How to Do a Subscription Audit

Check your app store subscription lists

Many subscriptions are billed through Apple or Google, so start there. These lists show what is active, when it renews, and the price.

If you have more than one Apple Account or Google account, check each one. Family members may also have subscriptions billed to a shared payment method.

• iPhone or iPad: open Settings, tap your name, then tap Subscriptions.
• Android: open the Play Store, tap your profile picture, then Payments & subscriptions, then Subscriptions.
• Look at both active and expired items so you know what you have used before.

Go through bank and card statements

App store lists only show what those stores bill. Companies that bill you directly show up on your bank and card statements. Look back at least three months so you catch charges that come every month, and look back a full year to catch yearly renewals.

Watch for small amounts and unfamiliar names. The name on a statement does not always match the brand you know, so search the name online or check your email if you are unsure.

• Check every debit card, credit card, and bank account you use.
• Mark any charge that repeats on a regular schedule.
• Note yearly charges, since they are the easiest to forget.

Check PayPal and other payment accounts

If you use PayPal, log in and look at your automatic payments. PayPal lists the businesses that are allowed to charge you on a schedule. Other payment apps or digital wallets you use may have a similar list, so check those too.

Search your email

Receipts and renewal notices often land in email. Search for words like subscription, renewal, receipt, trial, membership, and auto-renew. Check spam and promotions folders too. A receipt tells you which account was used and often explains how to cancel.

Make a list and decide what to keep

Write each subscription on one list with its price, how often it bills, the next renewal date, and where it is billed. Seeing the yearly cost for each one can change how you feel about it.

Then ask a few honest questions. Did I use this in the last month? Do I pay for two services that do the same thing? Is there a cheaper plan or a free option that would work? Would I sign up again today at this price?

• Keep: you use it often and the price feels fair.
• Downgrade: you use it, but a cheaper plan would do.
• Cancel: you rarely use it or forgot you had it.
• Pause: some services let you pause instead of canceling.

Cancel, confirm, and repeat

Cancel through the place that bills you, and save the confirmation. Check your next statement to make sure the charge stopped. Put a reminder on your calendar to repeat your audit every few months, and add a reminder any time you start a free trial.