If you were given the option to pay monthly for subscriptions vs annually, which would you choose? Are you aware that most places will offer a discount for you to pay up front for the year?
Your current situation may tell you that you are only able to pay the monthly because the annual is too much all at once. That should be an indication that you cannot afford the service. However, if you are working a plan to get to a point where you are able to afford the annual, then I would be okay with the temporary solution.
We pay annually for many different things: Amazon Prime membership, DMV registration, auto insurance, life insurance, and (up until recently) Hulu. Netflix unfortunately doesn’t offer an annual subscription. If they did, we would certainly opt-in. We see the benefit and cost to the different options and choose the overall lesser cost up front versus spreading the payment over 12 months. We then create sinking funds for the larger amounts (insurances) and cashflow the other remaining subscription items that come up.
If we evaluate our situation and determine we don’t need the service anymore, we cancel without hesitation. This frees up funds to be spent elsewhere.
Have you seen areas where you can switch your subscriptions to annual to save some money monthly? If you or (someone you know) need help going through your budget, schedule a consultation with me now! 2023 is right around the corner – why wait? I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Madsen Financial Coaching 