Definition
What a free trial is on the App Store and Google Play
A free trial lets a user access a subscription for a fixed period (typically 3, 7, 14, or 30 days) without being charged. At the end of the trial, the subscription auto-renews at the regular localized price unless the user cancels.
On both stores, the trial is not a discount or a coupon. It is a formal offer type attached to a subscription product, with its own configuration, eligibility rules, and reporting.
How free trials work in App Store Connect
Apple implements free trials as a type of Introductory Offer. Each auto-renewable subscription can carry one introductory offer per region, and "Pay as you go" or "Pay up front" can be replaced with a Free offer type.
Key rules:
- A user is eligible for one introductory offer per subscription group, per Apple ID
- The trial duration uses Apple's preset values (3 days, 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year)
- Trial availability is set per territory, so you can enable it in some countries and not others
- The post-trial price is the subscription's regular price in that territory's currency
How free trials work in Google Play Console
Google Play exposes the same concept as a base plan with a free trial attached, configured per region. The model changed in 2023 with the new subscription architecture: you create a base plan, then add one or more offers (including a free trial).
Key rules:
- Trial eligibility is per Google account + per subscription (not per group, unlike Apple)
- Trial length is free-form, set in days
- You can target specific countries or all countries for the offer
- Post-trial billing uses the base plan's localized price
What is the difference between a free trial and an introductory offer?
On Apple, a free trial is a type of introductory offer (the Free variant). On Google, the terminology is cleaner: free trial is one offer type, introductory pricing (a paid lower-than-regular price) is another. The user-facing experience looks similar, but the eligibility rules and reporting paths differ.
How does a free trial price localize per country?
The trial itself is free everywhere it is offered, so there is no per-country trial price. What localizes is the post-trial price the user agrees to be charged when the trial converts. If the localized post-trial price in India is ₹499 and in Brazil is R$39, that is what shows on the subscribe sheet alongside the trial offer.
Why trials matter for pricing
Trials sit at the conversion bottleneck. A user who sees a 7-day free trial followed by an FX-converted price like ₹1,660 is far less likely to convert than one who sees the same trial followed by a PPP-tuned ₹499. The trial mechanic is the same; the underlying price is what moves the trial conversion rate.
Examples
Trial-to-paid offer across 3 markets
Subscription: $19.99 USD monthly with a 7-day free trial.
| Country | Trial cost | Post-trial price (FX) | Post-trial price (localized) |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $0 | $19.99 | $19.99 |
| India | ₹0 | ₹1,660 | ₹499 |
| Brazil | R$0 | R$98 | R$39 |
| Turkey | ₺0 | ₺640 | ₺169 |
The trial is free in every market. The post-trial price is what determines whether the trial converts to a paid subscription. PPP-tuned localized prices move trial-to-paid conversion in lower-income markets without changing the trial mechanic itself.
Frequently asked
What is a free trial on the App Store?
A free trial is a no-cost introductory period on an auto-renewable subscription. Apple implements it as the Free variant of an introductory offer. The user gets the subscription for free during the trial, then auto-renews at the regular localized price unless they cancel.
How long can an App Store free trial be?
Apple supports preset durations: 3 days, 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year. You pick one per territory. Google Play is more flexible and lets you set the trial length in days.
Can a user get multiple free trials for the same app?
On Apple, a user is eligible for one introductory offer per subscription group, per Apple ID. On Google Play, eligibility is per Google account, per subscription. Switching between groups or apps can sometimes reset eligibility, but you should not design your funnel around that.
Does the free trial price need to be localized?
The trial itself is free in every country, so there is no trial price to localize. What you need to localize is the post-trial price the user agrees to. That is the price that decides whether they let the trial convert or cancel before billing starts.
Further reading
- Localized Pricing 101 for Subscription AppsLocalized pricing sets country prices intentionally so subscriptions feel fair and convert across markets, not just currency-converted.
- I Read All 336 Pages of RevenueCat's State of Subscription Apps 2026 Report (So You Don't Have To)10 pricing and localization takeaways from RevenueCat SOSA 2026, explained for busy mobile app operators who ship subscriptions on App Store and Google Play.