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Short answer: if you want a free, growth-focused newsletter with your own website, try beehiiv. If you plan to sell to subscribers and want the largest free subscriber limit, look at Kit. If you want the simplest start and don't mind a share of paid-subscription revenue going to the platform, look at Substack, which is free to publish on and keeps 10% of paid subscription revenue [1].
Quick comparison
| beehiiv | Kit | Substack | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan limit | Up to 2,500 subscribers [2] | Up to 10,000 subscribers [3] | Free "no matter how many subscribers you have" [1] |
| Email sends | Unlimited on every plan [2] | Unlimited broadcasts on Free [3] | See Substack's help center |
| Cut of paid subscriptions | 0%; Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30 still applies [2] | Kit lists a 3.5% + 30¢ fee on digital products and subscriptions, inclusive of card processing [3] | 10% of each subscription payment, plus Stripe fees (2.9% + $0.30 for US cards, plus 0.7% Stripe Billing) [1] |
| Automations | From the Lite plan [2] | Visual automations and sequences on the Creator plan (Kit's pages conflict on the free plan; see below) | Not covered here |
| Entry paid plan | Lite: $49/mo with yearly billing, at 1,000 subscribers [2] | Creator: $33/mo ($390 billed yearly) for 1,000 subscribers, 14-day free trial [3] | No platform plan; optional one-time $50 custom domain [1] |
The real cost difference: monetization fees
For a free newsletter, all three can cost $0. The difference shows up when you charge readers.
- Substack keeps 10% of each subscription payment, and Stripe charges 2.9% + $0.30 per US card payment plus 0.7% for recurring billing [1].
- beehiiv says it "takes 0% of your paid subscription and digital product revenue", with Stripe's standard 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction [2]. Paid subscriptions are listed on the Lite plan and up [2].
- Kit lists a fee of 3.5% + 30¢ on digital products and subscriptions, which it says includes card processing [3].
A worked example (our arithmetic, US card payments, before taxes): on a $10 monthly subscription, Substack keeps $1.00 and Stripe takes about $0.30 + $0.29 + $0.07 ≈ $0.66, so the writer keeps about $8.34. On beehiiv, Stripe takes about $0.59 and beehiiv takes 0%, so the writer keeps about $9.41, but beehiiv's paid plan costs money each month. Kit's listed 3.5% + 30¢ leaves about $9.35, again on top of a paid plan. Which is cheaper overall depends on how many paying subscribers you have. Run your own numbers before deciding.
beehiiv: best for growth-focused newsletters
beehiiv is built for newsletters that want to grow. The free plan includes up to 2,500 subscribers, unlimited sends, email templates, landing pages and a recommendation network [2]. beehiiv says website, podcast, community and digital products are included on every plan, with limits and advanced features changing as you move up [2]. Paid plans add things like paid subscriptions, ad monetization, automations and A/B testing (Lite), and removing beehiiv branding (Pro) [2].
Choose beehiiv if: you're starting a regular newsletter, want it to look like a publication with its own site, and expect to grow past a hobby list.Think twice if: you'll need automations on day one but don't want to pay, because they start on Lite [2].
Kit: best if you plan to sell to your list
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is email marketing for creators. Its free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited landing pages, forms and broadcasts, plus tagging and segmentation and selling digital products [3]. The paid Creator plan adds unlimited visual automations and email sequences [3].
A note on Kit's free plan and automations: Kit's official pages disagree. The pricing page and the help article "The Kit Free plan" list visual automations and email sequences as paid features, while an older help article on the "Newsletter Plan" says free accounts get one basic visual automation and one email sequence [4]. If a welcome sequence matters to you, check what your account shows. We go through the details in our Kit free plan guide.
Choose Kit if: you plan to sell products, courses or memberships, and want tagging and (on paid plans) automated sequences.Think twice if: you mainly want a publication-style newsletter with a web archive and growth features.
Substack: simplest start, with a revenue share
Substack is free to publish on, whatever your list size [1]. If you turn on paid subscriptions, it keeps 10% of subscription revenue, Stripe charges its own processing fees, and readers pay the price you set [1]. A custom domain is optional and costs a one-time $50 [1]. We haven't verified Substack's other features on official pages for this article, so we're not comparing its editor, growth tools or analytics here.
Choose Substack if: you want to start writing today with no setup decisions and no monthly bill.Think twice if: you expect meaningful paid-subscription revenue. The 10% share grows with you, so compare it with a flat monthly plan elsewhere.
How to choose in 3 questions
- Will you charge readers soon? If not, all three can be free. If yes, compare Substack's 10% [1] with beehiiv's 0% take rate on a paid plan [2] and Kit's listed transaction fee [3].
- How big will your list get in the next year? beehiiv Free stops at 2,500 subscribers [2], and Kit Free at 10,000 [3].
- Do you need automations? They're paid on beehiiv (Lite and up) [2] and on Kit's Creator plan [3], with Kit's free-plan details in question.
Which fits these three writers?
A hobby writer sending a free weekly letter. Any of the three works at $0. Substack has the least setup [1]. beehiiv adds a recommendation network on its free plan [2]. Kit's free plan is the most generous on subscriber count [3].
A coach who'll sell a course next year. Kit's tagging, segmentation and product sales on the free plan, with sequences on Creator, fit this path [3]. Kit's listed 3.5% + 30¢ transaction fee covers card processing [3].
A niche publication aiming for paid subscribers. Compare Substack's 10% share [1] with beehiiv's 0% take rate, which requires a paid plan from Lite [2]. At a few paying readers, Substack's free model may cost less. At larger numbers, a flat monthly plan can come out ahead. Run the numbers at your expected size.
FAQ
Which is best for a beginner? There's no single answer. Substack is the simplest start [1], beehiiv adds growth features on its free plan [2], and Kit has the largest free subscriber limit of the three plans we checked [3].
Do any of them charge readers a fee? Substack says it doesn't add a fee to web payments, though some writers add tax and iOS in-app purchases may cost more [1]. Readers pay the price the writer sets [1].
Can I use my own domain? Substack offers a custom domain for a one-time $50 [1]. For beehiiv and Kit, check each pricing page for which plan includes custom domains, because we haven't confirmed those details for this article.
Switching later
Pick the best fit for the next six to twelve months, not forever. Before you commit, check each platform's help center for how to export subscribers and, if you have them, paid subscribers, because moving paying readers usually involves your payment processor as well.
Bottom line
beehiiv suits growth-focused newsletters, Kit suits creators who plan to sell to their list, and Substack suits writers who want the simplest start and accept a 10% share of paid revenue [1]. None of them will build an audience for you. The content and consistency are up to you.
We earn a commission on beehiiv links. Kit and Substack links on this page are plain links.
Sources
- Substack help: How much does Substack cost?, checked 2026-10-11
- beehiiv pricing page, checked 2026-10-11
- Kit pricing page, checked 2026-10-11
- Kit help: The Kit Free plan; and help.kit.com/en/articles/9053626 (Newsletter Plan), checked 2026-10-10