79% of Americans forget to cancel free trials, losing $540/year

A new Dimers survey of 2,000 U.S. consumers found that nearly 8 in 10 Americans have signed up for a free trial planning to cancel, then forgot and got charged anyway. The average cost: $45 a month, or roughly $540 a year, per Yahoo Finance.

The subscription creep problem

According to the survey, 79% of respondents said they intended to cancel a free trial and forgot, letting the charge run through. The average single largest forgotten-trial charge landed at $87.

1 in 4 admit to still being stuck on at least one forgotten trial, and 1 in 8 have forgotten to cancel two or more.

Where it hits hardest

The cost varies sharply by state. Washington leads the country at an average $98 a month on forgotten free trials, followed by North Carolina at $90 and Texas at $76.

Washington also posts the highest single forgotten-trial charge at $211, with New York and North Carolina tied at $161.

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Why it matters for the streaming trade

Streaming and subscription apps have leaned on free trials and intro offers as a core acquisition tool while sticker prices keep climbing. Netflix raised U.S. plan prices earlier this year, Peacock followed in August, and Disney+ and Hulu announced another round in late September.

Forgotten trials are effectively a hidden tailwind to ARPU across the subscription complex, one that new FTC ‘click-to-cancel’ style rules aim to squeeze.

Options market and stocks to watch

Traders may want to keep an eye on the subscription-heavy names most exposed to trial conversion and churn dynamics.

• NFLX: Recent U.S. price hikes plus trial-driven sign-ups make ARPU trends a key watch item.
• DIS: Disney+ and Hulu just announced fresh price increases; watch for churn commentary next earnings.
• CMCSA: Peacock hiked prices in August and remains a trial-heavy service.
• SPOT: Spotify’s free-to-paid funnel is directly tied to trial mechanics.
• AAPL: Services revenue leans heavily on bundled trials across Apple TV+, Music, and Fitness+.

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