Subscription Billing Statistics
Last updated: 2026-10-28 · 11 sourced statistics
Subscription billing is now common enough that governments measure the cost of getting it wrong. The UK government estimates about 155 million active consumer subscriptions in the UK, with roughly £26 billion a year spent on them and an estimated £1.6 billion a year spent on subscriptions consumers do not want. In the US, the Federal Trade Commission says it received more than 100,000 complaints about negative option practices in five years, while its 2024 click-to-cancel rule was vacated in July 2025 and a new rulemaking began in March 2026. Vendor benchmarks fill in the business side: Recurly reports that 52% of consumers cancelled at least one subscription in the past year because they were not using it. Every figure below links to the page that states it, and vendor figures are labelled.
Key takeaways
- Unwanted subscriptions are a measurable cost: about 9.7 million of the UK's roughly 155 million active subscriptions are unwanted, costing consumers an estimated £1.6 billion a year (UK government, 2026).
- Free and discounted trials that roll over are the biggest single source, with an estimated 3.6 million unwanted UK contracts.
- US rules are in flux: the FTC's amended Negative Option Rule was vacated in July 2025, and the FTC opened a new advance notice of proposed rulemaking in March 2026, with comments closing on 13 April 2026.
- The UK subscription contracts regime will come into force in January 2027, the government said on 9 August 2026.
- Retention is where subscription billing is won or lost: in Recurly's 2026 vendor data, former subscribers drive nearly 1 in 4 new sign-ups.
At a glance.
Every figure on this page in one table, each linked to its named source. Scroll down for the full context behind each number.
| Figure | What it measures | Source | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 155M | There are approximately 155 million active subscriptions in the UK, with consumer spend of approximately £26 billion per year. | UK Department for Business and Trade, Government response to consultation on the implementation of the new subscription contracts regime | 2026 |
| 9.7M | An estimated 9.7 million unwanted subscription contracts are active in the UK, approximately 5.8% of active subscriptions. | UK Department for Business and Trade, Government response to consultation on the implementation of the new subscription contracts regime | 2026 |
| £1.6bn | UK consumers spend an estimated £1.6 billion a year on subscriptions they do not want. | UK Department for Business and Trade, Government response to consultation on the implementation of the new subscription contracts regime | 2026 |
| 3.6M | Of the UK's unwanted subscription contracts, an estimated 3.6 million are the direct result of being rolled over from a free or discounted trial period. | UK Department for Business and Trade, Government response to consultation on the implementation of the new subscription contracts regime | 2026 |
| £400M | The UK government expects the subscription contracts regime to provide £400 million of consumer benefit a year, and says a consumer saves £14 a month for every unwanted subscription they can leave earlier. | UK Department for Business and Trade, Government response to consultation on the implementation of the new subscription contracts regime | 2026 |
| Jan 2027 | The UK government announced on 9 August 2026 that the new subscription contracts rules will come into force in January 2027, earlier than the spring 2027 date given in its consultation response. | UK Prime Minister's Office and Department for Business and Trade, PM starts roll out of 'everyday fixes' on the cost of living | 2026 |
| 100,000+ | The US Federal Trade Commission says it continues to receive thousands of complaints each year about negative option practices, including more than 100,000 complaints in the past five years. | US Federal Trade Commission, press release on the Negative Option Rule advance notice of proposed rulemaking (11 March 2026) | 2026 |
| July 2025 | The FTC's October 2024 click-to-cancel amendments to the Negative Option Rule were vacated by the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in July 2025; the FTC published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on 13 March 2026, asking whether to keep the current rule, adopt parts of the vacated rule or try alternatives. | US Federal Trade Commission, Negative Option Rule advance notice of proposed rulemaking | 2026 |
| 52% | 52% of consumers cancelled at least one subscription in the past year due to lack of use (vendor report based on Recurly billing data covering 76 million subscribers and a consumer survey). | Recurly, State of Subscriptions 2026 (vendor report) | 2026 |
| 1 in 4 | Former subscribers drive nearly 1 in 4 new sign-ups, and overall subscription growth slowed to 12.6% (vendor report based on Recurly billing data). | Recurly, State of Subscriptions 2026 (vendor report) | 2026 |
| 11% faster | Companies in Zuora's Subscription Economy Index grew revenue at an 11% faster rate than the S&P 500 over the two years covered (vendor index built from anonymized activity of more than 600 companies on Zuora Billing). | Zuora, Subscription Economy Index 2025 (vendor index) | 2025 |
The statistics
There are approximately 155 million active subscriptions in the UK, with consumer spend of approximately £26 billion per year.
An estimated 9.7 million unwanted subscription contracts are active in the UK, approximately 5.8% of active subscriptions.
UK consumers spend an estimated £1.6 billion a year on subscriptions they do not want.
Of the UK's unwanted subscription contracts, an estimated 3.6 million are the direct result of being rolled over from a free or discounted trial period.
The UK government expects the subscription contracts regime to provide £400 million of consumer benefit a year, and says a consumer saves £14 a month for every unwanted subscription they can leave earlier.
The UK government announced on 9 August 2026 that the new subscription contracts rules will come into force in January 2027, earlier than the spring 2027 date given in its consultation response.
