It's Time to Unsubscribe From Pretty Much Everything — Here's How

I recently discovered, to my horror, that my family was subscribed to four (!) streaming services I didn't know we were paying for. We’re now down to two, and if I had my way it would be just one (read about my rule-of-one here). While my family was relatively unfazed by this breaking news, it sent me down a looong rabbit hole.

I did a little research to find out the easiest way to unsubscribe from, well, pretty much everything, and I’m sharing my findings below so all of us can lighten up our our inboxes, wallets, and mental loads.

I did a deep dive looking for the easiest way to do this and landed on Wirecutter’s review of email unsubscribe services, which was not what I expected. Their take: these services don’t really work — they mostly just file unwanted mail into a subfolder or trash rather than actually getting you off the list, and some make money off your data in the process. Their recommendation is to just do it manually.

So that’s what I’m doing now, and it’s actually oddly satisfying. Two seconds per email, using the unsubscribe link at the bottom, and marking anything sketchy as spam. It’s slower than a one-click tool, but with just a few minutes of unsubscribing a day I’ve already started seeing a lighter inbox.

I’m also considering the popular suggestion of using an alias to sign up for promotions, newsletters, and accounts moving forward. Other suggestions welcome.

I love a good newsletter and supporting my fellow authors, but there are only so many I can keep up with — probably about five max if I’m honest. I’m subscribed to forty-two currently. It’s easy to unsubscribe on Substack, but awkward if you’re friends with lots of great writers.

The good news is most platforms let you switch to app-only notifications instead. On Substack there's technically a per-newsletter option for this, but it's buried right next to a toggle that looks similar and will fully unsubscribe you if you hit the wrong one — so tread carefully. Look for "Get posts delivered in the app instead" on that publication's page, click "Change Settings," and choose "Prefer App" from the dropdown. This way you can browse your favorites when you have time without clogging your inbox. If anyone has another workaround to supporting creators without drowning in email, I'm all ears.

DMAchoice is another user-friendly service that helps you opt out of unwanted promotional mail offers, junk mail, and brochures, and I’ve had several readers recommend PaperKarma.com ($59 for a lifetime membership).

Tired of getting pre-screened packets from credit card companies? Me too. You can opt-out of prescreened offers by visiting: OptOutPrescreen.com. This service is provided by the major credit bureaus and can significantly reduce unwanted credit-related mail by enabling you to opt-out.

Want to hear a sad story about how I ended up paying for Disney Plus for six full months because I opted in to watch Hamilton once? I’ll spare you the details but will encourage you to take a few minutes to check your credit card statements and then unsubscribe from any streaming service you haven’t actually opened in the last month or two.

Surprising news! I went through my phone and found I was paying for a meditation app I opened once, during a layover, four years ago in Lisbon. Now, it’s gone.

You can use an online tool like rocketmoney.com to help identify forgotten subscriptions and have them opt-out for you — I’m officially intrigued, though it does mean linking your bank accounts, so worth reading their privacy policy before you connect anything. The manual version works too: just scroll through a few months of statements and flag anything recurring you don’t recognize. I officially pay for zero apps now.

Check what you’re actually using across Google, Apple, and Dropbox — most people have 2-3 overlapping paid tiers they forgot about, and downgrading takes about 90 seconds.

The January resolution membership that’s still auto-renewing in August. If you haven’t been in 30+ days, cancel. Most gyms let you do it online now, though some still make you call, which still only takes five minutes and will save you a boatload of money.

A separate beast from email — every retailer that got your number for “10% off” is now also texting you. Reply STOP to any of them and you’re done in seconds, no app or settings menu required.

This one isn’t about cancelling anything, just about taking your attention back. I went into my settings and turned off notifications for every single app on my phone. I learned that you can also turn on scheduled notification summaries so the rest land in one batch instead of trickling in all day.

I still use Instagram and LinkedIn for business, but I decided to opt out of Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) so I would have less mental clutter in my life years ago. I haven’t missed either.

If you’re interested in taking a break, here’s how to deactivate or delete your Facebook account and here’s the info for breaking up with Twitter.

If Instagram or TikTok are the ones weighing you down, both let you step back without deleting anything for good:

Instagram: Go to your profile, tap Menu, then Accounts Center. Tap Personal details, then Account ownership and control, then Deactivation or deletion. Choose your account, tap Deactivate account, confirm your password, and pick a reason. You can only deactivate once a week, so no impulse-reversing five minutes later.

TikTok: Go to your profile, tap the three-line menu in the top right, then Settings and privacy. Tap Account, then Deactivate or delete account, then Deactivate account. Follow the prompts to confirm. Your account and content stay hidden until you log back in.

It feels so good to unsubscribe from platforms, services, and apps that aren’t adding value to your life. A little effort each day or even every week adds up to real time saved, a calmer mind, and a healthier bank account.

Disclaimer: I have zero affiliation with any of the companies mentioned above. Just sharing what’s been working for me in case it’s helpful to you. I welcome other useful recs and resources in the comments.

Reader Prompt: what’s the thing you’ve been meaning to unsubscribe from but haven’t yet — tell me in the comments.

Reading / Making: Recipes from the beloved La Buvette wine bar in Paris

Watching: Le Cinéma Club is a uniquely curated streaming platform screening one film every week, for free - bookmark this page!

Fewer Better Faves: a very good button down, I own two sweaters now and this is why, the cutest ceramic match holder, loving this non-alcoholic apértif - cheers!

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