---
title: The three-screen pre-paywall sequence (explain the free trial)
slug: three-screen-pre-paywall-sequence
summary: A 2–3 screen sequence before the paywall ("try free", "we'll remind you before it ends", trial timeline) that raised trial starts 56% in one app; Blinkist, Rest of Me, Cal AI variants.
domain: mobile-apps
tags: [monetization, paywall, free-trial, onboarding, copy]
related: [paywall-in-onboarding, multiple-paywalls-in-onboarding, paywall-visuals-and-social-proof, free-trial-length-by-plan, free-trial-toggle-pricing, net-revenue-after-refunds-experiment-metric]
sources: [yt:vZXn_BSi5AE, yt:2soA7LyyQ64, yt:bg0_DavI-DE, yt:FWF_AbsR0qc, yt:24QMRDXck70, yt:L-W6tm-Yk5E]
updated: 2026-10-24
---

# The three-screen pre-paywall sequence

## TL;DR
- Right before the paywall, spend 2–3 screens explaining how the free trial works and removing the "I'll forget to cancel" fear.
- Typical sequence: (1) "We want you to try X for free" (+ video or feature screenshot), (2) "We'll send you a reminder 2 days before your trial ends" + push-permission prompt, (3) paywall with a trial timeline.
- Results: +56% trial activations in one of Steve's apps; triple-digit lifts for some clients; Blinkist reported +23% (2021).
- Not universal — one variant failed for a client; the copy before each screen must fit the app.
- Works best when the main plan is yearly with a trial.
- Vahe Bagdasarian's version (Claim, Riz): say **"free" 5–7 times** across the screens, label the annual card **"Try it free"** (not "Annual plan"), CTA "Try for $0", and leave the trial length off the plan card — typical uplift **20–40%** vs a one-screen trial paywall; Claim hit 34% trial start.

## Details
**Origin.** Blinkist's 2021 case study: solving their top complaint by showing users how the trial works (a timeline paywall) increased conversions 23% and reduced refund requests from people who forgot to cancel.[^1]

**Variants seen in the wild:**
- *Rest of Me / "Resemmee"* (recipe app): onboarding questions → video ("are you ready?") → "We offer 7 days for free" → "We'll remind you 2 days before your trial ends" → push-notification prompt → paywall.[^2][^3]
- *Cal AI*: video → "We want you to try Cal AI for free" → "We'll send you a reminder" → timeline paywall.[^1]
- *Client version (shown with App Masters dummy content)*: "Try free" with feature screenshots → a social-proof screen instead of the reminder → timeline paywall. This one produced the **56% increase in trial activations**.[^4][^5]
- *Momingo* combined value-based onboarding with the "reminder 2 days before" screen.[^6]

In a conference talk Steve said the two pre-paywall screens drove +56% trial activations and that some clients saw triple-digit increases — doubling trial activations, trial-to-paid and LTV.[^7] He calls it one of the best-performing monetization tests his team has A/B tested, especially for yearly-plan apps.[^3]

**Caveat from the same tests:** a résumé-styled variant underperformed in the very app where the other variant won, and a client test did not work. Steve's hypothesis: the format works, but what you say on each screen must be tuned per app.[^8][^5] The job of these screens is purely objection handling right before the price.[^5]

**Hammer the "free" (Vahe Bagdasarian).** Mentioning the trial once in the CTA or headline isn't enough. Claim's three screens: "We want you to try Claim for free" with visuals of settlements → "We'll send you a reminder before your trial ends" (button "Try for $0") → timeline paywall with a free-trial badge on the plan card. The annual card says "Try it free" with "$59.99 per year" underneath instead of naming it annual; ~5–7 mentions of free in total.[^9][^10][^11] Not stating "3-day" on the card avoids triggering "what if I forget to cancel / it's too short" — the timeline still discloses it.[^12] Typical uplift vs a one-screen "start free trial" paywall: 20–40%, sometimes ~40%; execution details matter more than step count.[^12][^13] Claim's version reached 34% trial start.[^13]

**Multi-step paywalls in freemium transitions.** Phil Carter (Elemental Growth) credits a multi-step paywall plus pricing/packaging changes with +75% LTV per user for one client moving from hard paywall to freemium.[^14]

## Disagreements / caveats
- Hiding plan length / naming the annual plan "free" may raise transaction abandonment (~10% more, Vahe) and, in products with weak trial-to-paid, refunds — test against net revenue ([[net-revenue-after-refunds-experiment-metric]]).[^15]
- Lift sizes are from Steve's portfolio and clients, not controlled public studies.
- The reminder promise must be honoured (actually send the push), or refunds/reviews suffer.

## See also
- [[multiple-paywalls-in-onboarding]] — the second paywall in that test sits after this sequence
- [[paywall-visuals-and-social-proof]]

[^1]: yt:vZXn_BSi5AE @ 05:15 — Steve P. Young
[^2]: yt:2soA7LyyQ64 @ 04:29 — Steve P. Young
[^3]: yt:FWF_AbsR0qc @ 00:55 — Steve P. Young
[^4]: yt:vZXn_BSi5AE @ 06:03 — Steve P. Young
[^5]: yt:2soA7LyyQ64 @ 05:18 — Steve P. Young
[^6]: yt:FWF_AbsR0qc @ 08:31 — Steve P. Young
[^7]: yt:bg0_DavI-DE @ 01:59 — Steve P. Young
[^8]: yt:vZXn_BSi5AE @ 06:50 — Steve P. Young
[^9]: yt:24QMRDXck70 @ 10:48 — Vahe Bagdasarian
[^10]: yt:24QMRDXck70 @ 11:42 — Vahe Bagdasarian
[^11]: yt:24QMRDXck70 @ 12:29 — Vahe Bagdasarian
[^12]: yt:24QMRDXck70 @ 13:45 — Vahe Bagdasarian
[^13]: yt:24QMRDXck70 @ 15:21 — Vahe Bagdasarian
[^14]: yt:L-W6tm-Yk5E @ 05:23 — Phil Carter
[^15]: yt:24QMRDXck70 @ 39:27 — Vahe Bagdasarian