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Substack

substack.com

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Spec score 9.4 #2 of 85 in Membership Site Platforms

What it is

Substack is a publishing platform for writers, creators, and subscribers, bringing posts, newsletters, podcasts, video, live streams, and pages into one publishing flow. Its editor supports scheduling, autosaved drafts, version history, templates, SEO metadata, and headline A/B testing. Creators can offer free or paid posts, subscriptions, trials, gifts, and group plans. Discovery tools include recommendations, Notes, leaderboards, referrals, and search; audience segmentation and email automation are also available. Podcast episodes can be distributed automatically to Apple Podcasts and Spotify, while video can go automatically to YouTube and LinkedIn. Publishing is free. When creators enable paid subscriptions, Substack keeps 10% of subscription revenue, and Stripe charges payment processing fees. Creators own their intellectual property and mailing list and can export their data. Substack serves writers, journalists, podcasters, video creators, experts, educators, and media companies. It is available on the web, Android, and iOS. Substack directs users to its Help Center and handles subscriber support questions on behalf of writers.

Spec sheet

What it does
Substack is a publishing and subscription platform for writers, podcasters, video creators and media companies, combining content creation, email distribution, payments, community and analytics.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Purpose
Substack is a publishing platform for writers, creators, and subscribers.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Free plan
YesRead 20 Sep 2026 · substack.com
Integrations
Official integrations include RSS, podcast distribution to Apple and Spotify, Google Analytics 4, Google Tag Manager, X and Facebook pixels, Google site verification, YouTube and LinkedIn account connections.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Mobile apps
Native iOS and Android apps provide reading, subscriptions, push notifications, saved posts and mobile earnings or statistics views.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Privacy
Substack's privacy policy says it endeavors to protect personal information but cannot guarantee complete security.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Support
Substack directs users to its Help Center for FAQs and walkthroughs and handles subscriber support questions on behalf of writers.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
API restrictions
API data may be used for discovery, analytics and integrations but cannot be used for surveillance, spam, resale, competing services or source misrepresentation; rate limits can change at Substack's discretion.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
API scope
The public API terms allow access to selected public profile and publication data such as names, social links, subscriber counts, bestseller status and URLs.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Audience discovery
Recommendations, Notes, app discovery, trending topics and leaderboards are built-in growth channels.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Audience growth
Discovery tools include recommendations, Notes, leaderboards, referrals, and search.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Audience segmentation
YesRead 20 Sep 2026 · substack.com
Community
Creators can use subscriber chats, comment threads and moderation tools to build communities around publications.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Company founders
Crunchbase identifies Christopher Best, Hamish McKenzie and Jairaj Sethi as founders, with Best as CEO and Sethi as CTO.Read 15 Oct 2026 · crunchbase.com
Company legal name
Crunchbase lists the legal name as Substack Inc.Read 15 Oct 2026 · crunchbase.com
Company size
LinkedIn lists 51–200 employees, while Crunchbase lists headcount in the 101–250 range.Read 15 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Content ownership
Terms say creators retain ownership of posts, subscriber lists and other uploaded material while granting Substack a broad royalty-free license to operate the service.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Creator fees
Publishing is free; when creators enable paid subscriptions, Substack keeps 10% of subscription revenue and Stripe charges payment processing fees.Read 7 Oct 2026 · support.substack.com
Creator ownership
Creators own their intellectual property and mailing list, and can export their data.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Documentation and support
Substack provides a searchable Help Center with setup and billing articles, plus an in-app support bot.Read 15 Oct 2026 · support.substack.com
Editor
Its editor is designed for long-form writing, supports media embeds and scheduling, and manages an archive in one CMS.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Email automation
YesRead 20 Sep 2026 · substack.com
Founded and headquarters
LinkedIn lists Substack as founded in 2017 and headquartered at 111 Sutter St, San Francisco, California 94104.Read 15 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Funding news
On July 17, 2025, Substack announced a $100 million Series C led by BOND and The Chernin Group, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Rich Paul and Jens Grede.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Import and export
Substack can import posts or subscribers from WordPress, Ghost, Medium, Beehiiv, Mailchimp, Tumblr, Webflow, Sanity, Seeking Alpha, Bulletin, TinyLetter, Blogspot and RSS, and lets creators export publication data.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Independent review limitation
