Newsletter LedgerSubstack fees: what you pay at your revenue
Substack has no plan price. It keeps 10% of paid subscription revenue, and Stripe charges card processing on every payment. Here is what that adds up to at common revenue levels, from Substack's and Stripe's own pages. Checked .
The fees, from the official pages
| Fee | Amount | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Substack revenue share | 10% of paid subscription revenue | verified | Substack help center |
| Stripe card processing | 2.9% + $0.30 per US card payment | verified | stripe.com/pricing, Substack help center |
| Stripe Billing | 0.7% of recurring payments | verified | Substack help center, stripe.com/pricing |
| Plan price | $0 | verified | Substack help center |
| Custom domain (optional) | $50 one time | verified | Substack help center |
Not included: international cards (+1.5% at Stripe), currency conversion (+1%), refunds and disputes, and app-store fees on in-app purchases.
Total fees at common revenue levels ($8/month)
| Paying readers | Gross / month | Substack 10% | Stripe cards | Stripe Billing | Total fees | % of gross | You keep / month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | $80.00 | $8.00 | $5.32 | $0.56 | $13.88 | 17.35% | $66.12 |
| 50 | $400.00 | $40.00 | $26.60 | $2.80 | $69.40 | 17.35% | $330.60 |
| 100 | $800.00 | $80.00 | $53.20 | $5.60 | $138.80 | 17.35% | $661.20 |
| 250 | $2,000.00 | $200.00 | $133.00 | $14.00 | $347.00 | 17.35% | $1,653.00 |
| 500 | $4,000.00 | $400.00 | $266.00 | $28.00 | $694.00 | 17.35% | $3,306.00 |
| 1,000 | $8,000.00 | $800.00 | $532.00 | $56.00 | $1,388.00 | 17.35% | $6,612.00 |
| 2,000 | $16,000.00 | $1,600.00 | $1,064.00 | $112.00 | $2,776.00 | 17.35% | $13,224.00 |
How price changes the fee share (100 paying readers)
Stripe's $0.30 is fixed per charge, so cheaper subscriptions lose a larger share to fees.
| Price / month | Gross | Total fees | % of gross | You keep |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $5.00 | $500.00 | $98.00 | 19.6% | $402.00 |
| $8.00 | $800.00 | $138.80 | 17.35% | $661.20 |
| $10.00 | $1,000.00 | $166.00 | 16.6% | $834.00 |
| $15.00 | $1,500.00 | $234.00 | 15.6% | $1,266.00 |
All figures per month, US cards, every reader on a monthly plan. Readers on yearly plans are charged once a year and pay fewer fixed fees; model that in the revenue calculator.
When a flat-priced platform costs less (5,000 subscribers)
The 10% is the part you could avoid by moving; Stripe's fees apply on every platform here. At 5,000 subscribers, billed yearly, each alternative beats Substack above this monthly paid revenue:
- Kit (Free, $0.00/mo): cheaper at any revenue
- Buttondown (Standard, $38.00/mo): above $380.00/month unverified
- MailerLite (Comfort, $44.10/mo): above $441.00/month unverified
- Ghost (Pro) (Publisher, $63.00/mo): above $630.00/month unverified
- beehiiv (Lite, $95.00/mo): above $950.00/month unverified
Any list size: Substack break-even calculator.
Strengths and limits, on the facts
In Substack's favour
- No plan fee: a free newsletter, or a small paid one, costs nothing up front.
- Fees scale with revenue, so you never pay for a plan you are not earning from.
Limits to know
- The 10% grows with revenue and has no cap, so at higher revenue it costs more than flat-priced plans.
- Stripe's fees are charged on top of the 10%, not included in it.
Substack's reader network and app can help growth; this page covers fees only.
Disclosure: links to platforms go through /go/ redirects. Some may become affiliate links, which would pay us a commission at no cost to you. That never changes the numbers or the order of results. Full disclosure.
Visit Substack (opens in a new tab) · Substack's “How much does Substack cost?” article
Questions
- How much does Substack take from paid subscriptions?
- Substack's help center says "Substack keeps 10% of subscription revenue." Stripe's card processing (2.9% + $0.30 per US card payment) and Stripe Billing (0.7% of recurring payments) are charged on top, as listed in the same help article.
- Is Substack free for a free newsletter?
- Yes. Substack has no plan fee; its 10% and the Stripe fees apply only to paid subscription revenue. An optional custom domain is a one-time $50.
- What do the fees add up to on a $8/month subscription?
- For 100 readers paying $8/month ($800 gross): Substack 10% = $80.00, Stripe card fees = $53.20, Stripe Billing 0.7% = $5.60. Total $138.80 a month, or 17.35% of gross; you keep $661.20.