What's happening
Not every subscription deserves to be cut, the goal is keeping the ones that pull their weight and dropping the ones that don't. The problem is most people never score their subscriptions, they just feel vaguely guilty about all of them. A value-for-money subscription checklist turns that vague guilt into a clear keep, downgrade, or cancel decision for each line item.
Your first move in the next 10 minutes
For each subscription, jot its monthly cost and roughly how many times you used it last month, then divide. A $15 app used twice costs $7.50 a use, a $15 app used daily costs 50 cents. Seeing the per-use price makes the keep-or-cut call obvious in about ten minutes.
What to cut or check first
- Cancel anything over $5 per use that has a free substitute
- Downgrade tiers where you use the base features but pay for premium ones
- Cut subscriptions you kept out of guilt for 'wasting' the signup
- Drop anything whose value you can't explain in one sentence
- Eliminate services that duplicate something you already pay for elsewhere
- Cancel free trials converting to paid before the next billing date
The exact words to use
Hi, I'm reviewing the value I get from my subscriptions and [service] isn't earning its cost for me right now. I'd like to cancel effective [date], or downgrade to your lowest paid tier if that fits my limited use. Please confirm whichever option I choose and the new price.
Adapt the bracketed parts. Refund templates and cancel guides cover specific services.
What to keep an eye on
Keep the low-cost-per-use winners even if the monthly price looks high, a daily-driver app is cheap on a per-use basis. Watch for services that score poorly now but you'll need next month, pause those instead of canceling outright.
FAQ
How do I decide if a subscription is worth the money?
Divide the monthly cost by how many times you used it that month to get a per-use price, then ask if you'd happily pay that amount each time you opened it. If the answer is no, cancel or downgrade.
What's a reasonable cost-per-use to keep a subscription?
There's no universal number, but a daily-use app at under a dollar a use is clearly worth it, while anything over $5 a use with a free alternative is hard to justify. Compare each to what the same value costs elsewhere.
Should I keep a subscription just because I already paid for it this month?
No, that's the sunk-cost trap. Money already spent is gone whether you use the service or not. Decide based on next month's value, not regret over this month's charge, and turn off auto-renew if it's not earning its keep.