The US Federal Trade Commission says it continues to receive thousands of complaints each year about negative option practices, including more than 100,000 complaints in the past five years.
The FTC's October 2024 click-to-cancel amendments to the Negative Option Rule were vacated by the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in July 2025; the FTC published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on 13 March 2026, asking whether to keep the current rule, adopt parts of the vacated rule or try alternatives.
Source:US Federal Trade Commission, Negative Option Rule advance notice of proposed rulemaking2026
52% of consumers cancelled at least one subscription in the past year due to lack of use (vendor report based on Recurly billing data covering 76 million subscribers and a consumer survey).
Source:Recurly, State of Subscriptions 2026 (vendor report)2026
Former subscribers drive nearly 1 in 4 new sign-ups, and overall subscription growth slowed to 12.6% (vendor report based on Recurly billing data).
Source:Recurly, State of Subscriptions 2026 (vendor report)2026
Companies in Zuora's Subscription Economy Index grew revenue at an 11% faster rate than the S&P 500 over the two years covered (vendor index built from anonymized activity of more than 600 companies on Zuora Billing).
Source:Zuora, Subscription Economy Index 2025 (vendor index)2025
When these numbers don't apply
Aggregate statistics hide a lot. Read these caveats before quoting a figure as if it describes your specific situation.
- Official statistics on subscription billing are thin. National statistics offices do not publish a series on subscription revenue, churn or failed recurring payments, so most widely quoted 'subscription economy' numbers come from billing vendors or paid market research.
- The UK figures are government estimates from the Department for Business and Trade's impact analysis for the subscription contracts regime. The £1.6 billion is a central estimate within a wide range, and the figures cover consumer subscriptions in the UK only, not business-to-business contracts.
- The FTC complaint count covers negative option marketing and related practices reported to the FTC. Complaints are self-reported and are not a measure of how many US subscriptions are unwanted.
- Recurly and Zuora are subscription billing vendors. Their figures come from their own customers' billing data and commissioned consumer surveys, which over-represent businesses that already run subscription billing at scale. Read them as vendor benchmarks, not market-wide rates.
- Rules change. The FTC's 2024 click-to-cancel amendments were vacated in July 2025, and the UK regime has not started yet. Check the regulator's current page before relying on any date here. This page is general information, not legal advice.
How we compiled this data
Reviewed on 2026-10-28. We removed every figure from the previous version (Gartner SaaS and cloud forecasts linked only to a newsroom homepage, a Hackett DSO comparison with no source page, and an accounting standard listed as a statistic) because none could be traced to a page stating it. We looked for official series first: the US Census Bureau's Service Annual Survey and Annual Retail Trade Survey do not publish subscription revenue or churn, so the official figures here come from the UK government's subscription contracts work and the US Federal Trade Commission, read on gov.uk and ftc.gov on the review date. Vendor figures were kept only where the vendor's own free page states them, and are labelled as vendor data. The rule status was checked on the FTC's Negative Option Rule page, which lists no action after the March 2026 notice as of the review date.
We hand-collected each figure from its original publisher rather than recycling secondary round-ups, cross-checked the headline numbers against the source documents in 2026-10-28, and link every statistic to the report it came from so you can verify it yourself. Where a publisher issues annual updates, we cite the report edition and flag the year inline.
Frequently asked questions
How many subscriptions are unwanted?
In the UK, the government estimates about 9.7 million unwanted subscription contracts out of roughly 155 million active subscriptions, about 5.8%, costing consumers an estimated £1.6 billion a year. There is no equivalent official US estimate; the FTC reports more than 100,000 negative option complaints in five years.
Is the FTC click-to-cancel rule in effect?
No. The FTC's 2024 amendments were vacated by the Eighth Circuit in July 2025, which left the older Negative Option Rule in place. On 13 March 2026 the FTC published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking, with comments due by 13 April 2026, asking whether to keep the current rule, adopt parts of the vacated rule or use alternatives. Other laws, including the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act, still apply to online subscriptions.
When do the UK subscription rules start?
The UK government said on 9 August 2026 that the subscription contracts rules under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 will come into force in January 2027. Its earlier consultation response had said spring 2027.
Why do free trials matter so much for subscription billing?
Because trials that roll over into paid plans are the largest single source of unwanted contracts in the UK estimate: about 3.6 million of the 9.7 million unwanted subscriptions. Clear reminders before a trial converts are one of the practices the new UK rules target.
What share of consumers cancel subscriptions?
Recurly's 2026 vendor report says 52% of consumers cancelled at least one subscription in the past year due to lack of use, and that former subscribers drive nearly 1 in 4 new sign-ups. These figures come from Recurly's own data, not an official survey.
Put these figures to use
- How to invoice for subscription services: Advance billing, first-month proration, overage lines and auto-charge versus recurring invoices.
- Recurring invoices guide: How recurring invoices work, when to auto-send or review drafts, and common setup mistakes.
- Subscription invoice template: A free template showing plan, billing period, seats, proration and renewal terms.
- Invoicing hub: Guides and tools for creating, sending and tracking invoices.
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