A charge labeled “Google WM Max LLC” on your bank or credit card statement is a recurring subscription payment for the Max streaming service (formerly HBO Max), billed through Google Play rather than by Max directly. The amount typically falls between $10.99 and $22.99 per month, depending on the plan. If nobody in your household remembers signing up, the usual explanation is that someone subscribed through an Android device tied to a Google account you may not check often.
What the Descriptor Actually Means
“Google” at the front tells you the money is moving through Google Play’s billing system. “WM” is Warner Media, the parent company behind the content. “Max” is the service itself, rebranded from HBO Max in 2023.1Google Help. What is *wm max LLC – Google Play Community
The practical consequence: because Google is the merchant of record, you cannot cancel or change this subscription from inside the Max app or website. Any billing change has to go through Google Play. Trying to cancel on Max’s end while Google handles the payment is one of the most common reasons people believe they’ve canceled and keep getting charged.
Which Plan the Amount Points To
Max sells three tiers. Match the number on your statement to figure out which is running:
- Basic With Ads at $10.99/month: Full HD on up to two devices, with commercials and no offline downloads.
- Standard at $18.49/month: Ad-free, 30 offline downloads, two simultaneous streams, and live sports including NBA, NHL, and MLB games.
- Premium at $22.99/month: Everything in Standard plus 4K Ultra HD, Dolby Atmos, four simultaneous streams, and 100 offline downloads.
Annual plans are also available at roughly a 16% discount, which shows up as one larger charge instead of a monthly one. If your amount doesn’t line up with any plan, sales tax on digital subscriptions in your state or city may be added on top.
Finding the Google Account Being Billed
The hardest part in most households is identifying which Google account holds the subscription. If several Gmail addresses share a phone, or family members use each other’s devices, the subscription could sit under any of them, and each account has to be checked on its own.
On an Android device, open the Play Store, tap your profile icon in the top right, and choose Payments & subscriptions. The Subscriptions tab lists every active recurring charge on that account. If Max isn’t there, sign out, sign in with the next Google account, and look again.2Google Play Help. Cancel, Pause, or Change a Subscription on Google Play
From a browser, go to payments.google.com and click Subscriptions & services. Digital receipts from googleplay-noreply@google.com land in the inbox of whichever account is being billed, so searching your email for those receipts is another reliable way to find the right account. Cross-reference the date and dollar amount against your bank statement.3Google Pay Help. Find Your Google Purchase History – Google Pay Help
Canceling the Subscription
Once you’re inside the right account, the cancellation takes about a minute. On Android, open the Play Store, tap your profile, go to Payments & subscriptions, then Subscriptions. Choose the Max subscription and tap Cancel subscription. Google asks a reason for leaving; pick one and confirm.2Google Play Help. Cancel, Pause, or Change a Subscription on Google Play
From a computer, the direct link is play.google.com/store/account/subscriptions. Sign in with the correct Google account, find Max, and click Cancel subscription.
You keep access to Max through the end of the billing period you’ve already paid for. If your last charge ran on the 15th, you can watch until the next 15th; you simply won’t be charged again.2Google Play Help. Cancel, Pause, or Change a Subscription on Google Play
One boundary worth checking: if Max doesn’t appear under any of your Google accounts, the charge on your statement may not actually run through Google Play at all. Confirm the descriptor starts with “GOOGLE.” If it doesn’t, the payment relationship is directly with Max, and cancellation happens through Max’s own website instead.4Google Help. I Wanna Cancel a Max Subscription but It Wont Show Up on My Google Play Subscriptions
Getting a Refund on a Recent Charge
Cancellation stops the next charge but does not reverse the last one. For that, submit a separate refund request at play.google.com/store/account/orderhistory. Find the Max charge, click Request a refund, and pick a reason from the dropdown, such as an accidental purchase or a charge you didn’t recognize. A specific explanation improves your chances. Google usually decides within one to four days.5Google Help. Request a Refund on Google Play
If approved, credit and debit card refunds arrive within three to five business days, though the card issuer can stretch that to ten. Refunds to a Google Play balance post within one business day.6Google Help. Refund Timelines for Google Play Purchases Each charge can only be submitted once; filing multiple requests for the same transaction won’t move it faster.5Google Help. Request a Refund on Google Play
If You Never Signed Up
Treat an unfamiliar Max charge as potentially unauthorized only after checking the ordinary explanations. Google recommends this sequence: confirm the statement descriptor begins with “GOOGLE,” compare the charge against your purchase history at payments.google.com under Subscriptions & services, and ask whether a family member, child, or anyone who borrows your devices could have subscribed.7Google payments center help. Report Unauthorized Charges
If nothing explains it, report the charge through Google’s unauthorized transactions form at payments.google.com/payments/unauthorizedtransactions. If the descriptor doesn’t start with “GOOGLE,” skip Google and go straight to your bank or card issuer.7Google payments center help. Report Unauthorized Charges
Lock Down the Google Account
An unauthorized subscription is a signal that someone else may have access to the account. Change the password. Then open myaccount.google.com/device-activity to see every device that has signed in over the last 28 days and remove anything unfamiliar. Review apps connected to your account and revoke access for anything you don’t recognize. Google’s Security Checkup at myaccount.google.com/security-checkup walks through these steps in one place.
Chargebacks Are a Last Resort
If Google denies your refund and you believe the charge is fraudulent, you can dispute it with your card issuer. Filing a chargeback against Google, however, can result in your Google account being suspended, which affects Gmail, Drive, and every other service tied to that account, not just Play. Work through Google’s own dispute process first.
Federal Protections Behind You
If the charge hit a debit card, the Electronic Fund Transfer Act caps your liability for unauthorized use. Report it within two business days of discovering it and your maximum exposure is $50. Report between two and 60 days after the statement, and liability can rise to $500. After 60 days, you can be responsible for the full amount of unauthorized transfers that occurred once that window closed.8Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1005.6 – Liability of Consumer for Unauthorized Transfers
Credit card charges get the stronger protections of the Fair Credit Billing Act. You have 60 days from the date the statement containing the error was mailed to send a written billing error notice to your card issuer. The issuer must acknowledge the dispute within 30 days and resolve it within two billing cycles.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1666 – Correction of Billing Errors
The FTC’s click-to-cancel rule also requires subscription sellers to make canceling as easy as signing up and to get clear consent before starting a recurring charge, and it applies broadly to recurring-charge programs regardless of how you enrolled.10Federal Trade Commission. Federal Trade Commission Announces Final Click-to-Cancel Rule Making It Easier for Consumers to End Recurring Subscriptions and Memberships