A newsletter is one of the few marketing channels you actually own. No algorithm decides whether your audience sees it, and your list goes with you if a platform changes the rules.
That makes the platform choice matter more than it first appears. Switching later is possible, but moving subscribers, paid members, archives and automations is real work.
Substack, Kit, beehiiv and Ghost can all send a good-looking newsletter. The real differences are how each one helps you grow, how it makes money from you (monthly fees or a cut of revenue), and how much of your brand, website and data you control.
Full disclosure: MySmartMedia uses Kit for email and Substack for our Growth to Market newsletter. Neither has paid for this comparison.
Executive Summary: Substack is the easiest way to start and has a built-in discovery network, in exchange for 10% of paid revenue. Kit is the strongest for business owners who sell through email, with automations and commerce built in. beehiiv is built for growth and ad revenue, with no cut of paid subscriptions. Ghost gives you the most ownership, a full website and 0% fees, for a flat monthly price.
Newsletter Platforms at a Glance
| Platform | Best For | Price | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Substack | Writers and experts building an audience from scratch | Free; 10% of paid subscriptions | Best built-in discovery; least control over brand and automation |
| Kit | Business owners who sell products, services or courses | Free up to 10,000 subscribers; Creator from $33/month | Best automations and selling tools; growth is up to you |
| beehiiv | Newsletters built to grow fast and earn from ads | Free up to 2,500 subscribers; paid plans scale with list size | Strongest growth and ad tools; monthly fees rise as you grow |
| Ghost | Publishers who want a full website and full ownership | From $18/month (annual); paid memberships from $29/month | Most ownership and 0% fees; fewer growth tools built in |
Prices as of November 2026 at entry list sizes. Most platforms price by subscriber count, so check each pricing page against your list size before you decide.
Substack
What it does well: Substack is free to start and you pay nothing until you earn. Its biggest advantage is the network around the newsletter: Notes (a built-in social feed), recommendations between publications, and a reader app where people discover new writers. Podcasts and live video sit in the same publication.
Where it falls short: Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue, plus Stripe’s processing fees, which adds up as you grow.
Design, SEO settings and email automation are limited compared with the other three, and your publication lives on Substack’s platform and brand rather than your own website.
Pricing: Free to publish. 10% fee on paid subscriptions, plus Stripe fees.
Best for: Experts, writers and founders whose newsletter is the product or the voice of their brand, and who want help being discovered by new readers.
Kit
What it does well: Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is built for businesses that sell through email. Even the free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited landing pages, forms, tagging and segmentation, and lets you sell digital products and paid newsletters.
Creator adds visual automations and email sequences, so a sign-up can trigger a welcome series or a sales sequence automatically.
Where it falls short: There is no reader network to help people find you, so growth comes from your own website, social and referrals.
Automations, sequences and branding removal need a paid plan, and pricing rises with subscriber count.
Pricing:
- Free up to 10,000 subscribers. Creator $33/month at 1,000 subscribers ($390/year billed annually).
- Pro from $66/month at 1,000 subscribers. Sales of products and paid newsletters carry a 3.5% + 30¢ fee, including card processing.
Best for: Coaches, consultants, course creators and small businesses that use email to sell, and want automations doing the follow-up for them.
beehiiv
What it does well: beehiiv is built around growing and monetizing a newsletter. It takes 0% of paid subscription and digital product revenue, and paid plans include an ad network that pays you to run sponsor placements.
A website, podcast and community features are included from the free plan.
Where it falls short: The free plan stops at 2,500 subscribers, and monthly fees climb as your list grows, whether or not your newsletter earns anything yet. Paid subscriptions, automations and ad monetization all require a paid plan.
Pricing: Free up to 2,500 subscribers. Paid plans (renamed Lite and Pro in October 2026) scale with list size; at 1,000 subscribers, the entry paid plan was about $43/month billed annually in mid-2026. 0% platform fee on paid subscriptions, plus Stripe fees.
Best for: Media-style newsletters that plan to grow a large list and earn from sponsors and ads as well as subscriptions.
Ghost
What it does well: Ghost is an open-source publishing platform that combines a full website, a blog and a newsletter, all on your own domain.
It takes 0% of membership revenue, so you keep everything except card processing, and because it is open source you can move or self-host it if you ever want to.
Where it falls short: Growth tools are thinner than Substack’s network or beehiiv’s, so you bring your own audience. The Starter plan doesn’t include paid subscriptions; you need Publisher or above. Pricing also scales with member count.
Pricing: Starter $18/month billed annually (1,000 members, no paid subscriptions). Publisher $29/month billed annually (paid subscriptions, 0% fee, 3 staff users). Business $199/month billed annually. Custom plans available.
Best for: Independent publishers and content-led businesses that want their newsletter and website in one place, under their own brand, with no revenue share.
How to Choose: Four Questions
1. Is the newsletter the product, or does it sell the product?
If readers pay for the newsletter itself, Substack, beehiiv or Ghost fit. If the newsletter sells your services, courses or products, Kit’s automations and commerce tools usually earn more.
2. Where will new readers come from?
Starting from zero, Substack’s network can do a lot of the work. If you already have traffic from a website, social following or clients, any platform works and ownership matters more.
3. Would you rather pay a percentage or a flat fee?
Substack costs nothing until you earn, then takes 10%. Kit, beehiiv and Ghost charge monthly fees that grow with your list. Run the numbers at the size and revenue you expect in a year, not today.
4. Does it need to live on your own website?
If search traffic and your own brand matter, Ghost (or Kit paired with your existing site) keeps everything on your domain. Substack builds Substack’s network as much as your own.
The Bottom Line
There is no single best newsletter platform, only the best fit for how your newsletter makes money. Substack is the fastest way to find readers. Kit is the best engine for selling. beehiiv is built for scale and sponsors. Ghost is the choice when ownership comes first.
Many businesses end up using two: one platform where they publish and are discovered, and another that runs their email automations and sales. That’s a reasonable setup, as long as each one has a clear job.
Whatever you choose, make sure you can export your full subscriber list at any time. That list is the asset; the platform is just where it lives today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which newsletter platform is free?
Substack is free to publish and takes 10% only of paid subscriptions. Kit’s free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers, and beehiiv’s free plan covers up to 2,500. Ghost has no free hosted plan; it starts at $18 a month billed annually.
Is Substack or beehiiv better for a paid newsletter?
Substack is free until you earn but takes 10% of paid revenue, and its network helps new readers find you. beehiiv takes 0% of paid revenue but charges monthly fees that grow with your list. Substack usually suits newer writers; beehiiv suits larger lists where 10% would cost more than the monthly fee.
Can I move my newsletter to another platform later?
Yes. All four let you export your subscriber list, and most offer import tools for moving from a competitor. Paid subscriptions, automations and design usually take more work to move, so it pays to choose with the next year or two in mind.
