Growth guides for indie iOS apps
Operator-to-operator playbooks on conversion, retention, ASO, pricing, and churn — grounded in real subscription-app data, no hype.
Free Trial Length for Subscription Apps
For most iOS subscription apps, a 7-day trial is the safest default — long enough to show value, short enough to stay in a user's attention window. Apps with daily-habit loops can succeed with 3 days; apps requiring real behavior change (fitness, language learning) typically convert better on 14 days. Match length to your core value moment, not convenience.
Read the guideHow to Increase Trial-to-Paid Conversion
To increase iOS trial-to-paid conversion: extend your trial to at least 17 days, deliver your core value within the first session, gate one high-value feature behind the paid plan, send a timed cancellation-risk message, and fix billing failures. Median conversion for longer trials is 42.5% vs 25.5% for trials under 4 days, per RevenueCat's State of Subscription Apps 2026.
Read the guideAverage Revenue Per User: iOS Subscription App
Average revenue per user (ARPU) for iOS subscription apps depends heavily on category, paywall model, and geography. Per RevenueCat's State of Subscription Apps 2026, median revenue per install reaches $0.34 by day 60 overall, but ranges from $0.11 in India/Southeast Asia to $0.55 in North America — and hard-paywall apps generate roughly 8x more than freemium.
Read the guideHard Paywall vs Soft Paywall: A Decision Framework
A hard paywall requires payment before any core feature use; a soft paywall offers a free tier or trial first. Hard paywalls win for high-ARPU, clearly differentiated apps. Soft paywalls win when your value needs to be experienced before users commit. Match the model to your app's value delivery speed, not industry convention.
Read the guide