Apple TV+ survey reveals eye-opening insight into free trials, user satisfaction and retention

Apple TV+ Apple TV interface
Apple TV+ Apple TV interface (Image credit: Joseph Keller / iMore)

What you need to know

  • Flixed has surveyed Apple TV+ trial users.
  • Their results have revealed a lot of interesting insight into how it's being received by viewers.
  • Nearly three-quarters of those surveyed only signed up for a seven-day trial subscription and 72% of those people didn't purchase once it expired.

Flixed has published the results of a survey of over a thousand Apple TV+ trial users.

According to their report, they surveyed 1090 Apple TV+ trial users. 73% of those people signed up with a seven-day trial, only 21% got the free year that comes with an Apple device purchase. Half of those surveyed said their trial had expired. Of those whose trial was over, 72% said they did not purchase Apple TV+ after it had expired, with only 28% going on to become paying subscribers. Of the rest whose trials had not yet expired, nearly 60% said they would pay the $4.99 fee once the time came.

In comparison to Netflix, only 19% said that the service was either a little or much better. The rest all said that Apple TV+ was either the same, a little worse or much worse than Netflix:

On average, respondents said they liked Apple TV+ less than Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video. But they were most displeased with TV+ compared to Netflix. This could present the service with problems down the road: Unlike its competitors, who are still working to find the right mixture between original and syndicated content, Apple TV+ is currently 100 percent original. Its unfamiliar offerings will have to be sufficiently compelling to overcome the hurdles created when a content portfolio doesn't have standards like Friends to fall back on.

When asked about cost, the median price people whose trials had expired said they would pay was just a dollar. The median price offered by those who were already paying was $7.

The average user reportedly spent over 3 and-a-half hours a week watching content, mostly on the Apple TV. The highest-rated show in terms of satisfaction was Helpsters.

The stats, in particular regarding audience retention and value for money are really interesting. Of course, this is a small sample size, so it might not be indicative of the whole Apple TV+ audience. However, it does reveal that of those asked about their expired Apple TV+ trial, the overwhelming majority of people do not intend to purchase the service.

You can read the survey in full here.

Stephen Warwick
News Editor

Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.

Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwarwick9