--- title: "What Is Trial Conversion Rate? Definition and Examples" description: "Trial conversion rate is the share of free-trial users who become paying subscribers. See the formula, what a card requirement does to it and how to raise it." url: "https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/trial-conversion-rate" markdown_url: "https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/trial-conversion-rate.md" category: "Metrics" updated: "2026-10-05" --- # What is trial conversion rate? Trial conversion rate is the percentage of people who start a free trial and go on to make their first payment. It measures how well a trial turns interest into paying subscribers. ## How to calculate it Divide the number of trials that converted to paid by the number of trials started, for trials that have had time to finish. If 1,000 people started a trial in March and 450 of them were charged, the conversion rate is 45%. Measure by the month the trial started. Mixing this month's conversions with this month's starts gives a misleading figure whenever sign-ups are rising or falling. ## Card required or not The two kinds of trial are not comparable. When a card is required, fewer people start but a large share convert, because conversion is automatic unless they cancel. Without a card, many more start and only a small share ever pay. Compare them on paying subscribers gained per visitor, and on how long those subscribers stay, not on the conversion rate alone. ## What raises trial conversion - A good first session: a clear recommendation of what to watch first - Getting the app onto the viewer's television during the trial - A reason to return: new episodes landing within the trial period - A reminder before the charge, which also reduces refunds - A trial length that matches the time needed to form a habit ## Trial conversion rate on RentAnOTT Free trials are set per plan on RentAnOTT, and analytics report growth, retention and cohorts. The revenue calculator models visitor-to-subscriber conversion against price and churn. [Try the revenue calculator](https://www.rentanott.com/tools/ott-revenue-calculator). ## Related terms - [Free trial](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/free-trial) — A free trial is a limited period, commonly 7, 14 or 30 days, during which a new subscriber has full access to a streaming service before being charged. When it ends, the subscription starts automatically unless the viewer cancels. - [CAC](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/cac) — CAC (customer acquisition cost) is the average amount a service spends on marketing and sales to gain one new paying customer. It is total acquisition spending in a period divided by the number of new customers won in that period. - [Freemium streaming](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/freemium) — Freemium streaming is a model in which a service offers part of its catalog or features for free, with or without ads, and charges a subscription for the full experience. The free tier exists to bring viewers in; the paid tier is where most revenue comes from. - [Churn rate](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/churn-rate) — Churn rate is the percentage of a streaming service's subscribers who cancel or fail to renew during a period, usually a month. It is the main measure of how well a subscription service keeps its customers. - [Retention rate](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/retention-rate) — Retention rate is the percentage of subscribers, or users, who are still with a service at the end of a period out of those who were there at the start. It is the mirror image of churn rate. - [LTV:CAC ratio](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/ltv-cac-ratio) — The LTV:CAC ratio is customer lifetime value divided by customer acquisition cost. It shows how many dollars a subscriber returns over their lifetime for each dollar spent winning them. - [Promo code](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary/promo-code) — A promo code, or coupon, is a code a viewer enters at checkout to get a discount, a free period or free access to a title. Streaming services use them to acquire subscribers, reward partners and win back people who cancelled. ## Further reading - [OTT subscription plans and tiers](https://www.rentanott.com/blogs/ott-subscription-plans) - [How to start a streaming service](https://www.rentanott.com/blogs/how-to-start-a-streaming-service) - [Features](https://www.rentanott.com/features) ## Frequently asked questions ### What is a good trial conversion rate? It depends on whether a card is required. Trials that need a card typically convert several times better than those that do not, so compare like with like. ### Does a high conversion rate mean a good trial? Not on its own. If many converted subscribers cancel after the first charge, they forgot to cancel the trial; look at retention at month two as well. ### How does trial conversion affect acquisition cost? Directly. The cost of one paying subscriber is the cost of one trial divided by the conversion rate. All 163 terms: [Streaming and OTT glossary](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary). ## Book a demo Tell RentAnOTT what you are launching. The team walks through the platform and maps the path to go-live around your catalog, markets and revenue model. Book a demo: https://www.rentanott.com/contact ## More from RentAnOTT - [Home](https://www.rentanott.com/index.md) — What RentAnOTT is, what every plan includes, and how launch works - [Features](https://www.rentanott.com/features.md) — Every core feature and optional add-on - [Pricing](https://www.rentanott.com/pricing.md) — Platform tiers, apps, add-ons, usage rates and example bills in INR and USD - [Free tools](https://www.rentanott.com/tools.md) — OTT app builder and calculators for streaming revenue, bandwidth, bitrate and pricing - [Insights](https://www.rentanott.com/blogs.md) — All streaming business articles - [Glossary](https://www.rentanott.com/glossary.md) — Definitions of streaming and OTT terms - [Book a demo](https://www.rentanott.com/contact.md) — Talk to RentAnOTT about your launch Full site in one file: https://www.rentanott.com/llms-full.txt