Buttondown vs Kit: real cost comparison

All-in monthly cost — platform fee, revenue share, and card processing — computed from each platform's own published pricing (last verified 2026-07-25).

Cost at three list sizes

ScenarioGross / moButtondownKitCheaper
Starting out — 1,000 subscribers, 50 paid at $8/mo$400$35.60/mo$29/moKit
Growing — 5,000 subscribers, 250 paid at $10/mo$2,500$176.50/mo$236.67/moButtondown
Established — 25,000 subscribers, 1,000 paid at $10/mo$10,000no eligible plan$815.83/mo—

Assumes monthly billing for every paid subscriber; platform fees use annual-billed rates where cheaper. Run your own numbers in the calculator.

Buttondown

  • Revenue share: 0%
  • Processing: Stripe 2.9% + $0.30
  • Paid plans: from $9/mo
Full Buttondown fee profile →
Visit Buttondown →

Kit

  • Revenue share: 3.5%
  • Processing: Kit Commerce (processing bundled into revenueShare)
  • Paid plans: free (platform monetizes via revenue share)
Full Kit fee profile →
Visit Kit →

Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no cost to you. Rankings are data-driven; see methodology.

Fine print that changes the math

  • Buttondown: Tier prices/limits read from the pricing page's JSON-LD Product offers (2026-06-10). Annual-billing discounts (if any) and which features are à-la-carte add-ons vs included per tier still need verification — Buttondown has historically sold features as +$9/+$29/mo add-ons.
  • Buttondown: Paid-subscription support per tier needs confirmation; recorded as available on paid plans.
  • Buttondown: Pricing assumes at most one email per day to the full list.
  • Kit: Creator/Pro bracket prices captured 2026-07-14 by driving the pricing-page slider in headless Chrome (tools/slider-capture); brackets verified from 1,000 to 100,000 subscribers. Above 100k, contact-sales territory.
  • Kit: Free Newsletter tier capped at 1,000 subscribers per the pricing page.
  • Kit: Paid Recommendations earnings carry a separate 23.5% Kit fee.

Frequently asked questions

Is Buttondown or Kit cheaper for a paid newsletter?

For a 5,000-subscriber list with 250 paid subscribers at $10/month ($2,500/month gross), Buttondown costs $176.50/month all-in versus $236.67/month — based on each platform's published pricing as of 2026-07-25.

What fees does Buttondown charge?

Buttondown takes 0% of paid-subscription revenue, with paid plans from $9/month (annual billing).

What fees does Kit charge?

Kit takes 3.5% of paid-subscription revenue, with no monthly platform fee.

Sources