The average American household spends nearly $1,100 per year on various subscription products ranging from video and gaming to food delivery and digital news websites — and around $200 of that spending goes toward subscriptions they forget about or otherwise never used.
That was one of the key takeaways in a new report released by tech outlet CNET on Thursday, part of the publication’s annual report that evaluates subscription spending and use in American homes.
The average American spend around $90 per month on various subscription products, the CNET report says. Of that, around $17 per month goes toward subscriptions that are rarely or never used in a given month. The amount adds up to around $1,080 per year in total subscriptions, of which Americans spend $205 per year on subscriptions they don’t use, CNET concludes.
“Even though we’re seeing a slight dip in what we’re sending on subscriptions, it all still adds up. Most of us are still spending over $1,000 a year,” Dashia Milden, the Consumer Insights Editor at CNET, said in a statement. “That’s a good reminder that we need to check what we’re actually using a cancel the rest.”
The most popular type of subscription found in the average American household involves streaming video, with 61 percent of CNET readers affirming a streaming video subscription to a service like Netflix, Prime Video, Max (soon to be renamed HBO Max) and others.
E-commerce sites like Amazon Prime and Walmart Plus come in second, with 37 percent of American households having a subscription to at least one of those services, while streaming music services come in third with 33 percent.
Around one in 10 American households have a subscription to a media service like the New York Times, Wall Street Journal or their local newspaper, while 14 percent say they pay for a gym membership.
While Americans admit forgetting certain subscriptions after they signed up for them, the downturn in the economy has many re-thinking what they pay for. Over half of Americans surveyed by CNET (61 percent) said they’re reconsidering a subscription because of economic concerns, while one in four Americans have already canceled a paid service.
“Prices for everyday essentials are still high, but nowadays, we’re paying close attention to where our money is going, and that includes how much we’re spending on subscriptions,” Milden noted. “Cutting back and canceling subscriptions we don’t use is one small way to start reigning in our budget, but it can make a big difference.”
The CNET survey involved 2,440 Americans, including 1,932 who affirmed paying for a subscription in the past year. The website partnered with YouGov for the survey.
