Substack vs WriteFreely
Substack
substack.comWriteFreely
writefreely.orgSide by side
| Figure | Substack | WriteFreely |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $6/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 4 | 2 |
| Spec score · Writing Apps | 9.4 (#4) | 8.3 (#47) |
| Spec score · Blog Software | 8.8 (#2) | 8.1 (#15) |
| Community | Creators can use subscriber chats, comment threads and moderation tools to build communities around publications. | Admins can allow open or closed registrations, invite writers, and set community policies. |
| Purpose | Substack is a publishing platform for writers, creators, and subscribers. | WriteFreely is free, open source software for publishing a personal blog or a writing community on the web. |
| Support | Substack directs users to its Help Center for FAQs and walkthroughs and handles subscriber support questions on behalf of writers. | Help is primarily community-provided through the forum; paid one-time and ongoing support is available for self-hosters. |
Plans
Substack
- Free publishingFree
- Free to startFree
- Custom domain$50, paid once
- Paid subscriptionsPrice not published
WriteFreely
- WriteFreely (self-hosted software)Free
- Write.as personal blog hosting (managed WriteFreely hosting)$6 a month
In their own words
Substack
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.
WriteFreely
WriteFreely has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.