The first ninety seconds of an app decide its fate. In that window the user either understands why it is on their phone or reaches for the delete button.

Most onboarding gets this backwards. It opens with a sign-up form, a permission prompt and a five-screen tour, three walls between the user and the value they came for. Every wall costs users, and the data is not subtle about it.

We design onboarding to deliver value first and ask for commitment second. Let people use the core feature before they create an account. Request the notification permission after they have felt why it helps, not on the launch screen.

Done well, onboarding is invisible. The user is simply using the app, and the sign-up happens when it finally makes sense.