Kit vs Substack: 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
| Scenario | Gross / mo | Kit | Substack | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting out — 1,000 subscribers, 50 paid at $8/mo | $400 | $29/mo | $69.40/mo | Kit |
| Growing — 5,000 subscribers, 250 paid at $10/mo | $2,500 | $236.67/mo | $415/mo | Kit |
| Established — 25,000 subscribers, 1,000 paid at $10/mo | $10,000 | $815.83/mo | $1,660/mo | Kit |
Assumes monthly billing for every paid subscriber; platform fees use annual-billed rates where cheaper. Run your own numbers in the calculator.
Kit
- Revenue share: 3.5%
- Processing: Kit Commerce (processing bundled into revenueShare)
- Paid plans: free (platform monetizes via revenue share)
Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no cost to you. Rankings are data-driven; see methodology.
Substack
- Revenue share: 10%
- Processing: Stripe 2.9% + $0.30 + 0.7% recurring
- Paid plans: free (platform monetizes via revenue share)
Fine print that changes the math
- 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.
- Substack: Effective all-in cost on paid revenue is roughly 13-16% of gross once Stripe card + recurring billing fees are included.
- Substack: Annual subscriptions incur fewer per-transaction fees than monthly ones, so all-in percentage varies with billing mix.
Frequently asked questions
Is Kit or Substack cheaper for a paid newsletter?
For a 5,000-subscriber list with 250 paid subscribers at $10/month ($2,500/month gross), Kit costs $236.67/month all-in versus $415/month — based on each platform's published pricing as of 2026-07-25. The cheaper platform flips at roughly $740/month in paid-subscription revenue.
What fees does Kit charge?
Kit takes 3.5% of paid-subscription revenue, with no monthly platform fee.
What fees does Substack charge?
Substack takes 10% of paid-subscription revenue, with no monthly platform fee.
Sources
- https://kit.com/pricing (accessed 2026-07-25)
- https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/360037607131-How-much-does-Substack-cost (accessed 2026-07-14)
- https://www.schoolmaker.com/blog/substack-pricing (accessed 2026-07-07)