FidauraHow to Find and Cancel Forgotten Subscriptions in India
₹149 here, ₹299 there, ₹1,499 once a year. Subscriptions are designed to be easy to start and easy to forget. Between OTT apps, music, cloud storage, fitness apps and free trials that converted, many people are paying for services they haven't opened in months.
Here's how to find them all in about 20 minutes.
Where subscriptions hide
| Where | Examples |
|---|---|
| UPI AutoPay mandates | OTT apps, mobile/DTH recharges, insurance premiums |
| Credit card standing instructions | International apps, cloud storage, software |
| Google Play / App Store billing | App subscriptions, "free trial" upgrades |
| Debit card / e-mandate | Gym memberships, SIP-like plans, newspapers |
| Bundled with your mobile plan | OTT access you may be paying for twice |
Step 1: Check UPI AutoPay mandates
Open your UPI app (GPay, PhonePe, Paytm, BHIM) and look for AutoPay or Mandates. Every active recurring payment is listed there, and you can pause or cancel directly.
Step 2: Check Play Store subscriptions
Play Store → profile icon → Payments & subscriptions → Subscriptions. Cancel anything you don't use. Do the same in the App Store if you also use an iPhone or iPad.
Step 3: Scan 3 months of card and bank alerts
This is where most forgotten charges show up. Look for:
- The same merchant and similar amount every month
- Small international charges (often in USD, converted to ₹)
- Annual renewals — easy to miss because they come once a year
Doing this by hand means scrolling through hundreds of SMS. An SMS-based tracker does it automatically. If you're wondering is it safe to give an app SMS permission, that post covers what to check first.
Step 4: Check for duplicates
Common doubles in India:
- An OTT app paid directly and included in your mobile or broadband plan
- Cloud storage on two services
- A family plan where two members are each also paying individually
Step 5: Cancel, then set reminders for the rest
For anything you keep, set a reminder 3 days before renewal. That way every renewal is a decision, not an accident.
The ₹ maths
Cancel just three ₹199/month subscriptions you don't use:
- ₹597 per month
- ₹7,164 per year
That's a weekend trip, or a few months of a SIP.
How Fidaura helps
Fidaura has a built-in subscription tracker:
- Detects recurring charges automatically from your bank, card and UPI SMS
- Flags price changes — when a ₹149 plan quietly becomes ₹199
- Shows upcoming renewals and card-bill reminders you control
- SMS parsing is fully offline; your data stays in an encrypted database on your phone
FAQ
How do I cancel a UPI AutoPay? Open the UPI app you used to set it up → AutoPay/Mandates → select it → Pause or Cancel.
Will cancelling stop the service immediately? Usually not — most services run until the end of the paid period.
Can my bank block a recurring charge? Yes. Most banks let you manage standing instructions and e-mandates in their app or NetBanking under "Standing Instructions" or "E-mandates".
Find every recurring charge automatically: Get Fidaura on Google Play