# Switching from hard paywall to freemium: over 50% fewer subscribers

- Outcome: Lost
- Page type: Paywall (App)
- Elements: Freemium limits
- Date shared: 2026-04
- Test run by: [Phil Carter](https://liftarchive.com/practitioners/phil-carter/)
- Commentary by: LiftArchive (our analysis, not theirs)
- Original source: https://www.revenuecat.com/blog/growth/hard-paywall-vs-freemium/
- Page: https://liftarchive.com/test/anonymized-app-freemium-switch-fail/

A subscription app swapped its hard paywall for a freemium model and saw subscriber conversion fall by more than 50%. Growth advisor Phil Carter (Elemental Growth) ran the change with the app's team, then reversed it after a couple of weeks; it was published on the RevenueCat blog. It was a clear loss, from a move that had worked for a different client.

## Result

**More than 50% lower subscriber conversion**

- Subscriber conversion: down by more than 50%. This is a negative result.
- The team pulled the change after about two weeks.
- No LTV, retention or sample figures were shared.

## Control

A hard paywall: users had to subscribe to use the core product.

## Variant

A freemium model similar to one that had raised LTV for another client, with a free version of the product available.

## Why it likely lost (our reading)

- With the gate gone, the free product had to prove its value alone. Users got too little reason to upgrade, or left before forming a habit.
- A model that worked for one app doesn't carry over unless product-market fit and retention are just as strong.
- Two weeks is too short to see any later upside of freemium, such as more organic installs.

## Caveats

Before/after rollout over a couple of weeks; the source does not say whether it was a split test. Few details on the free tier itself were shared.

## How to run this test

- Hypothesis: If we add a free tier instead of a hard paywall, then LTV per install will rise because more users build a habit before paying, provided the free tier still leaves a clear reason to upgrade.
- Primary metric: LTV per install
- Guardrail: Subscriber conversion
- Guardrail: Early churn of free users
- Guardrail: Cash flow from paid acquisition
- Who should test it: Only apps with strong retention, runway to ride out a conversion dip, and analytics to tune gating. Apps that solve a one-off, urgent problem, or that are bootstrapped, are likely to see this kind of drop.

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Credit: Phil Carter ran this test and owns the result. Summary and commentary by LiftArchive (https://liftarchive.com/test/anonymized-app-freemium-switch-fail/).
Usage: Free to use, quote and build on, with credit and a link: name the practitioner or organization that ran the test and link to its LiftArchive page. The results belong to the practitioners who ran and shared them; the summaries and commentary are LiftArchive's.