Creator Short verdict: who should pick what
- Our pick · Best Substack alternative Keep more of your paid revenue and grow with ads and recommendations: Beehiiv. Paid plans take 0% of paid subscriptions and add the Ad Network, paid recommendations and automations, for a flat fee from $59 a month ($49 billed yearly) at up to 1,000 subscribers.
- Biggest free list, plus selling products: Kit. Free up to 10,000 subscribers, with paid newsletters on every plan at 3.5% + 30¢ per transaction, card processing included.
- Simple, independent writing: Buttondown. Free for your first 100 subscribers, sends from your own domain, no cut beyond card fees.
- Own the software: Ghost. Open source, self-hosted or managed; Ghost(Pro) Publisher takes 0% transaction fees.
- Stay on Substack if its app and network matter most, you don’t charge yet, or your paid revenue is below the break-even points below.
Weighing just the top two? Our Beehiiv vs Substack comparison goes deeper. For more free tiers, see best free newsletter platforms.
Why creators look for a Substack alternative
The 10%. Substack is free to publish on at any list size, but its help center says it keeps 10% of each subscription payment. Stripe adds 2.9% + $0.30 per US card payment plus a Billing fee on recurring payments, which Substack’s own help articles give as 0.7% in one place and 0.5% in another.
Your domain. A Substack custom domain is a one-time $50 and must be a subdomain such as www. Even then, Substack’s help center says, “Emails are still sent from [yoursubdomain]@substack.com.”
What you give up: discovery. Substack says more than half of its new subscribers come from inside the platform and that its network drives 25% of paid subscriptions. Those are Substack’s own figures, which we can’t check, but its reader app, Notes and recommendations are real tools you leave behind.
Fees and free plans compared
From each vendor’s official pricing or help pages, checked October 5, 2026, in USD. “Platform cut” is the share of paid-subscription revenue kept on top of payment processing.
| Platform | Free plan | Cheapest way to charge readers | Platform cut | Payment processing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Substack | Free at any list size | Free | 10% | Stripe 2.9% + $0.30 plus a 0.5% or 0.7% Billing fee |
| Beehiiv Our pick · Best Substack alternative | Up to 2,500 subscribers, unlimited sends | Lite: $59/mo, or $49/mo billed yearly (up to 1,000 subscribers) | 0% on paid plans (not during the free trial) | Stripe 2.9% + $0.30 |
| Kit | Up to 10,000 subscribers | Free plan | 0.6%, per Kit | 3.5% + 30¢ total, card processing included |
| Buttondown | First 100 subscribers | Paid subscriptions add-on, +$9/month | None | Stripe card fees |
| Ghost(Pro) | None (Starter, $18/mo billed yearly, can’t take payments) | Publisher: $29/mo billed yearly (up to 1,000 members) | 0% | Your own Stripe account |
| Ghost, self-hosted | Open-source software; you pay for hosting | Same features as Ghost(Pro) | 0% | Your own Stripe account |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
Beehiiv’s pricing page now lists Free, Lite, Pro and Enterprise plans. Kit’s static pricing page shows yearly-billed prices only. Beehiiv, Ghost(Pro) and Buttondown prices rise with list size.
