Who Has the Better Annual Pass Program: Disney World or Universal Orlando?

Disney World’s Annual Passholder program has been a controversial subject due to the tier system that was introduced several years ago and the price increases that have hit these passes in the past. With that in mind, it’s worth asking how Universal Orlando’s Passholder Program compares. Are they similar in pricing and benefits? Is one program better than the other?

We’re here to break down both Annual Pass programs so you can make the best choice for you (and what we’ve discovered may be surprising, especially for non-Florida residents). If you’re trying to decide which pass to buy, here’s everything you need to know.

 

*Please note — pricing, benefits, and terms for Annual Passes are subject to change. This post was last updated on July 1st, 2024.*

Disney World Annual Passes

In 2021, Disney World debuted a new Annual Pass program, which has changed in more than a few ways, so let’s break it down.

Pricing

Disney World’s Annual Pass program has 4 tiers of pricing, with only one pass available for non-Florida residents to purchase.

The Disney Incredi-Pass is available for anyone to purchase at $1,449 plus tax. It has no blockout dates and Incredi-Pass holders can make and hold up to 5 required theme park reservations at one time.

The Disney Sorcerer Pass is $999 plus tax, with limited blockout dates. Sorcerer Pass holders can make and hold up to 5 required park pass reservations at a time. This pass is only available to Florida Residents or eligible Disney Vacation Club Members. 

For $799 plus tax, the Disney Pirate Pass has blockout dates during peak times and holidays, and Pirate Pass holders can make and hold up to 4 required park pass reservations at a time. This pass is only available to Florida residents.

At the lowest price of $439 plus tax, the Disney Pixie Dust Pass has the most blockout dates including peak times, holidays, and weekends. Pixie Dust Pass holders can make and hold up to 3 required park pass reservations at a time. This pass type is only available to Florida residents.

So out of four passes, non-Florida residents only have one pass option (the Incredi-Pass), and it happens to be the most expensive pass.

Entrance to all four Disney Parks is included in each annual pass, but Water Parks and Sports are now an add-on for $99 (plus tax) per person. Disney PhotoPass Downloads is also an additional charge of $99 (plus tax) for the year if that’s something you want to add to your pass.

A quick note about Park Passes (park reservations) — as of early 2024, Park Passes are not required for most tickets BUT they continue to be required for Annual Passholders. So, if you’re an Annual Passholder, you’ll typically be required to make a Park Pass to visit a theme park.

There are some exceptions though. First, Annual Passholders can visit the parks without a park pass reservation after 2PM — except on Saturdays and Sundays at Magic Kingdom. Second, from time to time, Disney may add “good-to-go” days on the Annual Passholder park pass calendar. On “good-to-go” days, Annual Passholders will be able to enter certain parks without a park pass reservation.

Click here to see all the reasons you should NOT become a Disney World Annual Passholder

Payment Options

Non-Florida residents are only able to purchase the most expensive Disney World Annual Pass AND they are also ineligible to make monthly payments. Only Florida residents can play for their passes monthly, after a $205 down payment.

At $1,449 plus tax for the Disney Incredi-Pass, that can be a really big price tag for people who don’t have the option to make monthly payments.

Benefits 

For all Disney World annual passes, standard theme park parking (which usually costs around $25) is included.

Park hopping is also included, and a variety of discounts are available with up to 20% off select dining, merchandise, and activities.

Disney World Passholders also often get access to exclusive annual passholder events and merchandise. These can sometimes include limited-time perks, like access to special passholder-exclusive treats or a passholder-exclusive lounge.

Click here for our full page about Annual Passholder benefits and discounts

Universal Annual Passes

There are more Universal Annual Pass options for both Florida and non-Florida residents when compared to Disney, especially because they break things down into 2-park and 3-park options. Let’s go through it.

Pricing

Universal Orlando offers four pricing tiers of annual passes for BOTH Florida residents AND non-Florida residents. In addition, Universal lets guests decide whether to purchase passes with access to 2 or 3 Universal Parks.

Both Florida and non-Florida residents can choose between passes that grant access to 2 parks, including Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida, or 3 parks, which adds Volcano Bay.

Non-Florida Residents

Non-Florida residents can purchase the following 2-park passes:

• Seasonal Pass for $425
• Power Pass for $475
• Preferred Pass for $630
• Premier Pass for $905.

Or, non-Florida residents can purchase 3-park passes as follows:

• Seasonal Pass for $525
• Power Pass for $585
• Preferred Pass for $740
• Premier Pass for $1,095

Florida Residents

Florida residents have access to the same passes at lower prices. Here’s a breakdown of the 2-park annual pass prices:

• Seasonal Pass at $325
• Power Pass at $375
• Preferred Pass at $530
• Premier Pass at $790.

Be sure to look for special promotions that may be run from time to time. These may give Florida Residents an even bigger discount on annual passes for a limited time (in the screenshot below you’ll see pricing included from a promotion Universal was running at the time this post was updated in 2024 which provided an additional discount on an annual pass).

The 3-Park Annual Pass pricing for Florida residents is as follows:

• Seasonal Pass at $425
• Power Pass at $485
• Preferred Pass at $640
• Premier Pass at $980.

The Seasonal Pass and Power Pass have blockout dates (the Power Pass is blocked out for some key holiday times, while the Seasonal Pass has more blockout dates — it is blocked out for key holiday times and peak times).

The Premier and Preferred Passes have no blockout dates EXCEPT that the Preferred Pass does have some blockout dates for Volcano Bay only (so this only impacts you if you buy the 3-Park Pass).

Click here to read our full page about Universal Orlando

Payment Options

Unlike Disney World’s Annual Pass program, which only allows Florida residents to make monthly payments, Universal Studios has a monthly payment program available to Florida residents and non-Florida residents alike called FlexPay.

Except for the Seasonal Pass for non-Florida residents, Universal allows Passholders to make monthly payments over 11 months after an initial down payment. The amount of the initial down payment and the monthly payments vary depending on the pass type.

The monthly payments can make a major difference with people and families who are unable to pay the full annual pass amount at one time.

This Might Be the Best Kept Universal Orlando Secret of ALL Time

Benefits

Benefits for Universal passes include quite a bit.

For starters, Florida and non-Florida residents generally have the same benefits except that Florida residents have the option for Flex Pay with the Seasonal Pass.

The Seasonal Pass benefits include Universal Orlando hotel room discounts and discounts on select theme park and special events tickets.

The Power Pass adds on more benefits, granting passholders 50% off regular daytime self-parking, admission to select special events and concerts (like Mardi Gras), Universal Orlando hotel room discounts, and discounts on select theme park and special events tickets.

The Preferred Pass builds on more benefits, granting passholders free self-parking after the first visit, Early Park Admission (with some blockout dates), discounted food, merchandise, and specialty items, and the same benefits listed above.

And the Premier Pass adds even more benefits, with Universal Express after 4PM (for Universal Studios Florida and Universal Islands of Adventure only — with some restrictions), valet and prime self-parking after your first visit, one free Halloween Horror Nights ticket (on select nights only), and everything mentioned above.

So in the end, some of the benefits Universal Orlando’s Annual Pass program offers are an improvement over Disney World’s Annual Pass program, particularly when it comes to options for non-Florida residents and monthly payment plans. If you’re considering annual passes to a theme park in Orlando, it’s worth it to look at all of the options and consider your needs to figure out what’s best for you.

Would you rather buy a Disney World or Universal Studios annual pass? Let us know in the comments!

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