Beehiiv vs Substack: Which Newsletter Platform Is Right for You in 2025?

If you're a solopreneur, coach, or creator planning to launch a newsletter in 2025, you've likely asked this question:

"Should I use Beehiiv or Substack?"

I get this question a lot—most recently from Brett Trainer, host of the Corporate Escapee Podcast. He's looking to build a newsletter for his podcast and coaching business and wanted help choosing between Beehiiv and Substack.

Since I’m meeting with him this week, I figured I’d break it all down here too. I use Beehiiv myself (and I’m an affiliate), but I wanted this to be a fair comparison based on real-world needs.

If you're in the same boat—building a business, growing an audience, and looking to turn content into income—this is for you.

Let’s break down Beehiiv vs Substack so you can pick the right one for your goals.

What Are Beehiiv and Substack?

Both Beehiiv and Substack are newsletter publishing platforms. They let you write, send, and grow an email list while optionally monetizing it with paid subscriptions.

But they were built for very different creators:

• Substack is built for writers. It prioritizes simplicity, community, and a built-in discovery network.

• Beehiiv ($) is built for writers AND newsletter entrepreneurs. It offers more tools to grow, customize, and monetize your newsletter like a real business.

Which one you choose depends on what you're building—and how serious you are about it.

1. Monetization: Beehiiv Offers More Options (and Keeps More Money in Your Pocket)

If you're launching a newsletter as a business, how you make money matters.

Substack focuses on one revenue stream: paid subscriptions. It’s easy to set up, but they take a 10% platform fee from everything you earn (plus Stripe fees). There's no ad network, referral system, or built-in way to earn outside of subscriptions.

Beehiiv, on the other hand, offers multiple ways to monetize:

• Paid subscriptions (you keep 100%—no platform fee)

• Referral program to reward subscribers for sharing your newsletter

• Ad network for monetizing free subscribers with sponsors

• Boosts marketplace for cross-promoting with other newsletters (and getting paid to do so)

Whether you're running a paid newsletter, giving away a free one, or doing both, Beehiiv gives you more tools—and more control.

👉️ Want to explore all the ways to monetize a newsletter? Check out this full guide

2. SEO and Discovery: Beehiiv Helps You Get Found on Google (and AI Search)

If you want your content to do more than land in inboxes, SEO matters.

Beehiiv was built with search optimization in mind. It gives you:

• Customizable URL slugs, meta titles, and descriptions

• A public-facing newsletter archive that works like a blog

• Option to use your own domain name (important for brand-building and ranking)

This makes Beehiiv ideal for the "blogletter" approach: write once, publish to email, and let the content rank on Google (and AI tools like ChatGPT).

Substack is more limited:

• URL and SEO metadata are auto-generated

• You can use a custom domain, but it’s not required

• Less control over how your content appears in search

If you're serious about building a content engine that brings in traffic and leads over time, Beehiiv is the clear winner.

👉️ Learn how to turn your newsletter into a long-term asset: What’s a Blogletter?

3. Community & Network: Substack Has the Built-In Audience

This is where Substack shines. If you’re starting from scratch with no audience, Substack’s built-in network can help people discover you.

Here’s what Substack offers:

• Writers can recommend each other to their audiences

• Readers can follow multiple newsletters in the Substack app

• Built-in comment sections and chat threads for community engagement

If you want to grow organically within the platform, or if your content lends itself to discussion, this can be a big plus.

Beehiiv doesn’t have a built-in discovery network or app—at least not yet. Instead, you drive your own traffic (via social, search, or referrals) and grow from there. But once you do, you have more ownership and more monetization options.

Bottom line: If you’re starting with zero traffic and value in-app discovery, Substack may be helpful. But if you already have a site, podcast, YouTube, or social media following—Beehiiv gives you more upside.

4. Customization and Design: Beehiiv Gives You More Control

Want your newsletter to feel like a true extension of your brand?

Beehiiv:

• Custom domains

• Multiple templates

• Custom signup forms

• Homepage builder

• Embedded referral widgets and pop-ups

Substack:

• Clean and simple

• Custom domain (optional)

• Basic branding (colors, logo, profile pic)

• Uniform layout across all Substack newsletters

If you’re fine with the minimal look, Substack works. But if you want control over the experience—and how your newsletter looks and feels—Beehiiv gives you more freedom.

5. Analytics and Segmentation: Beehiiv Goes Deeper

Understanding what’s working is key to growth.

Substack:

• Basic metrics: opens, click rate, free vs paid subscriber count

• No advanced segmentation or A/B testing

Beehiiv:

• Advanced analytics dashboard

• Subscriber acquisition tracking (see where subs came from)

• Engagement-based segmentation (tag inactive, highly engaged, etc.)

• A/B testing for subject lines

If you're planning to scale or optimize, Beehiiv is built for data-driven growth.

6. Pricing: Beehiiv Costs More—But You Keep More Revenue

Here’s how the pricing breaks down:

Substack:

• Free to use

• 10% fee on all paid subscription revenue

• Stripe takes an additional 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction

Beehiiv:

• Free up to 2,500 subscribers (Launch plan)

• Paid plans start at $39/month (Scale plan)

• 0% platform fee on subscription revenue (only Stripe fees)

If you're not planning to monetize, Substack's free tier is hard to beat.

But if you are planning to earn through your newsletter, Beehiiv's flat monthly rate is often cheaper in the long run.

For example:

• Make $10,000/year on Substack → $1,000 goes to them

• Make $10,000/year on Beehiiv → You keep all of it (minus Stripe)

If you're playing the long game, Beehiiv wins here too.

Final Verdict: Beehiiv vs Substack—Which One Should You Choose?

Here’s how I’d sum it up:

Choose Beehiiv if…

• You’re building a business or personal brand

• You want multiple revenue streams

• You care about SEO and analytics

• You already have (or plan to get) your own traffic

Choose Substack if…

• You want to keep things as simple as possible

• You don’t need advanced features

• You’re starting completely from scratch and want built-in community/discovery

My Recommendation

Remember, I’m biased. BUT in my humble opinion, for most solopreneurs, coaches, consultants, and creators looking to own their audience and turn content into income...

Beehiiv ($) is the better long-term play.

It gives you more ways to grow, more ways to earn, and more ownership over your content.

Want to try Beehiiv? I’ve partnered with them to give you 20% off plus access to my AI Newsletter Fast-Track Checklist that walks you through my exact setup.

👇 Drop your email below and I’ll send it to you:

Give it a try and I promise you won’t be disappointed.