Substack is free to start and keeps 10% of paid subscription revenue, plus card fees. That costs nothing while a newsletter is free, and more as paid revenue grows.
The platforms below charge in other ways, mostly a plan fee or a price by list size. Each row shows the free plan and starting price.
At a glance
| Free plan | Starting price | |
|---|---|---|
| beehiiv | Yes. Free for up to 2,500 subscribers, with 1 publication, 1 team seat and a 30-day analytics lookback. beehiiv branding stays on the newsletter. | Lite is $49 a month, billed yearly. |
| Kit | Yes. Free for up to 10,000 subscribers, with unlimited landing pages, forms and email broadcasts. It has 1 user, no visual automations, and Kit branding stays on. | Creator is $33 a month for 1,000 email subscribers, shown as $390 billed yearly. No monthly billing option is shown. |
| Ghost | No. There is no free tier. Starter, Publisher and Business each have a Try for free button, and a 14-day free trial is offered. | Starter is $18 a month, billed yearly. No monthly billing price is published. |
| MailerLite | Yes. Free for up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, with 2 seats. If active subscribers go over 250, sending is locked until you upgrade or remove subscribers. | Comfort starts at $12 a month. It can be billed yearly, which saves 10%, or monthly. |
| Mailchimp | Yes. Free for up to 250 contacts with a maximum of 500 sends a month or 250 a day, 1 seat and 1 audience. Mailchimp branding stays on and generative AI is not included. | Not published. |
| Constant Contact | There is no free plan. You can get a full refund within 30 days of signing up. | Lite starts at $10 a month billed annually. Lite is also advertised at $20, so confirm the current price. |
| AWeber | Yes. Up to 500 subscribers and 3,000 emails a month, with one landing page and one automation. Emails carry AWeber branding. | Lite starts at $12.49 a month billed yearly for 0 to 500 subscribers. Lite is also shown from $15 a month. |
Prices and plans change. We checked these figures on October 10, 2026, so confirm them before you buy.
What each one is
beehiiv
An all-in-one platform for publishing, growing and earning from newsletters, podcasts, digital products, communities and websites. Publishing a newsletter and growing and earning from it in one place.
Kit
An email platform for creators, formerly called ConvertKit, with forms, automations and paid newsletters. Sending a creator newsletter and growing and selling to the audience.
Ghost
An open source publishing platform with a website, newsletters and paid memberships, run by a non-profit foundation. Running a newsletter and website together with memberships.
MailerLite
An email marketing platform with a drag-and-drop editor, automations, landing pages, websites and a free plan for up to 250 subscribers. Sending newsletters and campaigns and building an audience with forms and landing pages.
Mailchimp
An email and SMS marketing platform for small businesses and other organizations, with a free plan for up to 250 contacts. Sending email campaigns and automations to a contact list.
Constant Contact
An email and social media marketing platform for small businesses, with templates, automation and live support. Designing and sending a newsletter and managing the contact list behind it.
AWeber
Email marketing for small businesses, creators and entrepreneurs, with a free plan, landing pages and automation. Sending newsletters and growing a subscriber list.
How to choose
Start with how each one charges, because that decides your bill a year from now. Some charge a flat plan fee, some charge by list size, and some keep a share of what readers pay you.
Then check the free plan against your list today. A free plan that covers your list buys you time to test before you pay. Open the full page for any tool here to see what it does, what it works with and when we last checked.
Does beehiiv have a free plan?
Yes. The free plan costs $0 and supports up to 2,500 subscribers, 1 publication and 1 team seat. It includes unlimited email sends, landing pages and templates, and beehiiv branding stays on the newsletter.
Is Kit the same as ConvertKit?
Yes. ConvertKit is now Kit.
Does Ghost have a free plan?
No. There is no free tier. The Starter, Publisher and Business plans each have a Try for free button, and a 14-day free trial is offered.
Is MailerLite free?
Yes, up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, with 2 seats, 3 automations and 1 website. Sending locks if active subscribers go above 250.
Does Mailchimp have a free plan?
Yes. It allows up to 250 contacts, 500 sends a month or 250 a day, 1 seat and 1 audience. Sending pauses if a limit is exceeded.