Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/23/2025

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Hello.I have been an Academia.edu Premium Member since 2018. My Credit Card has just been charged for the amount of 498 $ for a one-year subscription (see enclosed receipt).After checking my previous mails, I could not find any correspondence sent by your services informing me about this considerable raise in the annual price which corresponds to a duplication in comparison to the previous amount of 249 Dollars you were used to charge.I unfortunately do not agree with such an unexpected increase and would kindly ask you to reimburse the amount charged on my ***** case you insist on the fact that I have been informed about the increase, please let me have a copy of the correspondence addressed to me. Thanking you in advance for your prompt help, I remain With regards.****** ******** Receipt:Thank you for your purchase of Academia Premium Purchaser: ****** ******** Purchase Date: June 22, 2025 Paid: $498.00 USD Term: Annual Receipt Number: #EC4D521-0008

  Business Response

  Date: 06/23/2025

  
  Thank you for continued followed-up on this issue. After discussing this with our team, we've decided to grant you a one-time exception to our refund policy. However, moving forward we will not be able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low cost trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for you on this subscription or any additional subscriptions.
  
  Depending on your bank, you will see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  
  With your free account, you'll retain access to all our Academia free features, such as uploading and downloading single papers, messaging, basic analytics, title search, and your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/18/2025

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I was unexpectedly charged $318 for an annual subscription. That's more than triple the original subscription charge. I had no way of knowing this price increase was coming, because my institutional email account has been suspended while I'm on medical leave. I was planning to ****** my subscription in any case. I reached out to the company on June 10, as soon as I saw the charge on my credit card, but I've heard nothing since they sent their auto reply.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/18/2025

  
   
  Thank you for continued followed-up on this issue. After
  discussing this with our team, we've decided to grant you a one-time
  exception to our refund policy. However, moving forward we will not be
  able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low cost
  trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for you
  on this subscription or any additional subscriptions.
  
  Depending on your bank, you will see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  
  With
  your free account, you'll retain access to all our Academia free
  features, such as uploading and downloading single papers, messaging,
  basic analytics, title search, and your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 06/19/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** ***

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/12/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I feel taken advantage of by a seemingly benign organization that is relying on a company policy that favors them and overlooks my wishes. Last year, I had wanted to cancel my subscription, but I agreed to continue with it at a discount for the current year. That agreement to continue the current year and not renew was not honored. Additionally, I received an inaccurate email stating that the auto-renewal would not be canceled, despite it being listed as canceled on their website. I require assistance in obtaining a refund and canceling this account, as requested last year.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/12/2025

  Generally speaking, we are not able to process refunds for renewal
  payments - our 30 day refund policy is only for trial payments and first
  year subscription payments.
  
  However, after discussing this with
  our team, we've decided to grant you a one-time exception to our policy
  and process a refund for this payment. Depending on your bank, you will
  see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  Thanks for trying it out.
  
  With your free account, you'll retain
  access to all our Academia free features, such as uploading and
  downloading single papers, messaging, basic analytics, title search, and
  your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/11/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I am disputing a surprise auto-renew charge of ****** GBP ($340 USD) which appeared on my card on May 27, 2025. Academia.edu refused to cancel my subscription for the current year and to refund this unexpected and exorbitant charge, though I contacted them one day after the charge appeared. I would like a refund as they have radically increased their fees without ANY clear and conspicuous notification well in advance of renewal. To illustrate: the annual auto-renew charge on my account increased from 59 to ****** (or 425%) in three years! In refusing to refund, Academia.edu is in violation of both ** and California law. In the **, its behavior violates the **************** Competition, and Consumers Act (DMCCA), which protects consumers from subscription traps by guaranteeing their right to cancel a subscription renewal within 14 days. In **********, where Academia.edu is located, it violates the Automatic Renewal Law (ARL), which mandates that subscription services must, in a clear and conspicuous manner, notify customers before their subscription automatically renews, providing details about the renewal terms, cost, and how to cancel the service. Academia.edu has not complied with any of these legal obligations.I am not alone. Academia.edu has a very negative rating on fair practice sites such as ************** (one star out of five). See *******************************************************. Evidently, a great number of customers feel that ********************** is engaged in unfair and unethical business practices. I should have been notified -- clearly and well in advance -- of a radical increase in the cost of an annual subscription. I would like help to receive a refund from this unscrupulous company as soon as possible.I have submitted evidence of this disputed charge to my bank, including a billing receipt and billing history, proof of my cancellation request, and the company's refusal. Thank you for your assistance.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/11/2025

  After discussing this with our team, we've decided to grant you a
  one-time exception to our refund policy. However, moving forward we will
  not be able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low
  cost trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for
  you on this subscription or any additional subscriptions.
  
