Substack, on its own published figures
Substack is the platform that made the paid newsletter a category, and its model is the simplest in the index: no monthly plan, and a share of every paid subscription. Its about page states that it is free to start and free to leave and that writers keep 90% of their revenue minus card fees. Those two sentences are the whole price list, and both were fetched and matched word for word on the date shown.
Verified facts on Substack
| What | Figure | The vendor's own words | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry plan, per month | $0/mo | "Substack is free to start and free to leave" | Substack about page (no subscription fee) checked September 2026 |
| Platform cut on the entry plan | 10 % cut | "Writers keep 90% of their revenue minus credit card fees." | Substack about page (writers keep 90%) checked September 2026 |
Substack product range, evidenced
Substack maintains its own pages for the 1 platform types this index tracks; each link below is the vendor's live page for that type, which is the evidence this site counts as coverage.
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How Substack prices its range
There is no range. The entry plan is $0 because there is no plan, and the platform's cut is the 10% implied by writers keeping 90%, with card processing on top. For a free newsletter the cost is nothing; for a paid one it is a tenth of billing, forever.
That makes Substack the cheapest platform in the index at low paid billing and one of the dearest at high billing. The crossover against any flat-plan vendor is that vendor's plan divided by 0.10; the newsletter platforms page walks through the sum.
Common questions
- How much does Substack cost?
- Nothing monthly. Substack's own page says it is free to start; writers keep 90% of paid revenue, so the platform's share is 10%, plus card processing.
- Is Substack's 10% a lot?
- At a few hundred dollars of monthly billing it is less than most flat plans; at a few thousand it is more. Divide a rival's plan by 0.10 to find your own crossover.
- Can I leave Substack with my paid subscribers?
- Its page says it is free to leave. Whether the payment relationships transfer cleanly is a question for the vendor's own documentation before you move a paid list.