How to Cut SaaS Subscription Costs Without Killing Tools You Still Use

Software subscriptions are easy to start and easy to forget about. Most small businesses accumulate tools over time, each one solving a real problem at the time, until no one is sure what they’re paying for or whether people still use half of it.

A typical 10-person business spends $10,000-$20,000 per year on SaaS tools. Industry estimates put the average at roughly $4,800 per employee annually across all software. And in most cases, at least 30-40% of that is cuttable without affecting daily operations.

Where money usually leaks

Tools with low active usage. The most common pattern is a tool that solved a problem two years ago and hasn’t been canceled. No one remembers who signed up for it, and no one is about to say they don’t need it.

Functional overlaps. Two tools doing the same job. Common examples:

• Paying for Zoom when Microsoft 365 already includes Teams
• Paying for Dropbox when OneDrive or Google Drive is already available through an existing subscription
• Paying for Adobe Acrobat PDF editor when Microsoft 365 already includes basic PDF tools
• Paying for LastPass after the team moved to Bitwarden or 1Password but never canceled the old account
• Multiple project management tools active at once (Asana + Monday + Trello, each used by different people)

Overprovisioned plans. Paying for a tier with features no one uses. This is common with Microsoft 365 (Business Premium features sitting untouched) and with tools like Zoom (Business tier for a team that could run on Pro).

The subscription fee is only part of the real cost. Research on SaaS total cost of ownership consistently finds that the subscription fee is roughly 25-40% of the real cost. The rest is staff time: setting up the tool, training people on it, maintaining integrations, and fielding questions. Every tool you remove saves both money and time.

What to check first

Step 1: Pull the statements. The most reliable starting point is your company credit card and bank ACH transaction history for the past three months. List every recurring software charge. This is the ground truth, more complete than asking employees what tools they use.

Step 2: Check the admin billing pages. If you’re on Microsoft 365, go to the Microsoft 365 admin center and open Billing > Your products. This shows every license and subscription active under your account. Google Workspace has an equivalent billing section in the Admin Console.

Step 3: Apply the three-cut framework.

For each tool on your list, ask:

1. Is active usage below 50%? If fewer than half the licensed seats are being used in a given month, this is a candidate for cutting or downgrading.
2. Is there a functional overlap? Does another tool you already pay for cover the same job?
3. Is the plan overprovisioned? Are you on a tier with features no one has touched?

Step 4: Identify who uses it and how. Before canceling anything, ask the team. A tool that looks unused on paper might be critical to one person’s workflow. A five-minute Slack message is faster than dealing with an angry employee after you cancel the wrong thing.

What not to cancel too quickly

Some tools look redundant but serve a distinct purpose.

Zoom alongside Teams: If your team uses Teams internally but meets with clients who prefer Zoom, there may be a real reason to keep both. The question is whether those client meetings happen often enough to justify the seat cost.

Cloud storage from two providers: Teams sometimes keep Google Drive and OneDrive both active because certain clients share files through one and internal staff prefer the other. This isn’t always waste. It may be a real operational constraint.

Security tools: Don’t cancel antivirus, backup software, or a password manager without a clear replacement ready. The cost of a security incident is almost always higher than the subscription you saved.

Project management tools in transition: If the team is actively migrating from one tool to another, the overlap is temporary. Give the migration a deadline.

How to cancel without disrupting operations

1. Export the data first. Most tools have a data export option. Use it before you cancel, not after you discover you needed something.
2. Set a 30-day notice period. Announce the cancellation date to the team, not just to yourself. If someone objects, you want to know before the account closes.
3. Check for active integrations. Some tools are connected to other systems via Zapier, Make, or direct APIs. Canceling one can break another workflow silently.
4. Cancel and confirm. Some platforms require a specific cancellation flow. It’s not enough to just stop using them. Make sure the billing actually stops.

How often to review it

A one-time audit is good. A recurring audit is better.

A practical system for most small businesses:

• Quarterly 15-minute review: Pull up the billing list, mark anything that hasn’t been mentioned by the team in 90 days.
• One approval gatekeeper for new subscriptions: Any new SaaS purchase over $50/month should require sign-off from one designated person: owner, operations manager, or finance lead.
• A shared renewal calendar: Add annual subscription renewal dates with a 30-day advance alert. This prevents surprise renewals and gives you a decision point.

These three habits add up to maybe an hour of overhead per quarter and prevent the gradual accumulation that leads to the audit you’re doing now.

Sources

• Microsoft 365: Manage subscriptions and billing
• Google Workspace: Billing & subscription help
• FinOps Foundation: Framework
• FinOps Foundation: Cloud policy and governance