A re you looking for a paid newsletter platform as a Substack alternative?
In this article, I’ll share 9 paid newsletter platform options that are great Substack alternatives. These platforms can help you make money with paid newsletter subscriptions.
When you start a blog, it’s a good idea to create a free email newsletter so that you can connect with your audience and promote your content.
But eventually, you should consider creating a paid newsletter. That way, you can generate recurring income from the content you send out.
Substack is a popular platform for creating paid newsletters. But it’s not the best choice for everyone.
So, I’ll explain the limitations of Substack and share the best Substack alternatives for monetizing your newsletters.
In This Guide:
What is Substack?
As I mentioned, Substack is a popular online platform that allows you to create paid subscription newsletters.
Creating a Substack newsletter is super easy; there’s zero technical knowledge required.
Aside from launching a paid newsletter, you can also create blog posts on the Substack domain and choose which posts are free and which ones are only for paid subscribers.
But, there are downsides to using Substack. Let’s go over them now…
Why Should You Use a Substack Alternative?
Because of the simplicity of Substack, there are very few customization options for designing your newsletters.
There are many Substack alternatives that give you more control over the styling of your content. This lets you create content that better represents your brand.
Substack also lacks additional features like detailed analytics that will tell you how well your newsletters are performing.
And while it’s free to use, creating paid newsletters with Substack might not be as profitable as you think compared to other platforms mentioned later in this article.
That’s because once you monetize your newsletters, Substack will take 10% of your revenue. That’s on top of the transaction fees you’ll get charged for Stripe payments.
As you’ll see in this list, there are Substack alternatives that don’t charge any additional fees. This allows you to keep more of the money you earn.
With that, let’s dive into this list of the best Substack alternatives and compare paid newsletter tools to help you decide on the best paid newsletter platform for you.
1. MemberPress
MemberPress is one of the best membership plugins for WordPress. It’s used by thousands of creators who together have sold over $1 billion dollars in memberships.
If you have a WordPress blog, you can use MemberPress to create a membership site where people need to pay a subscription fee in order to access exclusive content, like an email newsletter.
MemberPress is simple to set up and use. As one of the best platforms for launching a membership site, you can quickly create multiple membership levels, each with different prices and exclusive perks.
The powerful access controls let you easily decide which users will get your newsletter depending on the type of subscription they’ve purchased.
You can set up your subscriptions for weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly recurring payments. There’s also a free trial period option that lets users try out your newsletter before they buy.
Plus, MemberPress seamlessly integrates with email marketing services like Constant Contact, ActiveCampaign, AWeber, ConvertKit, and others, making it an excellent email marketing tool and newsletter software.
Aside from creating a paid newsletter, you can also use MemberPress to create and sell online courses, make members-only forums, sell downloadable files, and more.
The best part? Unlike Substack and some other Substack alternatives, MemberPress doesn’t charge any extra transaction fees. So if you’re looking to start a newsletter, MemberPress has you covered.
- Easy to use, no coding required
- Unlimited subscription tiers
- Ready-made pricing page templates
- Automated billing for members
- Customizable coupons to sell more subscriptions
- Integrates with payment gateways like Stripe, PayPal, and Authorize.net
- And much more
Pricing: Starts at $179.50/year.
2. ConvertKit
ConvertKit is one of the most popular email marketing services available. It’s a go-to tool for creators who want to grow and monetize their audience.
ConvertKit comes with a built-in feature to create paid newsletters, making it one of the top paid newsletter platforms that aligns with your needs.
It only takes three steps to set up: Create your newsletter product and set the price, customize your newsletter product page, and automatically send paying subscribers your newsletter.
You can also create automated sales funnels to promote your paid newsletter as well as use tags and segments to make sure you’re promoting it to your biggest fans.
And like most email marketing services, ConvertKit comes with an easy email designer and pre-made templates to help you create beautiful newsletters, solidifying its position among top email newsletter tools. Whether you are looking to grow your email list or engage your audience, ConvertKit provides all the necessary resources to succeed.
- Easy to use email editor
- Newsletter signup forms and landing pages
- Automated email funnels
- A/B testing and email stats
- Works with Stripe to accept credit card payments
- Integrates with many popular marketing tools and apps
- And more
Pricing: ConvertKit offers a free plan that you can create paid newsletters on. Paid plans with additional features start at $9 per month for up to 300 subscribers.
The downside is that ConvertKit charges a 3.5% + 30c transaction fee once you start selling subscriptions.
3. MailerLite
MailerLite is another popular email marketing provider that offers a built-in feature for creating paid newsletters.
With MailerLite’s drag and drop editor, you can easily create a landing page to promote and sell your paid newsletter to new subscribers with this email marketing platform.
This Substack alternative seamlessly integrates with Stripe so that you can securely collect credit card payments on your newsletter landing pages. You can choose from one-time, weekly, yearly, or custom subscriptions for your mailing list.
MailerLite excels in marketing automation, making it simple to send newsletters and manage email campaigns with its user-friendly interface. Plus, it’s easy to make your newsletter engaging with MailerLite’s platform that makes 40+ newsletter blocks like surveys, quizzes, carousel galleries, and more.
- Easy drag and drop newsletter editor
- Newsletter templates
- Free image library
- Automated workflows and triggered emails
- Integrates with eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce, Shopify, and Stripe
- And more
Pricing: You need to sign up for the ‘Growing Business’ plan to be able to create paid newsletters, which starts at $9/month for up to 500 subscribers.
There’s also a free 30-day trial, so you can test it out.
4. Ghost
Ghost is an open-source platform built to allow creators to make money from their content. With Ghost, you can create paid newsletters, premium blog posts and articles, and more.
