Our Methodology
subscription·saver analyses Australian streaming, music, gaming, and digital service pricing to help you find waste and optimise your subscriptions. Here is exactly how every number is calculated.
1. Data Sources
Streaming Plans: Pricing, tier details, resolution, stream limits, ad status, and annual billing availability are sourced directly from provider websites. Our database covers 34 plans across 49 providers including Netflix, Stan, Disney+, Binge, Kayo Sports, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, HBO Max, Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Premium, and more.
Content Scores: Content category scores (drama, comedy, documentary, kids, sport, news, anime, music) are estimated based on publicly available information including content library sizes, editorial reviews, and provider marketing. These are approximate assessments, not precise catalogue analysis.
Update Frequency: Plan pricing is verified regularly and updated when changes are detected. Content scores and overlap data are reviewed periodically to reflect catalogue changes.
2. Annual Cost Calculation
We calculate the true annual cost for each plan, accounting for both monthly and annual billing options:
Annual billing: Annual Cost = annual_price (if available)
Annual Saving: (monthly × 12) − annual_price
Not all providers offer annual billing. Netflix, Binge, and Kayo Sports, for example, only offer monthly billing. Where annual pricing is available, we calculate the potential saving from switching.
3. Data Quality & Anomaly Detection
Plans are automatically flagged if the annual billing discount exceeds 20% compared to monthly billing. This threshold catches data entry errors and unusually aggressive promotional pricing that may not be representative of standard pricing.
Flagged plans are still displayed but marked with a data quality indicator so users can verify the pricing directly with the provider.
4. Content Value Score
The “Find My Match” feature scores each streaming plan against your stated content preferences:
Each content category (drama, comedy, documentary, kids, sport, news) a plan covers contributes to its score, weighted by how important that category is to you. The score is then normalised by price to surface the best value — not just the biggest catalogue.
5. Content Overlap Analysis
Content overlap between two services is estimated based on shared content categories and relative catalogue strengths. This is an approximate assessment based on category-level analysis, not a title-by-title comparison.
Example: Netflix and Stan both have strong drama and comedy catalogues, resulting in high estimated overlap. Kayo Sports and Apple TV+ have minimal overlap because they serve very different content categories.
High overlap (above 50%) suggests you may be paying for duplicate content and could consider dropping one service or rotating between them.
6. Subscription Waste Detection
The audit engine detects five categories of waste:
2. Underused — Low usage relative to cost (cost per hour > threshold)
3. Overlap — Two services with >50% content overlap
4. Billing — Monthly billing where annual option saves money
5. Tier — Premium plan where Standard would suffice (e.g., single user on multi-stream plan)
Each waste item includes a specific suggestion: cancel, downgrade, switch to annual billing, switch to family plan, switch to ad-supported tier, or cancel due to overlap.
7. Rotation Strategy
The rotation planner generates a 12-month calendar that keeps your “must keep” services active year-round while rotating non-essential services month by month. This assumes:
• No annual billing lock-in on rotated services
• Content is consumed within the active month
46% of Australians already rotate streaming services to manage costs. Our planner systematises this by distributing rotation candidates evenly across the year and calculating the exact annual saving.
8. CDR Merchant Matching (Phase C Foundation)
We maintain a merchant map of 100+ patterns linking bank transaction descriptions to known subscription services. This uses regex pattern matching against common merchant names as they appear in Australian bank statements.
Current status: The merchant map is available via API but CDR bank integration (auto-detection from transaction feeds) requires CDR accreditation, planned for Phase C.
9. Limitations
Subscription prices change frequently — always verify directly with the provider before making changes. Content scores are estimates based on category-level analysis, not precise catalogue comparisons. Overlap percentages are approximate.
We do not cover every subscription service available in Australia. Business and enterprise plans are excluded. Free services (ABC iView, SBS On Demand, etc.) are referenced in recommendations but not priced.
Rotation strategies assume services can be freely paused and resumed. Some providers may have cancellation terms, waiting periods, or lose progress/profiles on cancellation. Check provider terms before acting on rotation advice.