Ownership, domains and discovery compared
| Platform | Custom web domain | Send from your domain | Remove branding | Built-in discovery | Moving off Substack |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Substack | $50 one-time; subdomain only | No (@substack.com) | — | Reader app, Notes, recommendations, leaderboards | Subscriber CSV (no names) |
| Beehiiv | Paid plans (help + feature table; Free plan summary also lists Custom Domains — confirm in-account) | Paid plans | Pro | Free recommendation network; paid recommendations and Ad Network on paid plans (not in all regions) | Guide covers content, subscribers and paid subscribers (Stripe customer transfer) |
| Kit | Yes, for landing pages | Not listed on its pricing page | Creator and up | Free Recommendations; Paid Recommendations from Creator | “Free migrations” |
| Buttondown | Archives on your domain: +$29/month | Yes, even free | +$79/month add-on | None listed | Paid subscribers carry over with the same Stripe account |
| Ghost | Free on every Ghost(Pro) plan | Publisher and up | Every plan | Ghost Explore, recommendations, ActivityPub | Ghost says content, subscribers and payments migrate |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
Break-even math: when a flat fee beats Substack’s 10%
Substack’s cost is 10% of what readers pay. Beehiiv, Ghost(Pro) and Buttondown charge a flat monthly fee instead, so the flat fee wins once your monthly paid revenue passes ten times the plan price. We’ve left card processing out because it applies everywhere and depends on your Stripe account and country. Beehiiv prices by total list, free readers included:
| Total subscribers | Beehiiv Lite, monthly / yearly billing | Substack’s 10% matches it at this monthly paid revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1,000 | $59 / $49 a month | $590 / $490 |
| Up to 2,500 | $79 / $69 a month | $790 / $690 |
| Up to 10,000 | $139 / $119 a month | $1,390 / $1,190 |
| Up to 50,000 | $299 / $249 a month | $2,990 / $2,490 |
At 1,000 readers, Ghost(Pro) Publisher ($29 a month billed yearly) breaks even at $290. Buttondown’s pricing page lists Basic at $9/month for up to 1,000 subscribers (listed per month on the pricing page); with the $9 paid-subscriptions add-on that’s $18, or $180 of revenue. Kit has no break-even point: it charges per transaction, and says its own share is 0.6% against Substack’s 10%.
Beehiiv: the growth and monetization alternative
Our pick · Best Substack alternative
Beehiiv is the closest like-for-like replacement: newsletter, website, podcast and paid subscriptions in one place. Free covers up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends. Lite adds paid subscriptions at a 0% take rate, the Ad Network, paid recommendations, automations and digital products. Pro ($109 a month, or $95 billed yearly, at up to 1,000 subscribers) adds unlimited paid tiers, group subscriptions, a sponsorship storefront and branding removal.
Strengths
- 0% of paid-subscription and digital-product revenue on paid plans
- Ad Network (CPM and CPC offers) on Lite and up
- A Substack migration guide that covers paid subscribers
Watch-outs
- Free stops at 2,500 subscribers; prices rise with your total list
- Ad Network and paid recommendations are “not in all regions” (regions not listed) and not in the trial
- Lite allows one paid tier; branding removal needs Pro
See Beehiiv’s plans Read our Beehiiv guide
Kit: a big free list plus commerce
Kit is creator email marketing rather than a publishing network, but it covers the core job. Free holds up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited broadcasts, landing pages and forms, and Kit lists paid newsletters and digital products on every plan. Creator is $33 a month billed yearly ($390 a year) and Pro $66 ($790 a year), both at 1,000 subscribers, with a 14-day free trial.
Strengths
- Largest free list here (10,000)
- Paid newsletters even on Free
- Recommendations network; automations from Creator
Watch-outs
- Kit keeps 23.5% of Paid Recommendations earnings
- Sponsorships, RSS campaigns and branding removal aren’t on Free
- No reader app listed
kit.com/pricing · Kit vs Beehiiv
Buttondown: simple, independent writing
Buttondown suits writers who want a plain newsletter without a platform around it. It’s free for your first 100 subscribers, with a rich-text or Markdown editor, hosted archives and sending from your own domain. Extras are à la carte: paid subscriptions +$9/month, analytics +$9, automations +$29, whitelabeling +$79. Prices assume at most one email a day to your whole list.
Strengths
- Your own sending domain from the start
- No revenue share
- Page data lists $9 up to 1,000 subscribers, $29 up to 5,000, $79 up to 10,000
Watch-outs
- Add-ons add up
- No discovery network listed
- Add-on prices at larger lists aren’t shown on the static pricing page
Ghost: own the software
Ghost is open source, so you can run it yourself or pay for Ghost(Pro). Ghost’s docs say features are identical either way, with 0% payment-processing fees, and Ghost connects to your own Stripe account. Starter ($18 a month billed yearly) can’t take payments. Publisher ($29 billed yearly for up to 1,000 members) adds paid subscriptions, three premium tiers and a custom sending domain. Self-hosting isn’t automatically cheaper: Ghost estimates hosting from $10 a month plus email delivery from $15, and says self-hosting “generally works out to be more expensive” for heavy users.
