Gen Z spend more than £300 a month here - is it time for a subscriptions purge?

1. Money

Need extra Christmas cash? Think about cancelling some of those unused or overpriced monthly services

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According to the Bank of England, the average UK household spends 29 per cent more in December than in a typical month.

If you’re trying to scrape together all the extra cash you can to cover the additional cost, here’s an idea: take a look at your monthly subscriptions and see what you can cancel.

The savings will kick in from December - and continue every month afterwards.

Under 45s spend £100s a month on subscriptions

Almost everything can be purchased on subscription these days: meal packages, fitness plans, toiletries and beauty supplies, books, entertainment services, and much, much more.

Streaming, all the streaming!

While we benefit from ease and convenience, we often end up paying far more than we realise all told.

A recent Visa survey found that the average millennial spends £261 per month on subscriptions, while Gen Z consumers spend an average of £305 per month.

Check how much you’re spending

To get a clear picture of how much your subscriptions cost, get copies of your recent bank statements and credit card bills and list out all the recurring payments.

Your banking app may identify most of these for you, but it’s a good idea to double check anyway.

You might be surprised to find you have some subscriptions you’ve completely forgotten about. Perhaps you forgot to cancel a free trial or missed an auto-renewal date. You may also find that you have surplus subscriptions to similar services, or that some have increased in price without you noticing.

Make a note of the costs and add up your monthly total. You’ll likely see that some of your subscriptions are costing you more than you realise.

For example, Spotify increased its prices in October for the third time in three years. It now costs £12.99 a month for an individual premium plan, compared to £9.99 in 2023. A Netflix standard plan has increased from £10.99 to £12.99 in the same period.

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Decide where to make cuts

First on the chopping block are any subscriptions you didn’t know were still running. Hopefully, these don’t add up to very much, but it’s a great way to kick-start your savings.

Next, evaluate the cost of each subscription compared to the value you get from it. Look at competitors to see if you can get a better deal. If you don’t want to move to a different provider, see if you can downgrade your package to a cheaper version; many streaming services offer several tiers.

Then, find out if you could save money with packages or multi-member plans. For instance, a Spotify duo plan costs £17.99 per month for two listeners who live together, so you and your partner or family member could save £7.99 per month compared to the cost of two individual plans.

Finally, you might find it useful to categorise your subscriptions and review how much you spend on similar services. Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, and Apple TV may all offer different shows, but when you look at the combined total you’re paying, you could be motivated to be a little more selective in the series you stream - or rotate when a new one comes out you want to watch.

Manage your subscriptions in the future

To avoid your subscriptions getting out of control again, it’s a good idea to schedule a regular review. This doesn’t have to be a lot of work, but you could set a calendar reminder to check your subscriptions every three months, for example.

To make this more fun, you can use it as an opportunity to rotate your subscriptions.

Look out for new shows that are coming to streaming services, and you can plan to switch to whichever has the best offering.

Regularly rotating your subscriptions means you’re more likely to be sent offers by the providers to tempt you back, so you’ll likely find this saves you even more money over the course of a year.

Know your consumer rights

When you start a new subscription, you’re entitled by law to a 14-day cooling-off period, meaning that you have the right to change your mind and request a full or partial refund.

In Spring 2026, new, stronger rules will come into effect.

These include an additional 14-day cooling-off period each time the subscription auto-renews. Auto-renewals will need to be communicated to you clearly in advance, to give you the chance to adjust or end your plan. The rules should also ensure that all subscriptions are as easy to terminate as they are to sign up for.

When investing, your capital is at risk and you may get back less than invested. Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results.

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