Free trials are everywhere, but most people sign up, forget about them, and get charged £10/month for something they used once. Here's how to actually benefit from trials without getting stung.
The Best Free Trials Worth Having
Streaming Services
- Amazon Prime: 30 days free (6 months if you're a student)
- Apple TV+: 7 days free (3 months if you buy an Apple device)
- Disney+: Occasionally offers 7-30 day trials (not always available)
- Now TV: 7 days free for each pass (Entertainment, Cinema, Sports)
- Paramount+: 7 days free
Strategy: Sign up when a show you want drops, binge it, cancel before trial ends.
Music
- Spotify Premium: 1 month free (3 months for £0.99 promotions)
- Apple Music: 1 month free (6 months if you buy AirPods/Beats)
- Amazon Music Unlimited: 3 months free
- YouTube Premium: 1 month free
Productivity and Software
- Microsoft 365: 1 month free (or free via your university if you're a student)
- Adobe Creative Cloud: 7 days free
- Grammarly Premium: 7 days free
- Notion: Free forever (no trial needed)
- Canva Pro: 30 days free
Food and Takeaway
- Deliveroo Plus: 1 month free (then £3.49/month)
- Uber Eats Pass: 1 month free (then £5.99/month)
- HelloFresh: 50-60% off first box (essentially a trial)
- Gousto: 60% off first box
Fitness
- Peloton: 30 days free
- Fiit: 14 days free
- Apple Fitness+: 1 month free (3 months with new Apple Watch)
How to Never Get Charged
Set a Reminder
The moment you start a trial, set a phone reminder for 2 days before it ends. Cancel then.
Most services let you cancel immediately after signing up, and you'll still get the full trial period.
Use Virtual Cards (Privacy.com or Revolut)
Create a disposable virtual card with a £1 limit. Use it to sign up for trials. When the trial ends, the charge fails and your subscription is automatically cancelled.
UK options:
- Revolut: Create disposable virtual cards
- Monzo / Starling: Freeze your card after signing up (charge fails when trial ends)
Check If You Can Cancel Immediately
Amazon Prime, Spotify, and most others let you cancel right after signing up. You keep access for the full trial, and you won't forget to cancel later.
Repeat Trials with Different Emails
Most services tie trials to email addresses. Use the Gmail +alias trick:
All emails go to the same inbox, but the service sees them as different accounts.
Warning: Some services (Netflix, Spotify) also check payment details. You'll need different cards to bypass that.
Student Trials Last Longer
If you're a student, you get extended trials:
- Amazon Prime: 6 months free (vs 30 days)
- Apple Music: 6 months free if you have Apple One or buy AirPods
- Spotify: 1 month free, then £5.99/month (half price)
Verify via Student Beans or UNiDAYS.
Free Trials That Are Actually Traps
Gym Memberships
"7-day free trial" sounds great until you realize:
- You have to sign a 12-month contract to get the trial
- Cancellation requires 30 days notice
- They make it impossible to cancel online (phone or in-person only)
Avoid: Gym trials unless you're genuinely committing. Use pay-as-you-go gyms (PureGym, The Gym Group) instead.
Mobile Phone Contracts
"Free trial" SIM cards that auto-upgrade to £30/month contracts if you don't cancel. Read the fine print.
Magazine Subscriptions
"Free issue" that auto-renews at £50/year. These are designed to make you forget. Always cancel immediately.
Legitimate "Free Forever" Services
Not trials - actually free, no card needed:
- Notion: Free forever (unlimited pages, blocks)
- Canva Free: 95% of features are free
- Google Workspace: Free (Drive, Docs, Sheets, Gmail)
- Trello: Free project management
- Mailchimp: Free for up to 500 subscribers
- GitHub: Free for public and private repos
How to Track Your Subscriptions
Apps like Emma, Monzo, or Starling Bank auto-detect subscriptions and show you what you're paying for.
Review monthly. Cancel anything you haven't used in 30 days.
The "Bundle" Trick
Instead of paying for multiple trials separately, get bundles:
- Apple One: Music + TV+ + iCloud + Arcade for £18.95/month (£35+ if bought separately)
- Amazon Prime: Video + Music + delivery + gaming for £8.99/month
- Spotify + Hulu (US only, but VPN works): Bundle saves £5/month
Black Friday: The Best Time for Trial Deals
Black Friday always brings extended trials:
- 3 months free instead of 1 month (Spotify, Amazon Music)
- £1 for 3 months (Disney+, Now TV)
- 50% off annual subscriptions if you don't want to trial
Wait for Black Friday if you're in no rush.
What to Do When a Trial Ends
If you actually want to keep the service but don't want to pay full price:
- Cancel before trial ends
- Wait a week
- Check your email - they'll send you "come back" offers (50% off, extra months free, etc.)
Works with Audible, Now TV, and most subscription services. They'd rather give you a discount than lose you entirely.
CodeLand Free Trial Tracker
We maintain a list of active free trials worth signing up for. When services run extended trials (3 months instead of 1), we flag it.