Can I get a refund on Workaway?

Usually not. The terms say Workaway can't refund 'under any circumstances once fee payment has been collected', and deleting your account doesn't get you a refund. **The exception is the Host Response Guarantee.** If you sent personalised messages to at least 10 different hosts in your first 30 days and none replied, contact support within 60 days of joining. You'll be refunded to your original payment method. It only applies to verified members who joined after 1 March 2024. Any host reply, even a 'no', disqualifies you.

How do I delete my Workaway account?

Log in and go to your account settings. For Workawayers that's `https://www.workaway.info/en/account/workawayer/settings`; for hosts it's `/en/account/host/settings`. Choose the remove-account option and confirm. **Deleting is permanent:** Workaway can't recover the account, and you won't get any of your membership fee back. Messages and feedback you've left for other members stay on the site. Hosts who delete can't open a new account later. If you might come back, pause instead.

How do I pause, freeze or take my account offline?

Click your round profile photo (top right on desktop, or the three-line menu on mobile), go to **My settings**, and choose **Pause / deactivate my account**. To turn it back on, choose **Reactivate my account** from the same menu. Hosts can also pick a date for the profile to reactivate automatically. Pausing doesn't extend or refund your paid membership; the 12-month clock keeps running. Workaway specifically warns people not to delete when they only want to pause.

What is the Workaway Host Response Guarantee?

It's Workaway's only published refund route. You qualify if you: - joined as a verified member after 1 March 2024, - messaged **10+ different hosts in your first 30 days**, - wrote personalised messages, not copy-paste or AI-generated ones, and - got **no reply at all**. Contact support within 60 days of joining. If you messaged hosts near the end of your first month, give them up to 30 days to answer before you claim. Approved claims are refunded to your original payment method.

Is there a Workaway cancellation fee?

No. There's no cancellation fee and no contract to get out of. Workaway charges one annual fee up front ($69 solo, $79 couple/friends, $89/$99 for Plus+) and never bills you again unless you choose to renew. The catch is the other way round: once you've paid, the terms say the fee isn't refundable. The only exception is the Host Response Guarantee.

Can I downgrade from Workaway Plus to Standard?

Yes, but not partway through your membership year. Workaway's Plus FAQ says to downgrade you **wait until your current membership expires**, then pick Standard when you renew. There's no pro-rata refund of the $20 Plus upgrade for the time left. You can upgrade from Standard to Plus at any time from your membership page.

Is there a Workaway free trial?

No. Anyone can browse the host list without registering, but Workawayers have to pay the annual fee and pass a manual profile check before they can message hosts. There's no trial that turns into a paid plan, so you can't get caught by a renewal after a trial. Hosting is free.

What happens if Workaway deletes my account?

The terms let Workaway remove or terminate any account without warning, and say you can't then set up a second account. App Store reviewers say their paid accounts were removed after disputes with hosts, with no refund and no reply from support. If this happens to you, ask in writing for the reason and a refund through the contact form and support@workaway.info, and keep records. If they ignore you, a chargeback through your card issuer is the fallback.

Will I lose my reviews if I cancel Workaway?

It depends on how you leave. **If you let your membership lapse**, your account and data are kept for when you rejoin. **If you delete your account**, Workaway says it can't be recovered, so the profile and reviews you've built up are gone. Messages and feedback you left for others stay on their profiles. If your reviews might matter in future, let the membership lapse or pause it instead of deleting.

REFUND GUIDE

How to Get a workaway.info Refund.

Here's what workaway.info actually owes you, what their policy quietly says, and how to escalate if they ignore the request.

Last verified 4 days ago against workaway.info’s own Terms · UK, US, and EU rights covered below

The short answer

Workaway only sells one thing: a one-off annual membership for Workawayers ($69, $99 a year). Hosting is free. The terms say the membership fee is never refunded once paid, and deleting your account doesn't get you a full or partial refund either. The one published exception is the Host Response Guarantee. If you sent personalised messages to at least 10 hosts in your first 30 days and none replied, contact support within 60 days of joining and they refund you to your original payment method. It only applies to verified members who subscribed after 1 March 2024. Memberships never auto-renew, so you can't be charged for an unexpected renewal.

Or let yoink chase the refund.

30 seconds to set up. yoink emails workaway.info, cites the policy, escalates if ignored, and surfaces the win when the money lands.

Get yoink (App Store) →

What workaway.info actually says

“However we cannot guarantee or refund under any circumstances once fee payment has been collected”
, verbatim from workaway.info’s terms

Pro-rata refund: noStatutory cooling-off: 14 days in UK + EU on new subs

How long does a workaway.info refund take?

Most merchants agree to a straightforward refund within 1 to 3 working days of a well-written email request. Once agreed, the money itself takes another 3 to 5 working days to land, that part is card-network processing and no merchant can skip it. If nothing has arrived 10 working days after a written “refund approved”, reply on the same thread asking for the ARN (acquirer reference number), which your bank can trace.

What you can claim

The law where you live is the strongest hook, lead with it when you contact the company.

United States

Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA)
Dispute any credit-card charge in writing within 60 days.
For US credit-card payments, the FCBA gives you 60 days from the statement date to dispute a workaway.info charge in writing. Your card issuer is required to investigate and may withhold the disputed amount during the process.

Worldwide

Card-issuer chargeback
Visa/Mastercard chargeback works everywhere they do.
Open a chargeback for “subscription not cancelled” or “services not as described”, your bank initiates, workaway.info has ~45 days to defend. Works regardless of where workaway.info is headquartered.
PayPal Buyer Protection
If you paid via PayPal, open a dispute.
PayPal’s Buyer Protection covers “item not as described”, applies to services that didn’t deliver. Resolution typically within 20 days.

Rights in other regions (United Kingdom, European Union)

United Kingdom

Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013
Full refund within the 14-day window.
Inside 14 days of starting any workaway.info subscription, you’re entitled to a full refund of any payment taken, no questions, no policy override.
Citizens Advice + Trading Standards
For repeated bad-faith refusals.
Free escalation lane: file with Citizens Advice (08082231133), they pass it to Trading Standards. Slow (8-12 weeks) but creates a paper trail workaway.info can’t ignore.

European Union

Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EU
14-day withdrawal across all EU member states.
EU-wide statutory right to withdraw and recover any payment within 14 days of subscription start. Mirrored in local law in every EU country.
ECC-Net cross-border escalation
EU Consumer Centre network mediates against EU sellers.
If workaway.info is based in another EU country, your local European Consumer Centre will mediate the dispute for free. List of national contacts at commission.europa.eu.

The 4-step refund email

Email the right address
Use support@workaway.info, the route yoink has verified actually gets read for workaway.info.
Use a clear subject line
Subject: Refund Request, [your account email]

Send this body

Hi workaway.info team,

I'm requesting a refund of the recent charge on my subscription, account [your account email].

Under the FTC's Click-to-Cancel rule, cancellation must be available through a channel as simple as the one I signed up through. Please confirm by reply that the refund will be processed to my original payment method.

Best,
[your name]

Wait 7-14 days, then escalate
If you haven’t heard back in 14 days, escalate via the regional route above, a card-issuer chargeback works in every market.

Refund FAQ for workaway.info

**No.** Workaway says it never takes money automatically for your membership. You'll get two reminder emails as the year ends, and if you don't renew you won't be charged again. Your membership just expires after 12 months. Reviewers also say that if it lapses, your account data is kept, so you can rejoin later without starting from scratch. You don't need to cancel anything to avoid a renewal charge.

Cancelling rather than claiming money back? See the workaway.info cancellation guide. For every other support channel, the workaway.info contact guide.