Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post. We may earn a commission from partner links on Newsweek, but commissions do not affect our editors’ opinions or evaluations.
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By
Michelle Lambright Black
Michelle Lambright Black
Credit Expert
Michelle is a credit expert, freelance writer and founder of CreditWriter.com. She has over 20 years of experience writing and speaking about credit and money, and focuses on helping families and small business owners make smart, informed decisions about their credit, money and financial products.Michelle’s work has appeared in publications such as Reader’s Digest, Parents, Experian, FICO, Forbes, Money, Bankrate, Seattle Times, MarketWatch, BuySide from Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Yahoo! Finance and more. She’s a three-time finalist for the best personal finance freelancer award from the Plutus Foundation. When she isn’t writing or speaking about credit and money, Michelle loves to travel with her family or read a good book.
Read Michelle Lambright Black's full bio
Reviewed By
Claire Dickey
Claire Dickey
Senior Editor
Claire is a senior editor at Newsweek focused on credit cards, loans and banking. Her top priority is providing unbiased, in-depth personal finance content to ensure readers are well-equipped with knowledge when making financial decisions.
Prior to Newsweek, Claire spent five years at Bankrate as a lead credit cards editor. You can find her jogging through Austin, TX, or playing tourist in her free time.
Read Claire Dickey's full bio
It’s easy to lose track of all the subscriptions that are coming out of your bank account or credit card accounts each month. According to a recent survey by Bango, 34% of subscribers are paying for an unused subscription. Meanwhile, around the same amount of subscribers (35%) have no idea how much money they’re spending on subscription services each month.
On a positive note, there are digital tools that can help solve these problems—sometimes at little to no cost. The best subscription tracker apps can help you better understand where your money is going each month so you can cancel any unwanted recurring payments. Below are some of the best apps to manage subscriptions to help you keep tabs on your spending and avoid unwanted surprises.
Our Methodology
Our research is designed to provide you with a comprehensive understanding of personal finance services and products that best suit your needs. To help you in the decision-making process, our expert contributors compare common preferences and potential pain points, such as affordability, accessibility, and credibility.
Our Picks
- Best All Around: Rocket Money
- Best Additional Budgeting Features: PocketGuard
- Best Bill Negotiation Features: Trim
- Best Cost Comparison Features: Hiatus
Top 4 Subscription Tracker Apps of September 2024
Best All Around
Rocket Money
Why We Chose It
Rocket Money, formerly known as Truebill, gets the nod for the best all-around subscription tracker app. The app earns this title thanks to a combination of free and premium services, monthly credit score monitoring and bill negotiation features (for an additional cost).
Pros and Cons
- Free version offered
- Money management tools available (budgeting, saving, spending and net worth tracking)
- Bill negotiation features available for an additional cost
- Manual subscription entry required for free version
- Premium features cost $4 to $5 per month when billed annually or $6 to $12 per month when billed monthly
- Negotiation services cost 30% to 60% of the savings you receive over the first 12 months after the services are provide
Best Additional Budgeting Features
PocketGuard
Why We Chose It
PocketGuard, another app that offers free and fee-based subscription management services, stands out for its easy-to-use budgeting tools. Even users of the free version of the app can enjoy basic budgeting features including direct import of transactions, cash tracking and one savings goal.
Pros and Cons
- Free subscription management tools
- Robust budgeting tools, especially with the premium version of the app
- Lifetime premium membership available for a one-time fee of $79.99
- Premium subscription is $7.99 per month (or $34.99 if paid on an annual basis)
- Website doesn’t offer the most user-friendly experience if you need support
Best Bill Negotiation Features
Trim
Why We Chose It
Trim can be helpful if you’re looking for a service to cancel old subscriptions you no longer need. But the company stands out for its bill negotiation features, especially the fact that Trim charges around half the amount for successful bill negotiations compared to others in this space.
Pros and Cons
- Many Trim features, including subscription monitoring, are free
- Bill negotiation is available for 15% of the total first-year savings Trim negotiates on your behalf—around half of what some other companies charge
- Does not share data with third parties
- No mobile app available, but you can access online
- Live phone support not available
- No additional budgeting tools
Best Cost Comparison Features
Hiatus
Why We Chose It
Hiatus is another service that gives you the ability to monitor and cancel subscriptions you no longer use. But where the service shines is in its ability to help you compare the rates and fees you’re paying for your monthly recurring bills to what others are paying for similar services.
Pros and Cons
- Rate comparison features let you know if you’re paying too much for services compared to others
- Track and cancel subscriptions you no longer use
- Bill negotiation available for a flat monthly fee instead of a percentage of savings negotiated
- Premium membership costs $9.99 per month
- The Hiatus team can only cancel certain subscriptions on your behalf
- Free version of app doesn’t include subscription management
What Is a Subscription Tracker App?
