What is a Conversion Value in SKAdNetwork?

A conversion value is a number between 0 and 63 that represents what a user did after installing your app.

It's the only post-install data you get from SKAdNetwork. No user IDs. No detailed event logs. Just a single number encoding user behavior.

This number determines whether you can optimize your iOS campaigns effectively or operate blind.

How Conversion Values Work

When someone installs your app from an ad, SKAdNetwork measures their activity during a specific time window:

• SKAN 3.0: 24-72 hours post-install
• SKAN 4.0 (window 1): 0-2 days post-install

At the end of this window, Apple sends a postback containing a conversion value. This value represents the most valuable action the user took.

If you've set up your conversion value schema to track purchases:

• Value 0 = no purchase
• Value 10 = purchase under $1
• Value 20 = purchase $1-5
• Value 30 = purchase $5-10
• Value 40 = purchase over $10

The ad network receives "40" and knows this install made a purchase over $10. That's the extent of the data.

Why Only 64 Values?

Apple limited conversion values to 0-63 (64 total values) as a privacy mechanism.

More granular data would make it easier to identify individual users. The constraint forces aggregation, which protects user privacy.

This creates a challenge: you need to encode everything meaningful about a user's behavior into a single number from 0-63.

Types of Conversion Value Schemas

There are three main approaches to mapping events to conversion values:

1. Revenue-Based Mapping

Map dollar ranges to conversion values.

Example schema:

• 0 = $0
• 1-10 = $0.01 to $1.00 (in $0.10 increments)
• 11-30 = $1 to $10 (in $0.50 increments)
• 31-50 = $10 to $50 (in $2 increments)
• 51-63 = $50 to $100+ (in $5 increments)

Best for: Apps with immediate monetization (e-commerce, in-app purchases, subscription trials with payment up front).

2. Event-Based Mapping

Assign values to specific user actions based on importance.

Example schema:

• 0 = Install only
• 5 = First session complete
• 10 = Tutorial complete
• 15 = Level 3 reached
• 20 = Account created
• 30 = First purchase
• 40 = Three purchases
• 50 = Subscription started

Best for: Apps with multi-step funnels or delayed monetization.

3. Hybrid Mapping

Combine revenue and events into a single schema.

Example schema:

• 0-9 = Engagement events (tutorial, levels, etc.)
• 10-39 = Revenue tiers under $10
• 40-63 = Revenue tiers $10+

Best for: Apps with both engagement metrics and revenue to optimize toward.

How Values Update

Conversion values can only increase during the measurement window, never decrease.

If a user completes an action worth value 10, then later completes an action worth value 20, the final value sent in the postback is 20.

If they complete value 30, then value 15, the final value remains 30.

This "highest value wins" system means you should structure your schema so higher numbers always represent more valuable behavior.

Setting Up Conversion Values

Your MMP handles the technical implementation:

1. Choose your schema strategy (revenue, events, or hybrid)
2. Map events to values in your MMP dashboard
3. Configure the SDK to send events when they occur
4. Test to verify events fire and values update correctly

Most MMPs (AppsFlyer, Adjust, Singular) provide conversion value studios with visual schema builders.

What to Track

The most effective conversion value schemas track early indicators of long-term value.

Good candidates:

• Tutorial completion (predicts retention)
• First purchase (predicts LTV)
• Subscription trial start (predicts conversion)
• Level 3 completion (predicts engagement)
• Account creation (predicts activation)

Poor candidates:

• App opens (too common, not predictive)
• Generic sessions (lacks specificity)
• Events that occur after the measurement window
• Events only 1% of users complete (insufficient volume)

The goal is to identify behaviors within the first 24-48 hours that correlate with long-term value.

Coarse Conversion Values (SKAN 4.0)

SKAN 4.0 introduced a second type: coarse conversion values.

Instead of 0-63, coarse values have only three options:

• Low
• Medium
• High

Coarse values appear in:

• All three SKAN 4.0 postback windows
• Situations where crowd anonymity limits data granularity

You define what constitutes low, medium, and high for your app.

Example:

• Low = 0-1 sessions
• Medium = 2-3 sessions
• High = 4+ sessions or any purchase

Coarse values trade granularity for extended measurement windows (up to 35 days in SKAN 4.0).

Optimization Strategy

Your conversion value schema determines what you can optimize toward.

If you map to revenue, you optimize toward users who spend quickly.

If you map to engagement events, you optimize toward users who complete onboarding.

If you map to retention signals, you optimize toward users who return frequently.

Choose based on what actually drives your business outcomes. Early revenue doesn't always predict LTV. High engagement doesn't always lead to monetization.

Test different schemas to see which correlates best with long-term performance.

Common Mistakes

Mapping too many events: Trying to encode 15 different events into 64 values creates noise. Focus on 3-5 key behaviors.

Ignoring event frequency: If only 2% of users complete an event, it won't provide useful optimization signal.

Not accounting for timing: Events that occur 5 days post-install don't help in a 2-day measurement window.

Making higher values less valuable: Value 50 should always represent better behavior than value 40.

Never updating the schema: What matters on day 1 might not matter 6 months later as your app evolves.

FAQs

What is a conversion value in SKAN?

A conversion value is a number between 0 and 63 that encodes user behavior after installing your app. It's the only post-install data you receive in SKAdNetwork postbacks for measuring campaign quality.

How do you set up conversion values?

Conversion values are set up through your MMP by mapping in-app events and revenue to specific values. You choose which events matter most and assign them values based on your optimization goals.

What should I track with conversion values?

Track early indicators of user value like tutorial completion, first purchase, subscription starts, or revenue milestones. Choose events that occur within your measurement window and predict long-term value.

Can conversion values decrease?

No. Conversion values can only increase during the measurement window. Once a user hits value 30, they can't go back to value 20. The highest value achieved is what gets sent in the postback.

How many conversion values should I use?

There's no requirement to use all 64 values. Most effective schemas use 10-20 distinct values, focusing on meaningful behavioral milestones rather than trying to maximize granularity.

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Conversion values are the core of SKAN measurement. The better you encode user behavior into these 64 values, the more effectively you can optimize iOS campaigns in a privacy-first environment.