Time-based free trial or limited freemium what actually drives conversion?

We started with a 14 day free trial, assuming urgency would push users to explore the tool deeply. Instead, most users signed up, got busy with work, and returned on day 13 asking for an extension because they never had time to test it properly.

Switching to a limited freemium model gave them breathing room but conversion to paid slowed significantly.

For founders who have tested both models: which one worked better for your product archetype, and how did you balance urgency with user activation?