  Depending on your bank, you will see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  
  With
  your free account, you'll retain access to all our Academia free
  features, such as uploading and downloading single papers, messaging,
  basic analytics, title search, and your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 06/12/2025

   
  Complaint: 23455027

  Dear BBB and Academia.edu,

  I appreciate that Academia.edu has agreed to refund the charge disputed in my complaint -- although credit for this refund has not yet appeared on my account.

  But I do not understand the following language in the response received from Academia.edu:

  "However, moving forward we will not be able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low cost trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for you on this subscription or any additional subscriptions."

  Please note that I have NOT signed up for a 30-day trial and do not wish to be charged for one.  In addition, this language refusing subscription refunds is not in compliance with UK and CA consumer protection laws, as stated in my complaint.  

  Sincerely,

  **** *******

  Business Response

  Date: 06/13/2025

  Hi ****,

   

  Thanks for following up. Our records indicated you had an Academia Premium subscription which is why you were billed. You can log in with your ****************************************** email address and then go to your Premium settings (****************************************************************) to see your Premium history. We would not have billed you unless you had a subscription; there is no way we would have access to your payment information unless it was provided to us by the account holder. 

   

  Thank you for your feedback regarding our subscription. PLease let me know if we can help with anything else. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/11/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On 11th of May I signed up for a $1 trial month with Academia Edu. When I realized the site wasn't helpful, I went to my emails to cancel. But there was nothing, not in spam, promotions or social. So I figured I must not have signed up properly and forgot about ******* forward 30 days, I got charged $151.65 NZD. I emailed for a refund within 24 hours to be told a resounding no. Here's a few things:The initial email of confirmation that I had even signed up? Only shows up with a manual search, and only when I entered "academia support" which is why I never found it back in May.The cost of this subscription, is apparently all USD, but that is not mentioned anywhere during sign up, nor on the email I have eventually found. Misleading and unclear.They did not communicate at all with me, there was no email to say my trial is ending, a practice that every other subscription I've ever had does.I would have never intentionally signed up for something that would be charged as an annual subscription, this is also unclear. In ** there is a pretty standard fair trading act where you are able to get a refund for any purchase within a 14 day period from the purchase.Not sure what shady things Academia Edu did to the original email that it won't show up in my inbox. But this is poor, and shameful practice. I signed up for the $1 trial in the middle of doing assignments trying to find appropriate sources, I later went to my emails to cancel the subscription but there was none. I have provided screenshots of this, although granted I realize you could argue Ive edited this.I feel Academia Edu is blatantly misleading and corrupt in their practices. As an "academic" resource, I'm disappointed with how they're conducting themselves.Furthermore, I have offered to pay a one month subscription fee for the less than 24hours between getting charged and me cancelling my subscription and emailing. I have not yet been responded to.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/11/2025

  After discussing this with our team, we've decided to grant you a one-time exception to our refund policy. However, moving forward we will not be able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low cost trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for you on this subscription or any additional subscriptions.
  
  Depending on your bank, you will see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  
  With your free account, you'll retain access to all our Academia free features, such as uploading and downloading single papers, messaging, basic analytics, title search, and your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 06/11/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *** *****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/10/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  ***********************************. I decided to discontinue my premium subscription in May 2025 as it was of little value to me. Academia.edu later sent me an email offering account "reactivation" for $1 withot declaring that they would take any more money. I accepted te $1 offer and four weeks later on the 10th of June 2025 they took $185.90 from my bank account. I sent a polite complaint and they refused to refund. This is obviously a trick and may be considered a scam.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/11/2025

  
   Hi ****,
  
  
  Thank you for continued followed-up on this issue. After discussing this with our team, we've decided to grant you a one-time exception to our refund policy. However, moving forward we will not be able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low cost trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for you on this subscription or any additional subscriptions.
  
  Depending on your bank, you will see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  
  With your free account, you'll retain access to all our Academia free features, such as uploading and downloading single papers, messaging, basic analytics, title search, and your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/09/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  With only a few days notice in advance, and buried amongst other emails, the price for a premium subscription, nearly doubled in one year, was deducted from my bank account. I immediately contacted ******** and requested a refund, because I no longer wanted to make use of the premium subscription. They said this was not possible. I hope that Academia reconsiders and refunds the deducted payment in full. This would be best practice. To force someone to pay a very high price for a service that he or she does not want to use, for a whole year, is not best practice.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/10/2025

  
   
  Thank you for continued followed-up on this issue. After
  discussing this with our team, we've decided to grant you a one-time
  exception to our refund policy. However, moving forward we will not be
  able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low cost
  trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for you
  on this subscription or any additional subscriptions.
  
