What is a paywall?

A paywall is way to restrict access to certain online content. Some publishers use it to encourage readers to log in or subscribe to be able to view their articles.

Websites can implement two kinds of paywalls:

• A soft paywall that lets readers view a limited number of articles before prompting them to log in or subscribe.
• A hard paywall that blocks viewing any content without subscribing first.

Why might I see an article behind a Paywall in Pocket's recommendations?

From time to time, you may encounter an article recommended by Pocket that is from a site that utilizes paywalls. Our policy is to not recommend content that's behind hard paywalls, but we will include recommendations from sites that use soft paywalls.

Our aim is to recommend the best of the web by connecting readers with stories that are worthy of their time and attention, and this policy means that we can connect these stories with the widest possible audience.

If you hit a paywall when trying to view a story, it's likely you have already hit your maximum amount of stories allotted by that publisher. At that point, you can choose to subscribe to the publisher if you'd like or move on to the next article.