Monetizing Your App

Building the app is one thing. Making money from it is another. Here are the most common monetization models and how to implement them.

Start here: Ad monetization with AdMob

The fastest way to earn revenue from your app. You start making money from the very first ad impression — no subscriptions, no paywalls, no payment integration required.

• Easiest to implement — Primio’s Prompt Library has ready-to-use AdMob templates
• Revenue from day one — every user who sees an ad generates revenue, even free users
• Works best for apps with frequent daily usage (more sessions = more impressions) — games are the prime example
• CPM (cost per 1,000 impressions) varies widely: banner ads earn a few dollars, while interstitial and rewarded video ads in games can reach $30–100 CPM in the US
• Combine banner ads (always visible) with interstitial ads (full-screen at natural break points) and rewarded video ads for the best results
• See AdMob & Monetization for the full setup guide

Prompt: “Add a banner ad at the bottom of the home screen and an interstitial ad that shows after every 3rd completed action, using AdMob”

Tip

AdMob is the recommended starting point for most apps. You can always add subscriptions later once you have users. Revenue from ads validates your app has an audience before you invest in more complex monetization.

Other monetization models

Paid download

Users pay once to download the app (e.g., $2.99).

• Set the price in App Store Connect or Google Play Console — no in-app code needed
• The store handles the transaction and takes a 30% commission
• Works best for utility apps with clear, immediate value
• Lower revenue ceiling than subscriptions, but no ongoing development pressure
• Hard to compete with free alternatives unless your app is clearly superior

Subscription

Users pay monthly or yearly for ongoing access. This is the most profitable model for most apps.

• Requires a paywall and subscription management
• Apple and Google take a commission (see note below)
• Provides predictable, recurring revenue
• Best for apps that deliver ongoing value (productivity, fitness, learning, content)

In-app purchases

Users buy specific features, content, or virtual items one time.

• Good for games (coins, power-ups), content apps (premium articles, templates), or feature unlocks
• Can be combined with other models
• Prompt: “Add a one-time in-app purchase that unlocks premium features for $4.99”

Paywall (freemium + subscription)

Users get basic features for free. A paywall blocks premium features behind a subscription.

• Most popular model for successful indie apps
• Lets users experience value before paying
• Combine a free trial with a subscription for the highest conversion

Note

Apple takes a 30% commission on the first year of subscriptions, then 15% from year two onward (Small Business Program — available to developers earning under $1M/year). Google Play takes 15% from day one for subscriptions.

Subscription pricing strategy

Research what similar apps charge in your category. Use App Discovery to find top apps in your niche, download them, and check their pricing.

Common pricing patterns:

• $4.99–9.99/month or $29.99–59.99/year — standard range for productivity and lifestyle apps
• Annual plans typically offer a 40–50% discount vs. monthly (e.g., $9.99/mo vs. $49.99/yr)
• Offer a free trial on the annual plan only — this drives annual conversions and dramatically improves retention

Pricing tips:

• Don’t underprice. A $0.99/month subscription signals low value and makes it nearly impossible to run profitable ads.
• Price based on the value you deliver, not your costs.
• You can always run a launch discount and raise the price later.

Implementing subscriptions with RevenueCat

RevenueCat is the industry standard for managing in-app subscriptions. It handles receipt validation, entitlement management, cross-platform support, and analytics — so you don’t have to build any of that yourself.

1. Create a free account at revenuecat.com. The free tier covers up to $2,500/month in revenue.

2. Set up your app in RevenueCat and get your API key. You’ll create a project and register your app’s bundle ID.

3. Create subscription products in the store dashboards

   This step is manual — Primio can’t do it for you because it happens in Apple’s and Google’s consoles.

   App Store Connect

   Go to your app → Subscriptions → click + next to “Subscription Groups.”

   • Create a subscription group (e.g., “Premium”) — groups related plans together so users can upgrade/downgrade
   • Add a subscription for each plan (e.g., “Monthly Premium,” “Yearly Premium”)
   • Set the product ID — use a clear naming convention like com.yourapp.premium.monthly. This ID must match what you configure in RevenueCat.
   • Set pricing — Apple provides pricing tiers. Select the tier closest to your target price.
   • Add a free trial if desired (e.g., 7-day trial on the yearly plan)
   • Status must be “Ready to Submit” — newly created products start in draft. Fill in all required fields (display name, description) and save.

