You canceled your free trial before the listed end date. According to your local time, the cancellation was clearly on time. Yet the charge still appeared.
This usually happens because the trial expiration is based on the service’s system time zone, not the user’s location.
A time zone mismatch can turn an “on-time” cancellation into a late one.
How Time Zone Differences Trigger Unexpected Charges
- The trial ends based on the platform’s server time
- Your local date may differ from the billing system’s date
- Cutoff times are often set in UTC or a fixed regional time
- The cancellation is evaluated against system time, not user time
- Displayed end dates do not always include the exact cutoff hour
How to Check Whether the Charge Was Due to Timing
- Find the exact trial expiration timestamp in your account
- Check which time zone the service uses for billing
- Compare the cancellation time with the system cutoff
- Review confirmation emails for precise timestamps
What to Do to Avoid This in Future Trials
- Cancel at least 24 hours before the listed end date
- Do not rely on calendar dates alone
- Save cancellation confirmations with timestamps
- Verify the billing time zone before starting a trial
Time-based cutoffs are one of the most common causes of free trial charges. Understanding how billing systems interpret time prevents repeat mistakes.