Subscription LTV and payback calculator
Compare plans on what one install is worth over time, and see when each one pays back what you spend to get the install.
Weekly earns $0.25 more per install
Over 12 months, after store fees and refunds. Weekly pays back in 91 days. Yearly does not pay back its install cost within 12 months.
| Plan | Per subscriber | Per install | Return on ad spend | Payback |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly | $32.025.4 payments | $1.281 | 1.07x | 91 days |
| Yearly | $41.221.0 payments | $1.03 | 0.86x | Not within 12 months |
Revenue per install over time
- Weekly
- Yearly
- Cost per install $1.20
Assumes payments at the start of each billing period, a constant renewal rate, and refunds only on the first payment. Free trials are not modeled: enter the share of installs that end up paying. How this works
Questions people ask
Is a weekly or a yearly plan worth more?
Per subscriber, a yearly plan usually wins. A weekly plan that keeps 82% of subscribers each week averages about five and a half payments, roughly $39 at $6.99 before fees, against $49.99 for a yearly plan. But weekly plans usually convert more installs, so per install the weekly plan can still come out ahead. Enter your own conversion and renewal rates to see which way it goes for your app.
Where do I find my renewal rate?
Your subscription dashboard (RevenueCat, App Store Connect or Play Console) shows how many subscribers renew in each period. Use an average across the first few renewals, because the first renewal usually loses the most people.
What store fee should I use?
Most small developers pay 15% through Apple's Small Business Program and Google Play's subscription rate. Larger developers pay Apple 30% in a subscription's first year. Check your current rate in App Store Connect or Play Console, since the rules change by country and over time.
What are return on ad spend and payback?
Return on ad spend is revenue per install divided by cost per install over the time frame. Above 1x, the installs paid for themselves. Payback is the first day cumulative revenue per install covers its cost.
Get your test results in your inbox every Monday
We're building a weekly report for subscription apps. You upload your RevenueCat Experiments export, and each Monday you get, for every running paywall test:
- The chance the new paywall earns more per view, with a likely range
- A warning when the traffic split is off and the result can't be trusted
- About how many more days the test needs
- One concrete test to run next
RevenueCat already emails each variant's conversion and realized LTV against control. This report tells you whether the difference is real and what to do about it.
Planned price: $49 a month, or $99 for teams.