beehiiv alternatives
4 alternatives to beehiiv, ranked on the same sourced pricing and capability scores as the rest of the site.
beehiiv alternatives, ranked
| # | Tool | Starting price | Best for | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kit Top pick | Free, then $33/mo Free tier | Creators who want to charge for a newsletter from day one without paying a monthly fee first. | | Visit |
| 2 | MailerLite | Free, then $19/mo Free tier | Small businesses and writers who want the lowest monthly price and no cut of subscription revenue. | | Visit |
| 3 | Ghost | $18/mo | Writers and publications that want a real website with the newsletter attached, and to keep all subscription revenue. | | Visit |
| 4 | Substack | Free; 10% of paid revenue Free tier | Writers starting a paid newsletter who would rather give up a share of revenue than pay a monthly bill. | | Visit |
Ranked on weighted capability scores, weighted most heavily towards audience growth tools and publication website. Commission is not an input — see methodology.
For reference, beehiiv scores 83 out of 100 on the same newsletter platforms weighting.
Kit
Creators who want to charge for a newsletter from day one without paying a monthly fee first.
Stronger than beehiiv on free plan, paid subscriptions and automation.
MailerLite
Small businesses and writers who want the lowest monthly price and no cut of subscription revenue.
Stronger than beehiiv on value for money.
Ghost
Writers and publications that want a real website with the newsletter attached, and to keep all subscription revenue.
Stronger than beehiiv on publication website and value for money.
Substack
Writers starting a paid newsletter who would rather give up a share of revenue than pay a monthly bill.
Stronger than beehiiv on free plan, paid subscriptions and ease of use.
More on beehiiv
Common questions
What is the best alternative to beehiiv?
On our weighted scoring for newsletter platforms, Kit is the strongest alternative, at 81 out of 100 while beehiiv itself scores 83. The right switch depends on why you are leaving — the cards on this page show where each alternative is stronger.
What is a cheaper alternative to beehiiv?
Of the alternatives we compare, Ghost has the lowest paid entry price, at $18/mo (monthly; $15/mo billed yearly).
Is there a free alternative to beehiiv?
Yes — Kit, MailerLite and Substack have a free plan. Check the limits on each pricing page; free plans differ widely.
Prices checked against each vendor's own pricing page, most recently on 24 September 2026.
Sources & verification
- ghost.org — checked 24 September 2026Founded April 2013.
- ghost.org — checked 24 September 2026No free plan on Ghost(Pro) — each plan starts with a free trial. Ghost is also open-source software you can host yourself.
- kit.com — checked 24 September 2026Paid newsletters and recurring subscriptions on every plan, including free. 3.5% + 30¢ per transaction, inclusive of card processing — Kit says its own share is 0.6%.
- support.substack.com — checked 24 September 2026Publishing is free however many subscribers you have. Paid subscriptions cost nothing a month; Substack takes 10% of each payment.
- support.substack.com — checked 24 September 2026One-time $50 fee to use your own domain.
- support.substack.com — checked 24 September 2026Writers recommend other publications; new recommendations reach their subscribers in a digest email.
- mailerlite.com — checked 24 September 2026
- mailerlite.com — checked 24 September 2026No sales fee on paid newsletters; Stripe processes the payments.
- mailerlite.com — checked 24 September 2026Free plan: up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, with 3 automations, 1 website and 1 landing page. Paid newsletters, custom domains and removing the MailerLite logo need a paid plan.