Amanda Peterson
Updated On:
June 22, 2022
• 2 Minute Read
Today's Wise Spend Wednesday is a great money-saver! Do you have subscriptions that you don't really need? Consider cancelling them! According to an article on ZDNet, the average consumer spends $273/month on subscriptions. That's $3,376/year! Cut that in half by eliminating those wasted subscriptions. Use that money to pay down your credit card debt or make an extra car or house payment!
But, It's For The Kids
If you're like me, you have to have something to entertain the kids while you do the important things - like make supper, clean the house & do the laundry. While they're playing, they probably want to watch a movie or show. However, maybe the internet has a slow connection or there's a storm rolling through preventing the Dish from working. Thus, you have several subscriptions (aka - backup plans) to various movie channels to keep the littles occupied.
Totally understandable. However, if you're looking to save a buck or two, cancelling one of them will save a bit each month. Take for instance if you have Dish, local cable, Disney+, Netflix, Paramount+, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video.
Dish will allow you to get your local channels, as well the typical cable channels. They also have Paramount. Thus, you have just eliminated 2 extra subscriptions.
Next, you have the movie channels. If you look them all over, there's definitely some overlap with Netflix, Hulu & Amazon. Determine which one you utilize more and unsubscribe from the others. Maybe Netflix has some shows that you simply cannot live without. And Hulu has just ONE show that you watch. As Netflix constantly adds more movies & shows, they may add that 1 show you keep Hulu around for. Eliminate the subscriptions you don't watch all that often. Why pay that money each month if you watch once every month or two.
There's Always DVD
If you really want to save money, most smart TV's nowadays have a few options for news channels & a couple others. You could simply unsubscribe from everything and go back to DVD's. Even if it's for a brief time, until you can get your debt managed and back on track. Make the most of it and develop a "movie night" with the kiddos! That's a memory they'll for sure try and pass on to their own kids some day.
Not All Subscriptions Are For Entertainment Value
That's right. Not all subscriptions are for entertainment purposes. There are other subscriptions out there. With all of the online shopping being done in today's age, you barely have to leave the house. Subscriptions such as BarkBox, Dollar Shave Club, Shein, IPSY, & Scentbird for example, basically send you a monthly box for anything from dog toys & treats, to razor blades, to clothing, makeup & perfume.
Take a look through your home. Evaluate if you need to take a break on ordering some of these items. I found that my dog had more toys & treats than she knows what to do with. After 2 years of receiving BarkBox, we had to eliminate that subscription. I found we were giving away more toys only to receive more in the mail the following month. Sometimes you have to look at your expenses and pair down your wants or needs each month. Eliminating the BarkBox alone, saved me $36/mo.
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