Website Monetization
Substack
Substack is a publishing and subscription platform for writers, journalists, podcasters, and other independent creators. It combines newsletter delivery, hosted publication pages, free and paid subscriptions, comments, chat, recommendations, podcast and video support, mobile apps, and network discovery, taking a share of subscription revenue rather than charging a standard publishing fee. It is best for creators who value a fast launch and built-in audience network over full control of branding, customer infrastructure, payment economics, data workflows, and platform dependency.
What it does
Substack is a publishing platform that lets writers run an email newsletter with built-in paid subscriptions, free and paywalled posts, podcasts, and a discovery network. Creators write in a simple editor, grow a subscriber list, and turn on paid tiers; Substack handles payments via Stripe and takes a percentage of subscription revenue plus payment fees. For marketers it doubles as an owned-audience monetization channel — you keep the email list, control the relationship, and earn directly from readers instead of relying on ad RPMs. Recommendations, Notes, and the app help newer publications find subscribers beyond their existing reach.
Where it fits
Serves as a low-friction owned-audience monetization layer where subscription revenue replaces or supplements ad income.
Core features
- Email newsletter publishing with free and paid tiers
- Built-in subscription billing through Stripe
- Podcast hosting and audio posts
- Recommendations network and Notes for discovery
- Subscriber export and full email-list ownership
- Basic analytics on opens, growth, and revenue
Best for
- Writers and creators monetizing a niche audience directly
- Marketers building an owned email channel they control
- Experts launching paid newsletters with minimal setup
Beginner notes
- Publish free for a while to build list size before switching on paid tiers — conversions follow trust.
- Export your subscriber list periodically; owning the emails is the point, so don't get locked in.
- Remember Substack's cut plus Stripe fees when pricing — model net revenue, not gross subscriptions.