About Subscription Guilt Calculator
Add up all your subscriptions to see the true monthly and yearly cost. Includes common services and fun comparisons.
Features
- Adds up every subscription into one monthly and one yearly total
- Normalises monthly, annual, and per-shipment billing to a single figure
- Common services (Netflix, Spotify, and more) preloaded for speed
- Shows the annual cost — the number a stack of "just $9.99" plans hides
- 100% client-side — nothing you enter leaves your browser
Pro Tips
- Convert annual plans to a monthly figure (price ÷ 12) before comparing to monthly plans
- Annual billing only wins if you keep the service past the break-even month
- For subscription boxes, multiply the per-shipment price by shipments-per-month (weekly ≈ 4.33, fortnightly ≈ 2.17)
- For SaaS, check cost per ACTIVE user, not per licensed seat
- Add the easy-to-miss ones: annual renewals, converted free trials, and app-store subscriptions
Reference
Monthly vs annual subscription math
- Annual cost of a monthly plan: monthly price × 12
- Effective monthly rate of an annual plan: annual price ÷ 12
- Annual discount is typically 15–20% on consumer plans
- Break-even month for annual billing ≈ 12 × (1 − discount)
Subscription-box cost modeling
- Weekly box: per-shipment price × 4.33 per month
- Fortnightly box: per-shipment price × 2.17 per month
- Monthly box: 1×; quarterly box: price ÷ 3 per month
- Add per-shipment shipping; reduce to cost-per-item/serving to judge value
Per-seat (SaaS) pricing
- Total: seats × price-per-seat × billing periods
- Annual per-seat rate multiplies across every seat
- Watch for tier minimums and per-seat add-ons
- Cost per active user = (seats × rate) ÷ people actually logging in
Total subscription cost
- Normalise each charge to monthly (annual ÷ 12, quarterly ÷ 3, per-shipment × shipments/month)
- Sum the monthly figures, then × 12 for the yearly total
- Include annual renewals, converted trials, and per-seat work tools
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I calculate my total monthly subscription cost?
List every recurring charge and convert each to a monthly figure — divide annual plans by 12, quarterly plans by 3, and multiply per-shipment boxes by shipments per month (about 4.33 for weekly, 2.17 for fortnightly). Then add them up. The calculator does this normalising and summing for you and shows the monthly and yearly totals side by side.
Is annual or monthly billing cheaper?
Annual billing is usually 15–20% cheaper per month, but you commit the whole year up front. It only saves money if you keep the subscription past the break-even point, roughly 12 × (1 − discount) months in. If you might cancel sooner, monthly billing can cost less overall despite the higher headline rate.
How do I calculate the real cost of a subscription box?
A box is priced per shipment, so the monthly cost depends on frequency, not a flat fee. Multiply the per-shipment price by the number of shipments a month — about 4.33 for weekly, 2.17 for fortnightly, 1 for monthly, and one-third for quarterly — and add any per-box shipping. Divide by items or servings to compare it to buying the same goods yourself.
How does per-seat (per-user) SaaS pricing work?
Per-seat cost is seats × price-per-seat × billing periods. Ten seats at $15/user/month is $150/month or $1,800/year. Annual per-seat rates are discounted and multiply across every seat, and tier minimums or per-seat add-ons raise the effective price. A better value check is cost per active user rather than per licensed seat.
Why is my yearly subscription total so much higher than expected?
Because subscriptions hide across different billing periods and cards, and small "just $9.99" charges compound. Twelve of those is nearly $1,200 a year on their own. Adding annual renewals you forgot, free trials that converted, and per-seat work tools usually pushes the yearly figure well past what the individual monthly prices suggest.