What is the USAT Media charge on my credit card?
Facts checked
Short answer
USAT MEDIA CO is almost certainly USA TODAY Media Corp., the company formerly called Gannett Media Corp. It bills subscriptions for USA TODAY and the local papers in the USA TODAY Network, so the charge is usually a digital or print subscription that renewed after an introductory rate ended. To cancel, call 1-800-872-0001.
How it shows up on your statement
- USAT MEDIA CO-426-0491VA
- PRE-AUTH USAT MEDIA CO-426-0491VA
- GAN SUBSCRIPTION 888-426-0491
- GAN*GANNETT MEDIACIRC 888-426-0491 IN
Banks trim and reformat these, so yours may be shorter or carry a different city or number. Why charge names look strange.
Who is USAT Media?
Gannett, the newspaper group, renamed itself USA TODAY Co., Inc. on November 18, 2025. Its annual report for 2025 says a subsidiary called USA TODAY Media Corp. was "formerly Gannett Media Corp." That subsidiary runs the newspaper and subscription business, and USAT MEDIA CO is its name squeezed onto a card statement.
Two details on the charge point the same way. The full line logged by charge lookup sites, USAT MEDIA CO-426-0491VA, carries the same 426-0491 fragment as older Gannett charges such as GAN SUBSCRIPTION 888-426-0491, and VA matches the company's base in McLean, Virginia. USA TODAY doesn't publish its statement name, so this is a strong match rather than an official one. Searches for "usat media" jumped in early 2026, a few months after the rename, which fits.
It isn't only USA TODAY. Local papers in the USA TODAY Network bill under the corporate name too, so a subscription to your hometown daily can arrive as USAT rather than under the paper's title. MediaNews Group papers, such as The Denver Post, belong to a different company and don't bill this way.
Why is USAT Media on my card statement?
It's nearly always a subscription renewing. USA TODAY's terms say you authorize it to charge your card "on a recurring basis at the introductory and other rates indicated, subject to future price increases" when a term ends.
- An introductory offer ran out. A cheap trial rolls into the regular rate on its own.
- Monthly means every four weeks. The terms define a monthly term as 4 weeks, so you pay 13 times a year and one month gets two charges.
- The charge came early. On automatic payment, the card is charged up to 14 days before the current term ends.
- A print subscription on vacation hold. The terms say you keep paying the full rate unless you cancel.
- A local paper you subscribed to years ago, now billed under the new corporate name.
- Someone in the household signed up for the paper, the eNewspaper or the USA TODAY Crossword.
How to cancel USAT Media, and whether you get a refund
USA TODAY's terms say you can cancel at any time by contacting customer service, and the cancellation takes effect at the end of the period you've already paid for.
- Call 1-800-872-0001, Monday to Friday, 8am to 7pm. The terms don't name a time zone.
- Or start at help.usatoday.com, which links to your account, payment history and card details at account.usatoday.com.
- Cancel before the renewal date. The terms say you must cancel before the subscription renews to avoid the next charge.
- For a local paper, use that paper's own help page. Each one has its own subscription terms.
Don't count on getting money back for the current period. The terms say the company "does not provide credits, refunds, or prorated billing for any subscription cancelled mid-period", although it can make exceptions. New York residents who cancel within 14 days of a price increase get a prorated refund for the unused time. Local papers can differ: Gannett's standard terms refund a print balance over $10.00, but not the rest of a month on digital-only plans.
What if you never subscribed to USA TODAY?
Newspaper charges are easy to lose track of. Check these first.
- Search your email, spam included, for usatoday.com and the name of any local paper you've read online, even years ago.
- Try signing in at account.usatoday.com with each email address you use, then check payment history.
- Ask the household. A parent, partner or teenager may have signed up for the paper, the eNewspaper or the Crossword.
- Think about $1 trials and bundles. They convert to the full price automatically.
- Call 1-800-872-0001 with the date, the amount and the last four digits of the card, and ask them to find the account, cancel it and refund the charge.
Use the number from USA TODAY's own site. We couldn't confirm that the 888-426-0491 number inside the old statement name still reaches billing.
Still don’t recognize it? Dispute it with your bank
- Open the transaction in your banking app. The detail view often shows a longer merchant name, a phone number or a city that the statement line cuts off.
- Ask the merchant for a refund first. It is usually faster than a dispute, and your card issuer may ask whether you tried.
- If the merchant says no, or you think your card number was stolen, call the number on the back of your card. Ask them to dispute the charge and, if it is fraud, to cancel the card and send a new one.
- For a credit card, follow up in writing. The FTC says your letter should reach the issuer within 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent to you, at the billing inquiries address rather than the payments address.
Federal law caps what you owe for unauthorized credit card charges at $50. Debit cards work differently: if only your card number was used, you owe nothing as long as you report it within 60 days after the statement is sent, but the money is gone from your account while the bank looks into it. See the FTC's guide to lost or stolen cards. A successful dispute becomes a chargeback against the merchant.
Questions people ask
- What is USAT Media Co on my credit card?
- Almost certainly USA TODAY Media Corp., formerly Gannett Media Corp., which bills subscriptions for USA TODAY and local USA TODAY Network newspapers. Gannett renamed itself USA TODAY Co. in November 2025.
- Is USAT Media the same as Gannett?
- In practice, yes. Gannett Co. became USA TODAY Co., Inc. on November 18, 2025, and its subscription business, Gannett Media Corp., became USA TODAY Media Corp. Charges that used to say GAN SUBSCRIPTION now carry the new name.
- How do I cancel a USA TODAY subscription?
- Call 1-800-872-0001 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 7pm) or start at help.usatoday.com. Cancel before the renewal date. You keep access until the end of the period you've paid for.
- Will USA TODAY refund me if I cancel?
- Usually not for the current period. Its terms rule out credits, refunds and prorated billing for mid-period cancellations, though the company can make exceptions. New York residents get a prorated refund if they cancel within 14 days of a price increase.
- Why was I charged twice in one month?
- Monthly subscriptions run in 4-week terms, so 13 charges a year means one calendar month gets two. Charges can also land up to 14 days before a term ends.
Related on this site
Other charges people look up
Sources
Read on . Policies and phone numbers change, so confirm on the company’s own site before you act.