Subscription App Revenue Calculator100% FREE
Model LTV, payback period, and revenue projections for your subscription mobile app
Acquisition & Platform
Plan Configuration
Weekly Plan
Monthly Plan
Annual Plan
Blended Economics (Weighted by Plan Mix)
Per-Plan Economics
| Metric | Weekly | Monthly | Annual |
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12-Month Revenue vs. Acquisition Cost
Monthly Revenue Breakdown
| Month | New Subs | Churned | Active Subs | Gross Revenue | Commission | Net Revenue | Cumul. Net Rev | Cumul. Ad Spend |
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Why Use This Calculator
Model Before You Scale
Test different price points, plan mixes, and retention scenarios before committing UA budget. See exactly how changes in trial conversion or retention shift your payback period and ROAS.
Compare Plan Structures
See weekly, monthly, and annual plan economics side by side. Understand how each plan type contributes to blended LTV and identify which plan mix maximizes revenue.
Commission Impact Clarity
Model both standard (30%/15%) and Small Business Program (15% flat) commission structures. See the exact dollar impact on your net LTV and payback period.
12-Month Revenue Projection
Visualize cumulative revenue against acquisition costs month by month. Identify exactly when your spend is recovered and how much net revenue you generate over a full year.
How It Works
1. Enter Your Numbers
Input your monthly install volume, CPI, platform, and subscription plan details including prices, plan mix, trial conversion rates, and retention rates for each billing period.
2. Get Per-Plan Economics
The calculator computes LTV, net LTV after platform commission, payback period in days, and 12-month ROAS for each plan type, plus blended metrics weighted by your plan mix.
3. See Revenue Projections
View a 12-month revenue projection with monthly breakdown of subscribers, churn, gross and net revenue, plus a visual chart showing when cumulative revenue overtakes acquisition costs.
Why Subscription App Economics Matter for UA
User acquisition for subscription apps operates on fundamentally different economics than one-time purchase apps or ad-supported models. When you pay $2 to acquire a user, that user does not generate $2 in revenue on day one. Revenue comes in over weeks and months through recurring subscription payments, and every payment is reduced by platform commissions before it reaches your account.
This means UA decisions require forward-looking models. You need to know not just your CPI, but how it compares to the net revenue a subscriber generates over their lifetime. The challenge is that subscription economics involve multiple interacting variables: trial conversion, retention, pricing, plan mix, and commission structure all multiply together. A 10% improvement in trial-to-paid conversion can be worth more than a 20% reduction in CPI, but you cannot see that without running the numbers.
Understanding Subscription App LTV
LTV for subscription apps is the sum of all revenue a single subscriber generates from the moment they start paying until they churn. Unlike e-commerce, subscription LTV follows a predictable mathematical curve based on retention rates and billing frequency.
For a weekly subscriber paying $6.99 with 55% first-renewal retention and 80% ongoing retention, Month 1 generates the full $6.99 multiplied by 4.33 weeks. Month 2 applies first renewal retention at each weekly renewal, significantly reducing active subscribers. By month 3, the ongoing rate stabilizes the curve. Annual subscribers follow a different pattern: the subscriber pre-pays for 12 months, so there is no within-year churn. Retention only becomes a factor at the annual renewal point.
Net LTV subtracts platform commissions, which is the number that actually matters for UA profitability. A subscriber with a $20 gross LTV and 30% commission delivers $14 in net LTV. That is the real ceiling for your cost per install.
How Platform Commissions Impact Your Revenue
Apple and Google both take a percentage of every in-app subscription payment. Under the standard structure, the platform takes 30% for the first 12 consecutive months a subscriber remains active. After 12 months, the rate drops to 15%. This incentivizes long-term retention: a subscriber who stays past the one-year mark becomes nearly twice as profitable per payment.
The Small Business Program, available to developers earning under $1 million annually, reduces the commission to a flat 15% from day one. For earlier-stage apps, this effectively doubles net revenue per subscriber in Year 1. If your app qualifies, this can be the difference between profitable UA and one that bleeds money while waiting for the Year 2 commission drop.
Weekly vs Monthly vs Annual Plans
Each billing frequency serves a different strategic purpose. Weekly plans generate the highest annualized revenue if retention holds ($6.99/week = $363/year), but face 52 renewal decisions per year, so even small retention dips compound rapidly. They are most common in fitness, meditation, and dating apps where the app delivers visible value within days.
