RoomForGemsA charge from a cleaner app can feel like a trap. Maybe a short trial turned into a weekly charge. Maybe you don't remember signing up at all.
You can often get some or all of the money back. It helps to go in the right order. This guide takes you through it, one step at a time.
If you only need to stop the payments, our guide on how to cancel a cleaner app subscription has the full cancel steps. This guide is about the money already taken.
Step 1: find out who charged you
Look at your bank or card statement. The name on the charge tells you who to ask.
APPLE.COM/BILL. This means Apple took the payment. Apple says such a charge "could be for apps, subscriptions, music and movie purchases" (Apple Support, read on 15 October 2026). Apple says an Apple Card PDF statement may show itunes.com/bill instead.
GOOGLE* followed by a name. Google says Google Play charges start with GOOGLE* and then the app name, the developer's name, or a type of content (Google Play Help, read on 15 October 2026). If the charge does not start that way, Google says it did not come from Google Play.
Any other company name. You probably paid on a website, not through the App Store or Google Play. Apple and Google can't refund that, because they never took the money. Skip to Step 5.
Can't tell which app it was?
- On any computer or phone, go to reportaproblem.apple.com and sign in. Your purchases are listed with names and dates.
- Search your email for "receipt from Apple" or "invoice from Apple". Apple suggests this to find the purchase and the Apple Account used.
- For Google, open play.google.com, click your profile picture, then Payments & subscriptions › Budget & order history.
If it was bought by someone in your family, see the family notes in our cancel guide.
Step 2: stop the next charge
Do this before anything else. A refund for last week does not stop next week.
Deleting the app does not cancel the subscription. Cancel it in Settings on iPhone or in the Play Store on Android. The exact taps are in our cancel guide.
Step 3: ask Apple for a refund
- Go to reportaproblem.apple.com.
- Sign in with your Apple Account.
- Tap I'd like to, then choose Request a refund.
- Choose the reason that fits best, then tap Next.
- Choose the subscription or charge.
- Tap Submit.
Which reason to pick
Apple shows a short list of reasons. The wording can change, so we can't promise the exact list (not verified). Pick the one closest to the truth. For a trial that renewed without you meaning it to, a reason about not intending to buy, or not meaning to renew, usually fits best (not verified).
What to write
If there is a box for more detail, keep it plain and factual. For example:
I started a trial. I did not realise it would renew every week. I have not used the app since the trial. I have cancelled. Please refund this charge.
Don't exaggerate. Don't send the same request again and again. Apple says calling or chatting won't make a request in progress move any quicker.
Check the status
Apple says to wait 24 to 48 hours for an update. To check, go back to reportaproblem.apple.com and choose Check Status of Claims.
If approved, money back to a card can take up to 30 days. Store credit can take up to 48 hours. Phone bill charges can take 30 to 60 days.
If the charge is still "pending", Apple says you can't ask for a refund yet. Try again after the receipt arrives by email.
If Apple says no
Apple's refund page does not describe an appeal. It does say to contact Apple Support at getsupport.apple.com for refunds you can't request on reportaproblem.apple.com, and for more help with a request (Apple Support, read on 15 October 2026). Explain calmly what happened, with dates. Whether a second look changes the answer is up to Apple (not verified).
Step 4: ask Google for a refund
Google's rules depend on how long ago you paid.
Within 48 hours. Ask Google directly:
- Go to play.google.com and click your profile picture.
- Click Payments & subscriptions, then Budget & order history.
- Find the charge and click Report a problem.
- Choose the option that fits.
- In the form, say you want a refund. Use the same plain words as above.
- Click Submit.
Google says it usually decides within one day, and it can take up to four.
After 48 hours. Google says to contact the app's developer. The developer "can process refunds pursuant to its policies and applicable laws" (Google Play Help, read on 15 October 2026). Look for the developer's contact details on the app's page in Google Play. Keep your message short and keep a copy.
Charges you never agreed to. Google says to report unauthorised charges within 120 days of the charge, using its unauthorised transactions form. If a family member bought it by mistake on your account, Google treats that as a refund request instead.
If you live in the EU or the UK
You may have heard of a 14-day right to cancel online purchases. It is real, but it often does not cover apps once you start using them.
- EU. The European Union's Your Europe site says you can usually cancel an online purchase "within 14 days without providing any justification". It also says this does not apply to online digital content when you agreed to start right away and "expressly agreed to lose your right of withdrawal" (Your Europe, read on 15 October 2026).
- UK. The Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 say the same in regulation 37. You lose the right to cancel digital content once supply starts, if you first gave your consent and acknowledged that you would lose it.
- Apple in the UK. Apple's UK terms describe a 14-day right to cancel, with a Withdraw Transaction option in Purchase History. The same terms say you cannot cancel once delivery has started at your request and with your acknowledgement. How Apple applies this to a given purchase is not clear to us (not verified).
- Google in the EU and UK. Google has a separate refund page for buyers there. It says Google refunds purchases that are faulty or don't match their description on Google Play.
So: the 14-day right is usually given up with a tick box or a line of text when you pay. Look back at what you were shown. Even if you gave it up, you can still use the normal Apple and Google steps above. If an app did not do what its listing promised, say so.
We are not lawyers, and the rules differ by country. A local consumer advice service can tell you more.
Step 5: charges outside the app stores
If you paid a website directly, ask the company first. Ask in writing, keep a copy, and note the date.
If it will not refund you, contact your card company or bank. Use the number on the back of your card, or its app. The FTC says to report a scam charge to the card issuer "immediately", and that federal law protects you from unauthorised use of credit and debit cards (FTC Consumer Advice, read on 15 October 2026).
For a disputed credit card charge in the US, the FTC says:
- Write to the card company's address for billing inquiries, not the payment address.
- Your letter must reach it within 60 days after the first bill with the charge was sent to you.
- Include your name, address, account number, what went wrong, and copies of receipts.
- Pay the rest of your bill as normal while they look into it.
Treat this as a last resort for App Store and Google Play charges. Ask Apple or Google first. Disputing a store charge with your bank may affect your store account (not verified).
Step 6: report it
If you never agreed to the charge, or the app tricked you, report it. In the US, the FTC takes reports at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Reporting does not get your money back by itself, but it helps stop the same trick catching someone else.
Where RoomForGems fits, honestly
We built RoomForGems because of charges like these. It is free to scan and free to clear up to 1 GB. After that it costs $9.99, charged once through the App Store or Google Play. There is no subscription, so there is nothing to cancel later and no weekly charge to find on your statement.
If you ever want a refund for RoomForGems, it goes through Apple or Google, the same way as above. You can read more on our privacy and trust page or our support page.