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Hard vs soft paywalls and dismissal affordances

18 data-backed questions on Hard vs soft paywalls and dismissal affordances, from Lazyweb Research — each answer cites proprietary analysis of real, in-market app screens.

Questions
18
With charts
12
With real screens
18
  • By Ali Abouelatta
  • Data as of July 2026
Read as Markdown
All research categories35

18 questions

Every question in this category

  1. Q 01

    What Percent Of Paywalls Have A Visible Dismiss Option?

    Across 2,708 mobile paywall screens tracked by Lazyweb Research, 710 (26.2%) show a visible exit affordance — an X/close control, a 'Maybe later'-style link, or a dismiss-role button. The remaining 1…    Carrot Paywall / Subscription screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  2. Q 02

    Hard Vs Soft Paywall: How Common Is Each?

    Of 2,708 mobile paywall screens tracked by Lazyweb Research, 1,847 (68.2%) show no visible exit of any kind — the hard-paywall proxy — while the rest expose an X, a text link, or a restore-only escap…    Justfit Checkout upsell screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  3. Q 03

    How Do Apps Let Users Exit The Paywall — X Button, 'Maybe Later', Or Not At All?

    Across 2,708 mobile paywall screens tracked by Lazyweb Research, the most common visible exit is an X/close button (517 screens, 120 companies), followed by a 'Maybe later'-style text link (193 scree…    Nyt Cooking paywall screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  4. Q 04

    What Share Of Paywall CTAs Are Dismiss Buttons?

    Among 2,679 role-labeled paywall CTAs tracked by Lazyweb Research, 196 (7.3%) are dismiss-role buttons, spanning 64 companies. Dismiss is the rarest labeled role behind primary (1,886), unknown (1,72…    Espn paywall screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  5. Q 05

    What Share Of Companies Run A Soft Paywall Variant?

    Of 252 companies with paywall CTA data tracked by Lazyweb Research, 145 (57.5%) show a visible exit on at least one captured paywall — even though only 26.2% of individual screens are soft. Most comp…    Ai Chatbot Paywall / Subscription screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  6. Q 06

    How Many Paywalls Show A Visible Close Or X Button?

    Of 2,706 mobile paywall screens with a vision description tracked by Lazyweb Research, 601 (22.2%) have a close or X control explicitly described. In the mutually exclusive exit taxonomy, 517 screens…    Ai Chatbot Paywall / Subscription screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  7. Q 07

    How Many Paywalls Use A 'Maybe Later' Text Link Instead Of An X?

    Of 2,708 mobile paywall screens tracked by Lazyweb Research, 193 (7.1%) use a 'Maybe later'-style text link as their exit, across 62 companies — the second most common visible exit after the X. A tap…    Zoom Paywall (Home modal) screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  8. Q 08

    What Percent Of Paywalls Offer Only 'Restore Purchases' As An Exit?

    Of 2,708 mobile paywall screens tracked by Lazyweb Research, 151 (5.6%) offer only a 'Restore purchases' link and no dismiss, X, or text-link exit — across 56 companies. Restore-only is the least com…    Uber Checkout upsell screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  9. Q 09

    What Is The Most Common Dismiss Button Copy On Paywalls?

    Across 4,406 paywall CTA rows tracked by Lazyweb Research, 'not now' is the most common dismissal copy at 59 CTAs across 14 companies, ahead of 'no thanks' (51/13) and 'maybe later' (27/13). Among th…    Disney All plans screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  10. Q 10

    Hard Vs Soft Paywall: Which Do Education Apps Use?

    Education is the softest vertical in the Lazyweb Research corpus: 276 of 635 Education paywall screens (43.5%) show a visible exit, versus a 26.2% corpus average. That breaks down to 193 X/close, 62…    Retro paywall screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  11. Q 11

    Hard Vs Soft Paywall: Which Do Health & Fitness Apps Use?

    In Health & Fitness, 119 of 435 paywall screens (27.4%) show a visible exit — almost exactly the 26.2% corpus average. Exits break down to 80 X/close, 21 text-link, and 18 restore-only; 316 screens a…    Spin All plans screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  12. Q 12

    Hard Vs Soft Paywall: Which Do Photo & Video Apps Use?

    Photo & Video runs the hardest paywalls of the four spec verticals: only 41 of 218 screens (18.8%) show a visible exit, versus the 26.2% corpus average. Exits break down to 20 X/close, 11 text-link,…    Onx Offroad paywall screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  13. Q 13

    Hard Vs Soft Paywall: Which Do Music Apps Use?

    In Music, 46 of 185 paywall screens (24.9%) show a visible exit, just below the 26.2% corpus average. The exit mix is strikingly X-heavy: 36 X/close, 8 text-link, and only 2 restore-only; 139 screens…    Adobe Paywall / Subscription screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  14. Q 14

    Which App Category Has The Hardest Paywalls?

    Among the four verticals with enough sample in the Lazyweb Research corpus, Photo & Video runs the hardest paywalls — only 18.8% of 218 screens show a visible exit — while Education runs the softest…    Breeze paywall screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  15. Q 15

    Hard Vs Soft Paywall: Do Subscription And Advertising Apps Differ?

    Among pure-subscription companies in the Lazyweb Research corpus, 489 of 1,890 paywall screens (25.9%) show a visible exit, and 96 of 164 companies (58.5%) show one somewhere. Subscription+Advertisin…    Falou Checkout upsell screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  16. Q 16

    Do Paywalls With A Visible Close Button Use Different CTA Copy?

    Yes. Across 1,884 primary paywall CTAs tracked by Lazyweb Research, screens WITH a visible exit sell the trial harder — 208 of 542 primary CTAs (38.4%) mention 'free' or 'trial' — while screens WITHO…    Apple Music Checkout upsell screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  17. Q 17

    What CTA Copy Do Hard Paywalls Use Most?

    On no-exit (hard) paywall screens tracked by Lazyweb Research, the top primary CTA is 'continue' (276 of 1,342 primary CTAs), followed by 'subscribe' (65), 'start free trial' (58), 'try for free' (49…    Linkedin Checkout upsell screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research
  18. Q 18

    Which Apps A/B Tested Adding A Paywall Close Button?

    Lazyweb Research detected 11 paywall CTA experiments across 8 companies that explicitly changed a dismissal affordance — adding or removing a close button, swapping an X for 'Maybe later', or adding…    Breeze paywall screen — real in-market example tracked by Lazyweb Research