Best practises for freemium pricing strategy

I’ve been thinking about freemium pricing strategies, and honestly, I’m not a fan. Compared to traditional pricing models, freemium feels like an art form: you’re walking a fine line between convincing people to subscribe and not annoying them to the point where they ditch your app entirely. A lot of big companies seem to go with the classic "free trial for a month, then a rolling monthly subscription" approach. But I feel like this might not be the best move for smaller or newer apps trying to build a loyal user base. As a consumer, this model often feels predatory to me. It preys on people who just want to test something out but might forget to cancel before the trial ends. Personally, this usually makes me avoid "free trials" altogether. I think I’d prefer a setup where you get free access for a week and then hit a paywall. That feels more transparent and less manipulative, but I imagine it’s harder to implement from a technical perspective. Are there any experts here who can weigh in on this? What’s the best way to handle freemium pricing without alienating potential users? Is this a viable strategy for startups?