How to cancel a subscription by mail

Many subscriptions can be cancelled online or by phone, and if that works for you, use it and save the confirmation. A letter is the better route in a few situations:

• Your agreement asks for written notice, which is common for gyms, clubs and some service contracts.
• The online route is hard to find, or the phone line keeps you on hold or passes you between agents.
• You already tried to cancel and the charges continued.
• You want a record of the exact day the company received your request, for example because a notice period applies.

Some state laws say cancellation must be possible in the same medium you used to sign up. California's law names mail among those mediums (Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17602(f)), and it lists a postal address as one of the cancellation methods a business can offer if it bills you directly (§ 17602(c)(1)).

The name on your bank or card statement is the company you need to reach. A streaming plan bought through an app store, a phone carrier or a TV provider is billed by that partner, and the service itself may not be able to stop the charge. Look at the statement line and the receipt email before you write.

If more than one company is involved, write to each one. Cancelling the service does not always end a separate billing arrangement, and cancelling with the billing partner does not always close the account with the service.

1. 1

   Find the right mailing address

   Check your agreement, the terms of service, your latest bill and the contact page. Some companies give a separate address for cancellations or correspondence. Our company guides show the address we hold for each company.

2. 2

   Collect your account details

   Note the account or customer number, the email address on the account, the plan name and your next billing date. These let the company find you without writing back.

3. 3

   Write the letter

   Keep it short. Say you are cancelling the subscription and every add-on, give the date it should end, ask the company to stop all future charges, and ask for written confirmation by email. Sign and date it. Our cancellation letter template fills this in for you.

4. 4

   Send it by Certified Mail

   At the Post Office counter, ask for Certified Mail and keep the postmarked receipt. Add Return Receipt if you want the signature of the person who accepts the letter.

5. 5

   Track it and save the record

   Follow the tracking number until it shows delivered, then save the tracking page as a PDF or a screenshot. USPS keeps tracking history online for a limited time only.

6. 6

   Check the next statement

   If the company confirms, keep the email. If a charge appears after your end date, contact the company with your delivery record and ask for a refund.

A cancellation usually takes effect from the date the company processes it, and many plans run to the end of the period you already paid for. If you send your letter the day before a renewal, it may arrive after the renewal charge. USPS lists First-Class Mail at 1 to 5 days and says delivery time is not guaranteed, so send the letter at least a week before the billing date, and earlier if your terms set a notice period.

Use the cancellation deadline calculator to find the last safe day to post your letter, and our guide to cancelling a contract with a notice period for the detail.

The FTC's advice for stopping a subscription is to follow the company's cancellation instructions, keep copies of your request with notes of any conversations, watch your bank and card statements, and save your records in case you need a refund (FTC). A certified letter does all of that in one step: the copy shows what you asked for, the receipt shows when you sent it, and the delivery record shows when the company got it.

Federal law also expects sellers who charge you through an online negative option, such as an automatic renewal, to provide simple mechanisms for stopping the recurring charges (15 U.S.C. § 8403). If you have written to ask for the charges to stop and they continue, your letter shows that you used the means you had.

Keep four things together: your copy of the letter, the postmarked receipt, the delivery record and any reply from the company.

Write to the company again with the delivery date and a list of the charges made after it. If that does not work, the FTC advises disputing the charge with your credit or debit card company and following up in writing at the address listed for billing disputes. Our guide on what to do if a company keeps charging you explains the deadlines that apply to credit cards and bank debits.

To see what a subscription you meant to cancel months ago has cost you, try the subscription cost calculator. If you would rather not handle the letter yourself, see how it works or the help center.