# Retention rate

> Retention rate is the share of users who are still active, or still paying, after a set time.

Source: https://synthiya.ai/glossary/retention-rate · Updated 2026-10-09 · By Synthiya

For paying customers, retention is the flip side of churn. If 5% churn in a month, 95% are retained. For apps, teams also track user retention. That's the share of new users who come back on day 1, day 7 or day 30.

To measure it, pick a group, such as everyone who signed up in one week. Then count how many are still active after the time you chose.

## Why it matters

Good retention means people keep finding value. Poor retention means they try the app and drift away. Feedback from early users helps you find the moment they lose interest, so you can fix it.

> **Example:**
> 1,000 people install your app in the first week of May. A week later, 300 of them open it again. Your day-7 retention for that group is 30%.