How to Cancel Criterion Channel Subscription [Step by Step]
The Criterion Channel is the Criterion Collection’s streaming service for classic, art-house, and international films. It is available in the United States and Canada. It is not the same as a criterion.com shop account for discs.
Official website checkout lists a monthly plan at $10.99 and a 7-day free trial. Annual plans are commonly listed at $99.99. Older Charter accounts from 2019 may still show a lower locked-in rate if the plan never changed.
Deleting the app does not cancel billing. This guide shows how to stop auto-renewal.
What Is The Criterion Channel and How Billing Works
You can watch on criterionchannel.com and on apps for phones, Apple TV, Android, Roku, Fire TV, and other supported devices. Plans renew automatically at the price in effect at renewal.
You can subscribe on the website, Apple, Google Play, Roku, or Amazon. Official help says you must cancel the same way you signed up. A website-paid plan can be canceled only on the website, not inside an app.
Official terms say you must cancel the day before your next billing date to avoid the next charge. After a confirmed cancel, access lasts through the current period or trial. Website help also says video access continues until the next charging cycle, with no further charges.
criterion.com disc orders use a separate login. Canceling the Channel does not cancel a shop account, and the reverse is also true.
How to Cancel Through the Website or Account Settings
Use these steps if you paid on criterionchannel.com.
- Sign in at criterionchannel.com.
- Click your avatar in the top right.
- Open Manage Subscription on the Billing and Subscription page.
- Click cancel subscription.
- If a Pause offer appears, do not pick a pause length if you want billing to stop.
- Choose No thanks, I want to cancel, then Continue.
- Complete the optional survey and select Confirm Cancellation.
You should see an on-screen confirmation and get an email. If the email does not arrive, official help says to check that the plan shows as Canceled in settings.
If Manage Subscription has no cancel option, contact support with the account email or the last four digits of the card on file. Official terms list channelhelp@criterion.com. Help pages also have a Contact us link.
How to Pause Instead of Canceling
Pause is not the same as cancel. Official help allows a pause only on website monthly plans. Annual plans cannot pause. App-store plans cannot use the website pause tool.
You can pause for one, two, or three months. You are not charged during the pause, and you cannot watch during that time. The pause starts on the next billing date. Billing resumes when the pause ends.
You can unpause early. Official help says that starts a new billing cycle and charges you on the day you unpause. A promo’s unused months are not used up while the plan is paused.
How to Cancel Through Apple or Google
Official iOS help says Criterion cannot cancel an Apple plan for you.
On iPhone or iPad
- Open Settings.
- Tap your name, then Subscriptions.
- Tap The Criterion Channel.
- Tap Cancel Subscription and confirm.
On Apple TV, go to Settings > Users & Accounts > your account > Subscriptions.
On Android
- Open the Play Store, tap your profile, then Payments & subscriptions > Subscriptions.
- Tap The Criterion Channel.
- Tap Cancel subscription and confirm.
You can also use play.google.com/store/account/subscriptions. Use the same Apple or Google account that paid. Uninstalling the app does not stop store billing.
How to Cancel Through Roku or Amazon
Official cancel help points Roku and Amazon sign-ups to those companies.
Roku
- Sign in at my.roku.com/account/subscriptions.
- Select The Criterion Channel.
- Turn off auto-renew or cancel the subscription.
On a Roku player, highlight the channel, press the star (*) button, then open Manage subscription.
Amazon / Fire TV
- Open your Amazon account and go to Your Memberships and Subscriptions.
- Find The Criterion Channel.
- Choose cancel or turn off auto-renew.
Store billing questions and refunds go to Roku or Amazon, not the Channel website team.
How to Stop a Free Trial Before Renewal
Official checkout currently offers a 7-day free trial on the website monthly plan. Terms say Criterion decides who gets a trial and may not send a separate reminder that the trial is ending, except where law requires notice.
Cancel the same way you started the trial, and do it the day before the paid period starts. A $1 authorization hold can appear at trial signup. Official help says that hold is only to check the card and should come back within a few days. It is posted in U.S. dollars.
If you were gifted time, official gift help says a paid plan can start automatically when the gift ends if the recipient already had a recurring plan. Check Manage Subscription before the gift date runs out.
What Happens After Cancellation
You keep watching until the current billing period or trial ends. After that, the paid library locks. Official help does not say your watchlist is deleted. You can usually sign in later and subscribe again.
Pause keeps the subscription on file and bills again later. Cancel turns off auto-renewal. Do not pick Pause if you want the recurring charge to stop for good.
Germany and Quebec annual plans can be set to end instead of renew because of local law. That rule does not replace a normal U.S. cancel. U.S. and Canadian plans still need a cancel before the next bill.
How to Request a Refund
Official terms say refunds, credits, and discounts are issued only at Criterion’s discretion.
Official refund help splits requests by signup path:
- Apple or Apple TV: request through Apple.
- Google Play or Android TV: request through Google.
- Roku: request through Roku.
- Amazon Fire TV: request through Amazon.
- Website: contact Criterion support. That is the only plan type the Channel team can refund.
Canceling does not create an unused-day refund by itself. Ask support or the store if a charge looks wrong.
Common Cancellation Problems and Solutions
The website has no cancel button.
You likely paid through Apple, Google, Roku, or Amazon. Cancel in that store.
You paused by mistake.
Pause only delays the next bill. Go back to Manage Subscription and cancel if you want billing to stop.
You deleted the app and still got charged.
Official help says store plans must be canceled in Apple or Google settings.
You also shop at criterion.com.
That store account is separate. Cancel the Channel on criterionchannel.com or the store that bills it.
You subscribed in an app but cannot watch.
Official help says to use Restore purchase or Link to an existing subscription while signed out, then try Manage subscription inside the app.
FAQs About How to Cancel Criterion Channel Subscription
Q: Does deleting the Criterion Channel app cancel the subscription?
No. A website plan stays on the website. An Apple, Google, Roku, or Amazon plan stays with that store until you cancel there.
Q: When does cancellation take effect?
Official terms say it takes effect at the end of the current billing period or trial. Cancel the day before the next bill to avoid that charge. Check the confirmation email and the Canceled status in settings.
Q: Can I get a refund for unused days?
Official terms leave refunds to Criterion’s discretion. Store purchases go through Apple, Google, Roku, or Amazon. Website requests are reviewed only by Channel support.
Q: Is there a Criterion Channel cancel phone number?
Official help and terms do not publish a consumer cancel phone line. Use Manage Subscription first, then the help Contact us form or channelhelp@criterion.com.
Conclusion
The surest way to cancel a Criterion Channel subscription is to start on the website under Manage Subscription if you paid there. Decline Pause and confirm cancellation. If Apple, Google, Roku, or Amazon billed you, turn off auto-renewal in that store.
After you confirm, save the email and check that the plan shows as Canceled. When auto-renewal is off, the next recurring charge should not appear, and you can finish the days you already paid for.
Disclaimer: This guide provides general educational information based on publicly available details at the time of writing. Cancellation procedures and refund policies may change. Contact the service or your payment provider for account-specific assistance.