   For one-time purchases: go to In-App Purchases → click + to add consumable or non-consumable products.

   Google Play Console

   Go to your app → Monetize → Subscriptions → Create subscription.

   • Set the product ID — use the same convention as Apple (e.g., com.yourapp.premium.monthly). Must match RevenueCat.
   • Create a base plan — set the billing period (monthly, yearly) and price
   • Add offers — introductory pricing, free trials, or discounts for new subscribers
   • Activate the product — products start inactive. You must activate them before they work.

   For one-time purchases: go to Monetize → In-app products → Create product.

   Caution

   Google Play requires you to upload at least one AAB to a testing track before in-app purchases can be tested. You can’t test purchases in a debug build that hasn’t been uploaded to Play Console.

   Caution

   The product IDs you create in the stores must exactly match the IDs you configure in RevenueCat. Case matters. A mismatch means purchases silently fail.

4. Ask Primio to integrate RevenueCat:

   “Integrate RevenueCat for subscription management using API key [your-key]. Add a monthly plan at $9.99 and a yearly plan at $49.99. Gate premium features behind an active subscription entitlement.”

5. Add a paywall screen — see the section below.

6. Test purchases using sandbox accounts (Apple) or test tracks (Google) before going live.

Building an effective paywall

The paywall is where free users convert to paying customers. Its design directly impacts your revenue.

Before the paywall — build value first

Don’t show the paywall immediately after install. Let users experience the app first.

• Show 2–3 onboarding screens highlighting what the app does
• Let users complete one core action (create a workout, log a meal, write a note)
• Ask a personalization question (“What’s your main goal?”) — this increases psychological investment
• The more time users invest before hitting the paywall, the more likely they are to subscribe

The paywall itself

Show monthly and yearly options side by side. Make the annual plan visually prominent.

Key elements:

• Plan comparison — Monthly and yearly prices with the savings highlighted (“Save 50%”)
• Free trial button — “Start 7-day free trial” as the primary call to action
• Feature list — 3–5 key premium features, each as a short bullet
• Restore Purchases link — Required by Apple. Usually a small text link at the bottom.
• Close button — Don’t trap users. Let them dismiss the paywall and continue with the free tier.

Example prompt:

“Add an onboarding flow with 3 screens: feature highlights with illustrations, a personalization question asking ‘What’s your main goal?’ with 4 options, and a paywall screen. The paywall shows a 7-day free trial on the yearly plan ($49.99/year, labeled ‘$4.17/month’) and a monthly option ($9.99/month) without a trial. Highlight the annual savings. Include a ‘Restore Purchases’ link and a close button.”

Free trials

• 3-day or 7-day trials are most common
• Apple and Google handle trial management automatically — users aren’t charged until the trial ends
• Users must enter payment info to start a trial (store requirement)
• Attach trials to annual plans to maximize long-term retention
• Short trials (3 days) create urgency; longer trials (7 days) let users form habits

Tip

Study the top apps in your category. Download 5–10 of them, go through their onboarding, and screenshot their paywalls. Note what they charge, how they present options, and when the paywall appears. Spend 1–2 hours on this research — it directly impacts your revenue.

Ads vs. subscriptions

Choosing between ads and subscriptions depends on your app’s usage pattern:

Factor	Ads work better	Subscriptions work better
Session frequency	Many short sessions daily	Fewer, longer sessions
User intent	Casual browsing	Goal-oriented usage
Content type	Entertainment, social	Productivity, tools, learning
Revenue ceiling	Limited by impressions	Scales with user base
User experience	Interrupts the experience	Premium, ad-free experience

Many successful apps combine both: free tier with ads, paid tier without ads and with premium features.

Tracking revenue

Once your subscriptions are live, track these metrics:

• Trial-to-paid conversion rate — What percentage of trial users become paying subscribers. Aim for 30%+ on annual plans.
• Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) — Your predictable monthly income.
• Churn rate — What percentage of subscribers cancel each month. Under 5% monthly is healthy.
• Lifetime Value (LTV) — How much a single user is worth over their entire subscription period.

RevenueCat’s dashboard provides all of these out of the box.

Next steps

AdMob Setup

Integrate ads with AdMob for ad-based monetization.

App Store Optimization

Optimize your listing to drive more downloads — and more potential subscribers.