Ghost is self-hosted, which means that you can download it and install it on your blog hosting service.
Unlike Substack, Ghost makes it easy you complete freedom to design your site, publish content, and create subscription tiers however you want. Plus, Ghost doesn’t charge any extra transaction fees.
Ghost comes with a simple, distraction-free editor for creating content with ease of use. The built-in newsletter feature includes segmentation features that allow you to send multiple different newsletters based on preference. This makes Ghost one of the best email newsletter platforms, and with its email templates, you can efficiently deliver high-quality content to your audience. With Ghost, you can ensure your best work reaches the largest number of email subscribers effectively.
- Easy content editor
- Unlimited email newsletter creation
- Custom email address
- Pre-made themes and endless customization options
- Native analytics
- Integrates with many popular apps, plugins, and tools
- And more
Pricing: Starts at $9/month for up to 500 members.
5. WPForms
WPForms is a popular drag and drop form builder plugin used by over 5,000,000+ professionals.
You can use WPForms to create all types of forms for your site including newsletter signup forms and payment forms, which makes it a great Substack alternative.
With WPForms, you can set up automated email notifications that you can add your content or a download link to. These emails are automatically sent to your subscribers after submitting their payment details through your form.
You can collect one-time or recurring payments, add multiple payment options, and even give subscribers to your email list the option to choose how much they want to pay. This functionality makes WPForms a great email marketing tool, helping you manage payments and interactions seamlessly. When you choose a platform like WPForms, you can also ensure that your newsletter sent is tailored and timely, keeping your subscriber base engaged.
WPForms integrates with popular payment gateways like Stripe, PayPal, Square, and Authorize.net. With WPForms, you can choose the best options available to meet your email marketing needs.
- Easy drag and drop form builder
- Form template library
- Built-in entry management
- Multiple currency and payment options
- Works with many email marketing services
- No extra transaction fees
- And more
Pricing: Starts at $49.50/year.
6. WooCommerce Subscriptions
If you run an online store with WooCommerce, you can use the WooCommerce Subscriptions addon to create a paid newsletter. This platform for newsletters is versatile and user-friendly.
You can choose from multiple recurring billing schedules and connect with over 25 payment gateways for automated payments.
Your subscribers have the ability to manage their own subscription. They can upgrade or downgrade their plan without needing to contact you for help. Plus, automatic rebilling on failed subscription payments is supported so that you don’t miss out on any revenue.
WooCommerce also doesn’t take a percentage of your revenue like Substack does, which makes Substack less economical for some users.
In terms of monetization, aside from newsletters, you can use WooCommerce Subscriptions to sell a variety of subscriptions for physical or virtual products or services, including digital products.
- Full featured subscription management
- Built-in renewal notifications
- Offer free trials or set expiration periods
- Automatic email invoices and receipts
- Detailed reporting
- Subscription coupons
- And more
Pricing: WooCommerce Subscriptions costs $279/year.
It needs to be used with the base WooCommerce plugin and the WooCommerce Payments addon, which are both free.
7. Buttondown
Buttondown is a simple yet elegant alternative to Substack and might be the right email newsletter platform for you. With this newsletter tool, you can easily create free or paid subscriptions for your email newsletter, making it excellent for offering paid newsletter options.
It has a minimalist interface to help you write emails quickly. The built-in editorial assistant will automatically check your emails for typos, broken links, and distorted images.
Buttondown offers a portable subscription widget that makes it easier to get more subscribers from wherever you host your website.
Plus, you can run multiple newsletters from the same account, which is a notable feature when you’re looking at platform comparison.
- User-friendly interface for beginners
- Integrates with Stripe to securely accept payments
- Charge in whatever currency you want
- Option for subscribers to choose their own price
- Premium analytics
- And more
Pricing: Buttondown has free and paid plans. Get started on the free plan for up to 100 subscribers. Paid plans start at $9/month.
8. Patreon
Patreon is a well-known membership platform that’s used by over 250,000 writers, artists, podcasters, and other creators.
You can use Patreon to set up multiple subscription tiers so that your audience can support you. When they pay for a subscription, you can reward them with perks like an exclusive newsletter, private content, extra podcast episodes, live chats, and more.
Patreon offers flexible payout options. So, you can pay yourself whenever you want or receive monthly auto payments via direct deposit, PayPal, or Payoneer.
- Create multiple subscription levels
- Easy payout options
- Creator-led workshops
- Available as a mobile app
- Analytics and insights
- And more
Pricing: It’s free to start a Patreon account. But, they take up to 12% of your monthly income, depending on the plan you choose, and there are payment processing fees on top of that.
9. Medium
Medium is a popular, free blogging platform where writers can publish content, build an audience, and earn money.
Along with writing blog posts and articles, you can also use Medium to send customized newsletters to your readers.
The newsletter editor is simple and easy to use. You can also promote your newsletter across your published Medium stories to grow your subscriber base.
To start getting paid on Medium, you have to apply for the Partner Program, which requires you to have at least 100 followers.
- Completely free
- Write unlimited posts and newsletters
- Easy-to-use interface
- Popular platform with lots of readers
- And more
Pricing: Free.
That’s a wrap!
We’ve come to the end of this list of the best Substack paid newsletter platform alternatives. I hope you found the perfect platform to create paid newsletters and generate additional monthly income.
If you liked this post, you might want to check out our guide on how to create an email newsletter. You can also take a look at this list of fun newsletter ideas for more inspiration.
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Thank you for all the helpful content.
Your blog is an excellent resource for start-up bloggers, writers, or anyone else wanting to have an impact online.
All the Best