How to Turn Off Shopping Emails, Texts and Notifications

To stop shopping emails, texts and notifications, unsubscribe from store emails using the link at the bottom of each one, reply STOP to marketing texts, turn off notifications for shopping apps in your phone's settings, and limit ad tracking so the same products stop following you around. It takes about 30 minutes to do once, and it removes many of the triggers that start an impulse buy in the first place.

Why these messages work so well

Many impulse purchases don't start with you deciding to shop. They start with a buzz in your pocket: a flash sale, a price drop, an item "back in stock," or a reminder that you left something in your cart. Each one is timed and worded to get you to open the app right now.

Cart reminders are especially effective. Some stores send a discount code a day or two after you abandon a cart, which teaches you to wait for a deal instead of asking whether you want the thing at all. If you turn the reminders off, the item you almost bought often stops feeling important.

Step 1: Turn off push notifications

This one change probably makes the biggest difference.

On iPhone: open Settings, tap Notifications, choose each shopping app and turn off Allow Notifications. You can also use a Focus mode to silence shopping apps at certain times, such as late at night.

On Android: open Settings, tap Notifications or Apps, choose each shopping app and turn off notifications. Many apps also let you turn off only promotional notifications while keeping delivery updates.

Inside each shopping app, look for notification settings too. Some let you turn off deals and recommendations but keep order updates.

Step 2: Unsubscribe from shopping emails

Marketing emails from US companies are legally required to include a way to opt out, usually an "Unsubscribe" link at the bottom. Click it for every store you don't want to hear from.

To do it faster:

• Search your inbox for "unsubscribe" to find marketing emails in one list.
• Use your email app's subscription tools. Some email apps, including Gmail, now have a place to see and manage your subscriptions in one view.
• Create a filter that sends emails from shopping sites to a folder you check once a week, if you want to keep receipts without seeing promotions.

It can take a few days for unsubscribes to take effect.

Step 3: Stop marketing texts

Reply STOP to marketing texts from a store. That's the standard opt-out for text marketing in the US. Keep in mind that order and delivery updates may come from a different number.

Step 4: Reduce ads that follow you

If a product you looked at keeps appearing in ads, that's retargeting.

• On iPhone, choose "Ask App Not to Track" when apps request permission, and check Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking.
• On Google, use My Ad Center to adjust or turn off personalized ads.
• On social media apps, check the ad preferences settings and hide ads from shopping brands you're trying to avoid.

You'll still see ads, but they'll be less personal and less likely to show the exact thing you almost bought.

Step 5: Don't leave things in your cart

Abandoned carts trigger reminder emails and ads. If you're not buying something, remove it from your cart or move it to a wish list. Better yet, write it down outside the store's app and give yourself a waiting period. Our guide on how long to wait before buying something can help you choose one.

Make the space feel like progress

Once the noise is gone, you'll notice the times you still want something. That's a good thing. Cake, an iOS app in development, gives those wants somewhere to go: you put the thing on a cake sized by its price, $5 per slice, and skipped buys and good habits fill the slices while the money builds in a virtual jar the app tracks. When the cake is full, you decide whether you still want it.

Common questions

Will unsubscribing from emails stop order confirmations?

No. Order confirmations, shipping updates and receipts are transactional messages, not marketing. They usually keep coming even after you unsubscribe from promotional emails.

Is it safe to click unsubscribe links?

Links from well-known stores you've shopped with are generally fine. If an email looks like spam or comes from a sender you don't recognize, it's safer to mark it as spam than to click anything inside it.

Why do I still get emails after unsubscribing?

It can take some time for a company to process your request. If emails continue for more than a couple of weeks, unsubscribe again and mark them as spam.

How do I stop shopping at night?

Turning off notifications helps, and so does setting your phone to limit shopping apps after a certain time. Our guide on how to stop online shopping at night covers more strategies.