Take These 7 Bills Off of Autopay Right Now!

Do You Still Have These 7 Bills on Autopay? Take Them Off!

We can all agree that the autopay function of our bills makes things much easier, especially when it comes to managing expenses and saving money. Putting your bills on autopay could ensure that you will never forget a due date, which also minimizes the risk of late fees and dings on your credit report.

However, even if automatic payments could save a lot of time and streamline your personal finances, they aren’t really the right choice for every expense. Automatic bill payment is a lifesaving convenience. If you already have the money in your account in a reliable way, you just have to set it and forget it.

However, convenience could also make it a curse for many different reasons. Even those who can afford automatic payments might not notice when the money is taken. And if your income fluctuates, you might not even have the needed amount, which will overdraw your account, meaning more fees on top of the negative balance you already have.

Autopay is perfect for payments that are the same every single month, like your mortgage and car payments. You should know what to expect from these bills because it will be much easier to plan and budget for automatic drafts. Before getting too excited to put your entire financial life on autopilot, here are a couple of bills you should NEVER put on autopay:

Cellphone

If you have an unlimited cellphone plan and your bill is pretty much the same every month, autopay is probably one of the best and most time-saving strategies for managing payments. There’s also the great option of setting up automatic payments for a non-unlimited cellphone plan.

However, the issue is that the amount you owe might differ from month to month, depending on data usage. Also, if you forget to read your cellphone statement when you owe more than usual, the extra amount of funds taken from your bank account might trigger an overdraft and additional bank fees.

Some cellphone plans have different billing dates each month. As you might have set a date, let’s say the 15th, others might have a monthly cycle that varies depending on the number of days in that month.

This doesn’t guarantee a permanent date each and every month. At times, you might be caught off guard or even out of funds, especially if a payment arrives when you weren’t expecting it.

Utilities and other variable expenses

Unless you’re currently on a budget plan made by your utility company, which will allow you to pay a set amount every single month, your water, gas, and electric bills might fluctuate every other month. Therefore, it’s much safer not to set utility bills on autopilot.

Bills that generally fluctuate aren’t the best fit for autopay, like your electric and water bills. If you have high usage every month, autopay might put you at risk for overdrafts, especially if you’re not prepared. Most overdraft charges are around $20 to $35 a pop.

Also, initiating singular one-time payments every single month involves signing into your accounts. In this situation, you’re far more likely to review your statements before making your payment. When you regularly review your statements, it’s much easier to identify unwanted price increases.

Gym membership

A gym membership will help you get in shape and lose excess pounds. However, you could lose more if you’re not careful, and I’m not talking about actual body fat. If you’re committed to going to the gym on a regular basis, putting your monthly membership fee on autopay is a very good idea.

However, when it comes to sports, our goals might differ from reality, especially if we’re not consistent. Despite your good intentions, the actual time you spend in the gym could be far less than you anticipated. Soon enough, you might realize it doesn’t make sense to pay each and every month.

With autopay, some bills become completely out of sight and out of mind. Thus, there’s a high risk of losing track of money being drafted from your account. Also, you become so accustomed to paying specific expenses that you fall into a certain habit of paying for something you don’t even use. On the other hand, if you pay on a monthly basis, you are far more likely to evaluate your gym usage and cancel the membership if you’re not using it.

Cable and satellite service

Your cable and satellite bills might differ, especially if you love watching tons of movies. As your cable bill is automated and the funds are instantly taken from your bank account, you might not even monitor the amount you spend on extra services.

Cable and satellite companies could even increase their rates each and every year, and this could also include fees for brand-new offerings like regional sports networks. It might imply channels you don’t even watch, so why pay for something that doesn’t interest you?

However, if you stick to paying the traditional way by checking and making one-time payments online, you will get the chance to review your bill for price increases and all the other options you don’t even need.

Video streaming services

Speaking of favorite movies, we both knew this was next. Your favorite streaming services, such as Netflix and Hulu, are super convenient because you can watch whatever you want, whenever you want. However, you might want to think twice before signing up for these services.

For instance, if you have cable, some of those shows and movies are only available on demand. If you allow yourself to get used to all those streaming fees coming out of your card every single month, it’s worth mentioning that you might be paying for streaming accounts you don’t even need or watch.

When you sign up for streaming but don’t want to take full advantage of a service, you’re basically flushing money down the toilet.

Music streaming

Various music services, such as Spotify and Apple Music, will allow you to stream any given song from any artist. The downside is that you might have to provide a credit card or even a bank account number before accessing those songs. The music service will automatically charge the monthly fee from your account.

Streaming music can be a super useful luxury, but only if you are getting something worth your money. If your usage drops and you stream less music (or you simply stop streaming altogether), then the company keeps on drafting your account until you decide to cancel your subscription. If you forget to cancel, you might end up paying for something you don’t even use anymore.

Beauty boxes

Many beauty brands promote beauty box subscriptions, where subscribers can get a box of products each and every month to have at home. I’ve got to say, it’s probably one of the smartest marketing tactics for cosmetic companies, and it’s also a super easy way for you to test various beauty brands before paying the full retail price.

As these subscriptions are somehow inexpensive, especially since they start as low as $10 a month, it could seem like a minor monthly expense. However, the cost of a beauty box subscription could increase over the course of the year, and if you rush into an automatic payment, you might regret it. And speaking of great beauty boxes, here’s my personal favorite.

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