How to Cancel Any Subscription in 5 Minutes
by Donna Wright:
If you’re tired of wasting money and ready to cancel subscriptions you no longer need or didn’t even know you were paying for, cancellation may be quicker than you think.
Take Charge of the Subscriptions You’re Paying For
When I was young, the only “subscription” that we would have to manage was a magazine subscription. These days, there are subscriptions for everything including many that you don’t even know that you are paying for and not using. And sometimes, you just want to cancel.
Well, back in 2024, the Federal Trade Commission approved a “Click-to-Cancel” rule that made it easier for us consumers to end recurring subscriptions and memberships. That means, we should not be afraid to pursue cancellations.
Common reasons to cancel:
- Meeting a budget or saving money
- Service is no longer used
- Free trial period ended
- You found a better or cheaper version
Whatever the reason, canceling a subscription should be easy and I’m going to tell you how it can be done in 5 minutes or less.
My Relatable Story: “I’m Paying For What Subscriptions?”
I am guilty of paying multiple … yes multiple … subscriptions that I never knew I signed up for and some that I never used more than one time. In my case, I am a magnet for free trials but then life gets busy and I don’t remember to cancel before the trial ends.
I know I’m not alone because a survey conducted by CNET revealed that the average American spends $1,000 a year on paid subscriptions and $200 for services they don’t even use.
Here’s one embarrassing example: I downloaded an intermittent fasting app called BodyFast that would tell me the ideal timeframe to eat while fasting. Not only did I stop using the app after one week but I forgot to cancel and was charged $3.92 per week (for many weeks!) and I gained five more pounds with a failed attempt at intermittent fasting. I’m not saying the app didn’t work. I just didn’t use it.
Another example is not my fault. Other family members that live in my house share my Apple, Microsoft, and Netflix accounts so subscription payments for cloud storage, music, movies, and other services are recurring. So, rather than ask the others if a subscription is being used, I just pay the bills … until we have a family meeting to discuss and no one is staking claim to specific “ghost” subscriptions.
When I discovered there was a simple way to cancel any service in less than five minutes, I knew I had to try it.
Types of Subscriptions You Might Be Paying For
Before I tell you how to cancel, I want to point out just a few types of the many, many, subscriptions that you might have and not remember you have, you might not be using enough to cost justify, or you might be paying too much for and there are cheaper alternatives.
Take a few moments to consider whether you may have signed up for these:
Streaming Services
- Amazon Prime
- Apple Music
- Disney+
- Hulu
- HBO Max
- Netflix S
- potify
Gym Memberships
- Anytime Fitness
- Crunch Fitness
- Gold’s Gym
- LA Fitness
- Orangetheory
- Planet Fitness
Games
- Xbox Game Pass
- PlayStation Plus
- Adobe
- Apple
- Microsoft
Books
- Audible
- Book of the Month Club
Clothing
- Fabletics
- Rent the Runway
- Stitch Fix
Box Subscriptions
- Blue Apron
- HelloFresh
- Thrive Market
- Universal Yums
Pets
- BarkBox
- Pretty Litter
- The Farmer’s Dog
Wellness
- Daily Harvest
- Seed
Gather Your Current Subscriptions
Now that I may have jogged your memory, make a list of your current subscriptions. Have your account details ready, such as login information and payment methods. This will help streamline the 5 minute cancellation process.
Step 1: Examine bank and credit card statements
Browse two to three months’ worth of recent transactions and mark down all the subscriptions and services that you’ve paid for. If you see any that say, “monthly fee”, “subscription”, or “membership”, add it to your list.
Step 2: Decide which to keep or cancel
Now, with the list of subscriptions in front of you, make a check mark next to the services you can’t live without. Then, put an “X” next to any that you can cancel. Of course, put a question mark next to any that don’t look familiar to you.
Note that you may want to keep a service but perhaps you can try to simply downgrade the plan to save a few dollars each month. This is what we did for our Apple Family Music plan. We lessened it to a plan that only allows one of us to listen at a time and that works fine with us.
When I made my list of 11 current subscriptions. After careful review and family discussions, we cancelled Thrive Market (took a few tries), disputed a few Apple services, paused Audible, and cancelled Adobe that I must have signed up for when I was closing on my house three years prior, and needed access to forms.
Step 3: Review Your Subscription Details
It’s a good idea to examine the terms and description of each subscription you want to cancel. Most subscriptions can be managed online or in the app by logging into the same account you signed up with. If you’re unsure, see if you can find the email confirmation that you received when you signed up.
Details to look for:
- Subscription/service name
- Expiration of a free trial period
- Billing cycle whether monthly, annual, or bi-annual
- Payment method of the subscription
- Cancellation policies, fees, or penalties
Set Your Timer For 5 Minutes and Let’s Start Cancelling
Now that you have all the subscription details and you’re looking at the account online or on the app, click on either “Account,” “Settings”, “Billing ” or “Subscription.” Dig deep for the cancellation option because it may be purposely hidden. Even if it takes a few tries, don’t give up.
You can typically find the cancellation instructions in the Frequently Asked Questions page. If you’re not having any luck, look for a chat box and ask the chatbot how to cancel. That has worked for me and keeps me within the 5 minute cancellation window that I was aiming for.
When you find the cancellation option, the site may ask you to complete a short survey about why you’re cancelling. Based on your answer, you may get a pop-up asking you to reconsider by taking a special discounted price. It’s your decision. If it’s an adequate discount, you may want to keep the service.
Please note that you may be provided a phone number to call customer service as the only way to cancel. Stay strong and cancel.
Important Step: Verify the Cancellation
Once you cancel, it’s imperative that you confirm the cancellation. Check your emails or log back into the online account. In a few weeks, make sure the subscription charge doesn’t show up on your credit card or banking statement.
If the online process or phone call doesn’t work, you may have to reach out to customer support or perform an in-person cancellation. I remember many years ago, having to walk into our local gym to expedite our membership cancellation because we were moving. And sure enough, we continued to get billed until we presented them with our formal cancellation request that included the gym manager’s name along with the date that he told us it would be terminated.
Too Many Subscriptions to Manage - Use Apps and Online Resources
If you’re not interested in cancelling your own subscriptions, you can use a paid service for subscription management. In fact, subscription manager apps like Rocket Money, Trim, Monarch Money, Simplifi, and other powerful tools locate and keep track of your recurring charges. Some of them may even help you cancel subscriptions.
Having the help from subscription management tools is a good long term solution for keeping track of free trials, hidden subscriptions, automatic renewal, and membership fee increases. It can also lessen the amount of “ghost” subscriptions that you didn’t even know you had but are paying for monthly.
Takeaways: Tips to Make Canceling Easier
- Refer to your bank and credit card statements for recurring charges
- Make a list with all of your current subscriptions and services
- Decide whether to keep, cancel, or lessen your plan and payment
- If you have too many, refer to a subscription management app for help
- Set calendar reminders for expiration of free trial periods
- Document all communications when cancelling
- Verify that the cancellation is confirmed
Author Bio: Donna Wright is a personal finance blogger for MoolaStakes.com, who enjoys researching, fact-checking, and expressing complex subjects in understandable terms. As a single parent, she knows the pitfalls of poor money management but also knows the satisfaction of improving finances. Her mission is to provide accurate, unbiased money management insights to money-conscious folks, just like her.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Readers should verify all details independently and use their own judgment when following these practices.