App Monetization Models: How Mobile Apps Make Money

What is this page about?

An explainer of how mobile apps make money, walking the six core monetization models: freemium, subscription, in-app advertising, in-app purchases, paid downloads (a declining model), and hybrid combinations. It gives a five-step framework for choosing a model based on category norms, value-delivery pattern, revenue potential, and growth strategy, covers implementation best practices, pricing psychology, and platform compliance, and illustrates with case studies such as Spotify (freemium), Supercell (in-app purchases), and Notion.

What has been corrected on this page?

Every accepted correction to this page is recorded with the exact change, so readers can see how the page improved over time.

1. 11 July 2026 · corrected by Melik Can Sariyer

   Premium subscribers are roughly 40% of Spotify's monthly active users, not 44%

   Before

   Spotify's conversion rate (approximately 44% of users are premium)

   After

   Spotify's conversion rate (approximately 40% of users are premium)

   Why: Premium subscribers are roughly 40 percent of Spotify's monthly active users, not 44 percent.

   View the full record →

Who checked this page?

1 contributor has checked "App Monetization Models: How Mobile Apps Make Money" on When Notes Fly. Each name below links to that person's public CitePep profile, where every contribution they have made is listed with the exact change they proposed.