Are you a writer and haven't heard of SubStack?
That would be really surprising.
In 2025 there are dozens of platforms that enable writers by providing them space to host their content, get subscribers and have a branded app to show for your efforts.
In this article we'll be exploring the Top SubStack Alternatives for 2025 and how they fare against SubStack in this niche.
What is SubStack?
SubStack is a American online platform that allows content creators to publish newsletters and helps establish a subscription based audience.
It provides tools for content creators to manage their newsletter, manage all subscription and monetize content via subscriptions.
The model works in such a way that independent creators can monetize their audience and SubStack gets a portion of the earnings from the writers platform.
While the SubStack Platform is primarily text-based in total there are four main formats that enable writers and content creators:
- Text Based Posts
- Discussion Threads
- Podcasts
- Videos
SubStack has more than 20 million monthly active subcribers with more than 17,000 writers getting paid on SubStack.
The Top 10 Authors on SubStack collectiively makes $25 million per year.
Hundreds of prominent journalists, actors, media persons and independent content creators utilize the SubStack platform to promote their content online. For example, some of the prominent content creators include:
- Patti Smith promotes her poetry readings on the platform.
- American Journalist Seymour Hersh
- Writer Chuck Palahniuk
How Does SubStack Work?
Unlike social media platforms where the algorithm dictates the level of deliverability and visibility of your content, on SubStack you as a writer have the power to deliver your content straight to your readers inbox.
SubStack takes only 10% as commission from each account with the content creators retaining majority of the earnings.
Just look at the potential; if you had 500 subscribers at $5 a month you can generate over $2000 per month post platform fees, making it a very viable option for niche content creators.
Reasons Why You Might Be Looking for a SubStack Alternative?
As a content creator you might be looking for SubStack Alternatives in 2025 due to certain limitations.
Here are some important factors which might lead a content creator to look for SubStack Alternatives:
Limited Customization and Design Options
- Substack offers a basic template-based design, limiting your ability to create a unique and branded experience.
- You lack control over customization options like adding custom CSS or JavaScript, making it difficult to align with your brand identity
Lack of Advanced Marketing Features
- Substack is primarily a publishing platform and lacks advanced email marketing features like audience segmentation, email sequence automation, and personalization.
- This can hinder your ability to grow your audience and engage them effectively.
Dependence on the SubStack Platform
- Substack's terms of service allow them to remove content or delete your account at any time, potentially leading to the loss of your audience and content.
- You don't fully own your audience list, as it's tied to the Substack platform.
Limited SEO Capabilities
- Substack lacks advanced SEO features like XML sitemap functionality and limited options for customizing URL structures, which can impact your discoverability.
Top 5 SubStack Alternatives for 2025
In this article, I’ll walk you through 5 free and paid Substack alternatives I’ve personally tested, plus a few recommended by other content creators.
1. Memberful
2. Ghost
3. Campaign Monitor
4. Mailchimp
5. Medium
1. Memberful
If you're looking for a complete solution to managing online newsletter subscriptions than Memberful is a great option. While the pricing not be the right fit for everyone, it's overall options and boost features make it a great choice for content creators looking to monetize their content.
Pros of the Memberful Platform
- Setup is quick and straightforward
- Integration with various tools and services.
- Customizable membership options.
Cons of the Memberful Platform
- Single tier pricing can be really expensive for some content creators.
- The Wordpress (WP) integration lacks design options.
This is a platform designed to simplify the process of managing memberships on your website.
It has a membership plugin for WP Websites that offers a range of features that enable online membership experience for content creators, developers and business owners.
With this platform you can easily manage subscriptions, access control for your content and monetize your subscriptions via Stripe. Making it a top SubStack Alternative in 2025!
Top Memberful Features:
- Easy Setup and Use
- Flexible Integration Options
- Customizable Subscription Options
- Visual Customization Editor
- Discount and Coupons
- International Support
- Hosted Member Websites
- Analytics and Insights
2. Ghost
Are you wondering whether the Ghost Blogging Platform is the right SubStack Alternative for you in 2025?
