beehiiv vs Substack: Fees, Break-Even Point and Features

The beehiiv vs Substack question usually comes up when a newsletter starts earning and the writer notices that the two platforms charge in opposite ways. Substack is free to publish and keeps 10% of subscription revenue. beehiiv takes 0% of subscription revenue but charges a monthly plan fee that rises with the size of your list.

This guide works out where those two models cross, using official pricing and fee pages checked on October 9, 2026. It is desk research, not a hands-on test, and every calculation is our own arithmetic. We may earn a commission if you sign up for beehiiv through our offer links; there is no Substack affiliate link on this page.

Quick answer: stay on Substack while your paid revenue is small, your list is mostly free readers, or Substack recommendations drive your growth. Move to beehiiv when Substack's 10% cut is larger than the beehiiv plan fee for your list size, which happens once monthly paid revenue passes about 10 times the plan price, or when you want a self-serve ad network and referral rewards in one place.

beehiiv vs Substack at a glance

Item	beehiiv	Substack
Cost to publish a free newsletter	Free plan, $0, up to 2,500 subscribers	Free, no subscriber cap stated
Platform cut of paid subscriptions	0% on paid plans	10% of each subscription payment
Card processing	Stripe, 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction	Stripe, 2.9% + $0.30 per payment for US cards, plus Stripe Billing at 0.7%
Fixed fee for a paid newsletter	Lite from $49 per month billed yearly or $59 month to month at 1,000 subscribers, rising with list size	None
Custom domain	Included from Lite upward	One-time $50, domain registration not included
Ad and sponsor income	Self-serve ad network from Lite (CPM or CPC payouts)	Native sponsorships program for Bestseller publications or 100+ paid subscribers
Recommendations	Free recommendations on every plan; paid recommendations from Lite	Free recommendations in the subscribe flow, homepage and digest emails
Referral program	From Lite (3 reward milestones on Lite, unlimited on Pro)	Built in for free and paid subscribers; not on private publications
Export	Subscriber export at any time	Posts, subscriber list and stats as a zip file

beehiiv vs Substack fees: the break-even point

Substack's help center lists three costs on paid subscriptions: its own 10% of each payment, Stripe card processing at 2.9% + $0.30 per payment for US cards, and Stripe Billing at 0.7% for recurring payments. Publishing itself is free.

The beehiiv pricing FAQ says beehiiv takes 0% of paid subscription and digital product revenue, with Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction still applying. The catch: paid subscriptions are not on the Free plan. They start on Lite, and Lite and Pro prices depend on your subscriber count. beehiiv counts every unique email address subscribed, so free readers raise the price too. beehiiv's own comparison page has a revenue calculator that counts Substack's 10% and Stripe fees but leaves out the beehiiv plan you would pay for.

Putting the plan fee back in is simple. Stripe card processing is charged on both platforms, so it cancels out. beehiiv becomes cheaper once 10% of your monthly paid revenue exceeds your monthly plan fee, meaning paid revenue above 10 times the plan price. The table applies that rule to beehiiv's list prices on October 9, 2026. This is our arithmetic, not either company's figure.

Total subscribers	Lite price per month (billed yearly / month to month)	Paid revenue where Substack's 10% equals Lite	Pro price per month, billed yearly	Paid revenue where Substack's 10% equals Pro
1,000	$49 / $59	$490 / $590 per month	$95	$950 per month
2,500	$69 / $79	$690 / $790 per month	$129	$1,290 per month
5,000	$95 / $109	$950 / $1,090 per month	$169	$1,690 per month
10,000	$119 / $139	$1,190 / $1,390 per month	$199	$1,990 per month
25,000	$169 / $199	$1,690 / $1,990 per month	$299	$2,990 per month
50,000	$249 / $299	$2,490 / $2,990 per month	$399	$3,990 per month
100,000	$399 / $469	$3,990 / $4,690 per month	$599	$5,990 per month

Lite covers up to 100,000 subscribers and Pro up to 250,000. Substack lists Stripe Billing at 0.7%, but beehiiv's pricing page names only the 2.9% + $0.30 card fee, so we could not confirm whether the 0.7% applies there and left it out of both sides. If beehiiv avoids it, Substack costs slightly more than shown. Stripe rates also vary by country and payment method.

