beehiiv · Creators

Substack takes a tenth of everything, forever. This is the arithmetic of leaving.

A writer with a paid newsletter on Substack hands over 10% of subscription revenue for as long as the publication exists. At $2,000 a month that is $200, every month, on top of Stripe's cut. There is no tier where it stops. The writer knows the number and has usually decided the migration is too much hassle to bother with.

Researched 22 Aug 20265 claims sourced

What beehiiv pays Everything sold to creators

beehiivMonetization & Ad Network for creators

Why this is worth the work

beehiiv charges 0% platform commission on paid subscriptions and $49 a month for the plan that unlocks them. The crossover is around 45 paying subscribers — below that Substack's free-until-you-earn model is genuinely cheaper, above it beehiiv wins and the gap compounds. That is a calculation, not an opinion, which makes it unusually easy to write honestly.

What they do instead today

The real competition is rarely another product on this list. It is usually a process, a person, or nothing at all.

Substack 10% of revenue, foreverNothing to pay upfront, and a real way to be discovered. The 10% cut never goes down.

Patreon 8–12% by tierBetter for tiered membership perks, weaker as an email publication.

Ghost 0% + hostingAlso takes nothing, but it is self-managed or paid hosting and there is no ad network attached.

Memberful plus your own stack ~4.9% + feesMore assembly required; you own more of it.

Competitor fees as published by each platform. Check before quoting.

The argument for moving

Do the sum out loud. At $2,000 a month in subscriptions Substack costs $200; beehiiv costs $49 and takes nothing. The saving is $151 a month before you count the ad network and Boosts revenue that arrive with it. Then be honest about what they give up: Substack's recommendation network is real, and a small publication may earn more from discovery than it loses to the fee.

What to build to show it

Your own numbers, published. Revenue, what the take rate cost you, what the same year would have cost on the other platform.

This is the one category where showing your own accounts beats any feature comparison. Writers trust a screenshot of a real payout more than a table, and the migration decision is made on money rather than features.

What this reader types

substack alternative 0 percent feesbeehiiv vs substack feeshow much does substack takemigrate paid newsletter from substackcheapest paid newsletter platformbeehiiv paid subscriptions review

Searches driven by fees, from people ready to act. Someone searching how much Substack takes has already started leaving.

Ways in

The maths

What Substack's 10% cost me last year

One real number from your own accounts. Nothing converts harder in this category.

Crossover analysis

The 45-subscriber line where switching starts paying

Honest both ways — it tells small publications to stay put, which is why the big ones believe you.

Migration log

Moving 4,000 paid subscribers without losing any

The fee is the motive; the fear of migration is the blocker. Remove the blocker.

Comparison

Every newsletter platform's take rate in one table

Stays relevant, ranks for years, and your readers get 20% off their first three months through your link.

Sources

Prices belonging to other companies move, and the ones below were read on 22 August 2026. Check any figure before republishing it.

What each claim rests on

At source beehiiv charges 0% platform commission on paid subscriptionsbeehiiv's published pricing.

At source Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30 still appliesbeehiiv's own pricing documentation.

Third party Substack takes 10% of subscription revenueSubstack's published terms.

Third party Crossover sits around 43–50 paying subscribersThird-party comparison analysis, March 2026.

At source Referred readers get 20% off three monthsbeehiiv's Partner Program support article.