The Complete Guide to User Onboarding in 2025

User onboarding is the set of steps that help a new user reach their first value and become comfortable with your product. In SaaS, that includes what users see on their first visit, what they do after sign-up, and the help they get inside your app.

Why does this matter in 2025? In 2025, the digital space is more competitive and fast-paced than ever. With countless products vying for attention, businesses must capture value from users within minutes of signup. This makes user onboarding - not just marketing - one of the most critical success factors.

Effective onboarding bridges the gap between curiosity and confidence. It turns new visitors into engaged, active users. Whether you're running a SaaS tool, a mobile app, or an e-commerce platform, the onboarding journey sets the tone for long-term retention and customer success.

In this guide, we'll explore what effective customer onboarding looks like today, why it matters more than ever, the stages that define it, the onboarding best practices powering top-performing products, and how leading user onboarding software compares. We finish by showing why Saltfish.ai’s video-first, interactive approach sets a new benchmark for engaging users at the first touch.

What is user onboarding?

User onboarding is the process of guiding new users from sign-up to moment of value, transforming them from confused visitors into empowered users. The term originated in HR, but now refers to software experiences meant to get users “up and running” in a meaningful way. The goal? Help users quickly understand how your product improves their lives, increasing the chance they become loyal customers.

User onboarding is the journey from curiosity to competence. It covers:

• First visit and sign-up friction

• First-run experience

• Guidance inside the product

• Ongoing adoption and upsell moments

A simple mental model is the AARRR funnel. You move people from acquisition to activation, then to retention, referral, and revenue. Activation here is the first set of actions that prove the user is getting value.

Why Onboarding Matters in 2025

• Retention Is Fragile
  Without strong onboarding, users are far more likely to leave. Studies show that 90% of users who don’t get value early churn, making onboarding the difference between retention and abandonment.

• Tangible Benefits
  A robust process improves outcomes: onboarding increases new hire retention by 82% and productivity by 70%.

• Market Momentum
  The demand for onboarding tools is exploding. The digital customer onboarding software market is expected to grow from $751 million in 2021 to $1.68 billion by 2025, a CAGR of over 22%. Similarly, the broader employee onboarding software market is projected to expand from $3.5 billion in 2024 to $8.2 billion by 2033, at 10.2% CAGR.

• High Expectations
  By 2025, interactive elements like gamification are expected to become mainstream. Between 65–70% of organizations will use gamification to enhance user engagement. Personalized flows already increase completion rates by 35%, and AI chatbots handle 75% of onboarding questions instantly. 

This is the environment in which onboarding must thrive, and it must now meet users where they are: short, visual, personalized, and interactive.

Stages of modern onboarding

1. Pre-sign-up
   Your homepage, pricing page, and demo content set expectations. Strong teasers, interactive demos, and short videos warm users before they register.

2. Account creation
   Remove steps, offer social sign-in, and clarify what happens next.

3. First run
   Lead users to one meaningful action, not ten. Use checklists, nudges, and quick wins.

4. Guided activation
   Provide contextual help inside the interface. Replace long tours with light, targeted prompts or short video messages placed where confusion appears. Research shows this approach keeps focus high and reduces cognitive load.

5. Adoption and expansion
   Re-engage users when they hit new features or plans. Trigger in-product guidance at paywalls, usage limits, and upgrade pages.

6. Ongoing success
   Keep a resource center and fresh videos for new releases. Re-run micro-onboarding when you ship big changes.
   
   
   

Onboarding best practices for 2025

1. Design for time to value
   Pick one core job to be done and steer users there in under 3 minutes. Time to value is the outcome to watch, not just clicks.

2. Make help contextual
   Prefer in-UI cues over long pre-launch tours. Offer help at the moment and location of need.

3. Personalize paths
   Branch flows by role, plan, or intent. Ask one question up front to route people to the right steps.

4. Use short, human video
   Short face-to-face clips remove ambiguity and build trust. They are faster to consume than manuals and more human than walls of text.

5. Allow skipping and control
   Let users dismiss prompts, rewind a video, or open a resource center on demand. Forced paths create friction.

6. Measure activation, not pageviews
   Tie guidance to activation metrics, not vanity metrics. Use the AARRR lens to pick the right KPIs.

7. Keep it lightweight
   Every second counts during sign-up. If a step is not essential to first value, move it later.

8. Refresh often
   Onboarding is a living system. Update content after product changes to avoid stale guidance.

9. Blend product and success
   Send follow-ups only when needed. Push heavy training to later. Guide in the product first.
   
   
   

The toolkit landscape in 2025

Onboarding stacks are split into two groups:

• In-app onboarding and digital adoption platforms: Appcues, Userpilot, Pendo, WalkMe, Whatfix, Chameleon, Userflow, Usetiful, Stonly, Gainsight PX. These tools add tours, checklists, tooltips, and analytics.

• AI video tools used during onboarding: Synthesia, HeyGen, Colossyan, D-ID, Loom. These create or host videos but do not natively guide users contextually inside your app.

Saltfish bridges the gap by generating AI presenters, assembling them into branching flows, and embedding the result inside your UI with a lightweight widget. The product is designed for conversion, activation, feature discovery, and upsell moments, all with video.

Comparison of Top User Onboarding Software in 2025

Deeper Dive Into Each Tool

Appcues

Well-suited for SaaS companies that need polished product tours and contextual messaging. It allows visual customization of tooltips, modals, and surveys without coding. That said, pricing ramps quickly, bumping to $750+/month for broader functionality, and there's no deep video or embedded CTA support.

