MagicBands launched in 2013 as free wristbands for Disney World hotel guests, became a paid extra in 2021 and are leaving Disneyland’s shelves this year. Now a rumor says sales could end.
For a while, the MagicBand was the most Disney thing you could wear at Walt Disney World.
It opened your hotel room, got you into the parks, paid for your churro and linked your ride photos, all with a tap of your wrist.
Thirteen years later, the rubber wristband is still around. A rumor this week says Disney could stop selling them around 2030, and Disneyland has already started winding down MagicBand+ sales at the resort.
Here’s Disney’s own explainer on what today’s MagicBand+ does at Disney World:
When did MagicBands come out?
Disney announced MagicBands on Jan. 7, 2013, as part of a system called MyMagic+.
Analysts estimated the whole project would cost between $800 million and $1 billion, The New York Times reported at the time. Disney’s parks chief, Tom Staggs, told the paper that “the bands themselves will contain no personal identifiable information.”
The bands used RFID chips. Tap one at a reader and it could open a door, enter a park, check in for a FastPass+ ride or charge a purchase to your room.
They had longer-range features too. Disney could link on-ride photos to your PhotoPass account without you tapping anything at all.
Were MagicBands free at Disney World?
Yes, for a long time. Guests staying at Disney World hotels got complimentary MagicBands, and Disney made more than 29 million of them in less than four years, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
In November 2016, Disney introduced MagicBand 2. Its center Mickey icon popped out, so you could move it into a keychain or another accessory.
The freebies ended during the pandemic. Hotel guests arriving on or after Jan. 1, 2021, no longer got a complimentary band, and Disney World emailed guests about the change in December 2020, BlogMickey reported.
Annual passholders lost their free bands later that year, in August 2021.
What replaced free MagicBands?
Your phone. Disney rolled out MagicMobile on Apple devices in March 2021 and added Android phones in April 2021, letting a phone or watch do the tapping.
Then came the upgrade. MagicBand+ debuted at Disney World on July 27, 2022, for $34.99, KennythePirate reported.
It’s rechargeable and waterproof. It lights up and vibrates during some nighttime shows, and it played along with the Fab 50 character statues during Disney World’s 50th anniversary.
MagicBand+ reached Disneyland that October, and Disney Cruise Line later got its own version, DisneyBand+.
Did Disneyland stop selling MagicBand+?
It’s getting there. In April, Disneyland officials confirmed the resort was phasing out on-property sales of MagicBand+, BlogMickey reported.
The bands still work at Disneyland, including the Batuu Bounty Hunters game in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. DisneyStore.com and Disney World still sell them.
Is Disney World phasing out MagicBands?
There’s no official word. A rumor from a WDWMAGIC forum poster, reported Thursday by WDW News Today and BlogMickey, says Disney World will add Disneyland-style photo entry gates.
The same rumor says MagicBands would stay supported, maybe not every model, but Disney could stop selling them around 2030. Disney hasn’t confirmed any of it.
Phones are also getting a bigger role. Apple and Disney confirmed to Skift that Disney World is a launch partner for the upgraded Wallet key in iOS 27, coming this fall.
Should you still buy a MagicBand+?
Only if you want one. MagicMobile already handles park entry, Lightning Lane check-ins and PhotoPass linking on your phone for free, so the band is mostly about convenience and fun.
If you already have one, it still works at Disney World, so keep it charged and bring it. It still beats digging for your phone while juggling a Mickey bar.
They’re collectibles now, too. Limited-edition designs come out all the time, and plenty of fans keep a drawer full of old bands from past trips.
If the rumor is right, the drawer might be the MagicBand’s final home. For now, it’s still on a lot of wrists in Orlando.
Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.
Pirates and Princesses is your destination for Disney news, theme park updates, and the pop culture you love. From Disney cruises and travel tips to Disney fashion, food, collectibles, and movie news, PNP covers it all. Visit us at piratesandprincesses.net for daily coverage. Follow PNP on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to the Pirates & Princesses podcast on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Hat Tips:
LaughingPlace (Jan. 6, 2013, and April 27, 2021), the Times report on MyMagic+ costs and MagicMobile on Android
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the 29 million bands figure
BlogMickey (Dec. 18, 2020, and April 29, 2026), free bands ending and Disneyland sales
Disney Food Blog (Aug. 16, 2021), passholder bands
KennythePirate (July 21, 2022), MagicBand+ launch date and price
WDW News Today and BlogMickey (Oct. 15, 2026), the entry gate rumor
Skift, Adriana Lee (June 25, 2026), Apple Wallet and Disney World
Disney Parks on YouTube (June 5, 2025), the MagicBand+ video
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