How to Cancel iCloud Storage Plan Without iPhone

Managing your iCloud account from Apple mobile devices (iPhone and iPad) is very convenient. But what if you lose your iPhone or switch to a non-Apple smartphone? How to cancel your iCloud subscription? This guide will show you how to quickly cancel an iCloud storage plan without iPhone.

Without an iPhone (or iPad), there are only two direct ways to cancel your iCloud storage subscription. Let’s go.

Note: We strongly encourage you to read to the end before canceling your subscription. You need to know what happens when you cancel it.

Cancel iCloud Storage Plan Using Mac

Step 1: Launch System Preferences and select Apple ID.

2nd step: You’ll find the iCloud storage meter at the bottom of the Apple ID page. Press the Manage button.

This will launch a new iCloud storage management window. Here you will be able to change your iCloud settings, free up storage space, and change your storage plan.

Note: For macOS Mojave 10.14 or macOS High Sierra 10.13, go to System Preferences> iCloud> Manage.

Step 3: Click on the “Edit Storage Plan” button.

Step 4: On the page Showing your current iCloud subscription and other storage plans, tap the Downgrade Options button in the lower left corner.

Step 5: To view subscription options, you will be prompted to enter your Apple ID account password. Feed it and hit the Manage button or press the Return key on your keyboard to continue.

Step 6: Choose the 5 GB (free) option and press Done.

Note: You cannot cancel or downgrade the free 5 GB storage space allocated to each Apple ID account.

Cancel iCloud Storage Plan on Windows PC

You can use a Windows computer to cancel an active iCloud storage plan without an iPhone. To do this, you need to install the official iCloud app on your Windows PC.

Launch the Microsoft Store app on your PC and search for iCloud. You can also press the button linked below.

Download iCloud for Windows from the Microsoft Store

Note: ICloud app for Windows only supports PCs running Windows 10 operating system (version 18362.145 or higher). So make sure your computer is up to date.

After installation, sign in to your Apple ID account and follow the steps below to cancel your iCloud storage plan.

Step 1: On the app dashboard, tap the Storage button.

2nd step: Then click on the “Edit Storage Plan” button.

Step 3: Select Downgrade Options.

Step 4: Enter your Apple ID password and click Manage to continue.

Step 5: Select the free 5 GB storage plan in the Choose a downgrade section and tap Done.

So you have downgraded your iCloud storage plan. Wondering what happens next? If you haven’t jumped the gun yet, read on before your decision turns on you or draws you into soup.

What happens when you cancel the iCloud storage plan

Continuity or refund

First of all, you will still have access to the current plan until its expiration date. And if you’d rather not use the plan, perhaps because you signed up by accident or no longer want to, you can request a refund, as long as you can convince the customer service representative in good faith.

Please note that Apple will only issue a refund for storage plans that have not been used for 14 days. For example, if you signed up for a plan on January 1, you are entitled to a refund as long as you cancel the plan and request a refund on or before January 14. This means that Apple will honor the cancellation made within 14 days of subscription. See the official Apple Support document for the detailed procedure for requesting a refund for your canceled iCloud storage plan.

Billing and storage

Whether or not you request a refund, your iCloud storage quota will be downgraded to 5 GB and Apple will stop charging your payment card linked to your Apple ID for the canceled storage plan.

Data access

If the total amount of data accumulated in your iCloud exceeded 5 GB before cancellation, you will no longer have access to some of the data (photos, files, videos, etc.) when the plan expires. For context, if you have 20 GB of data storage in your iCloud account, you will only have access to 5 GB of data. Also, some services like backup and sync will stop working on all devices signed in to iCloud account. Likewise, the Mail application / service will stop working. So you cannot send or receive new emails after that.

If you haven’t gone over the 5 GB quota allocated for the free storage plan, you don’t have to worry. You can still have access to your data and other iCloud dependent services without a paid plan.

Data expiration and deletion

When you’ve exceeded the 5 GB free storage quota and canceled your plan, what happens to the inactive (inaccessible) data in your iCloud account? Well, under the iCloud Terms of Service, Apple reserves the right to delete your iCloud data (settings, photos and videos, messages, etc.) after one hundred and eighty (180) days of inactivity. In this context, inactivity means not backing up new data to iCloud during the aforementioned period.

Data recovery

There’s no way to access your iCloud data after canceling your paid plan – if you’ve exceeded your free storage limit, that is. Likewise, it is impossible to get your data back if Apple deletes it from its servers.

Cancellation precautions

Before canceling your storage plan, we recommend that you export your iCloud data offline to your computer or an external storage device. Refer to this guide for how to download data stored on iCloud. In conclusion, the above methods are (currently) the only way to cancel iCloud storage plans without iPhone. You’ll need to contact Apple Support for help if you don’t have a Mac or PC. Do you have any other questions or questions? Share them in the comments and we’ll try to answer them.