Substack
Free
Free to use$0.00
Per year
$0
Free to start
Substack vs Buttondown
Compare with for .
Substack
71%
match · $0/yr
Buttondown
53%
match · $108/yr
What matters most?
Fine-tune
What you'd pay
Entry plan for 10 people, billed yearly where offered. Prices checked Oct 2026.
Smaller bill
Buttondown
Entry plan
Flat price, whole team$9.00
× 12 months$108.00
Per year
$0.90 per person / mo
$108
Starting price; rises with usage
Substack
From FreeFree plan
Writers who want to start free, grow through a built-in reader network and app, and are happy to give up 10% of paid revenue in exchange for zero monthly costs and almost no setup.
vs
Buttondown
From $9Free plan
Independent writers and technical users who want a simple, low-cost paid newsletter with no revenue share and an API, and don't need a big website or discovery network.
Side by side
| Substack | Buttondown | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free to publish; 10% of paid subscription revenue plus Stripe fees | Free up to 100 subscribers; paid from $9/month (1,000 subscribers) plus add-ons |
| G2 Rating | Not yet verified | Not yet verified |
| Best For | Writers who want to start free, grow through a built-in reader network and app, and are happy to give up 10% of paid revenue in exchange for zero monthly costs and almost no setup. | Independent writers and technical users who want a simple, low-cost paid newsletter with no revenue share and an API, and don't need a big website or discovery network. |
Pros and cons
Substack
Pros
- Costs nothing until readers pay you
- Built-in discovery through the app, Notes, recommendations and Bestseller badges
- Podcast, video, live video and chat included at no extra cost
- Very little to set up or maintain
Cons
- 10% of paid revenue forever, with no flat-fee option
- Emails still send from an @substack.com address even with a custom domain
- No public API, no Zapier and limited automations
- Moving paid subscribers off Substack needs help from its support team; Apple in-app subscribers cannot move
Buttondown
Pros
- Low base price and no revenue share
- You only pay for the features you add
- Good API and Markdown support
- Paid subscribers live in your own Stripe and can move
Cons
- Add-ons stack up, so the real price is base plus extras
- No built-in discovery network
- Annual billing and trial terms are not shown on the pricing page
Marcus Williams