# The Athletic pricing (2026): plans, cost, and compliance

**Entry price:** $6/mo (Annual). Among the 8 news subscriptions we track it is #3 cheapest of 8; median entry $7/mo.
**Domain:** theathletic.com
**Free tier:** No
**Compliance:** HIPAA Not published · SOC 2 Not published · GDPR Not published
**Integrations:** iOS 18+, iPadOS, macOS, Apple Watch, Apple TV, Android, web (nytimes.com/athletic)
**Best for:** Hardcore sports fans who want beat-writer depth on specific teams, not just scores; Podcast consumers wanting sports-specific audio beyond mainstream radio; Fantasy sports players who want expert analysis across all major leagues
**Price tracked since:** June 2026

## Plans

| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Billing | Notes | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $7.99 | — | flat | Full access to The Athletic's sports journalism, beat writers and podcasts, billed monthly. | apps.apple.com |
| Annual | $6 | −25% | flat | Same full access billed annually at $71.99/year (equiv. $6.00/month); ~25% cheaper than monthly. | apps.apple.com |

**Key features:** 400+ dedicated sports journalists and beat writers; Coverage: NFL (32 teams), MLB (30 teams), NBA (30 teams), NHL (23 teams), MLS, PGA Tour, F1, NASCAR, college sports, Premier League; Live scores and real-time stats; Original podcasts: The Athletic Football Show, The Audible, No Dunks, and league-specific shows; Breaking news alerts with real-time notifications; Connections: Sports Edition (daily word-grouping game); In-depth long-form journalism and exclusive interviews; No advertising — subscription-only revenue model; Apple Editors' Choice award recipient.

**Plan limits:** No free tier — hard paywall, subscription required for all content; No free trial stated in App Store listing; English and French (Montreal only) language support.

## Cheaper news subscriptions alternatives

- [The New York Times](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/news-subscriptions/new-york-times/) — from $4.99/mo
- [Financial Times](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/news-subscriptions/financial-times/) — from $4.99/mo

Sources: 1 · Last verified 2026-06-13
Provenance: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/the-athletic-all-sports-news/id1135216317 (official The Athletic US App Store listing, In-App Purchases, accessed 2026-06-13; standard annual $71.99 corroborated by trade press)
Canonical: https://frontdeskreview.com/software/news-subscriptions/the-athletic/
Cite: Per The Front Desk Review, The Athletic's entry plan was $6/mo as of 2026-06-13 — https://frontdeskreview.com/software/news-subscriptions/the-athletic/
License: CC BY 4.0. Price history: https://frontdeskreview.com/data/price-history.jsonl