In this guide
Before you start.
- Work out whether you pay by card or by invoice, because it decides who can act. Asana states that admins and super admins can manage subscriptions and access billing information just as the billing owner can, that this ability has only been rolled out to auto-pay customers, and that manually invoiced plans may still only be managed by the billing owner.
- Count back thirty days from your renewal date. Asana's Subscriber Terms state the subscription automatically renews for a period equal to the prior term at Asana's then-current rates unless either party notifies the other of its intent not to renew at least thirty days prior to the renewal date.
- Seat reductions run on the same clock. Asana states that to reduce the number of paid-for end users, or to downgrade to a lower plan, you must give written notice by in-app notification or email at least thirty days before the end of the current term, and that it will reflect the reduction on the renewal date.
- Adding is instant and charged, reducing is not. Asana states a customer may add end users and capacity at any time on written notice, and that it may invoice for excess increments on a pro rata basis for the remaining period of the current term.
- Seats are sold in set increments. Asana states it does not offer paid subscriptions for 1-user plans but offers set increments of seats for smaller teams, such as 2, 3, 4 and up to 5-seat plans, and that you choose the most appropriate seat tier for your team size.
- Consider pausing a licence instead of cancelling. Asana states this lets admins, super admins and billing owners pause the licence of any member in the organization, effectively reducing the number of paid seats by one, and that it caps paused licences at 10% of the total subscription size.
- Know what a downgrade costs you in access. Asana states that on a free Personal plan you will not be able to use paid features such as rules, goals or portfolios, that you also will not have access to projects and tasks that use paid features, and that you can still export those tasks and projects to a CSV file.
- Export inside thirty days of the end. Asana's terms state it will make customer data available for export as long as it receives written notice within thirty days after the effective date of expiration or termination, and that after that period it has no obligation to retain the data.
- Asana states amounts due are non-cancelable and non-refundable unless its agreement provides otherwise, and it runs no general money-back guarantee. A prorated refund of prepaid unused fees applies only where you terminate for Asana's material breach.
- Check you are upgrading or cancelling the right space. Asana states subscriptions are non-transferable between separate workspaces and organizations, and that if you upgrade the wrong space you need to cancel it first and then upgrade the correct space again.
FOLLOW THE RIGHT BILLING ROUTE
Cancel Asana, step by step.
Cancel from the Admin console
This is the self-serve route for a plan you subscribed to online with a card. Admins and super admins can now use it, not only the billing owner.
- Give yourself time: on an annual term, act at least thirty days before the renewal date.
- Click your profile photo in the top-right corner.
- Select Admin console.
- Navigate to the Billing tab.
- Under Plan details, select Cancel plan.
- Follow the prompts, and keep the confirmation as evidence that notice was given.
- Export anything built with paid features to CSV before the cycle ends, since you lose access to those projects and tasks on the free plan.
Asana states that all cancellations take effect at the end of the current billing cycle. It also states that if an admin makes changes in the billing tab, the billing owner will receive an email notification.
Cancel a manually invoiced plan
Invoiced customers have no self-serve cancel button, and the admin access rolled out for card payers does not cover them.
- Confirm you are invoiced rather than paying by card: Asana states manually invoiced plans may still only be managed by the billing owner.
- Open the Admin console and go to the Billing tab.
- Select Contact support from the Billing tab of your admin console.
- Use the support form to contact the support team about cancelling your plan.
- Asana states this creates a support case and that its team will follow up by email with next steps.
- Start this well before the thirty day notice deadline, since the case has to be raised and answered inside it.
Asana states that billing owners and admins of manually invoiced subscriptions who wish to adjust or cancel their plan for their upcoming renewal term should use this route.
Pause a licence instead of removing someone
Asana's documented way to cut the seat count without waiting for a renewal, and the only lever that bites mid-term.
- Sign in as an admin, super admin or the billing owner.
- Open the member list in the Admin console and find the person whose licence you want to pause.
- Pause their licence: Asana states this effectively reduces the number of paid seats by one.
- Watch the cap: Asana states it limits paused licences to 10% of the total subscription size, giving the example that a 100-seat plan can pause up to 10 members.
- Expect a confirmation prompt if the person has been active in the last 90 days.
- Note that Asana states a paused member is not notified, and that if they log back in their access and billing status are automatically restored.
Asana states pausing is available on Starter, Advanced, Enterprise and Enterprise Plus plus the legacy tiers, in paid organizations only, and that it is not available for paid divisions or workspaces.
Reduce the seat count at renewal
The permanent reduction, which only ever lands on the renewal date and needs notice in advance.
- Work out your real active user count and the seat tier that fits it.
- Give written notice at least thirty days before the end of the current term: Asana accepts an in-app notification or an email.
- Remember the floor: Asana states it does not offer paid subscriptions for 1-user plans, with set increments of 2, 3, 4 and up to 5 seats for smaller teams.
- Expect the change on the renewal date, since Asana states it reflects the reduction in your billable account then.
- In the meantime, use paused licences for people who have left, within the 10% cap.
Asana states you must be the plan's billing owner or an admin in order to edit its size or change tier.
What happens next?
- Access runs to the end of the cycle. Asana states that all cancellations take effect at the end of the current billing cycle.
