As you begin to build your apps, start thinking about which business model makes the most sense for you. With the Windows Store, you can select from a variety of price tiers and business models, including free apps, paid apps, ad-supported apps, in-app purchases, and trial versions.
Price tiers
The price tier sets the sales price in all the countries where you choose to distribute your app. You can offer your app for free, or pick a price that Windows Store users must pay to acquire your app. Price tiers start at 1.49 USD, with increments starting at .50 USD. (The increments increase as the price gets higher.) Each price tier has a corresponding value in each of the more than 60 currencies offered by the Store. We use these values to help you sell your apps at a comparable price point worldwide. However, due to changes in foreign exchange rates, the exact sales amount may vary slightly from one currency to another. Price tiers are used in the same fashion for pricing your in-app purchases.
Keep in mind that the price tier you select may include sales or value-added tax that your customers must pay. For example, if you sell an app at 1.19 EUR in Europe, a 15% VAT tax is included. Your app proceeds are based on the pretax amount of 1.03 EUR (1.19 - 0.16).
Selecting a business model
The Windows Store offers several business models to help you make money.
- Collect full price before download
- Time-limited trial
- Feature-limited trial
- In-app purchases
- Advertising
- Third-party transactions
Collect full price before download
The simplest business model in the Windows Store is to require that your customers pay the full price for your app before they can download it. However, unless potential customers already trust your app, or you charge a low price, it may not be the most effective option.
Time-limited trial
With a time-limited trial, your customers can download and try your app before they pay for it. Your app contains all the features of the paid version of the app, but unless the customer buys it, the app stops working after a period of time.
How to create a trial version of your app
Feature-limited trial
A feature-limited trial provides your customers with a subset of your app's functionality. If they buy the app, they can access the app's complete functionality.
How to create a trial version of your app
In-app purchases
You can sell features to your customers from within your app. These features can have a limited lifetime or they can last indefinitely. (Note that in-app purchases cannot be offered during a trial version of an app.)
How to support in-app purchases from your app
Advertising
Apps can show ads to your customers. You can show ads from apps that sell in-app purchases and from apps that have a trial period.
You can use any ad platform you like, as long as the ads comply with the Certification requirements for Windows apps. For more info, see Advertising guidelines and Windows Advertising.
Third-party transactions
Apps can also make money in ways other than those that the Windows Store provides. You can use a third-party transaction provider or benefit from ties to other lines of business as long as the transactions comply with the App Developer Agreement. For example, if you have a transaction platform that integrates into a CRM system, you can use that in your app to keep track of your subscribers.
Related topics
Build date: 3/19/2013
