YouTube Premium offers an excellent ad-free viewing experience, but at its current monthly price point, it is an expense many users eventually decide to cut. However, cancelling the subscription is rarely as simple as clicking a single button. Depending on how you originally signed up for the service, you will have to follow one of two completely different cancellation paths.
If you subscribed directly through the YouTube website or an Android device, you can cancel directly through Google. But if you subscribed using the YouTube app on an iPhone or iPad, you are trapped by the “Apple Tax”, meaning Apple manages your billing, and Google cannot cancel it for you.
Here is exactly how to navigate both workflows so you are not charged again next month.
Method 1: Cancel Directly Through Google (Desktop & Android)
If you set up your subscription on a computer, or if you use an Android smartphone, your billing is handled directly by Google. This is the most straightforward cancellation process.
- Open your web browser and go to youtube.com, or open the YouTube app on your Android device.
- Ensure you are signed into the correct Google account.
- Click or tap on your profile picture in the top right corner of the screen.
- From the drop-down menu, select Purchases and memberships.
- You will see a section labelled “Memberships” showing your active Premium subscription. Click on Manage membership.
- Click the Deactivate button next to your next billing date.
- YouTube will try to convince you to stay by offering to pause your membership for up to 6 months instead. Click Continue to cancel.
- Select a reason for cancelling from the list, and finally click Yes, cancel.
You will retain your ad-free benefits until the end of your current billing cycle.
Method 2: Cancel Through Apple (iPhone & iPad)
If you originally signed up for YouTube Premium via the iOS app, Apple is processing your payments. If you try to use Method 1 on your iPhone, YouTube will display a message telling you to manage your subscription through Apple. You must use the iOS Settings app to cancel.
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
- Tap your Name / Apple ID at the very top of the screen.
- Tap on Subscriptions. (You may need to wait a few seconds for this page to load).
- You will see a list of all your active Apple-managed subscriptions. Find YouTube Premium and tap on it.
- Tap the red Cancel Subscription button at the bottom of the screen.
- A confirmation pop-up will appear. Tap Confirm.
Just like with Google, cancelling through Apple does not instantly revoke your access; you can continue using Premium until the date your subscription was originally set to renew.
Can I Get a Refund?
Unfortunately, Google’s policy states that they do not offer prorated refunds if you cancel halfway through a billing cycle. This means if you cancel on the 5th of the month, but your billing date isn’t until the 25th, you will not get your money back for those 20 days. You simply retain access to the service until the time you paid for expires.
Therefore, it is always best to cancel your subscription immediately if you are unsure whether you want to keep it, as you lose nothing by cancelling early.