Worked examples at different paid revenue levels

Six example newsletters, using Lite billed yearly at the matching list size, before Stripe fees and promotions. Our arithmetic.

Example	Total list	Paid revenue per month	Substack 10%	beehiiv Lite, billed yearly	Lower platform cost
Paid tier just launched	1,000	40 paid at $5 = $200	$20	$49	Substack, by $29 per month
Small list, strong conversion	2,500	100 paid at $8 = $800	$80	$69	beehiiv, by $11 per month
Growing paid newsletter	5,000	250 paid at $8 = $2,000	$200	$95	beehiiv, by $105 per month
Large free list, few paid	10,000	100 paid at $5 = $500	$50	$119	Substack, by $69 per month
Established paid newsletter	10,000	500 paid at $10 = $5,000	$500	$119	beehiiv, by $381 per month
Large paid newsletter	25,000	1,000 paid at $8 = $8,000	$800	$169	beehiiv, by $631 per month

List size alone does not decide the comparison; paid revenue relative to list size does. A 10,000-reader list with a small paid tier pays less on Substack, while the same list with 500 readers paying $10 pays several hundred dollars a month less on beehiiv. Month-to-month billing on beehiiv raises the break-even by $100 to $700 of monthly paid revenue, depending on list size. And at the very start, Substack charges nothing until money comes in, while a paid beehiiv newsletter needs Lite from day one.

beehiiv's pricing page says yearly billing saves up to 20% compared with paying month to month. That saving is already in the billed-yearly prices above.

The new-user offer is separate. beehiiv's Partner Program guide says people who sign up through a partner link get a 14-day trial and 20% off a paid plan for their first 3 months. It changes only the first three bills, not the long-run break-even, so it is not in the tables. If your paid revenue already clears the line for your list size, you can start beehiiv with a 14-day trial and 20% off for 3 monthsAffiliate link: Fieldnotes earns a commission if you purchase through this link. and confirm the final amount at checkout.

Monetization beyond subscriptions: ad network, recommendations and referrals

Ads and sponsorships

beehiiv runs a self-serve ad network for publications on Lite or above that are actively sending. Payouts are based on CPM or CPC, eligible publishers see up to 15 personalized offers at a time, and beehiiv says estimates depend on your newsletter's past performance. We ignored the average ad income on its plan cards because the method is not explained, but any ad income you earn lowers your break-even.

We found no self-serve ad marketplace on Substack's pages, but it does have sponsor income. Its native sponsorships program, set up through a Creator Kit, is open to Bestseller publications or those with at least 100 paid subscribers, and the Substack team may contact you about brand partners. The page does not state a revenue share or fee.

Recommendations

On Substack, recommended publications appear to new readers in the subscribe flow, on your homepage and in recommendation digest emails. On beehiiv, free recommendations are on every plan, while paid recommendations, formerly called Boosts, need Lite or Pro and charge only when a recommended subscriber passes verification. We found no pay-per-subscriber recommendation product on the Substack pages we checked.

Referral program

Substack's built-in referral program rewards free and paid subscribers for inviting friends, with default reward tiers at 2, 10 and 25 referrals on paid publications; it is not available on private publications. beehiiv's referral program starts on Lite with up to 3 reward milestones, and Pro allows unlimited milestones. Substack gives you referrals without a fixed fee; beehiiv puts them behind a paid plan.

Custom domain and branding

Substack charges a one-time $50 to connect a custom domain. The fee does not include buying the domain, and the publication must run on a subdomain such as www. On beehiiv, custom domains for the newsletter and website come with Lite and above, not the Free plan, and removing beehiiv branding requires Pro or Enterprise. Substack's $50 is roughly one month of beehiiv's cheapest paid plan, paid once, so a custom domain alone is not a reason to switch.