TechRadar praises simple publishing, Notes and recommendations but says customization, analytics, SEO and customer support are limiting for ambitious publishers.Read 15 Oct 2026 · techradar.com
Infrastructure
The service provides managed email delivery, CDN-hosted media, real-time messaging infrastructure, multilingual settings, MFA and privacy controls.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Limit: Android app
Google Play reviewers report stale unread status, repetitive Notes recommendations, inability to edit comments or newsletters in-app, crashes, draft-sync failures and login problems.Read 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Limit: Apple app
App Store reviewers report orientation and comment-heart bugs, lost comment drafts and dissatisfaction with redesigned navigation.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Limit: G2 fees and features
G2 reviewers criticize the continuing 10% revenue share, limited customization or monetization options, navigation confusion and lack of integrations.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Limit: Trustpilot support and billing
Trustpilot reviews repeatedly report chatbot-only support, difficulty cancelling or refunding subscriptions, unexpected or duplicate charges, spam emails and account-access problems.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustpilot.com
Limit: TrustRadius collaboration
A TrustRadius reviewer reports simultaneous editing can overwrite changes and says Substack lacks Google-Docs-style collaboration and series organization.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Monetization
Creators can offer free and paid posts, subscriptions, trials, gifts, and group plans.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Network scale
LinkedIn states that the Substack network has more than 5 million paid subscriptions.Read 15 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Praise: G2 ease of use
G2 reviewers repeatedly describe the editor and publishing workflow as intuitive, easy to learn and quick for creating newsletters.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Praise: TrustRadius workflow
TrustRadius reviewers praise the clean interface, integrated publishing-to-payment workflow, content ownership and simple newsletter distribution.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Proprietary licence
Substack's terms prohibit scraping, copying substantial content, decompiling and reverse engineering, indicating a proprietary hosted service rather than open-source software.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Publishing
The platform supports written posts, newsletters, podcasts, video, live streams, and pages in one publishing flow.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Publishing formats
The platform supports written posts, podcasts, live video and subscriber chat in one service.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Rating on Apple App Store
4.9 out of 5 from 540K ratingsRead 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Rating on Capterra
0 out of 5 from 0 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · capterra.com
Rating on G2
4.3 out of 5 from 17 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Rating on GetApp
0 out of 5 from 0 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · getapp.com
Rating on Google Play
4.8 out of 5 from 319K reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Rating on Trustpilot
1.5 out of 5 from 182 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · uk.trustpilot.com
Rating on TrustRadius
9.2 out of 10 from 13 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Revenue tools
Welcome sequences, win-back campaigns, boosts and analytics are offered to improve conversion and retention.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Security reporting
The vulnerability program covers substack.com, reader.substack.com and the iOS app, asks researchers to email [email protected], and promises acknowledgement within 72 hours; it offers no monetary bounty.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Terms limitation
The terms disclaim uninterrupted or error-free operation and cap aggregate liability at the greater of $100 or amounts paid in the prior 12 months.Read 15 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Video distribution
Substack supports automatic video distribution to YouTube and LinkedIn.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Who it serves
Substack describes its audience as including writers, journalists, podcasters, video creators, experts, educators, and media companies.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Writing tools
The editor supports scheduling, autosaved drafts, version history, templates, SEO metadata, and headline A/B testing.Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com

Plans and prices

Free publishing Free unlimited subscribers · no upfront platform fee · free posts Read 15 Oct 2026 · support.substack.com
Free to start Free No platform fees, no tiers, no contracts Read 7 Oct 2026 · substack.com
Custom domain $50, paid once one-time fee optional custom domain Read 15 Oct 2026 · support.substack.com
Paid subscriptions Price not published creator sets monthly, annual and founding-member prices; Substack keeps 10% plus Stripe fees minimum $5/month and $30/year for US-dollar Stripe accounts · free trials · coupons · gifts · group billing · multi-currency Read 15 Oct 2026 · support.substack.com

Every Substack plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Supports posts, newsletters, podcasts, video, and live streams.
  • Includes scheduling and version history.
  • Offers audience segmentation and email automation.
  • Creators can export their data.
  • Publishing is free.

