Paywalls and access
Metered paywall
Also called Article meter, Free article limit
A metered paywall allows a set number of free articles in a period — commonly three to ten per month — and gates everything after that. The count is tracked in browser storage or against a signed-in account, and resets when the period rolls over.
How the counter is tracked
Most meters store the count in cookies or local storage, which is why a private window often shows a fresh allowance: the new browsing context has no prior count. Publishers that care about accuracy tie the meter to an account or a device fingerprint instead, which survives clearing storage.
Meters are also adjusted by traffic source. Arriving from a search engine or a social network frequently grants access that a direct visit would not, because publishers value the discovery path.
Meter versus subscription
A metered paywall is a funnel, not a lock. Its purpose is to let a reader form a habit before asking for money, so publishers tune the free allowance up or down based on conversion rather than any technical constraint.
Common questions
Why did an article open yesterday and not today?
The free allowance was probably exhausted, or the publisher changed the meter. Meters can also differ by traffic source, so the same link can open from search and gate on a direct visit.
Does clearing cookies reset the meter?
For storage-based meters, usually yes. For meters tied to an account or a device signal, no.
Is a metered paywall soft or hard?
Either. Some meters hide text the browser already received, which behaves like a soft paywall. Others switch the server to withholding the body once the count is exceeded.