Since most smartphone plans have unlimited data and long distance (for select countries), the bills are often the same every month. In that case, you don’t have to worry about cancelling auto payments. However, if you have any sort of cap on data or calls, you’ll want to turn off autopay so that you don’t miss any overages that end up being more expensive than simply signing up for a better plan. Of course, you’ll still need to pay the amount when it’s due, but seeing the outstanding balance in your credit card account will act as a reminder to review any unexpected charges.

Most people have water, gas, and electric bills that can fluctuate wildly every month. If you don’t see what you’re paying, however, you might miss spikes in consumption that could be related to repairs, like a leaky faucet, or a running toilet. Plus, by monitoring your bills you’ll be more likely to conserve energy costs by adjusting some of your habits, which isn’t all that hard to do (read this Lifehacker post for more on cutting down energy costs).

A 2019 survey found that 63% of all gym memberships go completely unused, which means that our actual commitment to going to the gym exceeds our best intentions. For that reason, a “set it and forget” approach to gym memberships might just be more of a “forgot about it” proposition that costs you money. Plus, gyms don’t have a great reputation for always cancelling credit card charges after you cancel your membership, so you’ll want to be vigilant about unexpected charges.

It’s good to have a constant reminder about how much you pay for TV, as your viewing habits can change, which would make some of those premium channel packages expendable (for example, I only get the sports package during the fall and winter). Plus, you’ll want to keep tabs on your bill if you or someone you live with is watching a lot of movies on demand.

According to one recent study, consumers pay for an average of four streaming services like Netflix or Disney+ at any one time, and they switch often. The risk here is that it’s easy to forget what you have, as the individual monthly charges are relatively small and easy to overlook unless you scrutinize your credit card bill every month.

Annual subscriptions—or any subscription that renews at intervals that aren’t monthly—shouldn’t be set up for auto-pay. As someone who unwittingly auto-renewed an annual subscription recently, I can say that tracking these irregular expenses is already hard enough, even if you look at your credit card statement every month.

With insurance bills, if there’s an issue with your payment information, like an expired credit card, or if your policy is cancelled or changed, it’s very easy to overlook missed payments when you’re using autopay. Unlike other services, one missed insurance payment can mean that your policy will be cancelled immediately (sure, you’d get a warning via email or a mailed letter, but those can be missed, too). Plus, some insurance bills are charged at irregular intervals, like every six months, so they’re not easy to track compared to monthly expenses.