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NYT

16 days free · $17.00/mo after

Exit grade D: No self-serve online cancel: you have to go through chat to close the account.

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We'll track NYT for you - reminders days before renewal, so deciding is always on your schedule.

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Quick answer

The NYT free trial runs 16 days, then bills $17.00/month for the Basic Digital plan. A credit card is required to start. Cancelling is hard - about 12 minutes. Our take: The trial isn't the trap - the cancellation is.

Last verified: July 22, 2026

Our take

The trial isn't the trap - the cancellation is. Basic Digital gives you the newsroom and the audio app on a free trial (often around two weeks, though NYT keeps testing it), then intro pricing before it settles near $17/mo. Cooking, Games, Wirecutter, and The Athletic aren't here - those live in the pricier All Access bundle. Subscribe if you'll read it daily, and plan on a few minutes with a retention agent to get out.

What you get

The NYT Basic Digital plan

Included · 3

  • Unlimited articles on nytimes.com and the NYT app - News, Opinion, Books, Arts, Magazine, Travel

  • The Audio app - narrated articles, The Daily, and exclusive shows

  • Morning Briefing newsletter plus 50+ other email newsletters

Worth knowing

  • NYT Cooking, NYT Games (Wordle, Connections, the Crossword), Wirecutter, and The Athletic - those come with the pricier All Access bundle, not Basic Digital

  • Home delivery of the printed paper - that's a separate physical subscription

  • International edition delivery

The honest data

By the numbers

Trial length
16 days
Price after
$17.00 / mo
Card required
Yes
Cancellation
Hard
Time to cancel
~12 min
% kept past trial
33%

Around the web

What others say about NYT

Curated outside takes. We don't edit them, we just point at them.

At a glance

4 reviews from 4 sources

Topline: No reviews yet

  • Community

    Reddit

    Is the digital subscription worth it in 2025?

    I keep telling myself I'll cancel, but then I open Connections, then Cooking, and suddenly it's been six months and I've stopped subscribing to anything else.

    r/nytimes · 412 comments

    Read on reddit.com
  • Reviewer

    The Verge

    The NYT bundle is the best news deal nobody talks about

    For the price of one good streaming service, you get one of the best newsrooms in the world plus the best mobile games portfolio outside of a console.

    Reviewed Nov 2024

    Read on theverge.com
  • Reviewer

    Tom's Guide

    NYT All Access leads our value rankings

    All Access ranks first for breadth - News, Cooking, Games, Wirecutter, and the Audio app collapse five separate subscriptions into one bill.

    Best news subscriptions, 2025

    Read on tomsguide.com
  • Video

    YouTube

    Are news subscriptions worth it in the age of free?

    If you open more than four NYT articles a month, the intro tier costs less than the two coffees you'd buy reading them at the café anyway.

    Two Cents · 124k views

    Read on youtube.com

Cancellation guide

How to cancel NYT

Documented · ~12 min

  1. 01

    Sign in at nytimes.com and open Subscription Overview from your account menu

  2. 02

    Click Cancel and decline the two retention offers you'll be shown

  3. 03

    Complete cancellation through the live chat agent (US business hours) or by calling 1-866-273-3612

NYT free trial - frequently asked

Is the NYT free trial really free?
Yes - the NYT free trial is free for 16 days. A credit card is required, so it renews at $17.00/month unless you cancel first.
How much does NYT cost after the trial?
After the free trial, NYT costs $17.00 per month for the Basic Digital plan.
How do I cancel NYT?
To cancel NYT: 1. Sign in at nytimes.com and open Subscription Overview from your account menu; 2. Click Cancel and decline the two retention offers you'll be shown; 3. Complete cancellation through the live chat agent (US business hours) or by calling 1-866-273-3612. It takes about 12 minutes and is rated hard to cancel.
Do I need a credit card for the NYT trial?
Yes - NYT requires a credit card to start the free trial, so note the renewal date - day 16 - if you only want the trial.

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