- Your data is not deleted, but some of it becomes unreachable. Asana states that on a free Personal plan you will not have access to projects and tasks that use paid features, and that you can still export those tasks and projects to a CSV file.
- Paid features stop. Asana names rules, goals and portfolios as examples of what you lose on the free Personal plan.
- A smaller paid tier is gentler than the free plan. Asana states that downgrading from a higher paid tier to a lower one, such as Advanced to Starter, does not cause the same loss of paid feature access, and that only the Advanced features are removed.
- There is an export deadline after termination. Asana states it will make customer data available for export as long as it receives written notice within thirty days after the effective date of expiration or termination, and that afterwards it has no obligation to retain the data and is entitled to delete it.
- Asana states amounts due are non-cancelable and non-refundable unless its agreement provides otherwise. Unlike several of its competitors it publishes no general thirty day money-back guarantee.
- A missed notice window commits you to another full term at Asana's then-current rates, since the renewal period equals the prior subscription term.
WHEN IT DOES NOT WORK
If you get stuck.
There is no billing page in my Asana admin console
Two causes now, and one of them has improved. Asana states that admins and super admins can manage subscriptions and access billing information just as the billing owner can, but that this has only been rolled out to auto-pay customers. If your organisation is manually invoiced, Asana states the plan may still only be managed by the billing owner, and the route is Contact support from the Billing tab. Invoice emails remain billing-owner-only either way.
Our billing owner has left the company
Check how you pay first, because that decides whether you are stuck. On a card-paid plan an admin or super admin can now manage and cancel the subscription directly from the Admin console, so you may not need the departed person at all. On a manually invoiced plan Asana states only the billing owner can manage it, and the documented route is Contact support from the Billing tab of the admin console, which creates a support case that Asana follows up by email. Reassigning the billing owner role is otherwise an action only the current billing owner can take.
Asana renewed us and will not refund it
Check when notice was given. Asana's terms state the subscription automatically renews unless either party gives notice of intent not to renew at least thirty days prior to the renewal date, and that amounts due are non-cancelable and non-refundable unless the agreement provides otherwise. A prorated refund of prepaid unused fees applies only where you terminate for Asana's material breach.
I removed people and the bill did not change
Removing someone does not reduce a seat count mid-term. Asana states that reducing the number of paid-for end users requires written notice at least thirty days before the end of the current term and is reflected on the renewal date. The lever that works now is pausing a licence, which Asana states effectively reduces the number of paid seats by one, capped at 10% of the total subscription size.
I upgraded the wrong workspace
Asana states subscriptions are non-transferable between separate workspaces and organizations, and that if you upgrade the wrong space you need to cancel it first and then upgrade the correct space again. There is no way to move the subscription across, so the cancellation and the thirty day notice rule both apply to the space you upgraded by mistake.
I cannot see projects I could open last week
The plan has dropped to free Personal. Asana states you will not have access to projects and tasks that use paid features on that plan, and that you may see a popup explaining it. Nothing has been deleted: Asana states you can still export those tasks and projects to a CSV file. Starting a trial or upgrading restores access.
Still not cancelled?Common reasons a subscription will not cancel
GOOD TO KNOW
Questions, answered.
How do I cancel my Asana subscription?
Click your profile photo in the top-right corner, select Admin console, go to the Billing tab, and under Plan details select Cancel plan. Asana states cancellations take effect at the end of the current billing cycle. On a manually invoiced plan, use Contact support from the Billing tab instead.
Can an admin cancel Asana, or only the billing owner?
Both, on card-paid plans. Asana states that admins and super admins can manage subscriptions and access billing information just as the billing owner can, that this has only been rolled out to auto-pay customers, and that manually invoiced plans may still only be managed by the billing owner.
Does Asana refund an unused subscription?
Asana's Subscriber Terms state that amounts due are non-cancelable and non-refundable unless otherwise provided in the agreement, with a prorated refund of prepaid unused fees only where you terminate for Asana's material breach. It publishes no general money-back guarantee.
Can I reduce Asana seats one at a time?
Not below the tiers, and not mid-term. Asana states it does not offer paid subscriptions for 1-user plans but offers set increments such as 2, 3, 4 and up to 5-seat plans, and that a reduction needs written notice at least thirty days before the end of the term and applies on the renewal date.
What happens to my projects if I downgrade Asana?
Asana states that on a free Personal plan you cannot use paid features such as rules, goals or portfolios, that you will not have access to projects and tasks that use paid features, and that you can still export those tasks and projects to a CSV file. Moving to a lower paid tier removes less.
Is there a way to cut Asana costs before the renewal?
Pausing licences. Asana states admins, super admins and billing owners can pause the licence of any member, effectively reducing the number of paid seats by one, capped at 10% of the subscription size, and that a paused member's access and billing status are automatically restored if they log back in.
Provider resources
- Asana: how to cancel or downgrade a subscription
- Asana: how to modify your Asana plan
- Asana: billing settings in the admin console
- Asana: accessing your billing page
- Asana: pause a member's licence
- Asana: how to cancel your Asana trial
- Asana: Subscriber Terms
- Asana: pricing and plan limits
Instructions reviewed .
Subex is independent of Asana. Availability and cancellation terms can vary by plan, billing provider and country.