Pendo

Ideal for enterprise-level orgs that want rich analytics while guiding users with tooltips and surveys. Though it offers a free tier, unlocking full value requires a custom contract, typically beyond mid-market budgets.

Userpilot

Great for products desiring personalization by user behavior or segment. Its visual builder and triggers make role-specific flows simpler. Less suitable for teams wanting to embed interactive video or export customer-facing CTAs.

WalkMe

Built for enterprise complexity—think legacy systems, compliance flows, and cross-platform interactions. Powerful, yes, but often overkill in cost and setup time for modern SaaS.

UserGuiding

Best for lean teams aiming for straightforward onboarding with tours and self-help. Very affordable and fast to deploy. However, lacks deeper analytics, video features, and personalization tools.

Where Saltfish fits and why it wins for onboarding

Most onboarding tools were built for text overlays and click-through tours. They are useful, but they do not feel human. On the other side, AI video generators make great explainers, but they live on a landing page or in a help center. Saltfish combines both. It puts short, face-to-face video right inside your interface at the exact moment a new user needs help.

Saltfish.ai is a new-generation onboarding tool built on a video-first foundation. Unlike traditional platforms, Saltfish generates AI-powered videos with avatars and voiceovers that can be embedded directly into websites and apps. These videos are interactive, allowing users to click buttons, fill out forms, or branch into different paths directly within the video.

How it works

• Generate an AI video from text in seconds.

• Assemble branching flows to match user roles or segments.

• Embed the widget with a single line so videos appear contextually in your app.

• Use it across the funnel: greet visitors, capture leads, onboard sign-ups, highlight features, and prompt upgrades.

What customers report
Teams share improvements such as a 16 percent lift in visitor conversion, 4x faster time to value, a 23 percent bump in sign-up-to-demo, and a 5x increase in activation after replacing a legacy flow. These outcomes reflect how human, contextual video changes behavior.

A real example
Legitify used Saltfish to remove friction in a key onboarding step. Their product manager says users felt more confident, and completion rates improved.

Practical playbook: implement video-first onboarding in 2 weeks

Week 1: foundations

1. Define “first value” for each persona. Keep it simple.

2. Map the top 3 friction points from recent sessions and support tickets.

3. Write 3 scripts of 20–40 seconds each. Keep one job per video.

4. In Saltfish, generate your presenter videos and build a branching flow for two roles or plans.

Week 2: ship and iterate

1. Embed the widget in your app. Start with the dashboard, a complex feature page, and the paywall or upgrade screen.

2. Add a checklist that links to the video steps, and a “Need help?” call that plays the clip again.

3. Track activation events and time to value. If a step underperforms, shorten the script, change the thumbnail, or move the prompt closer to the confused action.

4. Localize top clips once you see traction. Short videos are easier to translate than long tours.

Why Saltfish is the better alternative for onboarding

While many onboarding platforms continue to rely on text-based tours and static checklists, Saltfish.ai introduces something different. Its foundation is video, the most engaging medium for communication, but it goes further by making these videos interactive. Saltfish-generated videos can branch, pause for input, and include clickable elements such as forms or buttons. Instead of passively watching, users participate.

This creates onboarding experiences that feel personal and dynamic. A customer might watch a short video explaining a feature, then immediately click a button inside the video to try it themselves or sign up for a demo. This level of interactivity transforms video into an active driver of engagement and conversion.

Saltfish is also easy to implement. A single line of code allows companies to embed interactive videos directly into their websites or applications. Teams can use AI to generate avatars, voices, and scripts in minutes, saving time and resources. With scalable pricing options, from a generous free tier to advanced enterprise packages, Saltfish can support startups as well as large organizations.

Most importantly, Saltfish has shown results. Businesses report faster activation rates, higher retention, and more conversions after adopting its video-first flows. By blending clarity, interactivity, and personalization, Saltfish embodies the onboarding best practices that define success in 2025.

1. Human guidance at the exact moment of need
   Video appears inside your app where users hesitate, which matches the recommendation to use contextual help instead of long upfront tours.

2. Fast setup with one-line embed
   Teams ship flows without heavy engineering and can preview safely before going live.

3. Flows that branch by segment
   New admins and end users see different guidance without extra versions or complex logic in your code.

4. Full-funnel impact
   Saltfish is not only for onboarding. Use it to greet visitors, capture leads, highlight features, and drive upgrades. The site’s customer results show conversion and activation improvements when video becomes the default guidance layer.

5. Speed to content
   An AI video generator means your team can create or update a clip in minutes instead of waiting for production.

Ready to try video-first onboarding?

Most onboarding tools give you tours, tooltips, or static screens. Saltfish takes a different path video-first, human, and contextual. With Saltfish, you can greet every new user with a face-to-face guide, cut their time-to-value in half, and turn confused trial users into confident paying customers.

Whether you’re a fast-growing SaaS startup or a global enterprise, Saltfish helps you:

• Build personalized onboarding flows in minutes, not weeks

• Embed video guidance directly inside your product with a single line of code

• Boost activation, conversions, and upgrades with real results (16%+ more conversions, 5x more activations)

• Give your users a human experience at scale, without hiring an army of CSMs

Don’t settle for generic tooltips. Give your users the clarity and confidence they deserve.
Book a demo with Saltfish today and see how fast you can make video-first onboarding your new growth engine.

FAQ

Is video-first onboarding only for complex products?
No. Even simple tools face moments of confusion. A 20-second clip from a human face reduces doubt and drives the next click.

Does video slow people down?
Only if it is long and hard to find. Keep it short, make it skippable, and place it beside the action. 

How do I measure success?Track time to value, task completion, and activation. Use AARRR to pick the right stage metrics.