Ask Dave Taylor
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Home
  • YouTube Videos
  • Top Categories
  • Subscribe via Email
  • Ask A Question
  • Meet Dave
  • Home
  • Computer & Internet Basics
  • How can I cancel my AOL (America Online) account?

How can I cancel my AOL (America Online) account?

June 23, 2011 / Dave Taylor / Computer & Internet Basics / No Comments

I’m finally ready to say goodbye to my AOL account after a ridiculous number of years wasting money on the subscription. But they sure don’t make it easy. How do I cancel my AOL (America Online) account, Dave?

It’s amazing. I wrote about this very topic six years ago on this blog, in an article entitled How do I cancel my AOL Account? and it’s still a popular topic that people are asking about. Then again, after AOL covered the entire Earth with millions of CDs offering hundreds, then thousands of hours of free Internet access, perhaps it’s not a surprise that there are still so many legacy customers.
All those years ago my advice was to just pick up the phone and call them to request the account be cancelled. If you read the astonishing number of comments on that article, you’ll see that there are different 800 numbers to try, different phrases to use that speed up the process, and many people who related that they cancelled and were still being billed months later. Yikes.
This time I thought it’d be interesting to try and cancel an AOL account through their Web-based interface, as they’ve done a splendid job of creating a completely Web-based interface to the service at aol.com. The results? Rather mixed…
The first step is to log in to your America Online account on the Web interface. This is done with the tiny “Sign In” link on the top right corner:

cancel aol 2011 1

That gets you to a standard login & password form:
cancel aol 2011 2

Logged in? Good, now here’s the interesting part. To get to your account settings you have to scroll to the very, very bottom and find the almost completely hidden link “My Account”:
cancel aol 2011 3

Other sites have this front and center, but America Online has apparently decided that’s the last thing we users would want to access if we’re logged in to the site. Not sure what that means, but I can certainly be a bit skeptical of this particular interface decision!
Click on the “My Account” link and you’ll need to enter a security question to ensure you’re actually the account holder, which is good, you don’t want someone jumping onto your account and changing things while you’re in the bathroom or on the phone for a few minutes!
cancel aol 2011 4

There are a lot of things you can tweak, but since the goal is to cancel your AOL account, you’ll want to “Manage my Subscriptions”, which brings you to a page that shows you exactly what you’ve signed up for currently:
cancel aol 2011 5

Finally, here are the options for different subscription packages, most of which sound rather obsolete a decade into the 21st Century:
cancel aol 2011 6

Mine shows $0.00/mo, but AOL was still billing me $250/yr (e.g. $21/month) for this account, so one way or the other, I wanted to cancel it. To do that, I clicked on the link “cancel”, which revealed…
cancel aol 2011 7

So there you go. With all the fancy online options, it still comes down to a phone call with a call center employee in India or some other far-flung place. At least when I called and said I just didn’t need the account they cancelled it for me (and switched me to a free account) with just a few minutes of attempted upsell.

About the Author: Dave Taylor has been involved with the online world since the early days of the Internet. Author of over 20 technical books, he runs the popular AskDaveTaylor.com tech help site. You can also find his gadget reviews on YouTube and chat with him on Twitter as @DaveTaylor.

Let’s Stay In Touch!

Never miss a single article, review or tutorial here on AskDaveTaylor, sign up for my fun weekly newsletter!
Name: 
Your email address:*
Please enter all required fields
Correct invalid entries
No spam, ever. Promise. Powered by FeedBlitz
Please choose a color:
Starbucks coffee cup I do have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but first I'd like to say thank you, Dave, for all your helpful information by buying you a cup of coffee!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search

Recent Posts

  • How Can I Stop Sharing my Xfinity Internet Connection via xfinitywifi?
  • Guide to Identifying and Blocking Off-Facebook Data Tracking
  • How Can I Share My Netflix Account With My Friend? [Updated for 2023]
  • How to Check Energy Recommendations on your Windows Laptop
  • How Do I Customize New Tab Windows in Safari for Mac?

On Our YouTube Channel

Audeze FILTER Bluetooth Conference Speakerphone -- DEMO & REVIEW

How to: Replace a Switchbot Door Sensor Battery

Categories

  • AdSense, AdWords, and PPC Help (106)
  • Amazon, eBay, and Online Shopping Help (163)
  • Android Help (226)
  • Apple iPad Help (147)
  • Apple Watch Help (53)
  • Articles, Tutorials, and Reviews (346)
  • Auto Tech Help (15)
  • Business Advice (200)
  • ChromeOS Help (31)
  • Computer & Internet Basics (780)
  • d) None of the Above (166)
  • Facebook Help (384)
  • Google, Chrome & Gmail Help (188)
  • HTML & Web Page Design (247)
  • Instagram Help (49)
  • iPhone & iOS Help (623)
  • iPod & MP3 Player Help (173)
  • Kindle & Nook Help (99)
  • LinkedIn Help (88)
  • Linux Help (173)
  • Linux Shell Script Programming (89)
  • Mac & MacOS Help (911)
  • Most Popular (16)
  • Outlook & Office 365 Help (33)
  • PayPal Help (68)
  • Pinterest Help (54)
  • Reddit Help (19)
  • SEO & Marketing (82)
  • Spam, Scams & Security (95)
  • Trade Show News & Updates (23)
  • Twitter Help (220)
  • Video Game Tips (66)
  • Web Site Traffic Tips (62)
  • Windows PC Help (947)
  • Wordpress Help (206)
  • Writing and Publishing (72)
  • YouTube Help (47)
  • YouTube Video Reviews (159)
  • Zoom, Skype & Video Chat Help (62)

Archives

Social Connections:

Ask Dave Taylor


Follow Me on Pinterest
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on LinkedIn
Follow me on Instagram


AskDaveTaylor on Facebook



microsoft insider mvp


This web site is for the purpose of disseminating information for educational purposes, free of charge, for the benefit of all visitors. We take great care to provide quality information. However, we do not guarantee, and accept no legal liability whatsoever arising from or connected to, the accuracy, reliability, currency or completeness of any material contained on this site or on any linked site. Further, please note that by submitting a question or comment you're agreeing to our terms of service, which are: you relinquish any subsequent rights of ownership to your material by submitting it on this site. Our lawyer says "Thanks for your cooperation."
© 2023 by Dave Taylor. "Ask Dave Taylor®" is a registered trademark of Intuitive Systems, LLC.
Privacy Policy - Terms and Conditions - Accessibility Policy