Guide · updated 2026-10-23

Best newsletter platforms for making money (2026)

Short answer

For a newsletter that is the business, beehiiv (free up to 2,500 subscribers, 0% take on paid subscriptions from Lite at $49 a month billed yearly) and Kit (free up to 10,000 subscribers, with selling built in) are the strongest picks. Substack is free to start but keeps 10% of paid revenue. Ghost takes no payment fees and can be self-hosted. MailerLite is the cheapest general email tool (from $12 a month), Mailchimp suits product businesses, and Brevo has a free plan of 300 emails a day.

These platforms are listed because their official sites describe sending newsletters or email campaigns, and most let you charge for subscriptions or sell to your list. Prices and fees come from each vendor's own pricing pages, read on 23 October 2026, and most rise with list size. We have not tested deliverability. How we review tools.

The tools

  1. beehiiv

    Good for Growing and monetizing a newsletter with ads and paid subscriptions

    Create, grow, and monetize your newsletter with easy-to-use newsletter tools. Build email newsletters and websites without any coding.

    Pricing: Free up to 2,500 subscribers; Lite from $49/mo billed yearly (up to 100k subscribers, paid subscriptions with 0% take rate, ad network, automations, A/B tests); Pro from $95/mo billed yearly (no beehiiv branding, up to 250k subscribers, webinars, advanced analytics, 24/7 support); Enterprise custom; free trial without a card · Newsletters & SEO · Official site

  2. Kit

    Good for Creator email with a free plan up to 10,000 subscribers

    Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is the creator-first email marketing and newsletter platform. Grow your audience, automate campaigns, and sell without burnout.

    Pricing: Free plan up to 10,000 subscribers (unlimited landing pages, forms and broadcasts; sell digital products and subscriptions); Creator $33/mo billed yearly at 1,000 subscribers (automations, sequences, no Kit branding); Pro $66/mo billed yearly (limited offer: $50/mo for the first year); 14-day free trial; yearly billing saves 17% · Newsletters & SEO · Official site

  3. Substack

    Good for Free start with built-in reader discovery (10% of paid revenue)

    The app for independent voices

    Pricing: Free to publish; on paid subscriptions writers keep 90% of revenue, minus card processing fees · Newsletters & SEO · Official site

  4. Ghost

    Good for Paid memberships with no platform fee, self-hosting optional

    Beautiful, modern publishing with email newsletters and paid subscriptions built-in. Used by Platformer, 404Media, Lever News, Tangle, The Browser, and thousands more.

    Pricing: Ghost(Pro) billed yearly at 1,000 members: Starter $18/mo, Publisher $29/mo (paid subscriptions, custom themes, 3 staff), Business $199/mo (15 staff); custom plans; Ghost takes no payment fees; the self-hosted software is free and open source · Newsletters & SEO · Official site

  5. MailerLite

    Good for Low-cost email marketing and landing pages

    Digital marketing tools to grow your audience faster and drive revenue smarter. Backed by 24/7 award-winning support. Check it out now!

    Pricing: Free plan (250 subscribers, 2,500 emails/mo); Comfort from $12/mo; Power from $25/mo; AI writing assistant, AI landing page builder and AI A/B testing are listed among features; billed yearly saves 10%; 14-day free trial, no card; Enterprise for 200K+ subscribers · Newsletters & SEO · Official site

  6. Mailchimp

    Good for Email marketing for product and e-commerce businesses

    Utilize real-time user behavior data and artificial intelligence to convert more customers. Easy to use, get started for free!

    Pricing: Free plan (up to 250 contacts); Essentials from $13/mo, Standard from $20/mo (14-day trial), Premium from $350/mo, priced by number of contacts · Newsletters & SEO · Official site

  7. Brevo

    Good for Email, SMS and CRM with a free daily sending allowance

    Brevo is an all-in-one customer engagement platform: email and SMS marketing, automation, CRM, live chat, and transactional email, with an AI content generator, AI send-time optimization and Aura AI segmentation.

    Pricing: Free plan (up to 300 emails/day, no credit card); Starter, Standard and Professional priced by monthly email volume (dollar figures did not render on the pages we read); Enterprise custom; pay-as-you-go email credits available · Newsletters & SEO · Official site

FAQ

Which newsletter platform is best for making money?

beehiiv and Kit are built for monetized newsletters. beehiiv takes 0% of paid subscriptions on paid plans and has an ad network; Kit lets you sell digital products and subscriptions even on its free plan. Ghost also takes no payment fees.

Is Substack free?

Publishing on Substack is free. If you turn on paid subscriptions, Substack says writers keep 90% of revenue, minus card processing fees.

Which newsletter platform has the best free plan?

Kit's free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers and beehiiv's up to 2,500. MailerLite and Mailchimp free plans stop at 250 subscribers or contacts. Brevo's free plan allows 300 emails a day.

How much does beehiiv cost?

beehiiv's pricing page now lists Lite from $49 a month and Pro from $95 a month billed yearly, with prices rising by list size. Prices depend on list size, so check the slider on beehiiv's pricing page for your own subscriber count before you switch.

How did you choose these platforms?

Each platform's official site describes newsletter or email marketing. We list what the vendor says and the prices we found; we do not run deliverability tests, and placements in guides are not for sale.

Which of these paid newsletters and email lists tools have a free plan?

On their official sites, Kit, MailerLite, Mailchimp, Brevo mention a free plan, free credits or a free trial. Limits change, so check each official pricing page.

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