All Plans at a Glance
| Platform | Free Tier | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mailchimp | 250 contacts | Essentials $13/mo | Standard $20/mo | Premium $350/mo |
| Kit | 10K subs | Creator $39/mo | Creator Pro $79/mo | — |
| beehiiv | 2,500 subs | Scale $49/mo | Max $109/mo | Enterprise (custom) |
| Substack | Unlimited (10% rev share) | — | — | — |
| Ghost | Self-hosted (free) | Starter $18/mo | Publisher $35/mo | Business $239/mo |
| Buttondown | 100 subs | Basic $9/mo | Standard $29/mo | Professional $79/mo |
Cost at Real Subscriber Counts
| Platform | At 1K Subs | At 5K Subs | At 10K Subs | At 25K Subs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mailchimp Standard | $20/mo | $75/mo | $110/mo | $270/mo |
| Kit Creator | $39/mo | $79/mo | $119/mo | $199/mo |
| beehiiv Scale | $49/mo | $49/mo | $49/mo | $49/mo |
| Substack | $0 (free sends) | $0 (free sends) | $0 (free sends) | $0 (10% of paid rev) |
| Ghost Publisher | $35/mo | $35/mo | $35/mo | $35/mo |
| Buttondown Basic | $9/mo | $9/mo | $9/mo | $9/mo |
Key insight: beehiiv Scale ($49/mo), Ghost Publisher ($35/mo), and Buttondown Basic ($9/mo) all offer unlimited subscribers at flat rates. Mailchimp and Kit scale with your list, making them progressively more expensive. At 25K subscribers, beehiiv saves $221/month vs. Mailchimp Standard.
Monetization Features Compared
| Platform | Paid Subs | Ad Network | Referral Program | Revenue Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| beehiiv | Scale+ (via Stripe) | Yes (Boosts, Scale+) | Yes (Scale+) | None |
| Substack | Built-in | No | No | 10% of paid subs + Stripe fees |
| Ghost | Native (Publisher+) | No | No | None (0% cut) |
| Kit | Creator Pro | Sponsor network | Creator Pro | None |
| Buttondown | Standard ($29/mo) | No | No | None |
| Mailchimp | No native paid subs | No | No | None |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which platform is best for monetization?
beehiiv Scale ($49/mo) offers the most monetization options: paid subscriptions, built-in ad network (Boosts), and referral programs. Substack has the simplest paid subscription model but takes 10% of revenue. Ghost takes 0% but requires more setup.
Which is cheapest at scale?
Buttondown Basic at $9/month with unlimited subscribers is the absolute cheapest. beehiiv Scale at $49/month offers significantly more features (ad network, referrals, A/B testing) while still being flat-rate. Ghost Publisher at $35/mo is the cheapest with paid subscription support and 0% revenue share.
Why is Mailchimp on this list?
Many newsletter creators start on Mailchimp before discovering newsletter-specific platforms. Including Mailchimp shows why it becomes expensive at scale compared to flat-rate alternatives. At 25K subscribers, Mailchimp Standard costs $270/mo vs. beehiiv's $49/mo.