The Subscription Leak

What your kid learns

• Monthly × 12

  A subscription is a payment that repeats on a schedule. To see its real size, multiply the monthly cost by 12.

• Free trials flip to paid

  A free trial turns into a paid plan unless you cancel in time. Set a reminder a few days before the cancel-by date.

• Auto-renew and proof

  Most subscriptions auto-renew. That means they keep charging until you stop them. When you cancel, screenshot the confirmation.

• Use it, love it, or lose it

  Check each subscription. A cheaper plan or a plan with ads may be enough. Family plans let people in one home share the cost.

The story: Ravi’s tiny payments

Ravi sits on a bed with a phone and a calendar, adding up monthly payments.

1. Helper: Ravi signed up for a music app, a game pass and a video app. Each one costs a few dollars.
2. Ravi: They’re tiny. $5, $8 and $7 a month. No big deal.
3. Helper: Let’s do the yearly math. $20 a month times 12 months is $240 a year.
4. Ravi: Whoa. And I haven’t opened the game pass in two months.
5. Helper: Audit time: use it, love it, or lose it. The video app could also go on a family plan.
6. Ravi: I’ll cancel the game pass and screenshot the proof.
7. Helper: Small times often equals big. Keep each subscription on purpose.

The game: Subscription audit

Help a pretend family audit their subscriptions. Keep, cancel or share each one.

Games use pretend money and work with taps or a keyboard. Nothing is timed.

New words

subscription

a payment for something that repeats on a schedule

recurring

repeats on a schedule, like every month

auto-renew

keeps charging until you cancel

free trial

a free start that turns into a paid plan unless you cancel

Questions at the end

• A pretend app costs $6 a month. What does it cost in a year?
• A free trial ends, and you didn’t cancel. What happens?
• When do you keep a subscription?
• You just canceled a subscription. What’s a smart next step?
• A video app has a $10 plan and a $5 plan with ads. You only watch a little. What could save money?

Remember this

Small × often = big.

Talk about it

What’s something people pay for every month? How would you decide if it’s worth it?

Try it at home: Run a subscription audit

1. With a grown-up, list the subscriptions you use. Or use the pretend family’s list from this lesson’s game.
2. Write each monthly cost × 12.
3. Mark each one: use it, love it, or lose it.

With a grown-up, list the subscriptions you use and their cost × 12. Or audit the pretend family’s list from this lesson’s game.

For grown-ups: live facts

• No single federal click-to-cancel rule right now. Some states require easy online cancel. Check your state attorney general.

  Source: FTC: Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act(opens in a new tab)

School standards

• Grades 6–8
• National Standards for Personal Financial Education: Spending
• Common Core Math 7.RP.A.3