Targetings

A targeting binds a user audience to a set of paywalls across placements.
Configure targetings in Mission Control → Targetings tab after you added products, paywalls, and placements.

For the evaluation model — how Apphud chooses which targeting applies to a user — see How targetings work on the Mission Control page.

Create a targeting

To create a new targeting:

1. Choose Mission Control menu item in Monetization section. Targeting tab will open by default.
2. Click + New targeting button at the top right page corner.
3. Set the audience filter. Choose a saved audience or create a new one inline. See Audience for details and rules.
4. (Optional) Set the app remote config. Paste a JSON object that will be delivered to all users matching this targeting. See App remote config.
5. Override placements defaults as needed. Every placement starts with the inherited paywall from Default targeting. Click Configure on any placement row to set a different paywall for this targeting's audience by choosing from the existing paywall list or creating a new one from scratch. Placements & paywalls.
6. Click Create targeting.

The new targeting is added with the maximum numeric rank among custom targetings.
If no active A/B tests are running, it will be shown at the top of the list, given the highest priority, and It will be evaluated first in the rank-based waterfall. A targeting with a running A/B test will always have "Top Priority" despite its actual numeric rank, and will be shown at the top of the targeting list.

To change a new targeting priority, use Reorder rank — see Reprioritizing monetization schemas.

Step 1 - Targeting Audience

A targeting must have an audience filter that selects which users match. There are two ways to set it up for a new targeting.

Use saved audience

Pick an audience from your Audiences library - default or custom one.

Audiences already attached to another targeting in this app appear disabled (greyed out) in the dropdown — each audience object can be attached to at most one targeting at a time.

Create new audience

Define filters inline within the targeting. The new audience is saved to your Audiences library and behaves identically to audiences created directly in the Audiences menu — you can edit it later via Audiences, and it counts toward the one-targeting-per-audience rule (it will appear disabled in dropdowns of other targetings while attached to this one).

To create an inline audience:

1. In the Audience section, click Create new audience.

2. Enter an audience name.

3. Select a Filter (for example, User Lifetime, Country, App Version).

   • Set the comparator (=, ≥, ≠, etc.) and the value.
   • Click Apply filter.
   • add and apply additional filers if needed.
   

Each applied filter appears as a chip below the filter row. Click Clear all to remove every filter at once.

Filters within a single audience are combined with AND logic — the user must match all of them.

For the full list of available filter parameters, see Audiences → Filters.

Step 2 - Targeting App remote config (optional)

You can set a JSON configuration applied to all users matching this targeting. Use it for feature flags, content variations, theme parameters, or any value your app reads at session start.

To set it: in the App remote config section of a New targeting window, edit the JSON in the editor and save the targeting.

The shape and keys of the JSON are entirely up to your app — Apphud delivers the JSON as-is. The app reads it via the SDK and decides how to use the values.

Step 3 - Targeting Placements & paywalls

Each (targeting, placement) pair resolves to exactly one paywall. A new custom targeting starts with every placement inherited from Default targeting — meaning Default's paywall for that placement also applies to your audience, unless you override it.

To configure a placement:

1. In the targeting view, find the placement row in Placements & paywalls.
2. Click Configure.
3. Choose one of three modes (see below): Inherited, Existing, or New paywall.
4. Inspect or edit the paywall in the Preview & edit area. Switch tabs Screen & products, Macros, Commitment plans, and Custom JSON to review or configure each part. The right side shows a live preview.
5. Click Confirm config & return.

Inherited paywall

Inherited paywall is the default state when you haven't overridden a placement in this targeting. No override is recorded; users matching this targeting see Default's paywall for the placement.

You don't need to actively choose this — every placement in a new targeting starts here.
Selecting Inherited paywall in the Configure dialog is meaningful in one case: to revert a previous override. If you previously chose Use existing or Create new for the placement and want to go back to Default, open Configure and select Inherited paywall.

Use existing paywall

Pick another paywall (already created in Mission Control → Paywalls) by ID. The paywall's screen, product bundles, and custom JSON apply for this (targeting, placement) pair.

Choose this when you have a different paywall ready for this audience and don't need to create a new one.

When you select an existing paywall, you can also edit it inline in the Preview & edit area (Screen & products, Macros, Custom JSON, Introductory offer tabs).
Two save options appear:

• Apply changes — updates the existing paywall itself. The changes propagate to every targeting that uses this paywall, not just the current one. A confirmation dialog warns you, noting the action cannot be reverted.
• Save as new — creates a new paywall with your edits applied, using the original as a starting point, and assigns it to this (targeting, placement) pair only. The original paywall stays unchanged for other targetings.

Create new paywall

Define a brand-new paywall inline. The new paywall is added to the Paywalls list and used for this (targeting, placement) pair.

Choose this when no existing paywall fits, and you want to build one within the same flow.

After saving, the placement shows the chosen paywall to users matching this targeting.
Other targetings are not affected. You can later reuse the paywall for other targetings or placements, just like any paywall created directly in the Paywalls tab.

For full paywall configuration details — bundles, commitment plans, screens, macros, JSON shape, localization — see Paywalls.

Creating new Placement

You can add a new Placement from a targeting configuration.

Below the placements list in Placements & paywalls, the + Add placement button lets you create a new placement directly without leaving the targeting flow.

When you add a placement this way you're prompted to assign a paywall for it (the same Configure flow as for existing placements — with Inherited, Use existing, or Create new options).

The new (placement, paywall) pair is added to every targeting in your app, including Default and all other custom targetings. They all start using the paywall you assign here unless individually overridden later.

Use this when you realize during targeting setup that a new placement is needed app-wide.

