Revenue screenshots and scams on X: how to check
X is full of "$X in 30 days" screenshots. Some are real, some are sandbox purchases, some are edited, and some exist
to sell a course. You can't prove a screenshot is real, so judge the source, not the image. Checked 2026-10-11.
1 · Check the screenshot itself (2 min)
| Check |
Real-looking |
Red flag |
| Math |
Day totals equal the rows; currency and decimals consistent |
Totals that don't add up; mixed formats |
| Tool UI |
Matches the real app (RevenueCat, App Store Connect, Stripe) today: fonts, badges, spacing |
Old UI, odd font in the numbers only, blurry numbers but sharp UI |
| Size |
Small, uneven amounts, gaps between dates, local-price conversions ($3.21, $5.80) |
Round, smooth, every day up and to the right |
| Context |
Shows the boring parts: refunds, empty days, churn |
Only the best day, cropped dates, no app name |
| Sandbox |
— |
RevenueCat and Stripe both have a test / sandbox view; a test purchase looks the same in a screenshot (RevenueCat sandbox) |
| One buyer |
Many countries and times |
Several purchases from one country within minutes can be one person, or the dev testing |
None of these proves anything. They only tell you how much weight to give it.
2 · Check the source (5 min)
| Check |
How |
| Is the product real and findable? |
Search the store; look at ratings count, release date, last update. No app name = no proof |
| Verified revenue |
TrustMRR reads revenue through a read-only key from Stripe, LemonSqueezy, Polar or DodoPayment (terms). A founder who's really doing well often links a verified page. App Store revenue isn't covered there |
| Account history |
On a profile, tap "Joined …" → About this account: country, join date, number of @handle changes (rolled out Nov 2025, TechCrunch). New account + many handle changes + "growth guru" = careful |
| What they sell |
Course, paid community, "DM me", agency, affiliate link? The screenshot is the ad. Fine, but it's marketing, not data |
| Track record |
Scroll back 3 months: same products, same story, numbers that grow plausibly? Or a new "I made $10K" every week with a new app |
3 · Scams that target indie devs on X
| Pattern |
What it looks like |
Do |
| "Promotion" sellers |
"Love your app! I can promote it to 200K followers for $X" in replies or DMs |
Ignore. Bought promotion is usually bots, and paid endorsements must be disclosed (FTC) |
| Reviews / ratings for sale |
"5-star reviews, real users" |
Never. Against App Store Review Guidelines (manipulating reviews), can get you removed |
| Fake acquirer / investor |
"We want to buy your app" → asks for App Store Connect access, a "valuation fee" or a file to download |
Only through escrow or a known marketplace; never pay a fee up front, never share logins or download their files |
| Fake support / copyright |
DM "your account will be suspended, verify here" |
Treat any DM with a login or "verify" link as phishing. Log in only by typing x.com yourself |
| Engagement farms |
"Drop your link, follow everyone who likes" |
Engagement spam under the Authenticity policy; see 06-reply-playbook.md |
| "Copy my system" courses |
Screenshot → "the exact playbook, $99" |
Ask for verified revenue first. Most of it is free in places like this repo |
4 · Keep motivation from real numbers
- Compare yourself with your own last 4 weeks (templates/weekly-numbers.md),
not with someone's best day.
- For a market picture, use reports built from many apps' data, e.g. RevenueCat's yearly
State of Subscription Apps, not single screenshots.
- A list of $1–8 purchases with empty days in between is what a real small app's transactions look like when someone
shows the whole list. If yours looks like that, you're on the same road, not behind it.
- Posting your own real numbers, small ones included, is what builds trust with you (talk bank E).