HBO Max is getting the holiday week started a little early. The streamer isn’t waiting for Black Friday to start offering its headline doorbuster; just the opposite. As of right now, any new or returning HBO Max customer can sign up for the streamer’s Basic with Ads plan for just $2.99 per month for the next 12 months—a discount of over 70% off the regular price.

If you’ve been canceling and rotating subscriptions to save money this year, this is probably the signal you’ve been waiting for to bring HBO Max back into the fold.

Let’s crunch the numbers because they are genuinely impressive. Normally, the HBO Max Basic with Ads plan runs $10.99 per month. Over the course of a year, that would set you back roughly $132. With this Black Friday offer, you are locking in a rate of $35.88 for the entire year. You are essentially getting a year of service for the price of three months.

• The price: $2.99/month (vs. regular $10.99/month).
• The duration: 12 months. After that, it auto-renews at the then-current standard rate (so set a calendar reminder to cancel in November 2026!).
• Eligibility: New subscribers and returning subscribers who have canceled their service.
• Deadline: The deal is live now and expires on Monday, December 1 (Cyber Monday).

What you get (and what you don’t)

The “Basic with Ads” plan is a fantastic value at $3, but it’s not the full-fat premium experience. As a journalist who covers streaming services regularly, I want to make sure you know exactly what the trade-offs are before you hit subscribe.

The pros: You get full access to the massive library. We’re talking HBO originals like The Last of Us and Succession, the entire Warner Bros. movie catalog (including recent hits like Dune), and a mountain of Discovery reality content. The resolution is solid 1080p (Full HD), and you can stream on two devices at once.

The cons (the “ads” part): First, obviously, there are ads. HBO Max generally keeps the ad load lighter than competitors like Hulu, usually averaging about 3 to 4 minutes of ads per hour. It’s noticeable, but for most people, it’s a fair trade for the price.

The real deal-breaker for travelers: The biggest omission in this plan is offline downloads. If you were hoping to load up an iPad with House of the Dragon episodes for a holiday flight, you are out of luck with this specific tier. Offline viewing is strictly reserved for the pricier “Ad-Free” plans (which are currently not discounted to this extreme level). If you watch primarily on your couch with decent Wi-Fi, this won’t matter. If you’re a commuter, it might.

Usually, cheap streaming deals feel like you’re paying to access a “dead” library. That isn’t the case here. Based on Warner Bros. Discovery’s confirmed slate, this 12-month subscription window (Nov 2025 – Nov 2026) is going to cover some massive releases.

By locking this in now, your $2.99/month will likely cover:

• “The Pitt” (January 2026): The new medical drama starring Noah Wyle, which is shaping up to be HBO Max’s answer to ER.
• “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” (January 2026): The next Game of Thrones spinoff. It’s lighter, shorter, and focuses on the adventures of Dunk and Egg.
• “House of the Dragon” season 3 (Summer 2026): This is the big one. If you grab the deal now, your subscription will still be active when the dragons return next summer, saving you from having to pay full price just to watch the Targaryen civil war unfold.

If you can tolerate a few commercial breaks and don’t need to watch movies on an airplane, this is arguably the best value in streaming right now. Getting access to the HBO library for less than the price of a fancy coffee per month is a steal.

You can snag the deal directly at hbomax.com. Just remember: if you are currently subscribed, you’ll need to let your subscription lapse or use a different email address to qualify as a “returning” customer.

Related /

• HBO Max launches new “Love,” “Like,” “Not for me” rating system
• HBO Max announces new price hikes across all plans
• HBO Max is back—here’s why Warner Bros. Discovery changed its mind
• Warner Bros. restores HBO Max name after Max rebrand fails

Disclaimer: Prices and promotions mentioned in this article are accurate at the time of writing and are subject to change based on the retailers’ discretion. Please verify the current offer before making a purchase.