Easily Cancel Apple and Third‑Party Subscriptions on Your Mac

Updated  Jul 30, 2023, 6:00 PM EDT

Ankur has been an Apple user for more than seven years and focuses on iPhone how-tos, fixes, and tips. When not writing, he likes to watch The Office repeatedly. Ankur also loves tech videos, comedy and romantic movies, old songs, pizza, and chicken.

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Canceling your ongoing Apple Music, Apple TV, or third-party app subscriptions is easy on your Mac. If you have some active subscriptions that you want to cancel, just follow this tutorial.

We'll show you how to cancel subscriptions from the System Settings menu and the App Store app on your Mac.

How to Cancel Subscriptions via System Settings

The System Settings app in macOS (formerly System Preferences) can do many things, including allowing you to manage your subscriptions. Follow these steps:

1. From the menu bar, go to Apple menu > System Settings.
2. Click your Apple ID name at the top.
3. Now, click Media & Purchases on the right.
4. Select Manage next to Subscriptions.
5. Click Edit next to the active subscription you want to cancel.
6. Then, choose Cancel Subscription > Confirm.
7. Finally, click Done to exit the subscriptions screen.

You have now successfully canceled an active subscription using your Mac.

How to Cancel Subscriptions via the App Store

The App Store app makes it easy to manage all your subscriptions in one place. Here's what you need to do:

1. Open the App Store app and click your Name at the bottom-left corner.
2. Click Account Settings near the top of the window.
3. Scroll down and click Manage next to Subscriptions.
4. Click Edit next to the subscription you wish to cancel and choose Cancel Subscription.

Just like the System Settings method, you'll be prompted to confirm your cancellation.

When Does the Subscription End After Canceling It?

For most subscriptions, including most of Apple's free trial for its services, even after cancellation, you can keep using them until the last day of that subscription. That means you'll still have access to the service until the day before you would have to pay.

However, in some cases, like the Apple TV+ free trial, you will lose access immediately after canceling the subscription. Since this varies from plan to plan, the safest approach is to read the sentence next to the Cancel Subscription button or on the Confirm Cancelation pop-up.

If your subscriptions end right after you cancel them, and you still have a few days before the next billing cycle, we recommend setting a reminder on your phone so that you can enjoy your subscription for a few more days.

Manage Subscriptions Easily on Your Mac

Now you know how you can cancel a subscription from your Mac. The steps to upgrade or downgrade an ongoing subscription are the same as above. Just choose a higher or lower plan (if supported by the service provider) on the page to edit subscriptions.

Once you cancel a subscription, the cancelation affects all the devices using your Apple ID. In other words, you don't have to cancel the same subscription from all your devices. Canceling once from your Mac, iPhone, or iPad is enough.