In this guide
Before you start.
- Check whether you have Apple Music or Apple One. Apple One bundles several services under one charge, so Apple Music does not appear as its own cancellable subscription. If the amount on your statement does not match an Apple Music price, look at the bundle first.
- Cancel a trial with time to spare. Apple states that if you signed up for a trial subscription and do not want to renew it, cancel at least 24 hours before the trial ends.
- Work out whose Apple Account is billed. Apple states that a family member cannot cancel a subscription linked to another family member's Apple Account, and that the person who owns it has to cancel it themselves. On a Family plan, that is the organiser.
- Know what happens to the music. Songs added from the Apple Music catalogue are licensed through the subscription rather than owned, so they leave your library when the subscription ends. Tracks you actually purchased from iTunes stay.
- Back up playlists you care about before the subscription lapses, because a playlist built from catalogue tracks will not survive as playable music.
- A student rate does not last indefinitely. Student pricing is time limited and requires verification, and when it ends the subscription continues at the standard price rather than stopping.
FOLLOW THE RIGHT BILLING ROUTE
Cancel Apple Music, step by step.
Cancel Apple Music on iPhone or iPad
This is the route most people need, and it is the same place every Apple-billed subscription lives, whichever app sold it.
- Open the Settings app.
- Tap your name at the top of the screen.
- Tap Subscriptions.
- Tap the Apple Music subscription.
- Tap Cancel Subscription and confirm.
Apple states you may need to scroll to find the cancel button, and that if there is no Cancel button or you see a message in red saying the subscription expires on a date, the subscription is already cancelled.
Cancel Apple Music on a Mac or in a browser
Useful when the iPhone is not to hand, or when the subscription was bought on a computer.
- On a Mac, open the App Store and click your name at the bottom of the sidebar.
- Click Subscriptions.
- Click the subscription you want to cancel, then click Cancel Subscription.
- In a browser instead, sign in at account.apple.com and open the subscriptions section, then cancel from there.
The same red expiry message applies here: if it appears, or there is no cancel option, the subscription has already been cancelled and will simply run out.
Apple Music inside an Apple One bundle
This is the reason a lot of people cannot find Apple Music in their subscription list at all. In a bundle it is not sold separately, so there is nothing individual to cancel.
- Open Settings, tap your name, then tap Subscriptions.
- Look for the Apple One entry rather than an Apple Music one.
- To stop paying for music only, change the Apple One plan or cancel the bundle: cancelling Apple One ends every service it covers, not just Apple Music.
- Decide before you cancel whether you still want the other services in the bundle, because ending it stops iCloud storage and the rest at the same time.
Cancelling a bundle that includes paid iCloud storage can leave you over your free storage limit. Check what your iCloud is holding before the bundle ends.
Cancel Apple Music on an Android phone
Apple Music exists on Android, and a subscription started there is managed inside the Apple Music app rather than in iOS Settings.
- Open the Apple Music app on your Android device.
- Open the account or settings area from the menu.
- Find the subscription or membership section and open Manage Subscription.
- Choose the cancellation option and confirm.
- If your subscription was bought through Google Play instead, cancel it in Google Play subscriptions using the Google Account that bought it.
What happens next?
- Access continues to the end of the period you have paid for rather than stopping the day you cancel. Apple shows the expiry date on the subscription itself.
- Music added from the Apple Music catalogue leaves your library when the subscription ends, including downloads for offline listening. Tracks you bought outright stay.
- Playlists built from catalogue tracks stop being playable, even where the playlist itself is still listed.
- On a Family plan, cancelling ends Apple Music for everyone sharing it, not just the organiser.
- Cancelling Apple Music does not cancel anything else Apple bills you for. iCloud storage, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade and Apple News+ are separate subscriptions on the same list.
Cancelling a Apple Music free trial.
How do I cancel an App Store free trial before I’m charged?
For a trial billed by Apple, open Settings on your iPhone or iPad, tap your name, then Subscriptions. Select the trial, choose the cancellation option and confirm. Apple advises cancelling at least 24 hours before the trial ends to prevent renewal. Check the confirmation for your access end date. If you track it in Subex, enter the date the trial converts as the renewal date and set a reminder 1 or 3 days before.
WHEN IT DOES NOT WORK
If you get stuck.
Apple Music is not in my Subscriptions list
Three usual causes. It is inside an Apple One bundle, in which case only the bundle is listed and cancelling it ends every included service. It belongs to a different Apple Account from the one signed in on this device, which Apple's Family Sharing rules make common. Or a family member owns it: Apple states a family member cannot cancel a subscription linked to another family member's Apple Account.
I cancelled but I was charged again
Check whether you cancelled with enough time. Apple states a trial should be cancelled at least 24 hours before it ends, and the same margin protects a paid renewal. Then check that it really cancelled: Apple states that no Cancel button, or a message in red giving an expiry date, means the subscription is already cancelled. If neither is showing, the cancellation did not complete.
My downloaded songs disappeared
That is how the subscription works rather than a fault. Catalogue music is licensed while you subscribe, so downloads stop playing once it ends. Purchased tracks are unaffected. If you want to keep the shape of a playlist, export the track list before the subscription lapses, because the songs themselves will not remain.
I cancelled Apple One but Apple Music kept working
Cancelling takes effect at the end of the paid period, so continued access until the expiry date is expected. Check the subscription entry for the date service ends. If the date has passed and it still works, check whether a separate standalone Apple Music subscription is also running on the account, which happens when someone subscribes to the bundle without cancelling the individual subscription first.
I cannot get into the Apple Account that holds the subscription
Only the Apple Account that bought the subscription can cancel it, so this has to be solved before anything else. Use the email address on the Apple receipt to identify the right account and recover it through Apple's account recovery. Contacting Apple Support is the route when the account itself is unreachable; no amount of device signing-out cancels the billing.
Still not cancelled?Common reasons a subscription will not cancel How to cancel an app subscription
GOOD TO KNOW
Questions, answered.
How do I cancel my Apple Music subscription?
Open Settings on your iPhone or iPad, tap your name, tap Subscriptions, tap Apple Music and tap Cancel Subscription. On a Mac, open the App Store, click your name at the bottom of the sidebar, click Subscriptions, then Cancel Subscription.
How do I cancel Apple Music if I have Apple One?
You cannot cancel it on its own. Apple Music is part of the bundle rather than a separate subscription, so the Subscriptions list shows Apple One instead. Changing or cancelling the Apple One plan is the only way to stop paying for it, and cancelling the bundle ends every service it covers.
Do I keep my music after cancelling Apple Music?
You keep tracks you purchased. Music added from the Apple Music catalogue, including downloads, leaves your library when the subscription ends, because it is licensed for as long as you subscribe.
Can a family member cancel the Apple Music Family plan?
No. Apple states that a family member cannot cancel a subscription that is linked to another family member's Apple Account, and that the owner has to cancel it themselves. On a Family plan that is the organiser.
Provider resources
- Apple: view, change, or cancel subscriptions
- Apple: manage subscriptions on the web
- Google Play: cancel subscriptions
Instructions reviewed .
Subex is independent of Apple Music. Availability and cancellation terms can vary by plan, billing provider and country.
