How to Stop a Recurring Charge on Your Credit Card
This guide walks through the right order of steps, from canceling with the merchant to leaning on your issuer, and how to make sure a charge is truly stopped.
Cancel with the merchant first
The cleanest fix is to cancel the subscription directly with the company, through your account settings or by contacting them, and save the confirmation email or a screenshot. Most recurring charges are ones you authorized, so ending the agreement at the source is the proper first step and usually all it takes.
Use your issuer if it will not stop
If the charges keep coming, you have rights with your card issuer. You can request a stop-payment order to block a specific recurring merchant, and you can dispute charges that post after you canceled, since those are for a service you no longer authorized. Keep your cancellation proof handy for the dispute.
Cut off access for good
To prevent a merchant from charging you again, a virtual card number is ideal, since you can delete or pause the number tied to that merchant without affecting your real card. Be aware that simply getting a new card number does not reliably stop recurring charges, because card networks update merchants with your new number automatically. Canceling the agreement, not the card, is what stops it.
- Cancel with the merchant first and keep the confirmation.
- You can ask your issuer to place a stop-payment order on a recurring charge.
- Charges that continue after you canceled can be disputed.
- A virtual card number lets you shut off a merchant cleanly.
- Closing a card does not always stop recurring charges.
Frequently asked questions
Related reading
