For years, whenever someone's asked me what I'd like to see added to the iOS software on my iPhone, I've always had an answer at the ready — I want a subscriptions manager. And for a brief moment, when I took a look at the features added in the iOS 18.4 update released as a beta recently, I though Apple had finally listened to my request.
In the initial iOS 18.4 beta release, the Wallet app added a new menu that included a Subscriptions & Payments option. While not the standalone subscription manager I've been clamoring for, this addition to Wallet sounded like the same general idea — a one-stop place for seeing what you're subscribed to, when those subscriptions renew and a method for cancelling subscriptions with a tap.
Alas, upon closer examination, this isn't quite what Apple's adding to the Wallet app. But that doesn't necessarily mean the feature couldn't be expanded to match my vision. Because in this age of subscription-based services, we need a way to stay on top of our monthly payments.
Subscription management — what I want
Before we dive into what iOS 18.4 now offers and what I want to see Apple expand that to in the future, let's acknowledge that there's already a way to track the subscriptions you've signed up for via the App Store. The problem is, it's not necessarily the easiest place to find, especially if you're not certain where to look.
You've got two ways to get to your App Store subscriptions. From the App Store, tap on the picture of yourself in the upper right corner of the app. That will take you to your iTunes user account, where Subscriptions is listed among the menu items.
Similarly, if you're in Settings, tap the Apple Account section with your picture in it at the very top of the screen. You'll once again get information about your Apple Account that will include a tappable Subscriptions section.
Whether you access it from the App Store or from Settings, the Subscription screen will look the same. It lists your active subscriptions along with their renewal data — tapping any subscription brings up the option to cancel it. Inactive subscriptions also appear, with the option of renewing those.
That's a pretty good basis for a subscription manager, but I think Apple's offering could do more. For starters, the Subscriptions page only shows the services I've signed up for — the ones my wife signed up are in another section entirely — in the shared subscriptions area of the Family section of Settings. A good manager would put all those charges in one place.
I'd also like to see in-app purchases accounted for, as they can be recurring payments, too. And while Apple's current approach subscription lists what I'm paying for each individual service each month, I'd like to see a grand total, which would help with budgeting options.
Subscription management — what iOS 18.4 adds
To that mix, iOS 18.4 brings another place to check on subscriptions, with that new menu in the Wallet app. However, while you might think app subscriptions would be included in the things tracked by the app, that's not actually the case.
Instead, this Wallet addition focuses more on preauthorized payments. "Merchants you authorize to charge your Apple Pay payment method for subscriptions, auto reloads, billing charges and more will appear here," is how Apple puts it in the description on that screen. My guess would be that if you use Apple Pay for things like refilling your commuter card or a gym membership, those payments will show up in this part of the Wallet app.
Apple seems to have realized that using the word "subscriptions" in this Wallet addition might cause some confusion. As of the most recent iOS 18.4 the menu item has been changed to "preauthorized payments." That makes it more clear what this part of the Wallet app tracks, but it doesn't change the fact that you're still tracking recurring payments in multiple areas instead of one.
I think the ability to track and manage recurring payments in the Wallet app is a great addition fully in the spirit of giving you greater insight into your spending — an increasing focus of the Wallet app in recent years. But I also believe Apple should streamline things and bring all its different payment tracking features under one roof.
That probably won't happen any time soon. At the very least, we'll need to see if the addition of payment tracking in Wallet is a feature that users wind up embracing. But if they do, I think the clamor to bolster the spending tracking capabilities on your iPhone will grow. And that gets me one step to my dream iOS feature.
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