Guides · Funnels
How to see a competitor's paywall and onboarding funnel
Last updated November 10, 20266 stepsWorked example: CalmBy Every Signal
Walk it yourself, logged out, starting from the competitor's own ads: open a landing URL from its Meta Ad Library entries in a fresh private window, go through every screen to the paywall without paying, and record where email is asked, where the price first appears, the trial length, whether a card is taken first, which plan is preselected and the renewal line. Then open the same link in a new browser and see what changes.
Every Signal records exactly these fields in its teardowns, and its free trial guide compares them across 47 subscription companies. Below are the six steps, the fields to write down, and what they showed on Calm's quiz funnel in November 2026.
What to record
The paywall fields, filled in for Calm
Two funnels of the same company, as captured in the Calm record (paywall walks on November 5 and 6, 2026), all verified. Paid visitors from Meta mostly see the quiz; visitors who come to calm.com see the site offer. calm
| Field | Calm quiz (from Meta ads) | calm.com sign-up |
|---|---|---|
| Screens before the price | 36 to 43, then first name | Not recorded |
| Account or email first? | No: paywall comes before the account | Not recorded |
| Plans shown | Monthly $13.49, quarterly $35.98, annual $69.99 (discounted) | Yearly $79.99, monthly $16.99 |
| Preselected plan | Quarterly, badged | Yearly |
| Free trial | None | 14 days, on yearly only |
| Card up front | Yes, charged today | Total due today $0.00, card taken for the trial |
| Struck price | Annual $179.88, which is 12 x $14.99 | $203.88, which is 12 x $16.99 |
| Timer | 10 minutes; at zero, monthly goes to $14.99, quarterly to $44.97 and annual disappears | None |
| Refund line | partial refunds are not available | Not stated in the captured screens |
The steps
Six steps from the ad to the paywall
1. Start where the paid traffic starts
The home page is usually not the funnel paid visitors see. Take the landing URLs from the competitor's ads: the Meta ads guide shows how to list them. In the Calm record, 480 of 575 active Meta ads went to quiz.calm.com, a separate quiz funnel with its own prices. calm verified
2. Walk it logged out in a fresh private window
Go through every screen without signing in. Screenshot each one and keep a count. Note where the funnel asks for an email, a name or a phone number, and where the price first appears. Calm's quiz ran 36 to 43 screens, asked for a first name, and showed the paywall before creating an account. calm verified
3. Record the paywall fields
Use the rows of the table above: plans, prices and periods, the preselected plan, the trial length, card up front or not, the struck price and what it is made of, the renewal line, and any refund or guarantee line. Copy the small print word for word; it is the most precise statement of the offer on the page.
Across 47 subscription, dating and software companies in Every Signal's records, 10 offer a free trial, 7 days is the most common length, and 5 of the 10 take a card first. The free trial and pricing guide has the full table and the dataset.
4. Test the timer and the discount
If there is a countdown, reload mid-timer, let it reach zero, then open the same link in a new browser. On Calm's quiz paywall, at 00:00 the bar read This offer has expired
, the annual plan was removed and the monthly price went from $13.49 back to $14.99. The end time was held in the browser, so the same link in a new browser showed the full discount again. calm verified
Walk it more than once on different days, too. Calm's paywall on November 6 carried a different badge and gift placement from November 5 with the same prices; whether that was a test arm or an older version is not known. verified
5. Compare the ad, the page and the organic site
- The ad and the landing page should state the same offer. FashionPass ads headlined
10 Items / Month for $75
while the landing pages said $39 for the first month, then $125 a month. fashionpass verified - Compare the paid funnel with the main site and the app store. Calm's quiz had no trial and preselected quarterly; calm.com offered 14 days free on yearly; the app offered a 7-day trial. calm verified
6. Stop before you pay
Do not submit a card. Record what is visible and mark the rest as not verified: post-purchase upsells, what the server does with an expired discount, and real renewal billing. Calm's renewal text on each plan was captured, but because nothing was paid, whether renewals bill at those prices is recorded as not verified. Every Signal teardowns follow the same rule: public sources only, no logins and no payments to the company being studied.
While you are on the page, open the browser's network panel: the pixels and tools that load (Meta, TikTok, attribution, a funnel builder) say how the company measures and buys. On Calm's quiz the requests showed it runs on the Runwayer funnel platform. calm verified
Questions
FAQ
Do I need to pay to see a competitor's paywall?
No. Most paywalls show the plans, prices, trial terms and renewal text before the card field. Stop before submitting payment, and treat anything after payment, such as upsells and real renewal billing, as not verified.
Why does a competitor's paywall look different each time I visit?
Paid traffic often lands on a different funnel from the home page, companies run tests, and timers are often held in the browser. Calm's quiz paywall showed a different badge and gift placement on two days with the same prices, and a new browser reset its countdown discount.
How common are free trials in subscription apps?
In Every Signal's records of 47 subscription, dating and software companies, 10 offer a free trial, 7 days is the most common length, and 5 of the 10 take a card first. The free trial and pricing guide has the full table.
Can Every Signal walk a competitor's funnel for me?
Yes. A quick teardown ($1,500) includes the funnel and pricing from first visit to payment, read by a person before it ships. For a fast automated read of one URL, the analyze_landing_page job (100 credits, $10) returns the tech stack, funnel signals and ranked conversion fixes.
Check your own funnel
Audit your paywall against the records
Paste your own paywall, trial copy or landing page into the free audit at /try/ and get findings against the same records used here, with a rewrite (no sign-up, two a day). For a competitor's funnel walked and written up for you, see custom teardowns on the pricing page.