The six models, ranked by indie-fit
| Model | Best for | Realistic revenue | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subscriptions | Tools people use weekly+ | $3–15/user/mo × 2–5% conversion | Medium (IAP infra) |
| Freemium + one-time unlock | Utilities, single-job apps | $5–30 once × 2–8% | Low-medium |
| In-app purchases (consumable) | Games, credits-based apps | Varies wildly | Medium |
| Ads | High-volume, low-intent apps | ~$5–20 RPM (per 1k impressions) | Low |
| Paid download | Almost nobody in 2026 | Suppresses installs ~10× | Low |
| B2B licensing | Niche pro tools | $20–200/seat/mo | Sales effort |
1. Subscriptions, the default for a reason
The dominant model for indie apps, and the one behind most $1k–10k/month solo stories. The math that matters: downloads × trial-start rate × trial-to-paid rate × price. Typical healthy funnel for a niche utility: 1,000 downloads/mo × 8% start trial × 40% convert × $6/mo ≈ $190/mo added recurring revenue per thousand downloads: compounding monthly as the base grows.
Rules that move the number: anchor an annual plan (most revenue comes from it), gate the repeat-use value not the first-run experience, and put the paywall after the user has felt the value once (a habit-tracker pattern: paywall at the 4th habit, not the 1st).
Implementation on mobile: Apple/Google require their in-app purchase rails (15–30% commission). The standard stack is RevenueCat over StoreKit/Play Billing, see the full Expo setup guide.
2. Freemium with one-time unlock
“Pay $12 once, unlock everything.” Users love it; your revenue doesn’t compound. Right choice when your app does one job that doesn’t accrue data over time (a converter, a scanner, a calculator). Wrong when usage is habitual. You’re leaving subscription money on the table.
3. Consumable in-app purchases
Credits, tokens, extra generations. Standard for AI-feature apps where each use costs you API money, price credits above your inference cost and the model self-balances. Watch the floor: Apple takes its cut of every pack.
4. Ads
The math nobody does before choosing ads: at a $10 RPM, 100,000 monthly sessions earn roughly $1,000. If you don’t have a realistic path to six-figure session counts, ads are a distraction that uglifies your product. Where they work: casual games, utilities with daily open patterns. Rewarded video (watch ad → get perk) monetizes best and annoys least.
5. Paid downloads
Mostly dead. Charging $2.99 upfront cuts installs by roughly an order of magnitude versus free-with-IAP. Survivors: apps with external reputation (a known brand, a viral moment) or pro audiences who research before installing.
6. B2B licensing, the overlooked one
If your app serves businesses (see the niche B2B ideas), don’t monetize users, monetize the business: per-seat or per-location pricing, invoiced. Twenty gyms at $50/month beats five thousand consumers at 2% conversion, and churn is far lower. The app store commission often doesn’t even apply if billing happens on the web for business accounts (post-2024 rules allow more of this than most founders realize, check current guidelines per platform).
Picking your model in 60 seconds
- Used daily/weekly, accrues data → subscription
- Single job, occasional use → one-time unlock
- Each use costs you API money → credits
- Massive casual audience, low willingness to pay → ads (rewarded)
- Users are businesses → B2B seats
The uncomfortable truth about the revenue equation
Monetization model is the smallest variable. Revenue = audience × value × model, in that order. A mediocre model on an app people love beats a perfect paywall on an app nobody opens. Which is the actual 2026 unlock: since building now costs ~$150 instead of $40k, you can afford to find the audience+value fit empirically, ship a niche app, watch retention, add the paywall once people return without being pushed.
Have the idea, need the app?
Build it free at shipnative.dev: working React Native app with a paywall screen included, ready for your RevenueCat keys.