Apps & Subscriptions I’m Not Renewing in 2025
Decluttering my digital life.
Over the past years, as life has become more complex, I have tried to keep up by becoming more efficient with my time. At first, it was simple task lists, but as things progressed, I started looking for different tools to help me be more productive and efficient. That led to fitness-related apps and other tools to help me achieve more.
As the year ends, I start reviewing what was useful to me over the past year and decide whether to keep or cancel subscriptions. I try a lot of things, so the list can be quite long. I’ll break this up into sections so you can jump to the category that interests you most.
Between business and personal apps and subscriptions, my list can grow quite long, making it even more important for me to stay on top of them and cancel those from which I no longer receive value.
We are in the early age of AI, and many new tools will continue to be launched. I enjoy testing new tools to see if they will add value to my life. That leads to a long list of apps and subscriptions I cancel. In this article, I will focus only on the tools I have used for a while and am discontinuing this coming year.
With that said, let’s look at the apps and subscriptions I am canceling in 2025.
Entertainment
Apple One: When Apple launched Apple One, I subscribed. $14.99 for access to all of Apple’s premium features made sense to me. As I added devices for my children, we needed additional storage. With pricing increases, I am now paying $37.95/mo. While Apple has produced some decent shows and movies, I don’t watch much TV or use many other Apple One services. I don’t use Apple Music either. When I canceled Spotify last year, I started using YouTube Music and have been happy. I will downgrade from Apple One to a 2TB storage plan in January.
What am I keeping? Disney+/Hulu, YouTube Premium
Productivity
Todoist: I have been using Todoist for years. Despite spending time in Notion and other tools, it has remained a tool I use as I tried to find one app that would help me manage all of my projects and tasks. As Apple added features to their Reminders app, Todoist became less valuable to me. It is hard to pay for an app that essentially comes for free on the iPhone. I also liked Todoist because it is cross platform, but I find myself using Android less and less these days. I did not decide to renew Todoist this year.
Notion: In 2019, I feel deep into the Notion rabbit hole. I built the productivity tools I always wanted and started organizing every aspect of my life. Notion is a great tool. With all of the useful features that Notion continues to add, they are too tempting to use, and I end up slowing myself down. Though I have some Notion content that still does well, I don’t want to be a “Notion Influencer” or have my identity attached to a piece of software. Notion still doesn’t have a very good mobile interface and I find it takes a lot of extra time to try and use Notion for task management compared to something more simple like Apple Reminders.
Clickup: After getting burned out in Notion I decided to use Clickup, which worked pretty well for me in 2024. However, it is yet another application that doesn’t integrate with the rest of my workflow quite like I wish it would. It is an excellent project and task manager. It has other tools that if I had a team, I would use. However, at the cost, I am simply not utilizing it. I have since started using Apple Reminders to simplify project and task management. For project details and notes, I use Apple Notes. I only wish you could link Apple Notes to Reminders. I will not be renewing Clickup in 2025.
What am I keeping? Apple Notes & Apple Reminders (Free on Apple devices)
Creative
Adobe Creative Cloud: I have been an Adobe user for decades and a Creative Cloud customer since it launched. These days, I find myself using Lightroom and Photoshop, leaving all other apps unused. I kept the Creative Cloud license because I used Premiere Pro with my video editor. I am returning to Final Cut Pro and DaVinci Resolve, so I will no longer need Premiere. If I do, I can subscribe for a month to Premiere Pro specifically and then cancel when I no longer need it. I will downgrade to an Adobe Photography plan, including Lightroom and Photoshop.
Final Cut Pro for iPad: I was excited when Final Cut Pro came to iPad; however, that excitement wore off quickly when I realized how much slower editing video on an iPad is. From file management to the touch interface, it’s much faster to use a traditional computer for video editing. I renewed this year, hoping to find a reason to use it more often, but it hasn’t happened.
What am I keeping? Adobe Photography Bundle, Canva, Affinity Designer
Business
Podia: Last year, I moved my online courses from my own website to Podia due to an issue with my video hosting. I had to make a change quickly to provide my students with the content they purchased. While I like the Podia platform, it is a big expense. It’s easy to use, but the design tools are limited, and I miss the flexibility of the site I built with WordPress. In 2025, I will likely cancel Podia and move all of my content back to WordPress, as I am already paying for web hosting and the plugins I need for clients’ websites.
Freshbooks: Earlier this year, I canceled Freshbooks and switched to Quickbooks. I have been using Freshbooks since 2007. It was not an easy decision, but after a few issues with sub-par support and enduring their woke marketing choices, it was clear that they are no longer customer-focused. It was time for a change.
VideoHusky: I have been outsourcing my video editing to VideoHusky for the past two years. They have done a great job providing edited videos. I can quickly add graphics and publish them on my YouTube channels. I have also had them edit most of the course content I have released in the past two years. In 2025, I will release less video content and focus on educational content. If I review anything, it will be technology that I am using personally. VideoHusky has made it possible for me to produce hundreds of videos over the past two years, but it is time for me to simplify and be more strategic with what I release. I won’t utilize VideoHusky and cannot justify paying for the subscription service.
What am I keeping? Quickbooks, Dropbox, Claude.ai, Otter.ai
Education
Skillshare: I almost canceled Skillshare last year but held on to it because we homeschooled our kids. I like Skillshare, but the site doesn’t offer the level of educational content I desire. I even have a few of my own courses on the site. However, I don’t use Skillshare because I find the course content to be too introductory or poorly planned. I will not be renewing my Skillshare membership this year.
What am I keeping? Perplexity, YouTube Premium, Duolingo, Kindle Unlimited.
Health & Fitness
MyFitnessPal: I start tracking my calories a few times yearly, but it is never sustainable. The app is also a single place for other apps to sync and is cross-platform. I couldn't care less about having my fitness data sync to a single app, and I go months without opening the MyFitnessPal app.
Oura: I stopped using my Oura ring and have been using a ring from Ultrahuman that doesn’t require a subscription. I paid for a year with Oura but will not renew it. The Oura app is great, but it doesn’t provide enough data to justify the cost, especially when purchasing the ring.
What am I keeping? Strava.
Consolidation
The theme here is consolidation. Many tools have a specific feature or two that another does not, but I am finally at a point where a feature or two is not enough added value to earn my money. I also realize that some apps and subscriptions are good, but I haven’t been able to implement them into my life, so it’s time to stop paying for them.
Apple's default apps are getting better and are now included at no additional cost. This helps offset the cost of purchasing the latest devices. Other apps like Final Cut Pro and Davinci Resolve are a one-time purchase.
What’s an app or subscription you plan to cancel in 2025? I will follow up this post with a list of apps and subscriptions I plan to renew in 2025 and why.