Monthly plans balance commitment and flexibility. The $9.99-$14.99 range feels manageable, and retention tends to be higher than weekly because subscribers have more time to build a habit before facing renewal. Annual plans front-load revenue and eliminate within-year churn. The tradeoff is lower conversion (users resist the larger upfront cost), which is why most apps offer 40-60% discounts off the monthly equivalent.
The plan mix has a major impact on blended LTV. Shifting even 10% of subscribers from weekly to annual can significantly change your payback period and ROAS. Use this calculator to test different mix scenarios.
How to Improve Your Subscription Metrics
The four highest-leverage inputs are trial-to-paid conversion, first renewal retention, pricing, and plan mix. Each can be optimized independently, and improvements compound across the model.
Trial-to-paid conversion improves with better onboarding. Apps that personalize onboarding (asking users their goals, customizing the experience) consistently see higher conversion. Reducing trial length can also help: a 3-day trial forces urgency, while a 14-day trial risks users forgetting they signed up.
First renewal retention is about meeting expectations set during the trial. Engagement triggers (push notifications, progress tracking) during the first billing period reinforce the subscription’s value. The gap between first renewal and ongoing retention can be significant, so even modest improvements here have outsized LTV impact.
Pricing optimization is often overlooked. A/B testing prices (even $6.99 vs. $7.99 weekly) can reveal willingness to pay that differs from assumptions. Plan mix optimization involves paywall design: highlighting annual plans with a “best value” badge or pre-selecting the annual option can shift mix toward higher-LTV plans.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is subscription app LTV and why does it matter?
LTV (Lifetime Value) is the total revenue a single subscriber generates over their relationship with your app, determined by price, billing frequency, trial conversion, and retention. It sets the ceiling for acquisition spending. If your LTV is $15 and your CPI is $3, you have a 5x return and room to scale.
How do Apple and Google platform commissions affect revenue?
Both platforms take a percentage of every subscription payment. The standard commission is 30% in Year 1, dropping to 15% after 12 consecutive months. The Small Business Program (under $1M/year) offers a flat 15% from day one. On a $9.99 monthly subscription, that is the difference between $3.00 and $1.50 per payment in commission.
What is a good payback period for a subscription app?
Under 90 days is strong. Between 90 and 180 days is acceptable for apps with proven retention. Beyond 180 days, you need high confidence in long-term retention and enough cash reserves to fund the gap between acquisition spending and revenue recovery.
Should I offer weekly, monthly, or annual subscription plans?
Most successful apps offer all three. Weekly plans provide fast payback but require strong retention across 52 yearly renewals. Annual plans lock in revenue with no within-year churn, but conversion is lower due to higher upfront cost. Monthly sits in the middle. The optimal mix depends on your category and audience.
How does trial-to-paid conversion rate impact my revenue?
It is one of the biggest levers. If 10,000 users start a trial and you improve conversion from 40% to 50%, that is 1,000 additional paying subscribers from the same install volume, a 25% revenue increase with zero additional acquisition cost.
What is first renewal retention vs. ongoing retention?
First renewal retention is the percentage who renew after their initial billing period, typically the lowest retention point. Ongoing retention applies to subsequent renewals and tends to be higher because the remaining users have demonstrated commitment. Retention rates vary significantly by app category and plan type. Use your own data from your subscription analytics platform to set realistic retention assumptions.
What is a good 12-month ROAS for subscription apps?
Above 1.5x is a healthy margin for scaling. Between 1.0x and 1.5x is profitable but thin. Below 1.0x means you lose money within the first year. Some apps accept sub-1.0x if retention beyond 12 months is strong, where the 15% commission rate significantly improves unit economics.
How accurate is this calculator for real-world planning?
This uses the same unit economics model that UA teams use for planning. Input your actual data (CPI, trial conversion, retention) for accurate results. The model assumes consistent monthly installs and steady retention. Stress-test by adjusting inputs 10-20% to see how sensitive your economics are to each variable.
Need Help Optimizing Your Subscription App Growth?
RocketShip HQ helps subscription apps scale user acquisition profitably. We work with apps across fitness, health, productivity, and entertainment to optimize creative strategy, UA channel mix, and subscription economics. If your payback period is too long or your ROAS is not where it needs to be, we can help.