Limits

  • Substack keeps 10% of paid subscription revenue.
  • Stripe charges payment processing fees.
  • Its privacy policy cannot guarantee complete security.

Who it suits

It suits writers and other creators publishing across formats who want audience discovery and subscription options. Its listed audience also includes journalists, educators, experts, and media companies.

Substack in depth

Read the full write-up

Overview

Substack brings publishing and audience tools together for writers, journalists, podcasters, video creators and other publishers. It is strongest for people building a publication around direct reader relationships; its free publishing entry point is appealing, but paid subscriptions carry a meaningful revenue share and processing fees.

Key features

One publishing flow covers written posts, newsletters, podcasts, video, live streams and pages. The editor adds scheduling, autosaved drafts, version history, templates, SEO metadata and headline A/B testing, making it better suited to a sustained publication across formats than to someone who only wants a place to write drafts.

Recommendations, Notes, leaderboards, referrals and search give creators several routes to audience discovery. Email automation and audience segmentation support targeted communication, while free and paid posts, subscriptions, trials, gifts and group plans provide ways to structure reader support. This combination is useful for building an audience and monetizing a publication, though creators should weigh that convenience against Substack’s share of paid revenue.

Podcast episodes can be distributed automatically to Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and video to YouTube and LinkedIn. Creators own their intellectual property and mailing list and can export their data, an important safeguard for a publication built on a hosted service. Substack directs users to its Help Center for FAQs and walkthroughs and handles subscriber support questions for writers. Its privacy policy says it endeavors to protect personal information but cannot guarantee complete security. It accepts vulnerability reports by email and commits to an initial confirmation within 72 hours.

Pricing

Free to start: free. The free plan has no platform fees, tiers or contracts, so it suits creators who want to publish without committing to paid monetization. That does not mean paid subscriptions are cost-free: when enabled, Substack keeps 10% of subscription revenue, and Stripe charges payment processing fees. Creators who prioritize retaining more subscription income may prefer a different model.

Platforms

Substack runs on web, Android and iOS. That gives creators and readers access across browsers and mobile devices, without a desktop-app platform requirement.

Who it's for

Substack is a good fit for independent writers and publishers, as well as podcasters, video creators, experts, educators and media companies that want publishing, discovery and reader monetization together. It is less compelling for someone seeking only a writing app or for creators unwilling to share paid-subscription revenue.

Pros and cons

Pros: Multiple publishing formats share one flow, and the editor includes scheduling, version history and headline testing for managing regular output.

Pros: Creators retain their intellectual property and mailing list and can export their data, reducing dependence on a single hosted platform.

Pros: Free publishing has no platform fees, tiers or contracts, while discovery tools and monetization options support audience growth and reader payments.

Cons: Paid subscriptions incur Substack’s 10% share plus Stripe processing fees, reducing creator revenue.

Cons: Substack cannot guarantee complete security of personal information, according to its privacy policy.

Alternatives

Ghost is a paid alternative for solo blogs and newsletters, with its Starter plan at $18 a month billed yearly and a stated 1,000-member allowance. For membership-site options, Appy Pie Membership Website Builder has a free plan and a paid plan at $18 a month; Raklet offers a free tier with 100 contacts, one admin seat and 1,250 free emails per month. Patreon, Paid Memberships Pro, ClubExpress, memberplanet and Concord are other options to compare for membership needs.

For broader comparisons, see Membership Site Platforms, Newsletter Platforms, Writing Apps, Podcast Monetization Platforms and Email Marketing Software.

Verdict

Choose Substack if you want a single home for multi-format publishing, audience discovery and reader subscriptions, with ownership of your intellectual property and mailing list. Its free publishing start is a clear advantage; the central reason to look elsewhere is the 10% cut and Stripe fees once subscriptions are paid.

Verdict

Substack combines publishing, audience tools, and subscription monetization in one service. Publishing has no charge, but paid subscriptions incur Substack's share and Stripe processing fees.

Where Specifiction places it

Alternatives to SubstackAll alternatives →