Manage Subscriptions Like a Pro

If you were to bring up the concept of subscriptions about twenty years ago, most people’s minds would have jumped to magazines, newspapers, cable TV, and DVDs. Today, the idea of a subscription service will conjure up thoughts about streaming services, meal preparation boxes, men’s razors, music streaming, and curated packages filled with things like dog toys and treats. There are all sorts of subscriptions that consumers can sign up for and they’re increasingly more popular. With a higher demand for them, we’re signing up for more and more subscriptions, which means managing them has become a tough job.

The Rising Cost of Subscriptions

According to a CNET Money survey, the average American spends over $1,000 a year on subscriptions. The price of subscriptions are increasing, and companies are offering cheaper options that may decrease the value for customers, such as plans with ads. In 2008, the cost of Netflix was $9 a month for unlimited streaming with no ads. Their standard plan, HD for 2 screens, was $7.99 in 2011, and $15.49 in 2023. In 2023 they also added a $6.99/month option with ads. After staying the same price for 12 years, in 2023, Spotify increased its monthly subscription cost to $10.99. In July 2024 Spotify raised the price to $11.99. Subscription fees are on the rise, which can throw a monkey wrench into your finances. Creating a budget can help, but the problem is that not all customers realize when their subscription costs go up.

It Can be Difficult to Cancel Subscriptions

Many of us sign up for a free trial for some new subscription service and forget to cancel. Not only that, but we forget that we even signed up for it. At some point, we remember and want to cancel. Another big reason many want to cancel a subscription is due to a price increase. The companies that provide those subscriptions often make it difficult to cancel. Take Hulu for example, a subscription streaming media and content hub, which doesn’t allow customers to cancel from the app. To cancel, you must log into their website. First, you’ll need to remember your password and then figure out how to navigate to the cancelation page. Once you get there, you’ll be asked if you really want to cancel, and if you choose that you do, they’ll offer you a cheaper monthly price for a few months. After those few months go by, the price jumps up again. By the time the price increases, you’ve already forgotten that the price would increase and/or that you wanted to cancel.

Budget Better with Subscription Tracking Apps

Subscription tracking apps to the rescue! There are a few different apps available that help with managing your subscriptions. Before we get to the list, how do subscription-tracking apps work? How do they know what subscriptions you’re signed up for? The apps know this because they connect to your bank accounts and credit cards to track your subscriptions by monitoring your spending, or you input the information yourself. Here are some options to choose from:

• Bobby: This app is only available for Apple users. It allows users to input their subscriptions, which is a great option for those who aren’t comfortable with sharing their spending habits and banking details. Bobby offers a free plan, as well as paid upgrades with take the management of subscriptions on iPhone even further.
• Rocket Money: This app is brought to you by the company as Rocket Mortgage. It has a free version and is available for both iOS and Android users. It will even cancel unwanted subscriptions on your behalf.
• Mint: The personal finance brand from Intuit, also provides subscription tracking. The tracking feature is free, but users need to upgrade to the premium version for subscription cancellation.
• Simplifi: This tool is made by Quicken, a personal finance and money management software company. Simplifi costs $3.99 a month and offers real-time alerts, helpful reports, and budgeting. It’s available both as a mobile app and web app.
• Subby: This service is only available for Android users. It has a free basic version with additional features that can be purchased in-app. Users can manually enter an unlimited number of subscriptions for free and avoid the uneasy feeling of connecting to their bank accounts.

Essentially, these are apps that help you budget but are geared towards managing subscriptions. For more budgeting apps, see here.

How to Monitor Subscriptions without Apps

Something to keep in mind is that most subscription tracking tools like the ones above, also require subscriptions. Instead of fighting fire with fire, manage subscriptions on your own. One method would be to keep a list of subscriptions, like in Google Sheets, with columns for the name of the subscription, the date you signed up, and for the cost. Another method would be to add due dates for each subscription to a calendar. Having a budget in place might be the most basic and classic method to monitor not just your subscriptions but all your spending. A popular method is the 50/30/20 budget rule. With the 50 30 20 budget rule, you simply allocate funds into three different categories; needs, wants, and savings. Subscriptions would most likely fall into the wants category.