  Depending on your bank, you will see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  
  With
  your free account, you'll retain access to all our Academia free
  features, such as uploading and downloading single papers, messaging,
  basic analytics, title search, and your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 06/11/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. I hope that they will then truly refund the total amount as I requested.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ******* *******

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/09/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I am writing to formally request a refund for a charge of $159 made to my checking account on June 8, 2025, for an annual Academia Premium subscription.I initially signed up for a trial and was not adequately informed that an automatic renewal would occur, nor was I notified before the charge. When I checked my notification settings after the transaction, I noticed that all alert options were enabledexcept for the one related to renewal notifications. I never adjusted these settings myself, which leads me to believe they were intentionally configured to limit transparency around billing.I canceled the subscription through the website as soon as I noticed the charge. However, I received a response from Academia.edu support claiming the subscription was still active and that I needed to cancel it manually, despite having already done so. This creates a frustrating and misleading user ************* a student, this unexpected $159 charge has placed financial strain on me. The cancellation process lacks clarity, and the absence of renewal reminders is unacceptable for a subscription service.I am respectfully requesting a full refund due to the misleading auto-renewal process, the lack of clear communication, and the unintentional nature of the subscription renewal. I also encourage Academia.edu to improve its cancellation process and provide clearer notifications for upcoming charges

  Business Response

  Date: 06/10/2025

  Hi Chinyoungdaren,
  
  Thanks for getting in touch. Our records currently indicate this payment was refunded!
  
  In some cases, if you refund very close to your purchase date, your original payment will have never been processed and been removed from your card.
  
  If you still see the original charge and no refund, please contact your bank or payment processor.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/07/2025

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On 6/7/25, without sending any notification they intended to do so, academia.edu took $159.00 out of my bank account. I am on Social Security benefits of $14k/year, live in affordable housing, and am on food stamps and ********* My bank account and my budget cannot afford a random charge of $159.I contacted academia.edu and asked for an immediate refund. They refused. I want my money back. They have done this to hundreds of other people in the last six months. They never notify of the pending charge; they just take it and refuse to refund. This is not how an honorable business behaves.I want my money back.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/10/2025

  
  Thanks for getting in touch. Our records currently indicate this payment was refunded!
  
  In some cases, if you refund very close to your purchase date, your original payment will have never been processed and been removed from your card.
  
  If you still see the original charge and no refund, please contact your bank or payment processor.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/07/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I write as a pensioner who took out a premium subscription to Academia.edu 12 months ago. In retirement, I am writing a book and needed access to recent, relevant academic papers. My background is in **************** and Mental Health policy and strategy in the **. I have worked internationally.Their policy on rollover subscriptions, is in opposition to established good practice in the ** and **. ******** renewed my subscription without my authorisation. I had no need for any continuation of the subscription as I had all the relevant literature and would have cancelled if I had received due warning of renewal. I noticed in my bank account that ************* USD) had left my account on 3rd June 2025 credited to Academia. I contacted them immediately. I request a refund.Their reply:Unfortunately, we are not offering refunds for any Academia Premium payments at this time.Their policy is contrary to best practices in both the ** and ***** Government states, automatically renewing your customers contract or subscription without requiring you to take sufficient steps to inform them before doing so. Renewal requires two reminder notices must be given.The FTC's "click-to-cancel" rule (**), make it easy to cancel. This includes auto-renewals.Businesses must obtain clear consent from consumers before renewing subscriptions. I notified ******** Customer Support of these facts and requested a decision from a Senior Manager. I received a cursory response that failed to address unfair practice in relation to rollover subscriptions.Abby Shibiru, Customer Support, As we have covered, our refund policy currently indicates that no refunds can be made in this case.I submit my complaint to you in the hope that you can bring sufficient pressure to bear on this company to issue me with a refund of 82.80.Thank you for any help that you can offer in this matter.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/10/2025

  
   Hi *********,
  
  
  Thank you for continued followed-up on this issue. After discussing this with our team, we've decided to grant you a one-time exception to our refund policy. However, moving forward we will not be able to offer refunds on renewal payments after your 30-day low cost trial and we will not be able to process any additional refunds for you on this subscription or any additional subscriptions.
  
  Depending on your bank, you will see the refund show up anywhere between 5-10 business days from now.
  
  With your free account, you'll retain access to all our Academia free features, such as uploading and downloading single papers, messaging, basic analytics, title search, and your profile.
  
  Please let us know if we can help you out with anything else, and thanks for being a part of the *******************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 06/11/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ********* ********