How should apps show limited-time subscription discounts in paywalls?

Author: Ali Abouelatta

Tags: monetization, pricing, paywall, conversion

Short answer: Make the discount impossible to miss, then guide users toward the intended plan. Snapchat changed the paywall headline to a 60% savings claim, added multiple discounted plan cards, marked annual as BEST VALUE, and put a SPECIAL OFFER badge on the purchase surface.

Evidence

Lazyweb Research compared Snapchat Plus screenshots where the experiment increased offer salience with percentage savings, tiered plan cards, annual-plan guidance, and offer badges.

What changed

• Control: price-focused headline and simpler subscription presentation.
• Experiment: Save 60% on Snapchat+ headline, multiple discounted plans, BEST VALUE annual marking, social proof avatars, and SPECIAL OFFER badge.
• The experiment changed both the offer framing and the plan-selection architecture.

Why it matters

• Discounts need visual hierarchy; burying the incentive forces users to calculate value themselves.
• Plan badges can turn a discount into a routing mechanism toward the higher-commitment option.

Sources

1. [1] Lazyweb Research: Most up to date mobile A/B test library tracking +1000 apps weekly. Get access here