An introductory offer is a discount or free trial for the first period of an auto-renewable subscription. There are three types, free trial, pay as you go and pay up front, a free period runs from 3 days to 1 year, and each person gets one introductory offer per subscription group.
What it is and where people see it
An introductory offer lets a new subscriber try the subscription before paying full price. The App Store shows it on your app's page to people who are eligible. Inside the app you show it yourself, on the purchase screen, after checking eligibility.
Eligibility is one offer per subscription group. Someone who took a free month on the monthly plan and moved to the annual plan in the same group gets no second trial (App Store Connect Help).
Three types, with Apple's examples
- Free trial. The subscription starts right away and billing begins when the period ends. Apple's example is one free month on a $4.99 monthly plan.
- Pay as you go. A discounted price every period, for example $1.99 a month for three months on a $9.99 monthly plan.
- Pay up front. One payment in advance, for example $9.99 for the first six months of a $39.99 annual plan.
After any type the subscription renews at the standard price. The examples come from the Auto-renewable subscriptions page, checked October 16, 2026.
Where it lives in App Store Connect
Go to App Store Connect › Apps › your app › Subscriptions › group › subscription › Subscription Prices › View all Subscription Pricing › Set up Introductory Offer. Then pick the countries, start and end dates, the type (Pay as you go, Pay up front or Free), the duration and the price, and press Confirm.
As of October 16, 2026, App Store Connect fills in comparable prices for all 175 countries and regions, with taxes and exchange rates taken into account. The Account Holder, Admin, App Manager and Marketing roles can create offers.
Apple's durations and limits
| Type or rule | What's allowed |
|---|---|
| Free | 3 days, 1 or 2 weeks, 1, 2, 3 or 6 months, 1 year |
| Pay as you go on a weekly plan | 1 to 12 weeks |
| Pay as you go on a monthly plan | 1 to 12 months |
| Pay as you go on an annual plan | 1 year |
| Pay up front | 1, 2, 3 or 6 months, or 1 year |
| Offers per storefront | one current and one future |
| Introductory offers per person | one per subscription group |
Per App Store Connect Help, checked October 16, 2026.
How it differs from other offers
- Promotional offers go to current and former subscribers, on rules you set inside the app. A subscription can have up to 10 of them.
- Offer codes are codes you hand out yourself, by link, email or flyer.
- Win-back offers target people whose subscription has already ended. The type arrived in iOS 18, and the App Store shows the offer sheet inside your app on its own.
How to set it up, step by step
- Create an auto-renewable subscription in a group. Apple recommends one group for most apps, so nobody ends up with two subscriptions at once.
- Open Subscription Prices › View all Subscription Pricing and press Set up Introductory Offer.
- Pick the countries, dates, type and duration, plus the price for a discount.
- Review the prices by country and press Confirm.
- In the app, check eligibility with isEligibleForIntroOffer from StoreKit 2 and show the offer only to people who have it.
- On the purchase screen show the subscription's name, length and price and links to the privacy policy and terms, as section 3.8(b) of Schedule 2 to Apple's agreement requires.
Appto builds onboarding and the purchase screen in several variants and counts how many people reach the end and which variant sells more (onboarding and paywalls).
Common mistakes
- Promising the trial to everyone. Someone who already used an introductory offer in the group won't get it again, and the purchase screen ends up contradicting the payment sheet.
- A second group for a second trial. Subscriptions in different groups are billed separately, and moving between groups resets the renewal date and the count of paid days.
- No price after the offer. Guideline 3.1.2(c) asks you to describe clearly what people get for the price, and 3.1.2(a) rules out tricking people into subscribing. Apple may not accept such a version.
- Trying to edit a live offer. Offers can't be edited, only deleted and created again, and if dates overlap the latest action replaces the earlier offer.
Questions
How long can a free trial be on the App Store?
From 3 days to 1 year. The options are 3 days, 1 or 2 weeks, 1, 2, 3 or 6 months, or 1 year (App Store Connect Help, checked October 16, 2026).
Can someone get a free trial twice?
A person gets one introductory offer per subscription group. Former subscribers can get a promotional offer, an offer code or a win-back offer instead.
Can an app without a subscription offer a free trial?
Yes. Guideline 3.1.1 allows a non-consumable purchase at a zero price named like “14-day Trial”. Before it starts the app has to show the length, what stops working afterwards and what the full version costs.
Does a free trial count toward the year after which Apple takes 15%?
No, free days don't count. Days on paid introductory offers, pay as you go and pay up front, do.
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