A subscription audit means listing every recurring payment you have, deciding which ones are still worth it and cancelling or downgrading the rest. It takes about an hour with three months of bank and card statements, and the hidden charges are usually the ones that matter: free trials that rolled into paid plans, app store subscriptions and annual renewals you had forgotten about.
This guide gives a timed method, a simple keep, cut or downgrade test, and your rights if a company makes it hard to leave. For specific tips on TV and music services, see our streaming subscription audit.
Minutes 0 to 15: find every recurring payment
Download or open statements for the last three months (twelve if you can, to catch annual renewals) for every current account and credit card. Many banking apps now have a "regular payments" or "subscriptions" view, which is a good start, but check the statements too, as card payments set up with a merchant do not always appear there. Also check:
- Your Apple ID or Google Play subscriptions page, since app subscriptions show on statements under Apple or Google rather than the app's name.
- PayPal's automatic payments list.
- Amazon memberships and channels inside Prime Video.
- Email inboxes: search for "renewal", "receipt", "trial" and "subscription".
- Direct Debits listed in your banking app (memberships, insurance, phone, broadband, gym).
Minutes 15 to 30: list them in one place
Write each one down with its monthly cost (divide annual charges by 12), the renewal date and the last time you used it. Add up the monthly total, then multiply by 12. Seeing the annual figure is often the moment people decide to act.
| Example subscription | Last used | Sign up again today? | Decision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Second streaming service | Two months ago | No | Cut |
| Music service | Daily | Yes | Keep |
| Cloud storage | Constantly | Yes, smaller plan | Downgrade |
Minutes 30 to 45: keep, cut or downgrade
For each subscription, ask three questions: Did I use it in the last month? Would I sign up today at this price? Is there a cheaper plan or a free alternative that does the job?
- Keep anything you use weekly and would pay for again today.
- Cut anything unused for a month, duplicated (two cloud storage plans, two music services) or kept "just in case".
- Downgrade to an ad-supported tier, a smaller plan or a family plan shared within your household where the terms allow it.
- Rotate streaming services: keep one at a time and switch each month to the one with something you want to watch.
- Switch to annual billing only for services you are certain to keep, as it is often cheaper than paying monthly.
Minutes 45 to 60: cancel properly
Cancel through the account settings or the app store you subscribed through. Take a screenshot of the cancellation confirmation, and diary the date your access ends. Deleting an app does not cancel its subscription.
If a company makes cancelling difficult, you have options. You can cancel a recurring card payment (a continuous payment authority) by telling your bank or card provider, which must stop it, though you may still owe the company money under your contract. Direct Debits can be cancelled in your banking app, and the Direct Debit Guarantee protects you if money is taken in error. For new purchases made online or by phone, you generally have 14 days to change your mind under consumer law.
Bills that work like subscriptions
Phone, broadband, insurance and gym memberships often cost more than streaming services combined, and they renew quietly too.
- Mobile phones: if your handset is paid off, a SIM-only deal is usually much cheaper. See our guide to contract versus SIM-only.
- Broadband: check when your minimum term ends and compare deals. Since January 2025, Ofcom rules require phone and broadband providers to set out any mid-contract price rises in pounds and pence when you sign up. Our broadband switching guide explains how to switch.
- Gyms: check minimum terms and notice periods before you cancel, and whether you can freeze membership instead.
- Insurance and breakdown cover: check for duplicates, for example breakdown cover that also comes with a packaged bank account.
Stop new subscriptions creeping back
- Put a reminder in your calendar the day before any free trial ends, or cancel straight after signing up (most services let you keep the trial until it ends).
- Use a single card for subscriptions so they are easy to spot.
- Repeat the audit every six months; it takes 15 minutes once your list exists.
- New rules on subscription contracts under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 are expected to require clearer reminders and easier cancellation, but they are not yet in force, so do not rely on them for now.
Put the money you free up to work
A cancelled subscription only saves money if the cash goes somewhere useful. Set up a standing order for the amount you have cut, on the day the old payments used to go out, into a savings account. Or log it each day with SYM, which turns small savings into a visible streak. The savings goal calculator shows what the annual total could pay for, and the budget planner helps you reassign it. If you want a fuller clear-out, our guide to cancelling subscriptions has provider-by-provider tips.
Subscription audit: frequently asked questions
How do I find all my subscriptions?
Can my bank cancel a subscription for me?
How do I cancel a subscription on my iPhone or Android phone?
How often should I do a subscription audit?
Is it cheaper to pay for subscriptions annually?
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