Adeptly, an app revenue management platform, recently released a study of 11000 apps that shows a very interesting and strange pattern of subscription for the iOS-apps. The study asserts that the weekly subscription model has now become the leading contributor of iOS in-app purchase revenue. The weekly subscription generates over 46% of the total income for these apps with an average price of $8.1 in the U.S. According to the report, this weekly model has surpassed a previously best seller one-time purchase model and grown up to 9.5% in 2025.
This boost in the weekly subscription model signifies a deep human behavior that we avoid long term commitments. The same factor that contributes to the dropping number of Movie watchers and avid series lovers, where people fear committing to something that demands this long of an attention span. Another important factor is Week-end, as the users often trial the apps or watch shows and seasons in their leisurely weekend browsing.
Another contributing factor to this booming trend of weekly subscription is the illusion of affordability. An $8 weekly subscription feels manageable compared to a $35 monthly plan, even though it costs $416 annually versus $420. The tech companies realize this and hence, the poor mental math of recurring payments.
Such weekly subscriptions are a result of impulse decisions and short-term needs, while unable to cater to sustained engagements. Most of the users who stay subscribed for a month normally forget they’re subscribed leading to unattended deduction of the fee, even if they don’t need the app anymore. While profitable short-term, this trend may ultimately backfire as users become subscription-fatigued and more selective about micro-commitments that add up to significant annual costs.
