3-day or 7-day trial? How to decide
Trial length changes who starts and who stays. A simple way to pick the right length for your app, and the one number to watch.
Most founders pick a trial length by copying the app they admire most. That’s a reasonable start, but it skips the one question that matters: how long does it take a new user to feel the value of your app?
Trial length is not a pricing decision. It’s a product decision that shows up on the paywall.
Start from the first win
Every subscription app has a moment where a new user thinks “this works for me.” For a meditation app it might be the third session. For a budgeting app it might be the first month-end summary. For a photo editor it might be the first export.
Write yours down, then measure how many days most new users take to reach it.
- If most users reach it on day one or two, a short trial works. A long trial only gives them more time to forget you.
- If it takes most of a week, a 3-day trial asks people to pay before they’ve felt anything.
- If it takes longer than a week, consider a free tier or a usage-based trial instead of a time-based one.
The right trial ends a day or two after most people reach their first win. Not before it, and not long after it.
Watch the right number
Founders often compare trial lengths by trial starts. That’s the wrong number. A shorter trial usually gets fewer starts, and a longer trial usually gets more. Neither tells you much.
Compare paying users per 100 paywall views, measured once the longest trial in the test has ended. That single number includes both effects: how many people start, and how many of them stay.
Run it as a clean test
- Split new users only. Don’t change the trial for people already in one.
- Keep the price, the paywall design and the copy the same in both groups.
- Wait until both groups have finished their trial and the first renewal has had a few days to settle.
- Decide on paying users per 100 paywall views. Then check refunds and first-month cancellations before you call it.
A note on reminders
Whatever length you choose, send a reminder before the trial converts. It costs a few conversions in the short term and saves you refund requests, angry reviews and chargebacks. On iOS and Android, users who feel tricked tend to cancel, and then tell others.
Try this week: write down your app’s first win and how many days it takes. If your trial ends before that day, you already know your next test.