Video and music streaming

How to cancel your YouTube Premium subscription

YouTube Premium is billed by Google and cancelled from the paid memberships page in YouTube, unless you signed up through the iOS app, in which case Apple bills you and you must cancel through your Apple subscription settings. Benefits continue until the end of the paid period, and Google also offers a pause option as an alternative to cancelling. Charges appear on statements under Google's descriptor with a YouTube reference, not as a standalone YouTube company name.

On your statement it usually appears as GOOGLE *YouTube Premium, GOOGLE*YOUTUBE, GOOGLE *YouTube g.co/helppay#. Not sure the charge is really YouTube Premium? Identify it first.

On a computer

Go to youtube.com/paid_memberships while signed in to the Google account that pays.
Select your Premium membership, then choose Deactivate.
Choose Continue to cancel (or the pause option if offered).
Select a reason, continue, and confirm with Yes, cancel.

In the YouTube app on Android

Tap your profile picture, then Paid memberships.
Tap the membership you want to cancel.
Tap Continue to cancel, pick a reason, then confirm with Yes, cancel.

If you originally subscribed through Google Play, you can also cancel from your Google Play subscriptions list.

If you subscribed through the iOS app (billed by Apple)

On your iPhone or iPad, open Settings and tap your name, then Subscriptions.
Select YouTube Premium.
Tap Cancel Subscription and confirm.

Google cannot cancel an Apple-billed membership for you - the YouTube website will point you back to Apple's subscription settings.

Refunds, timing and what you'll still be charged

When you cancel, Google states you keep Premium benefits until the end of the billing period you have already paid, and you are not charged again unless you re-subscribe; Google does not advertise prorated refunds for the unused part of a month. If you were charged unexpectedly, Google has a dedicated flow for reporting unauthorized YouTube charges. For Apple-billed memberships, any refund request goes through Apple's reportaproblem process instead of Google.

Watch out for these

Where you signed up controls where you cancel: iOS app signups are billed by Apple and cannot be cancelled from youtube.com - a common reason people think cancellation 'didn't work'.
Google shows a pause offer during the cancellation flow; choosing pause is not cancelling, and billing resumes automatically when the pause ends.
Duplicate memberships are a known problem - for example paying Apple for Premium and Google for YouTube Music Premium at the same time. Google has a help page specifically for finding and ending duplicates.
The statement line GOOGLE*YOUTUBE covers more than Premium - YouTube TV, movie rentals, and Super Chats use similar descriptors, so verify which product the charge is for before cancelling.

Cancellation flows change — confirm against YouTube Premium's current account or help page (official help).

After you cancel: make sure it stuck

Revisit youtube.com/paid_memberships and confirm the membership shows an end date instead of a next billing date.
Check for Google's cancellation confirmation email on the account's Gmail or recovery address.
If your statement shows GOOGLE*YOUTUBE again after the end date, check pay.google.com transaction history (or Apple's reportaproblem if iOS-billed) to identify the product being billed.
Generate a paper trail with the free cancellation-letter tool — useful if billing continues and you need proof.
If it keeps charging after you cancel, follow the escalation playbook before disputing.

While you're at it — find the ones you forgot

YouTube Premium is rarely the only recurring charge. Upload a statement and find every subscription — trials that converted, quiet price rises, duplicates — each with its yearly cost, so you can clear them in one sitting.

Find my subscriptions

Questions

YouTube Premium cancellation FAQs

Why can't I cancel YouTube Premium from the YouTube website?

Almost always because the membership is billed by Apple (you joined in the iOS app) or through Google Play on another account. You must cancel with whoever bills you: Apple's Settings > Subscriptions, or Google Play's subscriptions page.

What is the GOOGLE*YOUTUBE charge on my statement?

It is Google's billing descriptor for YouTube products - Premium, Music Premium, YouTube TV, rentals, and Super Chats can all appear under it, sometimes with the product name appended. Check pay.google.com or your YouTube purchase history to see which one it is.

Can I pause YouTube Premium instead of cancelling?

Yes - Google offers a pause option in the cancellation flow for eligible members. While paused you are not billed and lose Premium benefits, and billing restarts automatically at the end of the pause period, so set a reminder if you intend to leave permanently.

Do I keep anything after cancelling Premium?

Your account, subscriptions, and playlists are unaffected - you simply go back to ad-supported YouTube. Offline downloads and background play stop working once the paid period ends.

Why is GOOGLE *YouTube Premium on my bank statement?

That descriptor is YouTube Premium (video and music streaming). If you don't recognise it, confirm any charge with our free lookup before cancelling or disputing — descriptors often name a biller or platform rather than the service itself.

YouTube Premium is still charging me after I cancelled — what now?

First check you cancelled in the right place: if you subscribed through Apple, Google, Amazon or a TV provider, the service's own website can't stop that billing. If it still charges, keep your cancellation confirmation and follow our guide for a subscription that keeps charging after you cancel — and only dispute with your bank as a last resort.