Substack
Publish writing and offer paid subscriptions
What Substack does
Substack publishes posts to the web and email, with optional paid subscriptions and distribution in its app.
Suitability, strengths, and limitations below are editorial assessments based on research.
Who should use it
- Writers launching a free or paid publication
Who should not use it
- Custom marketing integrations are a required, verified feature
Capabilities
Strengths (editorial)
- A writing-first route to publishing
- A different cost structure for an early publication
Limitations (editorial)
- Revenue share changes the economics of paid readership
- Unknown API and automation support should not be assumed
Pricing overview
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- Not verified
- Pricing model
- transaction-based
- Starting paid price
- Starting price not verified
Free plan available. Publishing is free. Paid subscriptions incur a 10% Substack fee plus payment-processing fees. A custom domain has a separate one-time charge; no flat monthly subscription price is recorded.
Pricing verified: October 4, 2026. Prices and plan limits can change.
Substack official pricing ↗Your first newsletter workflow
Start with one small project in Substack. Use this checklist as you try it.
Checklist progress lasts while this page is open. Check current plans before committing.
Still choosing? Find your starting pointSources & review status
Research-based profile, not a hands-on review. Last verified: October 4, 2026. Verification covers the sourced facts below; unknown fields remain unverified.
Categories: Newsletter platform
- Substack pricing and plans ↗ · pricing · October 4, 2026
- Publishing a Substack post ↗ · help-center · October 4, 2026
Editorial guidance is a research-based assessment, not a measured ranking or hands-on test.