The French publication draws around 192 million monthly visits to its website and 50 million to its app. It has 665,000 paying subscribers, 90 percent of whom are digital.

In 2024, Le Monde contributed about €176.7 million – 57 percent of its parent group’s €310 million total revenue.

Subscriptions make up the largest share of income for the group, with print accounting for 33 percent and digital 23 percent. For Le Monde itself, digital subscriptions represent the single biggest revenue stream at 35 percent.

Speaking at WAN-IFRA’s recent Congress in Krakow, Flavia Barbosa Ferreira, Head of Marketing Retention at Le Monde, shared the company’s shift from tiered pricing to more tailored offers based on data analysis and subscriber behaviour.

Ferreira explained how pricing simulations, churn modelling, and offer redesigns have driven sustainable growth.

“We’ve seen a 10 percent increase in digital subscriptions alongside a 12 percent rise in revenue. This growth means we’ll fund our entire newsroom within two years,” she said.

Smart segmentation replaces blanket pricing

Le Monde started with a single digital subscription priced at €17.90, a rate Ferreira described as “relatively expensive.” To boost acquisition, they introduced a progressive pricing model: €1 for the first month, then €9.90 monthly for the first year, rising to €13 in year two, and eventually €17.90.

While this tiered approach initially attracted subscribers, it revealed clear limitations. Retention became increasingly difficult as prices rose to €13 and €17.90, causing high churn. Over time, these drop-offs offset acquisition gains made at the lower tiers.

To address this, Le Monde overhauled its strategy, focusing on finding an offer that balanced long-term revenue and loyalty.

The team engaged a data analyst specialising in subscriptions to develop a churn model, using 13 months of historical data to forecast retention up to month 47.

Assessing the reliability of Le Monde’s predictive model.

The model’s predictions closely matched actual retention figures, giving the team confidence in its long-term planning.

Analysis showed that although the tiered pricing boosted acquisition – notably when the €9.90 offer outperformed the original €17.90 – retention fell sharply as subscribers moved through each pricing stage, leading to significant revenue loss.

By month 47, the model’s retention curve for the tiered offer was notably lower than that of a consistent €9.90 plan, confirming that tiered pricing failed to sustain subscribers over time.

Ferreira pointed out a key issue: the tiers cannibalised Le Monde’s most profitable customers. Many paying the full €17.90 downgraded to cheaper plans.

“If those lower tiers hadn’t existed, they likely would have stayed at the higher price, generating more revenue,” she said.

Ferreira stressed that simply adding tiers isn’t enough. Subscription offers must reflect different user profiles and price sensitivities.

Revenue analysis supported this – although the €17.90 plan brought more money upfront, the €9.90 plan surpassed it by month 10 thanks to stronger retention. “The longer we stretch the graph, the clearer this trend,” she added.

Drawing on these insights, Le Monde launched new tailored plans: an essential plan at €10, a dual-account plan at €15, and a family plan with four accounts at €20.

To support this model, the team developed an in-house fraud detection tool called Capping, designed to curb account sharing. Ferreira noted that multi-account subscriptions now represent a third of their portfolio. The Capping tool has since been adopted by other publishers and remains central to Le Monde’s B2C and B2B strategies.

Tailored pricing, gradual hikes drive subscriber growth

Le Monde introduced multi-account subscription offers in June 2020, launching a dual plan at €19 and a family plan at €29. Uptake was initially slow, prompting a quick price adjustment to €15 and €20 respectively. Ferreira said the lower prices “made a difference.”

With this revised structure, average revenue per subscriber steadily increased, reaching nearly €12 by March 2025. Ferreira called it a successful example of price differentiation: “Instead of forcing everyone into a single model, we let users choose the value they wanted – and they stayed.”

Consistently growing ARPU over the years.

To manage churn, Le Monde introduced gradual price increases to avoid sudden drop-offs. Acquisition remained price-sensitive.

“Our simulations showed the lower the first-month price, the higher the acquisition,” Ferreira explained.

For every additional euro added to the entry price, the Essential plan alone lost over 1,000 new subscribers, leading to more than 2,000 missed acquisitions across all plans.

Despite this, retention stayed strong.

Price increase: Impact on new subscriber acquisition.

“Those already subscribed tend to stay, even with price hikes,” Ferreira noted. “The company’s long-term focus is on sustaining loyalty through pricing that fits users’ needs.”

Data-driven pricing with retention at core

Focusing on retention, Le Monde took a cautious, data-led approach to price changes.

One test raised prices by €1 and €2 across two groups of 10,000 subscribers. After notifying users in December, the team analysed results in March and implemented increases in May – six months after the initial notice.

The team also tried an annual subscription promotion, which Ferreira later called “not a smart move.”

Highly engaged readers who would pay full price instead chose the discounted annual plan, priced like 10 months, lowering average revenue per subscriber. Le Monde subsequently reduced the discount and raised the price.

In February 2023, a 50 percent discount offering a €5 monthly plan aimed at boosting acquisition was pulled after two months due to weak recruitment and revenue.

While the discount helped retain subscribers during cancellation calls, Ferreira warned it devalued the core product. New retention scripts boosted retention by over 50 percent, but the approach lost effectiveness with the launch of online cancellations.

More than just price

Le Monde’s subscription rethink hasn’t been limited to pricing alone. Design and presentation have also played a key role. Ferreira shared a few examples:

In 2020, alongside a new subscription funnel, it launched a page showcasing three offers in a classic horizontal layout with a long benefits list. But users found it overwhelming. “There was a need for more clarity,” said Ferreira.

Over the following year, the team ran A/B tests to redesign the page, improving the user experience – especially on mobile. The updated version has since boosted key performance metrics.

Longer-term initiatives include targeted, carefully timed price increases to maximise retention and reduce churn.

The company is also enhancing its in-house anti-fraud tool, Capping, while expanding multi-account bundles and exploring new subscriber options.

International growth remains a priority. Le Monde is seeking strategic partnerships to expand its English-language offering and is exploring flexible payment methods to overcome barriers in French-speaking African countries.

Finally, the company launched Le Monde Insights, a hands-on programme for international brands featuring real case studies and practical lessons.

“It’s a way for us to share what’s worked, what hasn’t, and how we’re building for the future,” said Ferreira.