Access
How the user must reach cancellation. A short online path scores lowest. Support, mail, in-person visits or multiple routes add friction.
A score should explain the work required to leave.
CancelScore measures the documented cancellation process, not whether a company is good or bad. Higher scores mean more friction. We publish a score only when all five components have source-backed evidence.
THE 100-POINT FORMULA
Five practical parts of cancellation.
The component ceilings add to 100. Missing evidence never becomes zero.
0–25 points
Process burden
The documented number of steps or expected time. We use the harder result when both measures are available.
Notice and restrictions
Advance notice adds friction according to its length. A locked term receives the full component weight.
Money at risk
Published fees and remaining balances are measured separately from ordinary charges already owed.
Completion and aftercare
Immediate completion scores lowest. Equipment returns, data work or materially unclear follow-up add points.
What qualifies for a score.
- A current, published company guide.
- At least one source for every scoring component.
- A known online screen count when cancellation is online.
- A documented step count or time estimate.
- A documented answer for restrictions, money and aftercare.
Signals kept separate.
- Complaint totals or unverified allegations.
- Search demand, company size or popularity.
- Advertising, affiliate relationships or commercial value.
- A company’s broader product quality.
- Facts inferred from missing information.
How to read the industry report.
- Online cancellation
- The cancellation can be completed using the company’s or original biller’s account controls. A page that only opens chat does not count as fully online.
- Support required
- The documented route requires phone, chat, email or mail rather than self-service account controls.
- Contract risk
- A locked term or remaining balance can affect when the customer can leave or what remains payable.
- Advance notice
- The published process identifies a notice period greater than zero days.
- Follow-up work
- Equipment, data, account or other material tasks remain after submitting the request.
- Industry average
- The mean score across published guides with complete evidence in the normalized industry. It is not weighted by company size.
Useful, but not universal.
Processes can vary by billing partner, state, contract, product and account history. Industry results include only companies for which we have complete published scoring evidence. They are descriptive benchmarks, not representative consumer surveys.
Guide pages display their last verification date. We review priority guides every 90 days, other published guides on a rolling basis, and any guide sooner when an official cancellation page changes or a correction is reported.