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What software have you stopped buying silently this year?

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In the previous quarter, I cancelled four subscriptions that I expected to miss at least two of them. I did not. The subscription I expected to feel the most pain from was the heatmap tool I have been paying for since 2023, which I opened twice in six months.

What filled the void was pretty mundane. It is a shared spreadsheet, a calendar reminder for each week, and a practice of watching five user sessions every Friday. The price is zero, and I take actions based on what I observe.

I believe we collect tools just like people collect gym membership cards. Getting one means you are making progress, but using it is difficult.

This is why I am interested in hearing about your stack. Which subscriptions you cancelled, what you replaced them with, and whether any of the tools made your life worse? A couple of names will be sufficient for me to review them properly.

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I’ve started questioning subscriptions that look useful on paper but rarely make it into my actual workflow. Sometimes a simple spreadsheet gets the job done without adding another dashboard to check

i think the biggest cost of unused software isn’t always the monthly fee. It’s the extra complexity of maintaining another tool that doesn’t really change my decisions.I think the biggest cost of unused software isn’t always the monthly fee. It’s the extra complexity of maintaining another tool that doesn’t really change my decisions.

 A shared spreadsheet and a recurring calendar reminder sound almost too simple, but the weekly habit is what makes this work for me. The process matters more than the software.

I cancelled a few tools after realizing I was paying for features I might use someday rather than solving a problem I had today. That distinction changed how I evaluate subscriptions

 I’d be interested in how you choose which five sessions to watch. Random sessions might reveal unexpected issues, while focusing on users who drop off could help identify specific friction.