Edit a targeting

You cannot change an audience for a saved targeting; the rest is reconfigurable. To update an existing targeting:

1. Open Mission Control → Targetings.
2. Find the targeting row and click the three-dot menu (⋯) at the end of the row.
3. Click Edit.
4. Modify App remote config, any placement's override, or add a new placement from scratch.
5. Save changes.

Note that for a custom audience, you can adjust and save the audience filters in the Audiences section, thus changing the targeting audience. If the audience name is updated - the update will be also reflected in Targetings.

Archive a targeting

Archiving removes a targeting from the active list. If the targeting has a running A/B test, you won't be able to archive it till the test is completed.

To archive:

1. Open Mission Control → Targetings.
2. Find the targeting row and click the three-dot menu (⋯).
3. Click Archive (red).
4. Confirm in the Archive targeting? dialog.

What happens on archive:

• Only the targeting is archived. Placements and paywalls attached to it remain intact and continue to be available in Placements and Paywalls.
• The audience that was attached to this targeting becomes available again for use in other targetings.

Worked examples

These scenarios walk through how a targeting setup translates to what specific users see.

Example 1 — promo paywall for new users only

Goal: Show a special trial paywall on onboarding to new users; everyone else sees the standard paywall.

Setup:

• Default (audience: All Users):
  • onboarding → main_paywall
  • settings → settings_paywall
• Custom targeting "New Users" (Default audience: New Users, rank 1):
  • onboarding → overridden with trial_paywall
  • settings → inherited

Outcome:

Example 2 — overlapping audiences, rank order matters

Goal: Run a country-specific paywall (Mexico) AND a new-user paywall on onboarding. Decide what Mexico-based new users see.

Setup:

• Default — fallback for everyone
• Custom targeting "Mexico" (Custom filter based audience: Store Country = Mexico, rank 2): overrides onboarding with mexico_paywall
• Custom targeting "New Users" (Default New Users audience, rank 1): overrides onboarding with trial_paywall

Outcome for a new user from Mexico on onboarding:

• "Mexico" is rank 2 — higher priority than "New Users" (rank 1) — so evaluated first
• User matches "Mexico" → wins
• "New Users" is not evaluated for this user
• User sees mexico_paywall

To prioritize "New Users" over "Mexico" for this overlap, swap the ranks via Reorder rank.

Example 3 — sandbox testing without affecting production users

Goal: Test a redesigned paywall in TestFlight or Android Studio without showing it to production users.

Setup:

• Custom targeting "Sandbox Testing" (Default audience: Sandbox Users, any rank):
  • onboarding → overridden with experimental_paywall

Outcome:

• Sandbox users (TestFlight, Xcode, Android Studio installs) match this targeting → see experimental_paywall
• Production users don't match Environment = Sandbox → fall through to other targetings or Default → see normal paywalls

Example 4 — feature flag rollout via app remote config

Goal: Enable a beta feature for users in your "Beta testers" audience without changing what paywalls they see.

Setup:

• Custom targeting "Beta testers" (Custom audience: saved audience "Beta testers", any rank):
  • All placements inherited from Default
  • App remote config: { "beta_features_enabled": true }

Outcome:

• Users matching "Beta testers" audience receive { "beta_features_enabled": true } from the SDK; the app reads this and unlocks the feature
• Other users don't match → no config delivered → feature stays off (the app's default)
• No paywall differences — placements are inherited

FAQ

Can a targeting have no audience filter at all?

No.

Can I use the same audience in multiple targetings?

We do not recommend duplicating audience objects.
Not the same audience object — once attached to a targeting, it's disabled in the Use saved audience dropdown. But you can create a new audience with identical filters and attach it to a second targeting.
In normal delivery this is redundant: the higher-ranked targeting wins and the duplicate stays idle. It's useful for one case — running a separate experiment on the same audience, since A/B tests take priority over rank. See Experiments.
We do not recommend duplicating audience objects.

Where does an inline-created audience go?

When you create a new audience inline from a targeting, it is saved to your Audiences library — same as if you had created it directly in the Audiences menu. You can edit it later in Audiences. Because it is now attached to this targeting, it appears disabled in the saved-audience dropdowns of other targetings.

What's the difference between Inherited, Use existing, and Create new when configuring a placement?

• Inherited — no override. Default's paywall for this placement applies to your audience. This option mainly exists to revert the customization applied earlier.
• Use existing — pick an already-created paywall by ID. Its full configuration (screen, products, JSON) applies for this (targeting, placement) pair.
• Create new — define a brand-new paywall inline. It gets added to the Paywalls list and used for this pair.

Can I change the audience filter of a running targeting?

Yes. Save the updated filter and it applies on the next evaluation. Users who previously matched but no longer match the new filter fall through the waterfall on their next session.

The change takes effect on the user's next SDK fetch — no delay or stickiness for normal targetings. Exception — active A/B tests: variation assignments are sticky at the user level, so a user already placed into a running experiment stays on their assigned variation even if their attributes change; once the experiment ends, they follow normal targeting rules again.

What happens if I delete a paywall that's used in a targeting override?

No, a paywall used in a placement for an audience, i.e. used in a targeting cannot be deleted.

Can I duplicate an existing targeting?

No. Currently a targeting duplication function is not available.

Can I delete a custom targeting?

In a way. Targeting gets archieved - all the objects it uses remain afterwards (audience, placement, paywalls).

Where do I see analytics for a specific targeting?

There's no dedicated per-targeting endpoint or chart. Use Paywall analytics (filter by the paywall the targeting serves) and, for a targeting that hosts an experiment, Experiments for per-variation metrics.