Subscription audit: find small payments eating your budget

Sam

I went through September line by line, as we agreed. Nothing big jumps out: the largest non-essential was our kid's autumn jacket, 2,300 UAH. So how are we 6,558 short?

Alex Tutor

Big purchases are easy to see: you decide once and remember it. Small ones hide by being small. Let's filter differently: every payment under 300 UAH.

Alex Tutor

Dataset · 86 rows

Sam's household spending, 5 September – 4 October 2026

Every card payment and cash withdrawal from payday to payday. Amounts in UAH.

Download CSV

Columns
date: Payment date (YYYY-MM-DD)
category: Spending category
description: What the payment was for
amount_uah: Amount, UAH

Data

date	category	description	amount_uah
2026-09-05	rent	Flat rent	16000
2026-09-05	taxi	Taxi	250
2026-09-05	eating_out	Family dinner out	925
2026-09-06	kindergarten	Kindergarten fee	4500
2026-09-06	coffee	Coffee to go	65

Show 81 more rows

2026-09-07	utilities	Utilities	3350
2026-09-07	subscriptions	video streaming	199
2026-09-07	coffee	Coffee to go	60
2026-09-07	taxi	Taxi	170
2026-09-08	phone_internet	Phones and home internet	640
2026-09-08	groceries	Supermarket	960
2026-09-08	coffee	Coffee to go	70
2026-09-08	coffee	Coffee to go	85
2026-09-08	public_transport	Metro and bus	55
2026-09-08	public_transport	Metro and bus	35
2026-09-09	pharmacy	Pharmacy	640
2026-09-09	groceries	Supermarket	1120
2026-09-09	food_delivery	Food delivery	445
2026-09-10	subscriptions	music streaming	99
2026-09-10	coffee	Coffee to go	80
2026-09-10	coffee	Coffee to go	90
2026-09-10	food_delivery	Food delivery	360
2026-09-11	cash	Cash withdrawal	2000
2026-09-12	coffee	Coffee to go	95
2026-09-12	taxi	Taxi	200
2026-09-13	subscriptions	cloud storage	89
2026-09-13	coffee	Coffee to go	75
2026-09-13	coffee	Coffee to go	55
2026-09-14	installments	Laptop installment 4 of 10	1900
2026-09-14	groceries	Supermarket	1030
2026-09-14	groceries	Supermarket	830
2026-09-14	eating_out	Family dinner out	1365
2026-09-16	subscriptions	games subscription	249
2026-09-16	coffee	Coffee to go	80
2026-09-16	coffee	Coffee to go	70
2026-09-17	clothes	Child's autumn jacket	2300
2026-09-17	groceries	Supermarket	1015
2026-09-17	food_delivery	Food delivery	480
2026-09-17	taxi	Taxi	130
2026-09-17	public_transport	Metro and bus	40
2026-09-17	public_transport	Metro and bus	40
2026-09-17	public_transport	Metro and bus	50
2026-09-19	installments	Washing machine installment 2 of 6	1250
2026-09-19	subscriptions	fitness app	299
2026-09-19	groceries	Supermarket	1145
2026-09-19	coffee	Coffee to go	65
2026-09-20	groceries	Supermarket	950
2026-09-20	food_delivery	Food delivery	410
2026-09-20	public_transport	Metro and bus	30
2026-09-21	coffee	Coffee to go	75
2026-09-21	taxi	Taxi	175
2026-09-22	gifts	Birthday present	1200
2026-09-22	subscriptions	language app	229
2026-09-22	public_transport	Metro and bus	60
2026-09-24	groceries	Supermarket	820
2026-09-24	groceries	Supermarket	860
2026-09-25	card_interest	Credit card interest	1480
2026-09-25	subscriptions	news site	119
2026-09-25	groceries	Supermarket	1055
2026-09-25	taxi	Taxi	255
2026-09-25	taxi	Taxi	135
2026-09-26	pharmacy	Pharmacy	385
2026-09-27	food_delivery	Food delivery	345
2026-09-27	food_delivery	Food delivery	435
2026-09-27	taxi	Taxi	210
2026-09-28	taxi	Taxi	210
2026-09-28	taxi	Taxi	130
2026-09-28	eating_out	Family dinner out	1130
2026-09-29	coffee	Coffee to go	65
2026-09-29	coffee	Coffee to go	95
2026-09-29	food_delivery	Food delivery	525
2026-09-30	donations	Monthly donation	1000
2026-09-30	groceries	Supermarket	945
2026-09-30	groceries	Supermarket	665
2026-09-30	food_delivery	Food delivery	375
2026-10-01	groceries	Supermarket	1030
2026-10-01	coffee	Coffee to go	70
2026-10-01	food_delivery	Food delivery	470
2026-10-01	taxi	Taxi	200
2026-10-02	food_delivery	Food delivery	360
2026-10-02	taxi	Taxi	130
2026-10-02	eating_out	Family dinner out	925
2026-10-03	coffee	Coffee to go	60
2026-10-03	coffee	Coffee to go	65
2026-10-04	coffee	Coffee to go	75
2026-10-04	public_transport	Metro and bus	55

You

In the file that's coffee to go, taxis, metro and bus rides, and all seven subscriptions. 46 payments.

