To cancel an HBR subscription, first check whether Harvard Business Review bills you directly or whether you signed up through an app store. If HBR bills you, cancel by calling 800-274-3214, emailing customercare@hbr.org, using live chat at the HBR Help Center, or logging into the subscriber services portal. If Apple, Google Play, or Amazon bills you, you have to cancel through that platform — HBR customer service cannot do it for you.
Check Where You’re Billed First
Look at your bank or credit card statement. A charge labeled “Harvard Business” or “HBR” means HBR handles your billing directly. A charge from “Apple.com/bill,” “Google,” or “Amazon” means the app store is the biller, and only that store can stop the payments. Calling HBR about an Apple-billed subscription won’t get you anywhere.
One more thing worth knowing before you start: deleting the HBR app does not cancel anything. Your card keeps getting charged until you cancel through the correct channel.
Canceling Directly Through HBR
If HBR is the biller, you have four options. Any of them works.
Subscriber Services Portal
Go to harvard-business-review.magazinesubscriberservices.com, click the cancellation link, and enter your account number or mailing address to complete the request.1Harvard Business Review Magazine Subscriber Services. Harvard Business Review Magazine Subscriber Services Print subscribers can find their account number on the magazine’s mailing label, above the name and address. Digital-only subscribers can find it in their online account settings.
Phone
Call 800-274-3214 from the United States or Canada. International subscribers should call +1 (617) 783-7500. Have your account number or the email address on the subscription ready.2Harvard Business Publishing. How Do I Contact Harvard Business Review (HBR) Magazine Subscription Customer Service
Send your cancellation request to customercare@hbr.org. Include your full name, account number, and the email address tied to the account.2Harvard Business Publishing. How Do I Contact Harvard Business Review (HBR) Magazine Subscription Customer Service Email gives you a written record, which matters if a charge appears later and you need to prove you requested cancellation.
Live Chat
Open hbphelp.zendesk.com and click the Help button in the bottom corner to start a chat.2Harvard Business Publishing. How Do I Contact Harvard Business Review (HBR) Magazine Subscription Customer Service Faster than email, and you still get a transcript.
Canceling Through an App Store
If Apple, Google, or Amazon is the biller, use their subscription settings.
Apple
On iPhone or iPad, open Settings, tap your name, tap Subscriptions, select the HBR subscription, and tap Cancel Subscription. On a Mac, open the App Store, click your name, go to Account Settings, scroll to Subscriptions, click Manage, and cancel. If you see a red expiration date instead of a Cancel button, the subscription is already canceled.3Apple Support. If You Want to Cancel a Subscription from Apple
Google Play
Open the Google Play app, go to your subscriptions, select HBR, and tap Cancel Subscription. Sign in with the same Google account you used to subscribe. If the subscription doesn’t appear, check whether it’s under a different account.4Google Play Help. Cancel, Pause, or Change a Subscription on Google Play
Amazon
On Amazon’s website, open Your Account, find Your Apps under Digital Content and Devices, select Your Subscriptions under Manage, and cancel the HBR subscription there.5Amazon Customer Service. Manage Your Appstore Subscriptions from the Website
What Happens to Your Access and Next Charge
Cancellation doesn’t cut off access immediately. You keep reading through the end of the billing period you already paid for, whether that’s a month or a year.4Google Play Help. Cancel, Pause, or Change a Subscription on Google Play Pay for a year in March, cancel in June, and access still runs through the following March. No further charges post after the cancellation is processed.
For monthly subscribers, cancel a few days before the renewal date. HBR doesn’t publish a specific advance-notice window, so don’t cut it close.
Refunds
HBR generally does not issue prorated refunds for unused time. If you cancel partway through an annual cycle, you keep access until it ends, but you typically won’t see money back for the remaining months. Partial-month refunds are also rare.
Digital purchases sit in a stricter category. Harvard Business Publishing does not accept returns on any digital-format products, including case studies, ebooks, article reprints, online courses, and curated collections.6Harvard Business Publishing. HBR.org Return Policy A one-off article or course purchase is final.
If a charge posts after you canceled, or you never authorized a renewal in the first place, disputing the charge with your card issuer is usually a faster route than arguing with customer support. Save any cancellation confirmation email as evidence.
Confirm It Actually Went Through
Watch for a confirmation email from HBR or the app store. If you canceled by phone or chat, ask the representative to send written confirmation before you end the call. A day or two later, log back in and check that your subscription shows as canceled or set to expire. The worst outcome here is assuming the request went through, forgetting about it, and finding months of continued charges later.