Istock Arvostelua 86

Fraudulent bunch of crooks scamming people by opting them into auto renewing their monthly subscription without even their awareness or consent.
PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY!!’
CUSTOMER SERVICE IS 0!
THEY ONLY CARE ABOUT RIPPING PEOPLE OFF THEIR MONEY NOT THE CUSTOMERS!

Pas d'annulation possible pendant le mois d'essai.

Lorsque le SAV m'annule enfin mon abonnement, je ne peux même pas profiter du dernier mois payé, car l'abonnement prend fin immédiatement... Première fois que je vois un traitement pareil.

Je me rends compte ici que je ne suis pas le seul...

DECEPTIVE SALES STAFF:
I paid for a subscription on 30th October. And asked whether I'd be able to download 50 more items as soon as the new month of November started. This is what I was told.

"Sonia: Yes, with a monthly subscription, you should be able to download another set of 50 items once the new month starts."

This wasn't at all the case.

So either I have to buy more credits to have access to more content or I have to wait until the 30th November.

Wow Getty...When so many businesses can get GREAT Trustpilot scores are you happy with such a bad score??

I had a truly frustrating experience with iStock. I was charged $74.20 for a subscription linked to an account I never created. It’s alarming how they insinuated that I was responsible for this account, accusing me of “not being a victim.” This accusation was not only unprofessional but completely false. My colleagues and I often collaborate on small projects/ expenses using shared PayPal accounts, and while someone may have inadvertently created an account under my name, I did not authorize it.

I explained that I never received any reminder emails regarding this charge and was shocked to find a bill for such a significant amount—especially since i was told nothing was used once the "free trial" period ended and it was unclear what if anything was used at all. All three customer service agents I spoke to outright refused to help, despite my thorough explanations and immediate response to this huge bill. Their greed, outright refusal to hear me out let alone insistence on billing me shows their lack of professionalism and profit over people. Their poor customer service is notorious, and I believe others should be aware of these issues and avoid using their service if possible. If I had made this account, I would have canceled it well in advance, as I’m hyper-vigilant about expenses and subscriptions. This entire experience has left me deeply disappointed.

If I could leave a "zero," I would definitely choose that option. They charged me for a month and did not even let me use the credits I already paid for after I canceled the recurring subscription. I paid for this month already and am entitled to use up the credits you already charged me for. What a scam.

We use iStock for our travel agency website and are quite happy with the images available. We're on the iStock Essentials annual plan which gives us 25 image downloads a month.

glemte at cancle inden trial var ovre. betalte 500 kr og spurgte om refund. det kunne de ikke, og så canclede du også bare mit abbonement efter jeg havde betalt FOR ET ÅR! og de ville ikke give det tilbage, altså nu havde jeg betalte, så ville jeg også have adgang

I thought I am in a monthly subscription trial but got the surprise to be committed on annual subscription. .
The credits do not add up from one month to another.. so practically if I do not use all the credits, I lose them. Since I am not a professional who needs pictures every day, I think I have been enrolled automatically in a useless subscription.

This was not clearly presented and the trial was misleading - I thought I'd be enrolled in a monthly subscription which I could cancel any time. When I asked for cancelation they've asked for 70 EUR.

Support was rather slow. When I sent them my second cancelation request it was actually ignored.

As many others.. I was trapped in a subscription for 1 year for not cancelling, even though I think I cancelled because it wasn't clear in the webpage.
I talked with them but the customer service answered that there wasn't any solution, so I have to paid every month more than 30€ during a year.

Besides, the content is not good and if you want to download videos, you have to pay even more...

Avoid this company.

Annulation d'abonnement non effective !

J'ai annulé mon abonnement en ligne mais celui-ci n'a pas été pris en compte, je me suis donc retrouvée avec un prélevement mensuel de 70$ suite au mois de ma période d'essai. N'ayant eu aucune preuve de la prise en compte de mon annulation je n'ai pas pu recevoir le remboursement de ces 70$ et le service client n'a rien voulu savoir alors qu'ils ont bien remarqué que je ne me suis pas reconnectée après ma seule connection lors de ma souscription et annulation.

EL PEOR SERVICIO QUE HE VISTO, LES PIDES QUE TE CAMBIEN LOS DATOS DE LA FACTURA Y NO SE PUEDE. INCLUSO LA DEL MES EN VIGOR, TE DICEN QUE YA HA SALIDO.
NO MERECE LA PENA NO TIENEN CASI FOTOS, SON TODAS IGUALES, MUY CARO Y PESIMO SERVI IO AL CLIENTE.
HAY ALTERNATIVAS MUCHO MEJORES
APARTE QUERIA ESTAR UN MES Y ME VI ENGANCHADO UN AÑO

After the trial period, didn't cancel my subscription in time, didn't download anything. I wrote to support with a request to cancel the subscription and get my money back.

