Substack pricing & real fees (2026-07)

Writers wanting the simplest paid-newsletter setup with zero fixed cost and built-in discovery. Here's what Substack actually costs once platform fees and payment processing are included.

Entry priceFree

Platform fee10%

Take-home on $3k/mo$2,595

Ranks#15 of 18

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What you keep on Substack

Pricing plans

Plan	Price	Notes
Free to start (rev-share)	$0/mo

Fees: Flat 10% of paid-subscription revenue; plus Stripe ~2.9%+30c and ~0.7% renewal → ~13-16% all-in Payment processing: Stripe ~2.9%+30c plus ~0.7% renewal, on top of the 10%.

Features

✓ Custom domain
✓ Email marketing
— Run your own affiliates
✓ Communities
— Live / cohort
— Quizzes & assessments
✓ Website builder

Compare Substack

Substack vs Kit Substack vs beehiiv

Alternatives to Substack

Newsletter platformsKitFree · paid from $32.5/mo · fee 3.5%Newsletter platformsbeehiivFree · paid from $43/mo · fee 0%

See the full newsletter platforms comparison, or run your own numbers.

Verified 2026-07 · sources: official