Pricing experiments in indie iOS/macOS apps: free trials, lifetime deals, and subscriptions

Indie iOS/macOS apps are testing pricing in public: 24-hour free trials, lifetime promos, and region-based tiers are playing out in real time. From a one-tap study timer to a video summarizer and a receipt tracker, money talks. Highlights include Tempo Study Timer offering a 24-hour free trial to gather early feedback, with a paywall that shows a Lifetime option at $0 for 24 hours and regional quirks that aren’t always consistent across countries ^[1].

On the video side, Esse: AI Video Summarizer returns with a free-try model: 24 hours free for everyone, and within that window you can score a free year of unlimited summaries by redeeming a code. The update also brings smarter, multi-language summaries and smoother clipboard behavior, plus Arabic localization to reach more users ^[2].

Retrx is leaning into subscriptions with a $5.99/month plan for its item-level receipt tracker, sparking the ongoing debate about subscription fatigue even for personal-finance tools ^[3].

Bloom ships v1.5.0 and double-clicks on discovery with a Product Hunt launch discount: 25% off through October 31, plus a free 7-day trial, inviting early adopters to test the latest features ^[4].

Habit Savvy keeps a free base experience while offering paid power features, but it’s currently US-only, drawing questions about regional availability and access for international users ^[5].

Indie pricing experiments are heating up across iOS and macOS apps; the next moves will reveal what users actually value.

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