Ghost CMS has been around for more than a decade starting off in 2013. This platform was born from the need to find a user friendly platform that could replace WordPress for your blogging needs.
The good thing is major platforms like Buffer, Airtable and Kickstarter all use Ghost as their choice platform for blogging.
Unlike major platforms like SubStack and WordPress which try to pepper in all features possible - Ghost focuses on one thing and that is enabling content creators write and promote their content online.
For this reason alone, Ghost is a top platform for blogging because of it's intuitive features and capability to provide advanced features as and when required by content creators.
Ghost as a content platform has the best balance between easy to use and and giving all options for advanced users.
One of the top features of the Ghost Content Blogging Platform includes:
- Absolutely nails SEO
- Pricing
- Customization
- Monetization Capabilities
- 0% membership fees
- Safety Features
- Fast Loading Time
- Newsletter Capabilities
- Team Capabilities
3. Campaign Monitor
Campaign Monitor delivers a polished email marketing experience, with a clean interface, stunning templates, and a straightforward visual automation builder ideal for marketers of all skill levels.
Its intuitive drag-and-drop editor, responsive designs, and detailed analytics make campaign setup and tracking seamless. Powerful segmentation, email + SMS automation, and built-in journey flows offer solid value for small to mid-sized businesses. However, it's not without drawbacks.
The lack of advanced A/B testing, absence of a landing page builder, and limited form customization can feel restrictive—especially given its premium pricing. Support is mostly email-based unless you're on the high-end Premier plan, and the split testing tools are basic.
While it shines in usability and visual appeal, more scalable platforms like Moosend or ActiveCampaign may offer better value for power users. Overall, Campaign Monitor is a great fit for those seeking ease, elegance, and automation—so long as you're okay paying a bit more for that simplicity.
4. Mailchimp
Mailchimp stands out as a powerful, all-in-one email marketing platform built for businesses ready to scale. With its drag-and-drop editor, detailed audience segmentation, advanced automation, and robust analytics, it enables marketers to create engaging, data-driven campaigns with precision. It integrates seamlessly with over 800 tools, from Shopify to Salesforce, making it ideal for multi-channel strategies.
While Mailchimp offers a free plan, recent updates limiting contact counts and feature access have led some longtime users—especially creatives and solopreneurs—to seek simpler, more affordable alternatives like Substack. Its interface, while robust, comes with a steeper learning curve, though it’s balanced by excellent support resources and onboarding tools.
For users needing granular campaign control, Mailchimp delivers. However, for creators focused purely on content and community, its pricing and complexity may feel like overkill. Bottom line: Mailchimp is a top-tier marketing engine, best suited for data-driven teams—not just casual newsletter senders.
5. Medium
Medium is a popular online publishing platform designed for writers who want to share stories, ideas, and insights with a broad audience. Its clean, distraction-free editor makes writing and formatting effortless, even for beginners.
One of Medium’s biggest strengths is its built-in audience—over 500 million monthly visits—making it easier for quality content to gain exposure. Through the Medium Partner Program, writers can earn money based on reading time and member engagement, although payouts can be inconsistent.
Medium’s algorithmic curation, publications, and editor’s picks help amplify reach, while community features like comments and highlights encourage reader interaction. However, writers don’t own their email lists, and monetization depends heavily on Medium’s internal system.
Ideal for personal essays, thought leadership, and topic-based storytelling, Medium works best for creators focused on discoverability and long-form content. Overall, it's a great platform to grow your presence, build credibility, and earn from your writing.
Conclusion:
Choosing the right platform depends on your goals as a creator. Substack is excellent for building direct relationships with readers and monetizing through subscriptions, but it’s not the only option. From platforms like Mailchimp and Moosend for marketers, to Medium and Ghost for bloggers, each alternative brings unique strengths.
Whether you’re looking for advanced automation, broader distribution, or customizable design, there’s a tool tailored to your needs. Evaluate what matters most—audience ownership, pricing, or features—and align it with your long-term strategy. With the right platform, you can grow your audience, boost engagement, and turn your content into a thriving business.