Discovery: where Substack still wins

Substack's clearest advantage is its network. Recommendations put your publication in front of people who already read other Substacks, and Substack's help center calls ongoing recommendations the most powerful engine for growing there. Substack also claims creators who recommend others are 3 times more likely to be recommended back.

The Reddit thread that ranks for this search, 'Substack vs Beehiiv' on r/Substack, was started by a new fiction and poetry writer. Replies split between Substack's community and discovery and beehiiv's features and visual freedom, with some giving beehiiv a slight edge for ads and sponsorships. It is two to three years old and anecdotal. Still, if Substack recommendations bring in most of your new readers, leaving may slow growth, a cost no fee table shows.

Export and migration: how to switch from Substack to beehiiv

Substack's help center says anything you publish there is yours, and it lets you download your posts, subscriber list and related statistics as a zip file sent by email. It does not say whether images and other media are included, so open the export before deleting anything. beehiiv's migration page says you can export your subscribers at any time.

beehiiv's comparison page says you can import a Substack list directly and that paid subscribers keep billing. That is beehiiv's claim; Substack's pages we read do not describe the paid transfer. Before moving a paid list:

• Export posts, subscribers and stats from Substack and keep the zip file.
• Ask beehiiv support how existing Stripe subscriptions connect.
• Price your beehiiv plan on your total list, not your paid count.
• Plan the domain change: Substack uses a subdomain, and beehiiv custom domains start on Lite.

Who should stay on Substack, and who should move to beehiiv

Stay on Substack if:

• you have no paid tier yet, or your monthly paid revenue is below the break-even line for your list size;
• most of your list is free readers and Substack recommendations bring in most new subscribers;
• you want zero fixed cost and a referral program without paying for a plan.

Move to beehiiv if:

• your monthly paid revenue is above about 10 times the beehiiv plan price for your list size;
• you want ad network income, paid recommendations and referral rewards in one dashboard;
• you plan to run several paid tiers, group subscriptions or paid trials, which need Pro.

beehiiv vs Substack FAQ

Why is everyone leaving Substack?

Not everyone is; we found no official data on departures. The reason visible in the numbers is the fee structure: Substack's 10% grows with revenue, while a flat plan fee does not. In the r/Substack thread above, visual freedom and ad and sponsorship options were the other reasons given for beehiiv.

Is Substack still relevant in 2026?

Yes, for many writers. Substack still costs nothing to publish, its help articles on fees and custom domains were updated within two weeks of our October 9, 2026 check, and recommendations remain its main growth tool. We found no current official user count, so we cannot say whether it is growing or shrinking.

What is replacing Substack?

For paid newsletters, the main alternative model is a flat plan fee with no revenue cut, which is how beehiiv works. Searchers also compare Ghost, ConvertKit, Mailchimp and Medium, which this guide does not price.

Is beehiiv free for paid newsletters?

No. The Free plan is $0 for up to 2,500 subscribers, but paid subscriptions, custom domains, the ad network and the referral program all start on Lite. Stripe processing still applies on top of the 0% take rate.

Can I switch from Substack to beehiiv and keep my paid subscribers?

beehiiv says yes: it imports Substack lists and says paid subscribers keep billing. Substack's help pages do not describe that transfer, so confirm the Stripe steps with beehiiv support before you move.

Our recommendation

Stay on Substack while a paid tier is new or small: it costs nothing until you earn, and its network helps you grow. Move to beehiiv when your monthly paid revenue is above about 10 times the beehiiv plan price for your list size. There the plan costs less than the 10% cut and adds the ad network and referral rewards. Check the price at your real list size, and see our beehiiv pricing guide for the free plan and new-user offer. If the numbers work, try beehiiv through our partner linkAffiliate link: Fieldnotes earns a commission if you purchase through this link.: new users may receive a 14-day trial and 20% off a paid plan for the first 3 months, so confirm the offer and final amount at checkout.

Prices and plan details checked on October 9, 2026 and may change.