A founder’s 30-minute monthly routine to cut SaaS waste

The problem: subscriptions creep, margins slip

Small teams adopt tools quickly. Over time, the list grows, prices change, usage shifts, and renewals roll in quietly. You don’t need a finance department to keep this in check. You need a 30-minute monthly routine and a place where your subscriptions live.

This guide shows a simple cadence that any early-stage team can run. It uses plain language, no heavy financial modelling, and it works whether you’re on a spreadsheet or using subscription tracking software.

The 30-minute monthly routine

1) Pull the list (5 minutes)
Export or open your source of truth. Include: vendor, plan, billing owner, price, billing cycle, renewal date, and who uses it. If your data lives in a spreadsheet, make sure last month’s prices and seats are visible. If you’re using b2b SaaS software like a dedicated subscription manager, filter to “renewals in the next 60 days” first.

2) Triage by renewal date (5 minutes)
Create three buckets:

• Due soon (≤60 days): needs an action now.
• Later (2–6 months): add to watch list.
• Long-tail (>6 months): ignore this month.

3) Usage and owner check (10 minutes)
For the Due soon bucket only, confirm two facts:

• Active owner: who in the team is responsible for this tool and still needs it.
• Usage fit: real users vs seats paid, and whether the plan matches how you use it.
  Quick signals: nobody logs in, duplicate features across tools, or the “nice to have” that no longer supports a core workflow.

4) Decide the action (7 minutes)
Mark one of four outcomes per subscription:

• Keep as is: clearly needed, price fair.
• Right-size: adjust seats, plan, or billing cycle (monthly vs annual).
• Negotiate: ask for a startup discount, commit to annual, or switch to a tier that fits.
• Cancel: if the owner can’t justify it in one sentence, it’s a strong candidate.

5) Log the note (3 minutes)
Record the decision and the next step. The note is the power move: it removes decision fatigue next month and builds a clean history.

Practical tips that save money

• Chase price drift: vendors raise prices quietly. Check the latest invoice against last year.
• Consolidate categories: design tools, analytics, docs, and video can often be simplified.
• Prefer annual for stable tools: when you’ve used it for ≥6 months and expect no change, annual deals cut cost and admin time.
• Avoid shadow subscriptions: require a shared place for all company tools, even if bought on a card.
• One owner per tool: if nobody owns it, it shouldn’t renew.

Spreadsheet vs subscription tracking software

Spreadsheets work at the very start. They become fragile as the list grows, people change, and renewals overlap. Dedicated subscription management keeps renewal dates visible, attaches owners, and reduces missed cancellations. If you’re spending more than a few hours a quarter reconciling subscriptions, it’s time to switch.

What “good” looks like after 3 months

• You never miss a renewal.
• Each tool has a named owner.
• You’ve cut dead tools and right-sized plans.
• Your monthly review takes less than 30 minutes.

A simple next step

Centralise your subscriptions and set a monthly reminder. If you want an easier path, try Crodor to keep renewal dates, owners, and costs in one place.

Exploring subscription tracking software for your team? Start with Crodor. Simple, focused, and built for small teams.