Glossary · Paywalls and growth
What is a hard paywall, and how is it different from a soft paywall?
Hard paywall (and soft paywall)
A hard paywall blocks the app until the customer starts a trial or pays. A soft paywall, also called freemium, lets people use a free version first and shows the offer later or at a limit. RevenueCat's 2026 data finds that hard paywalls convert about five times more users than freemium by day 35.
RevenueCat reports a median day-35 trial-to-paid conversion of 10.7% for hard-paywall apps against 2.1% for freemium apps, and revenue per install at day 60 of $3.09 against $0.38. One-year retention of yearly subscribers is almost the same, 27% for hard paywalls and 28% for freemium. Freemium apps keep converting into week six and beyond, so a freemium app is a slower path, not a failed one.
The choice is a product decision, not only a conversion one. A hard paywall fits an app whose value is clear in the first minute. A soft paywall fits an app where people need to feel the value before they pay, or where a free tier brings in users and word of mouth. Whichever you pick, App Store rules still apply: say the price and terms clearly, provide a restore mechanism, and do not trick people into a subscription.
RevenueDot measures both approaches with the Paywall Conversion Rate, Paywall Abandonment Rate and Paywall LTV charts, builds paywalls from a gallery of templates, and tests two offerings against each other with experiments.
Sources: RevenueCat: Subscription app trends and benchmarks 2026 · Apple: App Review Guidelines
FAQ
Hard paywall (and soft paywall): questions people ask
What is a soft paywall?
A paywall that lets people use a free version first. It appears later, or when the customer reaches a limit. It is the same idea as freemium.
Do hard paywalls retain worse?
RevenueCat's data shows a negligible gap in one-year retention of yearly subscribers: 27% for hard paywalls and 28% for freemium.
Can App Review reject a paywall?
Yes if it misleads people. Apple's guidelines remove apps that trick users into a subscription under false pretenses, and expect a restore mechanism for restorable purchases.
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