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Substack subscription price (2026): the $5/month minimum, annual and founding plans, and what you keep
Last verified against official pricing pages · published 29 Oct 2026
Prices change often. Each price was checked on the platform's official pricing page on the date shown; plans, promos and taxes vary. Confirm on the official site before you buy. Not financial advice.
Short answer: the minimum Substack subscription price is $5/month and $30/year (for US-dollar Stripe accounts). A founding member plan can be any amount above your annual price. On every payment Substack keeps 10% and Stripe takes 2.9% + $0.30 plus 0.7% Billing, so on the $5 minimum you keep $4.02, and on $10 you keep $8.34.
Rules from Substack: How do I set up a paid publication? and the other Substack help articles listed below (checked 2026-10-29). Fees from Substack: How much does Substack cost? (checked 2026-10-27) and Stripe pricing. Substack doesn't pay us for this page.
The three Substack price plans
| Plan | Minimum | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $5/month | Required when payments are on |
| Yearly | $30/year | Offered next to monthly; no yearly-only option |
| Founding member | More than your yearly price | Optional; own welcome email and founding-only posts; flexible pricing lets readers pay between yearly and founding |
Minimums apply to US-dollar Stripe accounts; Substack says pricing in other currencies may vary.
What you keep from a monthly price
US card payment, after Substack's 10% and Stripe's fees. Sales tax or VAT isn't included.
| Reader pays | Fees per payment | You keep | Per subscriber per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5/month (minimum) | $0.98 | $4.02 (80.4%) | $48.24 |
| $7/month | $1.25 | $5.75 (82.1%) | $69 |
| $8/month | $1.39 | $6.61 (82.6%) | $79.32 |
| $10/month | $1.66 | $8.34 (83.4%) | $100.08 |
| $15/month | $2.34 | $12.66 (84.4%) | $151.92 |
What you keep from a yearly price
| Reader pays | Fees per payment | You keep |
|---|---|---|
| $30/year (minimum) | $4.38 | $25.62 (85.4%) |
| $50/year | $7.10 | $42.90 (85.8%) |
| $80/year | $11.18 | $68.82 (86%) |
| $100/year | $13.90 | $86.10 (86.1%) |
A yearly payment carries Stripe's $0.30 fixed fee once instead of 12 times: twelve $8 monthly payments ($96 in total) leave you $79.32, one $96 yearly payment leaves $82.64. Pricing the yearly plan below 12 months of the monthly plan is your choice; Substack sets only the minimums.
Changing your price later
- You can change the price at any time in Settings → Payments, down to the $5/$30 minimums.
- Only new subscribers pay the new price. Existing subscribers renew at their original rate unless they cancel and resubscribe. To reprice existing subscribers you have to ask Substack support.
- Removing the founding plan stops new founding sign-ups only; existing founding members keep renewing at the founding price.
Other things that change what readers pay
- Local currencies: with localized pricing on, readers in supported countries (for example the euro area, the UK, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Poland) see your price converted by Substack and rounded up: to the next whole unit up to 50, to a multiple of 5 above 50. Stripe charges 1% to 2% for the conversion; the rounding is meant to cover it.
- iPhone app: readers can subscribe through Apple's in-app payments. Apple's fee is taken on top of Substack's, and you can set a higher in-app price to cover it or keep the same price and earn less. In-app earnings reach you up to 45 days after the end of the month.
- Group subscriptions: you can offer group discounts per seat (at least 2 seats) or an unlimited-seat offer at a fixed price.
Is the 10% worth it at your price?
The 10% grows with your price and list. beehiiv and Ghost charge a monthly fee and take 0% of subscriptions, so they can be cheaper once paid revenue grows. See Is Substack worth it? and Substack fees explained.
| Subscribers (5% pay $8) | Substack | beehiiv | Ghost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $69.40 (Free + 10% of paid revenue) | $88.40 (Lite) | $64.40 (Publisher) |
| 5,000 | $347 (Free + 10% of paid revenue) | $256 (Lite) | $222 (Publisher) |
| 25,000 | $1,735 (Free + 10% of paid revenue) | $934 (Lite) | $904 (Publisher) |
Per month, monthly billing. Paid totals = plan + platform cut + Stripe card fees (2.9% + $0.30 per payment, estimate) + Stripe's 0.7% Billing fee on recurring payments where confirmed (beehiiv, MailerLite, Ghost, Buttondown, Substack, AWeber and Flodesk); not added for GetResponse (not confirmed); Kit's 3.5% + $0.30 is all-in. How we model fees.
Try your own list size and price in the calculator →
Related: Substack fees · Substack vs Patreon · Substack vs Medium · beehiiv vs Substack · Substack pricing
Sources
- Substack help: Set up a paid publication (minimum prices), Change your price after launch, Founding member plan, Local currencies, Group subscriptions, iOS app payments (checked 2026-10-29)
- Substack help: How much does Substack cost? (checked 2026-10-27)
- Stripe pricing and Stripe Billing pricing (checked 2026-10-20)
- beehiiv pricing and Ghost pricing (checked 2026-10-27)
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FAQ
What is the minimum price for a Substack subscription?
$5 per month and $30 per year. Substack says these minimums apply to US-dollar Stripe accounts and that pricing in other currencies may vary. You set a monthly, a yearly and optionally a founding member price; there is no yearly-only option.
How much should I charge for my Substack?
Substack doesn't publish an average price, so we don't quote one. Start from the minimums ($5/month, $30/year) and what your readers already pay for similar work. Remember you keep about 80.4% of a $5 monthly payment but 83.4% of a $10 one, because Stripe's $0.30 per payment weighs more on small prices. You can raise the price later for new subscribers only.
What is a founding member on Substack?
A third plan for readers who want to pay more, like a donation. You choose the amount; it has to be higher than your annual plan price. You can send founding members their own welcome email and posts only they can read, and turn on flexible pricing so they can pay anything between your annual price and the founding price.
Is a yearly Substack subscription better for the writer?
Usually yes on fees: Stripe's $0.30 fixed fee is charged once a year instead of 12 times. Twelve $8 monthly payments ($96) leave you $79.32; one $96 annual payment leaves you $82.64.
If I change my Substack price, do existing subscribers pay more?
No. Only new paid subscribers pay the new price. Existing subscribers renew at the rate they originally paid as long as they don't cancel and resubscribe. To change existing subscribers' price you have to ask Substack support. The same applies if you remove the founding plan: existing founding members keep renewing at the founding price.
How much does a Substack subscription cost readers?
Reading free posts costs nothing. A paid subscription costs whatever the writer set, at least $5/month or $30/year for USD publications. With localized pricing on, readers in supported countries see the price in their own currency, rounded up.
Related guides: Substack vs beehiiv vs Ghost · Substack fees (2026) · Is Substack worth it for writers in 2026? The 10% cut vs flat-fee platforms, and how to leave · Substack vs Medium for writers (2026) · Substack vs Patreon fees (2026) · Substack to beehiiv migration · Substack to Ghost migration · beehiiv to Substack migration · all guides
Comparisons: beehiiv vs Substack · Substack vs Ghost · beehiiv vs Ghost · Cheapest for 500, 1,000, 2,500, 5,000, 10,000, 25,000 subscribers
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