The Subscription Killer: How I Cut £700 a Month by Building My Own Tools

If you are anything like me, you spend hundreds, maybe thousands of pounds every month on subscriptions. You tell yourself you need them to run your business, because every creator, filmmaker and photographer has them. I have good news: you mostly do not need them. Not because you should go minimalist and give up the tools, but because you can now replace them with your own bespoke software. Here is how I cut £700 a month.

The short version: I was spending £700 to £800 a month on software subscriptions to run my video and photo business. Using AI, I rebuilt the tools I actually needed as my own local apps. They work better than what I was renting, they cost me almost nothing to run, and I now own them. This is that story, and why I think it is the biggest opportunity for creators right now.

The subscription trap

When I first discovered AI culling and AI editing for photography, it blew my mind. Software that could edit in my style, that learned and grew as I did, was incredible. The only problem was the price: a fortune every month, which I justified by telling myself it saved me time. Then came the AI video editors promising an instant rough cut, basically replacing an assistant editor. Brilliant results, but $150 a month just to start. For little old me running a business by myself, that is a huge amount.

So I added it all up. Dropbox, delivery tools, website plugins, all the rest. I was spending somewhere between £700 and £800 a month on subscriptions. That is mental. Some things, like the Adobe Creative Cloud, are here to stay. But most of the rest I simply do not need to rent anymore.

The SaaS apocalypse

There is a bigger shift happening behind this. In early 2026 the software market went through what people are calling a SaaS apocalypse, with an enormous amount of value leaving the sector as AI agents that can build software inside your own computer arrived. The market decided that a lot of software you used to rent, you can now simply make. And it was right.

What I replaced, and what I saved

I was delighted to find that the tools I was paying for, a photo editor, a video editor, a backup tool, client portals and more, could all be rebuilt as my own applications. I have since replaced all of them with apps I made myself, and here is the honest truth: they work better than what I was paying for, because they are built around my exact needs.

• Photo culling and editing in my style became Shutter Pup.
• AI video editing became Edit Pup, which learns how I cut and drafts in my style.
• Card backup and verification became Back Up Pup.
• Client delivery and portals became my own client portal template.
• Cutting and tagging footage for stock became Clip Up Pup, which is like the two chunky tools I used to pay for combined into one app that does a better job because it knows my needs. It runs its AI locally, so the only thing it costs me is electricity, and it saves me around £180 a year on its own.

Altogether I have cut my subscriptions by £700 a month. That is more than £8,000 a year, kept in my business.

But do you need to be a coder? No.

Here is the part people do not believe: I do not really know what I am doing. I am a filmmaker, not a software engineer. I press a few buttons, ask the right questions in plain English, and the AI takes me where I need to go. If you can speak, you can use it, and if you do not understand something, you just ask it to explain. Over time you learn. The big software companies are not keen for you to know this, because the power to build is now in your hands.

Why this is the real opportunity

Cutting costs is only half of it. The bigger win is what it does to your position as a creator:

• You can offer clients more. Instead of just “I make videos,” you can offer a branded portal where they view and download their content, for a small recurring fee. That is a genuinely attractive pitch, and one I have seen work.
• You can walk away from bad jobs. Not spending £800 a month gives you a financial cushion. When you can say no, you become the most attractive prospect in the room, because clients respect a creator who knows their worth.
• You only take work you enjoy, so you get better at it, so you can charge more. The snowball keeps rolling.
• You can sell what you build. If you make a tool you need, chances are others need it too. You are a little speedboat next to the SaaS cruise liners: they need a million customers to break even, you might need a hundred to change your life.

Try the apps

The apps I have built are all puppy themed, because it made me laugh: Back Up Pup, Clip Up Pup, Edit Pup and Shutter Pup, plus the website templates. I am looking for people to test them for free and give me honest feedback. If that is you, join the waitlist and I will send you the software, or browse the whole toolkit first.

Frequently asked questions

How much can you really save by cancelling creative subscriptions?

I cut mine by £700 a month, which is more than £8,000 a year, by replacing rented software with my own local apps. Your number depends on your stack, but most photographers and videographers are spending at least £100 a month that could be reduced.

Do you need to be a coder to build your own tools?

No. I am a filmmaker, not an engineer. You describe what you want in plain English and let the AI do the building. If you can explain the problem, you can get to a working tool.

What software can you actually replace?

In my case: photo culling and editing, video editing, card backup, client portals and stock preparation. Some things, like the Adobe Creative Cloud, are worth keeping, but a surprising amount of your monthly stack can be rebuilt.

Is a local app really cheaper than a subscription?

Yes. Once it is built it runs on your own machine, so the ongoing cost is basically electricity, instead of a monthly fee that rises over time. That is the whole point of the Pup apps: pay once, run it yourself.