With so many streaming services in Canada, it’s tough to stick to just one. Over time, you may find yourself adding a new service every so often, leaving you with more subscriptions than you need, or can afford.
While one or two subscriptions might not be much of a financial burden, having several can add up and put a big dent in your wallet.
If you’re ready to streamline your finances, you might want to start by cancelling some — or all — of your streaming service subscriptions.
Where Should Use The Money Saved From Cancelling Your Streaming Services In Canada?
There are several things you can do with the money you free up after cancelling your subscriptions:
Build An Emergency Fund
Everyone should have a savings account they set aside for a rainy day. If an urgent expense comes up, this emergency fund will be available to help cover the costs. That way, you won’t be left scrambling to borrow money, whether from friends and family or from a high-interest, short-term loan.
Pay Off Your Credit Card Debt
Credit cards come with very high rates. If you carry a balance month-over-month, you’ll be paying a lot more in interest than necessary. The money you save from cancelling your streaming services can be used to pay down this debt, which will help you save money and get out of debt sooner.
Paying off your credit card will also help lower your debt-to-credit ratio, which is a common factor used when calculating credit scores. In general, a lower ratio may positively affect your credit scores. This, in turn, can help you qualify for personal loans and affordable interest rates.
Pay Off Other Debt
If you have other debts on the books, you can use the savings from your cancelled streaming services to pay them off as much as you can. This will help you reach financial freedom faster while improving your debt-to-income ratio, which is a factor lenders use to assess your creditworthiness. In turn, you’ll be better able to qualify for future loans.
How To Cancel Your Streaming Services In Canada
There are multiple streaming subscriptions available, each with its own cancellation policy. Here are a few popular services and the steps you need to take to cancel your subscription:
How To Cancel Your Netflix In Canada?
To cancel your Netflix account, follow these steps:
- Visit the Netflix website and log in to your account
- Hover over your account profile icon on the top right-hand of the page
- Click “Account”
- Under “Membership and Billing,” click on “Cancel Membership”
- Click “Finish Cancellation”
How To Cancel Your Apple TV Membership?
If you want to cancel your Apple TV membership, follow these steps:
- Go to the Apple TV website and log in to your account
- Choose “Settings”
- Choose “Subscriptions”
- Choose “Manage”
- Choose “Cancel Subscription”
How To Cancel Your Apple Music Membership?
Like the Apple TV subscription, you can also cancel your Apple Music service by taking the following steps:
- Visit the Music.Apple.com website and log in to your account
- Click the “Account” icon
- Choose “Subscriptions”
- Choose “Manage”
- Choose “Cancel Subscription”
How To Cancel Your Disney Plus Membership?
You can cancel your Disney subscription at any time by following these steps:
- Visit the Disney website and log in to your account
- Choose your profile
- Choose “Account”
- Choose “Disney+” under “Subscription”
- Choose “Cancel Subscription”
- Enter the reason for cancelling
- Complete the survey (optional)
- Complete the cancellation
How To Cancel Your Crave Membership?
By cancelling your Crave subscription, you’ll also be cancelling any Add-on subscriptions you may have. Follow these steps to stop your membership:
- Visit the Crave website and log in to your account
- Go to “Manage Account” at the top right-hand corner of the home page
- Click “Subscriptions”
- Click “Cancel Subscription” at the top right-hand corner of the activate subscriptions page
- Follow the on-screen instructions steps until you reach the confirmation page
How To Cancel Amazon Prime Subscription?
You can cancel your Amazon Prime subscription at any time without penalty. When you cancel your subscription, you’ll still have access to Amazon Prime until your next billing period. To cancel your subscription, simply follow these steps:
- Log into your account and click “Manage Prime Membership”
- Depending on your billing date, you’ll need to click the following to cancel your subscription:
- Do Not Continue – For Amazon Prime free trial customers and that cancelling within the first 30 days of subscribing to a monthly or annual membership.
- End Membership – For customers who’ve passed their first billing period.
Will Cancelling A Subscription Hurt Your Credit Score?
Your credit score is only affected when your payments are reported to the credit bureaus. Since payments for streaming services are not reported, they won’t impact your credit scores. That means any on-time payments or missed payments on your streaming service won’t affect your credit. Similarly, cancelling your streaming service account will also not affect your credit scores.
How Much Can You Save In A Year?
The exact amount of money you could save annually depends on the package you subscribe to. Let’s take a look at some examples to help you get a sense of how much money you could be pocketing by cancelling your streaming services:
| Monthly Cost | Annual Savings | |
| Netflix | $9.99 (Basic plan) | $119.88 (no annual plans) |
| Disney+ | $11.99 | $119.99 |
| Crave | $19.99 | $199.90 |
| Apple Music | $10.99 (Individual plan) | $131.88 |
| Apple TV | $8.99 | $107.88 |
Are There Free Streaming Services In Canada?
While the more popular streaming services come with a fee, there are some platforms available in Canada that require no paid subscription. Here are a few to check out:
Tubi
You can watch live TV on Tubi for free on various devices and platforms, including Amazon Fire, Apple TV, PlayStation, Xbox, Chromecast, Android, and others. But since it’s a free streaming service, the content library is a bit outdated and there are ads.
Pluto TV
There are hundreds of live channels and thousands of movies available on Pluto TV, which you can stream for free. The platform is easy to navigate, and you won’t be bombarded with ads to purchase a subscription plan. However, the service is limited to free local channels only.
The Roku Channel
Roku has over 4,000 shows available to watch for free. In order to use the service, you’ll need to buy a Roku stick or Roku TV, which must be attached to your TV. You’ll also have to pay for movie rentals.
CBC Gem
CBC Gem offers similar TV content as CBC TV. You’ll have a wide range of programs to choose from, which you can watch on your computer or mobile device. The basic plan is completely free, but you’ll need to pay $4.99 per month to upgrade to the premium service.
Over The Air HD
You can catch a variety of local programs in Canada with Over The Air HD for free. However, you’ll need to buy an HD antenna to access free streaming TV channels. The cost for these antennas varies based on your location and the antenna’s range.
Final Thoughts
Streaming services for shows, movies, and music are super convenient, but they cost money. And the more streaming services you subscribe to, the more you’ll be paying. Luckily, there are several alternatives to these paid subscriptions that are offered for free, so you can still enjoy streaming your favourite shows and movies without putting a burden on your bank account.
