How Calmly nearly tripled paywall conversion
Calmly had great retention but a paywall nobody wanted to pass. Only 2.1% of users who saw it started a subscription. Instead of a redesign, the team shipped one pricing principle per iteration and measured each step.
Unlock Calmly
Sleep better. Stress less.
$9.99 / month
$59.99 / year
$149 once
The starting point
Cheapest plan first, a yearly total front and center, and plan names that sound expensive. The first number users see is the scariest one.
- ✓Plans sorted Monthly → Yearly → Lifetime
- ✓Yearly shown as $59.99 / year
- ✓Plans named Silver, Gold, Platinum
Unlock Calmly
Sleep better. Stress less.
$149 once
$59.99 / year
$9.99 / month
Lead with the most expensive plan
Principle appliedShow the expensive option first →
Users anchored on the cheap monthly plan, so the yearly one felt like a big jump.
- ✓Lifetime plan moved to the top as the anchor
- ✓Yearly plan now looks like the sensible middle
Unlock Calmly
Sleep better. Stress less.
$149 once
$1.15 / week
billed $59.99 yearly
$2.49 / week
Break the price into tiny units
Principle appliedReframe into tiny units →
$59.99 is a real decision. Most people compare it to nothing they buy every day.
- ✓Yearly price reframed as $1.15 / week
- ✓Full yearly total kept visible as fine print
Unlock Calmly
Sleep better. Stress less.
$149 once
Just$1.15 / week
billed $59.99 yearly
Just$2.49 / week
Let small words hug the price
Principle appliedLet small words hug your price →
Premium-sounding plan names and a big “$” made even a weekly price feel heavy.
- ✓“Just $1.15 a week” right next to the number
- ✓Plans renamed Basic, Plus, Pro
- ✓Currency symbol made smaller
Before vs. after
Unlock Calmly
Sleep better. Stress less.
$9.99 / month
$59.99 / year
$149 once
2.1%
Unlock Calmly
Sleep better. Stress less.
$149 once
Just$1.15 / week
billed $59.99 yearly
Just$2.49 / week
5.8%
What we learned
- Change one thing at a time — otherwise you never know what worked.
- The first number on the screen sets the tone for every number after it.
- Wording around a price matters as much as the price itself.
This case is fictional and made up for illustration.