"How will this app earn?" is the question I push every client to answer before we design a single screen, because the revenue model shapes the whole product. Here are the models that actually work, with their honest trade-offs.
Selling products or services (direct)
The app is a sales channel: store apps, booking apps, course apps. Cleanest model of all — you already know your margins. The app succeeds by making buying easier than any alternative, so checkout friction is your real enemy.
Subscriptions
Users pay monthly or yearly for ongoing value: test series, fitness plans, premium content, tools. Predictable income, but the app must deliver value every month, or cancellations follow. Works best when your content or service naturally renews.
Commission / marketplace
You connect two sides — customers and providers — and take a cut. Potentially the biggest model and definitely the hardest: you must grow both sides simultaneously. Start hyper-local and narrow; the "everything marketplace" graveyard is enormous.
Advertising
Only meaningful with very large daily usage. For a local business app, ads earn pocket change while cheapening the experience. Almost always the wrong choice — it is listed here mainly so you can rule it out confidently.
The hybrid truth
Most successful apps mix models: free core with paid premium, direct sales plus a delivery fee, subscriptions with a one-time unlock. Pick the primary engine first, design the app around it, and let secondary revenue emerge from real usage. If you are torn between models, that conversation is exactly what a consultation call is for.