How not to drown in notifications and spend too much? 7 life hacks for managing subscriptions

1. Get rid of all the unnecessary

Sometimes you subscribe to a service and don't notice how you stop using it. Previously, horoscopes and romantic phrases were in vogue, which came in SMS every day. Now such things are easier to find in a search engine or install a special application.

It also happens differently: you subscribe to a service for the sake of a single series. It ends, but the registration remains, every month imperceptibly debiting money from the card.

Mobile operators have subscriptions tied to phone numbers: from weather to online cinemas. You can check whether they are active with you in the official application of the operator or in your personal account on the website.

Also check your music, video and book subscriptions from third-party services, such as those you use from your computer or smart TV. To do this, go to your email: often services send letters there with offers or news.

If there are really many subscriptions, the process may take an hour or two. But it's worth it: you will definitely get rid of unnecessary expenses and will be able to spend money on more necessary things.

2. See what's trending now

Some subscriptions may be out of date. Instead, new ones have appeared - they are more useful, more interesting and sometimes even cheaper.

For example, in 2021 you can definitely unsubscribe from a blogging platform that you subscribed to back in 2007. Or from English courses based on a 1960s textbook.

Instead of text blogging, look at video editing platforms and services that offer music and footage for creative videos. Films and TV shows will help you improve your English - with original or translated subtitles.

3. Set up automatic payment

When you have decided on the subscriptions you need, you can set up automatic debiting of funds. By entrusting routine work to ready-made algorithms, you can not worry about the subscription being blocked at the most inopportune moment. Special solutions for managing subscriptions can usually be found in payment services, account settings on a smartphone, applications of mobile operators or the personal account of the platform through which you subscribed.

Some subscriptions themselves are renewed automatically - you just need to confirm the payment in response to the request or put a checkmark in the service settings. We advise you to check if the subscriptions that are especially important to you have such an opportunity, and if not, set up periodic debiting of funds in the payment application.

4. Look for discounts

Often before the holidays or at the beginning of the new season, subscriptions are offered at special prices. Or vice versa: after the end of a major tournament, subscribing to a sports channel can be cheaper than before the competition.

You can find information about promotions on the official websites of such services, as well as in channels, fan pages or forums. Try not to miss out on great deals and search online for discounts before subscribing at full price.

5. Test free offers

Often new services or those that want to grow an audience provide a free trial period. If you have wanted to try one of them for a long time, but the price stopped, or if you use a similar platform, but do not want to put up with its shortcomings, you should definitely use this proposal.

A free subscription will help you try the service and save money by getting legal content. The main thing is not to forget to unsubscribe at the end of the free period if the platform does not suit you. You can do this as soon as you subscribe - in most cases, the content will still be available to you! Or set a reminder the day before the end of the test period.

6. Try family subscriptions

Family subscriptions for 3-4 people are usually cheaper than the same number of individual subscriptions. When registering, no one requires a blood relationship certificate, and you can use the services from several different accounts. If you want to subscribe to a new service, ask your friends and acquaintances if they are interested in such content. They may want to keep you company and split the cost of services to save money.

7. Explore package deals

Operators, providers and service owners are increasingly bundling subscriptions into bundled offers. Access to multiple platforms in a package costs less than separately.

The package usually includes services of different types: for example, online video, music, podcasts, literature, games. Try to analyze your subscriptions and compare with ready-made package offers - you may find a profitable alternative.