Save money by cancelling subscriptions. It’s easy when you put your mind to it.
We all have subscriptions that we don’t use. Some of us will even have subscriptions we don’t even remember!
Thanks to the controversial auto-renew feature, we can sign up for something one month, stop using and forget it the next and keep subscribing for years without noticing.
When every penny counts, that’s money down the drain!
So that’s the topic of the day.
To identify and cancel subscriptions to save money.
How to identify unwanted subscriptions
To be able to cancel a subscription, we first need to be able to find it.
You could use an app like Emma but that means letting it to connect to all your bank accounts.
If you’re comfortable doing that, great. It will analyse your spending and can quickly identify subscriptions.
If you’re not comfortable with using an app, you’ll need to use your home budget.
Check every outgoing from every account you have, including PayPal or other payment gateway.
Check all outgoings around the £7.99 – £10.99 mark as that’s a common price for subscriptions. But to be thorough, check everything.
The names next to these subscriptions may not be the clearest but should give you a clue as to who you’re paying.
Once you have identified a subscription you don’t use, cancel it.
How to cancel popular subscriptions
I’ll cover the more common subscriptions below, streaming and software services. I’ll also just show you how to do it on a computer as it would take forever to cover computer, iPhone and Android…
Cancelling a subscription doesn’t mean you can’t resubscribe later if you decide to.
1. Netflix
- Open the Netflix app or website and sign in to your account.
- Click on your profile icon in the top-right corner and select “Account.”
- Under the “Membership & Billing” section, click on “Cancel Membership.”
- Follow the prompts to confirm your cancellation.
Your subscription will remain active until the end of the current billing period.
2. Amazon Prime Video
- Log in to your Amazon account.
- Go to the “Your Account” section and click on “Prime Video Channels.”
- Find the subscription you want to cancel and click on “Cancel Channel.”
- Confirm your cancellation, and your subscription will end at the next renewal date.
3. Disney+
- Log in to your Disney+ account.
- Click on your profile icon and select “Account.”
- Under the “Subscription” section, click on “Cancel Subscription.”
- Follow the instructions to confirm the cancellation.
Your subscription will continue until the current billing cycle ends.
4. Now TV
- Sign in to your Now TV account.
- Click on your account name and select “Passes & vouchers.”
- Find the pass you want to cancel and click on “Cancel Pass.”
- Confirm your cancellation, and the pass will remain active until its expiry date.
5. Apple TV+
- Open the Apple TV app and sign in with your Apple ID.
- Scroll down to the “Apple TV+” section and tap on “Manage Subscriptions.”
- Choose the Apple TV+ subscription and select “Cancel Subscription.”
- Confirm the cancellation to end the subscription after the current billing period.
Cancel software subscriptions:
1. Microsoft Office 365
- Open a web browser and log in to your Microsoft account associated with Office 365.
- Click on “Services & subscriptions” to see a list of your active subscriptions.
- Find your Office 365 subscription and select “Manage.”
- Click on “Cancel” or “Turn off recurring billing,” and follow the prompts to confirm the cancellation.
Your access to Office 365 will continue until the end of your current billing cycle.
2. Adobe Creative Cloud
- Head to the Adobe website and log in to your Adobe ID.
- Click on your profile icon and select “Manage account.”
- Under “Plans & products,” find your Creative Cloud subscription and click on “Cancel plan.”
- Follow the on-screen instructions to confirm the cancellation.
Your access to Creative Cloud apps will continue until the end of your current billing period.
3. Dropbox Plus
- Log in to your Dropbox account on the website.
- Click on your profile picture and select “Settings.”
- Go to the “Plan” tab and click on “Cancel plan.”
- Confirm the cancellation, and your Dropbox Plus subscription will end after the current billing cycle.
4. Spotify Premium
- Open the Spotify app or website and log in to your account.
- Click on your profile icon and select “Account.”
- Scroll down to the “Your plan” section and click on “Change or Cancel.”
- Choose “Cancel Premium” and follow the prompts to confirm.
Your premium benefits will continue until the end of the billing cycle.
5. Norton Antivirus
- Visit the Norton website and log in to your account.
- Click on “My Subscriptions” to see your active Norton subscriptions.
- Find the antivirus subscription you want to cancel and click on “Cancel.”
- Follow the steps to confirm the cancellation.
Your Norton protection will continue until the subscription period ends.
By cancelling subscriptions you’re not actively using, you can free up some extra funds each month while still having access to a wide range of content.
It’s worth noting that some services might have unique cancellation steps or features that have changed since the time of writing.
Always double-check the service’s official website or contact customer support for the latest information.
Cancelling subscriptions to save money
I tried to cover as many streaming services as I could think of in this post. But, as you can see, each has a very similar process, so if you don’t see yours here, it will likely work in a similar way.
While saving £6.99 or so a month, it all adds up over the year and, if you’re not using the service, it’s a complete waste of money!
