iOS In App Fees Increasing on Patreon starting November 1st - CHECK YOUR SUBSCRIPTIONS!

Hey everyone!

This issue is a little complex, and going to effect different creators you may follow or support in different ways, so please read carefully through the information below to ensure your Patreon bill does not suddenly jump almost 50%.

Quick TLDR:

• 1 - Starting November 1st, my Patreon accounts (Tom Cartos and TC Modern) will no longer show up on the iOS version of the Patreon app. This only applies to the Apple/iPhone version of the app. You can still find me on the desktop site or android version of the app.

• 2 - If you have subbed to any creators via the iOS app (Apple/iPhone), your bill is going to go up by as much as 45% starting next month. To avoid this, unsubscribe from those creators before the end of October and re-sub using the desktop site or android app instead.

• 3 - From November 2025 (in one years time) every single creator on Patreon will be forced to switch to the Subscription Billing system if they do not use it already. Any currently subscribed patrons at the time of the change will not be effected. More info about that when we get closer to the time. Some creators will be switched to this system on November 1st 2024, or choose to switch earlier.

• 4 - This is incredibly dumb.

• 5 - Delete the iOS app.

Subscription Prices Increasing

As you may have already heard, starting next month (November 1st 2024) Apple are going to apply their (appalling) 30% fee to any purchases made on Patreon via the iOS app. This will apply to subscriptions to creators as well as any one-time purchases. Patreon have very kindly given us the option to absorb those costs ourselves, but as I'm sure you can all imagine, an overnight 30% decrease in income is not sustainable for anyone so most creators will probably be forced to increase their prices on the iOS app.

This actually means those prices will increase by around 45% so that the creator still gets the same level of income after the change (see the table in the header image of this post). Unless you want to suddenly start paying almost 50% more just for the honour of subscribing on the iOS app, you can easily avoid these fees by simply subscribing via either the desktop site or android app instead, as those prices will remain the same.

Subscription Billing System Being Enforced

One of Patreon's greatest benefits as a platform was that they had a variety of different business models to suit a variety of different creators needs. I have always used the 'Per Creation' billing model, as it allows greater flexibility for me and my team, and allows you as patrons to choose how much you want to or can afford to support us.

However, Apple have decided that they will only support the Subscription Billing system on their app. Subscription Billing has a fixed monthly price for each tier, rather than the flexible options of Per Creation billing. It also has some other intricacies that will make things very difficult for a variety of creators, but for you as patrons the change in pricing is going to be the most obvious.

Patreon could have simply chosen to drop the iOS app and continued to allow creators the choices they built their business around, but based on some opaque data they refuse to share, they believe that keeping the iOS app is worth all the changes, and as the billing system has to be global across all versions of the app and site it will effect every creator regardless of if they want it or not.

How does this effect my subscription to Tom Cartos or TC Modern?

Apple have given those of us on the 'Per Creation' billing system one years grace before being forced to switch to Subscription Billing, and Patreon have promised new tools will be ready by then to make the switch relatively simple and painless.

They have also promised that any patrons signed up at the time the switch happens will not be effected at all. We as creators are holding them very close to these promises and are in conversation with them about how this will happen. We will give you more information as it becomes official closer to the time (November 2025).

During the next year, we will simply be hidden entirely on the iOS version of the app, but business will continue as normal on the desktop site and Android version of the app, so according to this poll, 95% of you will be entirely unaffected and probably not even notice the change.

How Can We as Patrons Help You?

At this point there is little that can be done to change or stop this, however if you wish to let Patreon know how you feel about these enforced changes, or have questions you would like answered by them directly, you can contact them via their support system here. There is a drop down option for 'Subscription Billing/In-App Purchases'. They have told us that they will take your feedback into account when creating these new 'tools' for the changeover in November next year.

You can also delete the iOS version of the app. Its only purpose now is to charge you more money for no extra benefit, and perhaps this will help skew their 'data' for any future choices made.

If you have any other questions, let me know in the comments below and I will do my best to answer. If you have questions about other creators specifically, please reach out to them directly as this effects all of us slightly differently. I will continue to keep you updated about any new information that arises.

Tom