What's the fastest way to decide what to charge?
Start with the value you deliver, not your costs. Ask what your app saves or earns a user, then price at a small, obvious fraction of that. If your tool saves someone two hours a week, a few dollars a month is an easy yes — and easy yeses are how indie apps grow.
Which pricing model fits an indie app?
There's no single winner. Match the model to how people get value:
- One-time purchase — simple to sell, but revenue resets to zero every month. Good for utilities and tools people "buy once."
- Subscription — predictable, compounding revenue. Best when your app delivers ongoing value.
- Freemium — a free tier for reach, paid tiers for depth. Great for viral discovery, dangerous if the free tier is too generous.
- Usage-based — you pay for what you use. Fair for API-style or credit-based products.
- Lifetime deal — a burst of early cash and feedback. Use sparingly; it caps your long-term upside.
How much should I actually charge?
Direct answer: charge more than feels comfortable, then adjust down only if the market clearly rejects it.
- Indie SaaS commonly lands between $5 and $29 per month for a single-purpose tool.
- Round to memorable numbers — $9, $19, $29 — not $8.50.
- Offer annual billing at roughly 2 months free; it improves cash flow and retention.
- Anchor with three tiers. Most people pick the middle one, so design that tier to be the deal you actually want to sell.
Should I offer a free tier?
Only if it does a specific job:
- A free tier is for discovery — let people feel the value before they pay.
- A free trial is for commitment — a 7 or 14 day window creates urgency.
- If your free tier is so complete that no one upgrades, it isn't marketing, it's your product.
How do I collect money without building a billing system?
Use a tool that handles payments, tax, and invoices for you:
- Stripe — the flexible standard for cards and subscriptions.
- Lemon Squeezy and Paddle — merchant of record services that handle global sales tax and VAT for you.
- RevenueCat — subscription management for mobile apps.
For a first launch, a merchant of record saves you from becoming a part-time tax accountant.
What are the most common pricing mistakes?
- Charging too little and signaling low quality.
- Hiding the price and adding friction to a simple decision.
- Never revisiting price after adding features.
- Competing on being cheapest instead of being clearest.
Price is a message. A confident, simple price tells people your app is worth paying for — a vague or apologetic one tells them the opposite.
Where to go next
See how other indie builders position and price their work in the app gallery, then submit your app so early adopters can find it and pay you.