The reply was short, when you feel that they are not trying to help you. Canceled the subscription and are not going to refund anything.

Then I find out that after canceling I have no access to downloads. For the month I've already paid for. Convenient, and the money was charged and the service was not provided.

Pathetic customer service, pathetic attitude.

Bare lad vær - find de billeder du skal bruge gratis på Unsplash.com :-)

Jeg købte en måneds gratis abbonnement fordi jeg skulle bruge ét billede. Jeg endte med at betale over 1000 kr for det ene billede, da der de følgende måneder blev trukket penge uden at jeg kunne finde en 'cancel subscription' knap på deres hjemmeside.

Efter flere support mails finder jeg ud af, at jeg får ingenting refunderet, jeg kan ikke downloade flere billeder resten af måneden (selvom vi er i starten af mdr og jeg lige har betalt endnu 500+ kr).
Kæmpe customer-fail lige der.

Got ripped off... free trials are not free if you can't cancel, and forced into an annual contract you can't get a refund on, even if you don't use their service at ALL!

Just use AI to generate the image you want, your wallet will thank you!

iStock's subscription service is a blatant rip-off that promises access to a vast library of images but fails miserably in delivering on its commitments. As a paying customer, the most basic expectation is the ability to download the content you've paid for. However, iStock shamelessly restricts access to these images, leaving subscribers high and dry when they need to use the content they've already invested in. This predatory practice not only deceives customers but also undermines trust in the entire subscription model, which is supposed to provide convenience and value, not frustration and disappointment.

Furthermore, iStock's customer support, or lack thereof, exacerbates the issue. When subscribers encounter problems accessing their paid-for content, they're often met with automated responses, long delays, or outright indifference from support staff. This dismissive attitude towards customer concerns highlights a company more interested in profit margins than customer satisfaction. It's utterly unacceptable for a platform to take payment under the guise of convenience, only to withhold the very product that customers have rightfully purchased.

In conclusion, iStock's subscription service is a textbook example of corporate exploitation. By restricting downloads of paid content and failing to provide adequate customer support, they demonstrate a disregard for the rights and needs of their subscribers. Potential customers should beware: subscribing to iStock means risking your money for unreliable access to content you may never actually get to use. Such unethical business practices should be exposed and condemned to protect consumers from falling victim to this deceptive scheme.

Started a free trial and downloaded two images. Disabled auto renew on their website immediately.

A month later they charged me $97. I emailed them and asked it to be cancelled and refunded. They cancelled my subscription, disabling my access to the service, but still refused to refund the money. There aren't many countries where this would be legal.

Reversed the charge via PayPal and will be reporting them to the Canadian Anti-Fraud centre. Avoid this company.

Purchased a set amount of pictures for my website by buying credits that apparently only last for 30 days. After you have to buy a subscription or pay again to download the same pictures. Do not use this company its an insult and complete rip off to genuine businesses that need an honest service.

They have some great images, BUT I plan to never buy from them again.

Since October 16, 2021, I have paid $244.50 for credits with iStock. I've downloaded 8 credits-worth, 6 total images, in that time. I just discovered that NO credits are available now! I just found on their website this:
"How long are my credits valid for?
Credits never expire as long as you sign into your account at least once a year."

So assuming I hadn't SIGNED into the account since 12-2-22, it's legal for them to glom onto the money I've already paid.

Mon mari a eu 3 retraits de 77€ sur sa carte bancaire de la part de istock.com. Pourtant il ne s'est jamais inscrit sur ce site qui vend des images. Il n'a RIEN TELECHARGE. Il ignorait qu'il avait créé un compte sur ce site. Au téléphone, une dame me dit que c'est un abonnement dont le premier mois est gratuit. Elle connait le nom de mon mari et son adresse mail. Comme je commence à me fâcher et que je préviens que je vais la signaler comme une arnaque, elle me dit qu'elle va annuler l'abonnement et qu'elle va voir pour le remboursement. C'est possible puisqu'il n'a rien téléchargé. Et effectivement, 2 jours après j'ai été remboursée de 3 fois 77€.

I signed up to the 'free trial' and found the product to be not helpful for my work (photos of construction sites showing lots of poor safety features that I could not use in my context). I was not advised when they commenced billing me. Then, after 4 months, they sent an email advising how much more I would need to pay for the remainder of my subscription. When I queried why I hadn't received an email sooner, the customer service interaction was rude and dismissive - even though I didn't ask for a refund, just questioned why they hadn't sent a receipt prior to 4 months in. Extremely poor service all round. If I could give a zero star review I would.