Maybe you signed up for an app planning to cancel it before the free or discounted trial ends. Then a month or more goes by and you completely forget about it. That is until you see a charge from Apple on your bank statement and find yourself paying for a monthly subscription you don’t want.
You may also be paying for subscription apps you rarely use anymore, like a streaming service you hardly ever watch or a digital magazine you haven’t read in months.
While each subscription fee may be relatively small, they can add up and make it harder to stay within your monthly spending budget.
The good news: It’s easy to cancel subscriptions you’ve set up through the App Store and are connected to your Apple ID account, whether they’re Apple’s own services, like Apple Music, or streaming service from another provider, such as Hulu or Spotify.
When you cancel a paid subscription, you can keep using the subscription until the next billing date. If you cancel an app subscription during a free trial period, you may lose access to the subscription immediately.
Here’s how to cancel app subscriptions on Apple devices.
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How to Cancel App Subscriptions on an iPhone or iPad
Here are the steps for cancelling a subscription on your mobile ios device.
Step 1. Open the Settings app.
Step 2. Tap your name at the top of the page.
Step 3. Tap Subscriptions.
Step 4: Tap the subscription that you want to cancel.
Step 5. Tap Cancel Subscription. If you don’t see Cancel as an option, the subscription has already been cancelled and won’t renew.
Another option:
Step 1. Go to the App Store.
Step 2. Tap your profile image.
Step 3. Scroll down to Subscriptions and tap. You will then see any active subscriptions.
Step 4. Tap the subscription you want to cancel.
Step 5. Confirm by tapping Cancel Subscription.
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How to Cancel Subscriptions on a Mac
Follow these instructions to cancel app subscriptions on a Mac laptop or desktop computer.
Step 1. Open the App Store (you can locate this in Finder under Applications, or at the bottom of your home screen).
Step 2. Click the sign-in button or your name at the bottom of the sidebar.
Step 3. Click View Information at the top right of the window. You may be prompted to sign in.
Step 4. On the page that appears, scroll until you see Subscriptions, then click Manage.
Step 5. Click Cancel Subscription. If you don’t see Cancel Subscription, then the subscription is already cancelled and will not renew.
You can also cancel an app subscription on a Mac using iTunes. Here’s how:
Step 1. Open iTunes
Step 2. Click Account > View My Account
Step 3. Enter your Apple ID password to see your account information.
Step 4. Scroll to the bottom of your Account page and click Manage next to the setting for Subscriptions.
Step 5. Click Edit next to the subscription you want to cancel.
Step 6. Click Cancel Subscription. A message will pop up asking you to confirm that you want to cancel.
Step 7. Click Confirm and the App subscription will be cancelled.
Accidentally Cancelled a Subscription? Here’s How to Restart
If you got a little trigger happy and cancelled the wrong subscription, or you have a change of heart after cancelling an app and want to get it back, you can easily reactivate a subscription. It’s easiest to do this on your iPhone or iPad. Here’s how.
Step 1. Open the Settings app.
Step 2. Tap your name at the top of the page.
Step 3. Tap Subscriptions.
Step 4. Look for the list of expired subscriptions at the bottom of the screen. Tap the one you would like to reactivate.
Step 5. On the subscription page, tap the subscription option you want and then confirm your choice. You’ll now be resubscribed.
How-to Tip: Setting Reminders to Avoid Unwanted Subscriptions
The next time you sign up for a new app that has a trial period promotion going on, you may want to set a Reminder on your mobile device to cancel your app subscription. This will make you avoid unexpected monthly expenses.
You could use your phone to ask Siri to set a Reminder to cancel a subscription a few days before fees will kick in. Or, you could use the Reminders app on your phone or iPad.
Another option is to use Calendar to create a New Event for the date and time you want to cancel an app. To get a notification on that day, you’ll want to make sure the Alert section is set to “at time of event.”
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The Takeaway
Most subscriptions automatically renew unless you cancel them. If you sign up for a free trial and don’t cancel in time, you will end up paying a monthly fee that you likely won’t be able to get refunded.
A good way to make sure you aren’t paying for subscriptions you don’t want is to track your monthly spending and then set up a basic budget. Having a budget can help ensure that your spending is in line with your priorities and short term financial goals.
With a checking and savings account with SoFi, it’s easy to track your monthly spending using the SoFi Relay app. The app allows you to connect all of your financial accounts in one dashboard, and keep an eye on charges and balances on the go.
Photo credit: iStock/Suwaree Tangbovornpichet
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