Nearly eight out of ten Poles have at least one active subscription, according to the Revolut Money Report. Subscription-based services dominate areas such as streaming and software. Experts warn, however, that consumers frequently complain about irregularities in subscription services—most notably unclear sign-up rules, price changes, and difficulties with cancellation.
“We see a number of irregularities in subscription contracts, especially with automatic renewals—sometimes carried out without the consumer’s clear, informed consent or awareness. What’s interesting is that consumers rarely report these issues, often blaming themselves for overlooking something. So the problem does exist, but consumers tend to react to it relatively infrequently,” said Grzegorz Miś, District Consumer Ombudsman in Wrocław, in an interview with Newseria.
The Revolut Money Report, conducted in November 2025, shows that only 18% of Poles said they had no active subscriptions. Among users, the largest groups reported having one or two services (39%) or three to five services (34%). The most intensive users had more than 10 subscriptions. The strongest subscription category in Poland is streaming services (78%), followed by software (37%) and fitness and wellness (37%).
Using multiple subscriptions simultaneously can generate significant monthly costs. In the Revolut survey, 27% of respondents in Poland said their streaming services cost PLN 80–200 per month, while half spend less than PLN 80 monthly. Meanwhile, 17% admitted they do not review their subscriptions at all.
“When it comes to subscription contracts, we need to pay close attention to the duration of the subscription, whether it renews automatically—which it usually does—and how to cancel it. Before signing such an agreement, consumers should find out what will happen and what the price will be if the subscription renews automatically. This area of the market needs some regulation, but not so much that it becomes overregulated,” Miś said.
In August 2025, Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) announced it had challenged Netflix’s terms and conditions after the platform raised prices and notified subscribers by email, effectively presenting them with a fait accompli. The authority stressed that unilateral changes to prices or other key contract terms without active user consent violate the law. UOKiK also said it was conducting explanatory proceedings to review the rules and practices of other platforms, some of which had already pledged to make changes.
At the end of November 2025, UOKiK required T-Mobile to amend the operation of one of its services after customers were charged for subscriptions they had not consented to. As UOKiK President Tomasz Chróstny emphasized at the time, a subscription should always be a conscious consumer decision, not the result of chance or a technical trick.
“In subscription models, we are seeing more and more elements that make it harder for consumers to understand the offer—starting from the sign-up stage. Prices are often unclear, with the actual amount only appearing at the very end of the process. That’s why greater transparency is needed, both in pricing and across the entire subscription journey,” said Marco Pierani, Director of Public Affairs at Euroconsumers. “Signing up is usually very easy—almost enticingly simple—while cancelling is unclear, complex, or digitally difficult. You may need to click a button, but it’s not clear where to find it.”
“Consumers complain that they were not informed their contract would renew automatically, that the price would be higher after renewal, or that there would be a long notice period. Others believed they had only a 14- or 30-day trial and wouldn’t need to do anything afterward. They forget they must cancel the subscription to prevent it from turning into a paid period,” Miś added.
According to EY’s report “Decoding the Digital Home,” the propensity to cancel subscriptions is increasing year by year. In 2025, 38% of households canceled—or planned to cancel—at least one platform, up from 35% the year before. Cost savings remain the primary motivation, but consumers increasingly cite switching to another platform or a lack of appealing content. EY experts argue that the growing frequency of subscribing and canceling is more than a temporary trend.
“A fairly common problem is that cancellation buttons are hidden. They’re hard to find in the app, or the app is misleading—for example, allowing users to delete an account, which does not automatically cancel the subscription. You still need to cancel the plan to stop paying,” Miś explained. “Detaching your card from a subscription may help in some cases, as some providers won’t pursue claims—but remember that the contract still exists and the payment obligation remains on the consumer’s side.”
A 2024 Santander Consumer Bank survey, “E-commerce Experiences,” shows that Poles value the advantages of the subscription model. The most appreciated feature is a fixed, predictable fee (40%). Users also value the ability to cancel at any time (34%), and one in four appreciates automatic card payments instead of monthly transfers.
“There is also a need for technological standards, developed jointly by stakeholders, to ensure safety through the very design of digital services—safety by digital design. We need to create a user-friendly environment; for example, when cancelling, a clear dialogue window could appear, explaining in plain language what the user is doing and what the consequences are,” Pierani suggested.
