
Apple’s Creator Studio support page describes the next step as tapping See All Plans and choosing a different subscription option. On a Mac, you reach the same list in the App Store by clicking your name and then Subscriptions.
What you lose if you cancel
Cancelling works differently for each service. Apple says you lose access to Arcade games when you cancel, but your game progress is available if you resubscribe, as long as iCloud is turned on.
For Creator Studio, Apple says you keep access until the end of the billing period. After that, Keynote, Pages, Numbers and Freeform still work without the subscription’s intelligence features, and your projects remain.
Annual billing for iCloud+ has also been reported in some countries, with much smaller discounts. We covered that in our look at iCloud+ annual plans. Apple’s current Arcade pricing is on its Apple Arcade page.