Strengths
- Open source and portable
- 0% transaction fees on Publisher and up
- Free custom domain, no Ghost branding
Watch-outs
- No free Ghost(Pro) plan; members include free readers
- Self-hosting means running servers and email delivery
- No built-in ad network
If you only need to email a list: EmailOctopus
Budget pick · Low-cost newsletters
If you’re leaving Substack for a plain email tool and don’t charge readers, EmailOctopus is our budget pick. Free covers up to 2,500 subscribers and 10,000 emails a month, with no time limit; Pro starts at $9 a month billed yearly ($10 monthly) for up to 500 subscribers. There’s no website, app or network, and its pricing page doesn’t cover paid subscriptions. See our EmailOctopus guide, or our MailerLite guide for another email-first option.
Visit EmailOctopusReferral link: if you sign up and pay, you get $15 off your first payment and we may earn a $15 account credit.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Substack?
For growing paid newsletters, we pick Beehiiv: 0% of paid subscriptions on paid plans, plus ads and recommendations. Kit suits large free lists that sell products, Buttondown simple writing, and Ghost writers who want to own the software.
Is there a free alternative to Substack?
Yes, with limits: Beehiiv is free up to 2,500 subscribers, Kit up to 10,000 and Buttondown for your first 100. None is free at unlimited size like Substack. Our free platforms roundup compares every free tier.
Is Beehiiv better than Substack?
Beehiiv costs less once your monthly paid revenue passes about ten times its plan price ($590 at up to 1,000 subscribers on Lite, monthly billing). Substack has stronger built-in discovery. See Beehiiv vs Substack.
Is Ghost better than Substack?
On fees and ownership, yes: 0% transaction fees on Publisher and up, your own sending domain on those plans, and open-source software. You pay a monthly fee or hosting costs, and lose Substack’s reader app.
How much does Substack take?
10% of each subscription payment, plus Stripe’s 2.9% + $0.30 per US card payment and a Billing fee given as 0.7% or 0.5%. Free posts cost nothing.
Can Substack emails come from my own domain?
No. Substack’s help center says that even with a custom domain, emails are still sent from an @substack.com address.
Next reads
- Beehiiv vs Substack
- Beehiiv for creators: pricing, free plan limits and setup
- Kit vs Beehiiv
- Best free newsletter platforms
- Best newsletter tools for creators
Sources (checked October 5, 2026)
- https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/360037607131-How-much-does-Substack-cost: 10% fee, Stripe fees, 0.7% Billing fee, $50 domain
- https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/18687769631252: 0.5% Billing fee
- https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/360051222571-How-do-I-set-up-my-custom-domain-on-Substack: subdomain rule, @substack.com sending
- https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/6314498343700-How-do-I-export-my-email-list-on-Substack: CSV export
- https://substack.com/substack-vs-beehiiv and https://substack.com/growthfeatures: Substack’s discovery figures
- https://www.beehiiv.com/pricing and https://www.beehiiv.com/pricing.md: plans, prices, take rate, caveats
- https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/14492990172823-how-to-use-a-custom-domain-for-your-publication: custom domains
- https://www.beehiiv.com/ad-network: Ad Network
- https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/14966988360215-how-to-migrate-from-substack-to-beehiiv: Substack migration
- https://kit.com/pricing: Kit plans and fees
- https://buttondown.com/pricing and https://buttondown.com/features/paid-subscriptions: Buttondown pricing and paid subscriptions
- https://ghost.org/pricing/ and https://ghost.org/docs/hosting/: Ghost(Pro) and self-hosting
- https://ghost.org/vs/substack/: Ghost’s Stripe and migration statements about itself
- https://emailoctopus.com/pricing: EmailOctopus (checked October 4, 2026)
Product names are trademarks of their respective owners. We run Creator Mail Stack independently, and none of these vendors endorse it. Found something out of date? Tell us at [email protected].