Stripe web checkout instead of in-app purchase: lost on revenue
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsMoving purchases from App Store in-app purchase to Stripe web checkout lost: a small conversion dip cost more than the fees it saved.
Sebastian Szturo, an indie developer of utility apps, ran this test and dropped it within weeks.
It was published as a Superwall case study.
- Conversion: dipped slightly with web checkout. No figure was shared.
- Net revenue: the lost conversions cost more than the App Store fees saved, so the variant lost.
- Overhead: running Stripe added its own work and costs.
- Weekly plans carried most of the revenue, which made any drop in conversion costly.
Control
The paywall sold subscriptions through standard App Store in-app purchase.
Variant
The paywall sent buyers to a Stripe web checkout, skipping the App Store.
Why it likely lost
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- Leaving the app for a web page adds steps and breaks the one-tap purchase flow users expect.
- With most revenue on cheap weekly plans, even a small conversion loss outweighs a fee saving.
- Some users may trust App Store billing more than entering card details on a web page.
Caveats: No numbers, sample size or duration were shared, and the source does not detail how traffic was split. The story was published by Superwall, which sells the paywall testing tool used, and the piece also promotes it over a competitor.
Who ran it
Sebastian Szturo ran this test. Source: Superwall case study. The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
How to run this test on your app
- Hypothesis
- If we offer web checkout instead of in-app purchase, then net revenue per user will rise because we keep more of each payment, as long as conversion holds.
- Primary metric
- Net proceeds per paywall viewer
- Guardrails
- Paywall conversion rate
- Refund and chargeback rate
- Renewal rate
- Who should test it
- Apps with higher-priced annual plans, where the fee saving per sale is large. Apps that rely on cheap weekly plans, like this one, are likely to lose.
Questions
Does web checkout always earn more than App Store purchase?
No. You save on fees, but if fewer people complete the purchase, you can lose money overall, as happened here.
What should I compare when testing web checkout?
Compare net revenue after fees per paywall viewer, not just conversion.
Include Stripe costs and any extra support work.
Similar tests
Kovalee