Cancelling an AI subscription should be a five-minute job. It usually isn't — not because the cancellation is buried, but because people try to cancel from the wrong place. The single most common refund denial is "you contacted the wrong company." Here's where to cancel each major AI subscription, what each provider's refund policy actually is, and the wording that gets a refund approved on the first attempt.
The rule that fixes 80% of cancellation confusion
You cancel where you bought it. Not where you use it. If you subscribed inside the iOS app, you cancel in Apple's Subscriptions menu — not on the AI provider's website. If you subscribed on the web, you cancel on the web. The receipt sender (Apple, Google, openai.com, Microsoft) tells you who the merchant of record is. That's the only place that can cancel or refund the charge.
OpenAI and Anthropic cannot cancel an Apple subscription. Apple cannot cancel an OpenAI web subscription. This bears repeating because hours of customer support time are wasted on this exact misunderstanding every day.
How to cancel ChatGPT Plus (and ChatGPT Team)
If you subscribed on the web:
- Sign into
chat.openai.com. - Click your initials in the bottom-left → My Plan.
- Click Manage my subscription — this opens Stripe's hosted billing portal.
- Click Cancel plan. Confirm.
You keep Plus access until the end of the current billing period. No retroactive refund unless you request one (see refunds below).
If you subscribed in the iOS app, instead go to Settings → [your name] → Subscriptions → ChatGPT and tap Cancel Subscription. On Android, go to Google Play → menu → Payments & subscriptions → Subscriptions → ChatGPT → Cancel.
How to cancel Claude Pro (and Claude Team)
Web subscriptions:
- Sign into
claude.ai. - Click your initials → Settings → Billing.
- Click Manage subscription.
- Choose Cancel plan. Confirm.
For Claude Team, only the workspace owner sees the cancel option. Regular members can leave the workspace but cannot cancel the billing. App-store subscribers cancel through Apple Subscriptions or Google Play, same as ChatGPT.
How to cancel Copilot Pro
Copilot Pro (the consumer version, $20/month) is billed through your personal Microsoft Account:
- Go to
account.microsoft.com/services. - Sign in with the Microsoft Account you used at purchase — not a work account.
- Find Copilot Pro in the list. Click Manage.
- Click Cancel subscription.
For Microsoft 365 Copilot (the work version), only the tenant admin can cancel — you can't do it yourself. If you're trying to get off a work Copilot license, ask your IT admin to unassign it.
Refund policies — what each provider will actually do
Stated vs. real policies, as of 2026:
- OpenAI / ChatGPT Plus. Stated policy: no refunds on monthly subscriptions; pro-rated refunds on annual. Real practice: if you cancel within 48 hours of the charge and contact support, refund is normally granted once per account. After 48 hours, only granted in cases of clear billing error.
- Anthropic / Claude Pro. Stated: no refunds. Real practice: refunds are granted for duplicate charges and for cases where the account was inaccessible during the billed period.
- Microsoft Copilot Pro. Subject to the standard Microsoft refund policy: pro-rated refunds within 30 days for annual subscriptions, full refund within the trial window. Outside the window, refund is discretionary.
- Google Gemini Advanced. Same as Google One billing — pro-rated refund on cancellation for annual plans, no refund on monthly.
- Apple App Store subscriptions. Apple's refund window is generous — request via
reportaproblem.apple.com. First refund per app is almost always approved if requested within 60 days. - Google Play subscriptions. Within 48 hours of the charge, Google Play auto-refunds for self-service. After that, the request goes to the developer and is at their discretion.
The refund request that wins
The structure that gets approved:
"My ChatGPT Plus account [email] was charged $20 on [date] for the renewal. I had intended to cancel before the renewal but forgot. I have not used Plus features since the renewal date — usage logs should confirm. Could you process a refund for this month? I have already cancelled going forward. Thank you."
Why this works: it's specific about the dates, names a verifiable claim (no usage since renewal), and shows you've already cancelled — meaning the support agent doesn't have to do that part. It's the opposite of an ultimatum.
Compare to what doesn't work:
"I want a refund. The product doesn't work and your support is terrible. I demand my $20 back immediately or I will dispute the charge with my bank."
Most support agents have authority to issue routine refunds without escalation. They do not have authority to issue refunds to angry customers without escalation. The first letter clears in an hour. The second goes to a manager and sits for a week.
The "I forgot to cancel my trial" case
You signed up for a trial, forgot, got charged. The window is short but real:
- Within 48 hours: contact support, mention "I missed the trial cancellation deadline." Most providers refund first-time trial-to-paid conversions if you ask within two days.
- Within 30 days: still try. Approval rate drops but it's nonzero.
- After 30 days: very unlikely outside of clear billing errors.
App Store and Google Play are usually more forgiving on trial-to-paid than the AI providers themselves. Always request through the platform that charged you.
Prorated refunds for annual plans
If you paid annually and cancelled mid-year:
- OpenAI prorates ChatGPT Team annual plans for the unused portion (calculated to the day) when cancelling.
- Anthropic prorates Claude Team but not Claude Pro annual.
- Microsoft prorates within 30 days of purchase; outside that, the annual term is honoured.
The amount is calculated automatically and refunded to the original payment method within 5–10 business days.
The chargeback trap
Disputing the charge with your bank (a chargeback) is almost always a mistake on AI subscriptions. The bank reverses the charge, but the AI provider sees the chargeback as a payment failure and a policy violation. Outcomes:
- The account is suspended or disabled the same day.
- Recovering the account requires not just an appeal but also reversing the chargeback with your bank (some banks won't reverse).
- The email and payment method are often added to a denylist, preventing you from creating a new account.
The exception: if you've contacted support twice, waited a reasonable time (10+ business days), and been ignored, a chargeback for an unauthorised charge is legitimate. But contact support first, in writing, with timestamps. Save the correspondence.
After cancellation: what happens to your data
Each provider's data retention on cancelled accounts:
- OpenAI: chat history is preserved on the account in the downgraded free tier; you can re-subscribe and pick up where you left off. Account deletion is separate and permanent.
- Anthropic: conversations remain accessible on the free tier.
- Microsoft Copilot Pro: features are gated behind the subscription, but personal data follows your MSA.
If you want a clean break, also request account deletion — usually through a separate "Delete account" link in Settings, with a 30-day reversal window.
Quick reference
- Subscribed on web → cancel on web at account billing settings.
- Subscribed on iOS → cancel in iPhone Settings → Subscriptions.
- Subscribed on Android → cancel in Google Play → Subscriptions.
- Forgot to cancel trial → contact support within 48 hours with the standard refund template.
- Annual paid, cancelling mid-year → ask for prorated refund explicitly.
- Considering a chargeback → contact support twice, in writing, with timestamps, first.
The path through cancellation and refund is short and predictable once you know where you actually bought the subscription. Open the original receipt email, identify the merchant, and start there.