The Washington Post is facing a class action lawsuit over the publication's use of reader data to set subscription prices. 

The practice, known as "surveillance pricing," offers different prices to subscribers based on their activities, such as reading morning headlines, checking an election update or following a favorite columnist, Courthouse News Service reported. 

The practice has been going on since at least December 2024, the proposed class of readers argue in the lawsuit. The readers explain that the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general across the country have investigated companies for using consumers' personal information to set individualized prices instead of market forces. 

The readers argue that New York law requires companies that engage in the practice to disclose it. The law took effect in late 2025, but the Post didn't disclose to its readers that it was using their activities to set prices until March 2026. 

The lawsuit was filed in D.C. Superior Court on Thursday.