Subscription tracker apps help you monitor recurring payments that automatically draft from your checking account or credit cards each month. Many of these apps utilize technology to sync with your financial accounts and automatically search for subscription payments. However, some subscription trackers may require you to manually enter information about your recurring payments, including the amount of the payments and the dates they occur.
Because these apps have access to sensitive financial data, the best app to manage subscriptions should include robust security features. Bank-level 256-bit SSL encryption is a reasonable expectation to have when searching for the best subscription monitoring services. So, if you’re considering signing up for this type of app, it’s important to make sure you choose one that will keep your personal information secure.
Are Subscription Management Apps Useful?
Having an app that reminds you about recurring bills could be a helpful way to save money. However, you can practice other good habits that could help you track any subscription payments coming out of your bank or credit card accounts—and you can implement many of these for free.
One strategy you can use to keep track of recurring payments is to review your bank statements and credit card statements on a regular basis. Monthly statement checks are a good way to make sure no unauthorized or forgotten charges are taking place on your account so that you don’t waste any of your hard-earned money.
Smartphone alarms and calendar reminders can also be useful when it comes to subscription renewal dates. For example, if you sign up for a free trial offer that you want to cancel before your first bill, scheduling a few alerts on your smartphone and calendar app might help you avoid unwanted charges before they happen in the first place.
Of course, some subscription management apps offer free versions. Meanwhile, other apps offer a suite of financial services that might be valuable enough to warrant paying for on a monthly or annual basis. If you believe you’ll receive more value from a subscription management app than the cost of its membership fee, then it may be well worth it to pay for the service (as long as the price fits comfortably within your budget).
How To Choose a Subscription Tracker App
With so many available options, choosing the best app to cancel subscriptions could be a challenge. Below are three factors to consider when you’re trying to narrow down the right tool to help monitor your recurring payments.
- Cost: It’s important to evaluate the price of membership when considering a subscription tracker app. You’ll want to consider how the cost of a company’s services measures up to the value it offers in exchange. If you believe you’ll save more than the fee you pay, a premium membership might be a worthwhile investment. Nonetheless, if your budget is tight, you may want to consider only free or low-cost options for now.
- Features: Comparing the different features that various apps offer can be another helpful way to choose the best subscription tracker app for your needs. For example, several subscription tracker solutions offer the ability to negotiate bills on your behalf. But if you’re not interested in this feature, you might prefer a different (and possibly less expensive) option.
- Easy of use: One final consideration you may want to take into account is the user-friendliness of an app. The more convenient an app, the more likely you are to use it on a regular basis. On the other hand, if a subscription tracking tool is frustrating to operate, unavailable on your mobile device or makes it difficult to access customer support when you need it, you might find that it’s not very beneficial in the long run.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Can I Reduce My Monthly Subscriptions?
If you want to cut back on the amount you spend on monthly subscription services each month, a good first step is to add up how much you’re spending. From there, try to identify services you don’t use or haven’t used in a while and cancel them first. Next, see if there are other services you’d be willing to rotate. For example, you might have several video streaming services that you could trade out from time to time. Finally, see if you can cut back your services. Having a video service with no ads could be nice, but if you’re willing to put up with a minor interruption once in a while, you might enjoy the same service at a lower rate.
How Can I Find All of My Monthly Subscriptions on My Own?
The best way to find all of your monthly subscriptions on your own is to go through your financial statements. Look through each of your bank and credit card statements line by line over a period of several months. Make a list of each recurring bill you are paying. Another potential place to identify subscriptions is on your phone. If you’re an iPhone user, for example, you can open settings, tap your name, select subscriptions and see a list of current subscriptions and their renewal dates.
Is It Safe To Use Subscription Tracking Apps?
Using a subscription tracking app to trim down your monthly expenses has the potential to save you money. However, if you agree to sync your bank account and credit cards to the app, you’re likely agreeing to share financial data with a third party. As a result, it’s important to do your research. You should only use subscription tracking apps from reliable companies that have a good reputation and use thorough safety measures to protect your information. You may also want to avoid signing up for services with any company that doesn’t promise to keep your information private.
Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post. We may earn a commission from partner links on Newsweek, but commissions do not affect our editors’ opinions or evaluations.
Michelle Lambright Black
Credit Expert
Michelle is a credit expert, freelance writer and founder of CreditWriter.com. She has over 20 years of experience writing and speaking about credit and money, and focuses on helping families and small business owners make smart, informed decisions about their credit, money and financial products.Michelle’s work has appeared in publications such as Reader’s Digest, Parents, Experian, FICO, Forbes, Money, Bankrate, Seattle Times, MarketWatch, BuySide from Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Yahoo! Finance and more. She’s a three-time finalist for the best personal finance freelancer award from the Plutus Foundation. When she isn’t writing or speaking about credit and money, Michelle loves to travel with her family or read a good book.
Read more articles by Michelle Lambright Black