Alex Tutor

46 payments, 5,238 UAH together. The math is count × average: 46 × about 114 UAH. None of them hurts on its own. Together they cost more than two jackets.

Sam

And not one of them felt like a decision.

Alex Tutor

Question 1

Sam says the autumn jacket (2,300 UAH) was the biggest flexible purchase of his household's month. Which statement about the transactions file is true?

Choose one answerThe jacket cost more than all payments under 300 UAH put togetherCoffee to go alone cost more than the jacketPayments under 300 UAH add up to more than two jacketsPayments under 300 UAH and the jacket cost about the same

Alex Tutor

Now group by habit instead of size. Food delivery: 10 orders, 4,205 UAH. Taxis: 12 rides, 2,195 UAH. Each costs more than a coffee but still looks small next to rent.

Sam

Together that's 6,400. Almost three jackets.

Alex Tutor

And nobody decided to spend 6,400 on them. Each order was its own small choice on a tired evening. The monthly total is a number no one chose.

You

So the fix is to choose the total in advance, not to ban the orders?

Alex Tutor

Exactly. Pick a delivery-and-taxi amount you're comfortable with and spend it without guilt. When it runs out, that's a signal, not a failure.

Sam

Or maybe I just quit coffee? That's 19 cups, 1,395 UAH.

Alex Tutor

Question 2

Sam's household ended the month 6,558 UAH short. If Sam gave up coffee to go completely, that alone would close the gap.

TrueFalse

Alex Tutor

Coffee is at least visible: you stand in line for it. Subscriptions are the opposite. You decide once, and they keep paying every month without asking.

Sam

We have seven, each under 300. I don't even notice them on the statement.

Alex Tutor

Dataset · 7 rows

Sam's subscriptions, September 2026

Seven recurring payments and whether anyone in the family used each one this month. Amounts in UAH.

Download CSV

Columns
subscription: What the subscription is for
monthly_uah: Monthly price, UAH
used_this_month: Used in September: yes or no

Data

subscription	monthly_uah	used_this_month
video streaming	199	yes
music streaming	99	yes
cloud storage	89	yes
games subscription	249	no
fitness app	299	no

Show 2 more rows

language app	229	no
news site	119	yes

Together: 1,283 UAH a month. This is subscription creep: small recurring payments piling up until they cost more than any single purchase.

Now the yearly view: multiply by 12. A monthly price is made to look small; the yearly one shows what you're really buying.

You

So the check is: would this be worth paying in one go, today?

Alex Tutor

Question 3

Use the subscriptions file. How much do all seven subscriptions cost Sam's family in a year, if prices stay the same?

Your answer

Units: UAH a year

Alex Tutor

Now the audit. Each subscription gets one label: keep, cancel, share or downgrade. Start with the used_this_month column.

Sam

Game pass, the fitness app, the language app: nobody opened them in September. I bought the fitness one in January, full of plans.

Dana

One month can mislead, though. I pay for a drawing app I only use in summer. Judge by the last three months, not by September alone.

Sam

Fair. I checked: none of those three has been opened since June.

Alex Tutor

Then the test is simple: would you sign up today at this price? If not, cancel. You can always come back when the plan is real.

For the ones you use, two more questions. Could the family share one plan instead of paying twice? Would a smaller plan be enough?

Alex Tutor

Question 4

Sam's rule: cancel every subscription nobody used in September (he has checked that none of them was opened since June either). Which ones does he cancel? Select all that apply.

Sam

So do I cancel video streaming too? We watch it every evening.

Alex Tutor

No. You use it, it costs 199 UAH a month, and the family enjoys it. That's a good buy. The goal is choosing, not cutting everything.

Coffee works the same way. If the morning cup matters to you, put it into your spending plan on purpose. A pleasure you chose isn't a leak.

You

And the three unused ones are 777 UAH a month that nobody enjoys.

Sam

Put like that, 777 doesn't sound like much.

Alex Tutor

Question 5

How much do the three unused subscriptions (the games subscription, the fitness app and the language app) cost in a year?

Your answer

Units: UAH a year

Alex Tutor

Last step: make leaks harder to come back. Remove saved cards from shops and delivery apps. One extra step is often enough to ask: do I want this?

And pick a monthly check day, say the day after payday: 15 minutes for subscriptions, small payments and the delivery total.

Sam

What about free trials? That's how the fitness app got me.

Alex Tutor

When you start a trial, set a reminder for the day before it turns paid. Then staying is a decision, not a default.

Sam

I need one rule I can run every month without thinking too hard. Could you write it for me?

Alex Tutor

Question 6Short answer · AI-checked task

Sam wants one rule he can use every month to decide which subscriptions and other recurring payments to keep, cancel, share or downgrade. Write it for him in 3–5 sentences: the test he applies, when he applies it, and what it means for his September list.

Write your answer and get a score with feedback from our AI reviewer.

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Small payments aren't the problem. Unchosen ones are. Once a month, choose again.

Alex Tutor

That’s the lesson. You answered every task — nicely done.

Next lesson: Case: Sam runs out a week before payday