beehiiv
A growth-focused newsletter platform with a website builder, ad network and paid subscriptions.
- Verified facts
- 4 of 4
- Alternatives ranked
- 6
- Approved reviews
- 0
- Visits sent from here
- 0
About beehiiv
beehiiv was started by early Morning Brew staff and is built around growing and monetising a newsletter. Every account gets a hosted website, a block-based editor, sign-up forms, a referral programme and a recommendation network that swaps subscribers between publications. Paid plans add paid subscriptions with no revenue cut, an ad network that places sponsors in your issues, automations, A/B tests and detailed analytics. Recent additions include podcasts, digital products and community features. Compared with Substack, you pay a monthly fee instead of a share of revenue and get more control over branding and data, but there is no comparable reader app driving discovery. The free plan covers a few thousand subscribers with beehiiv branding; pricing then rises with subscriber count across Lite, Pro and Enterprise tiers. It runs in the browser. It suits newsletter businesses that care about ads, referrals and growth metrics.
Best for: Newsletter operators who want ads, referrals and growth tools without a revenue share.
Pros and cons
What works
- No percentage taken from paid subscriptions
- Built-in ad network and referral programme
- Generous free plan for a new newsletter
- Strong analytics, segmentation and A/B testing
Why people leave
- Monthly cost rises steeply with subscriber count
- No reader app or network as strong as Substack's
- Removing beehiiv branding requires the Pro plan
Top beehiiv alternatives
See all 6- 1
Substack66.5Free to run, with a reader network that brings in subscribers, in exchange for a revenue cut.
- 2
Ghost62.6Open-source and self-hostable, with membership and newsletters under your own brand.
- 3
Buttondown59.6Much cheaper and simpler for smaller lists that don't need an ad network.
- 4CuCurated57.2
Built for link-roundup newsletters, free up to 1,500 subscribers.
- 5
Paragraph55.3Hosted blog and newsletter with a free tier and AI help for drafting and distribution.
Why people left beehiiv
In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.
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Reviews
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beehiiv: common questions
Is beehiiv free?
beehiiv has a free plan and paid plans. Free plan: Up to 2,500 subscribers (checked on beehiiv's own site).
Is beehiiv open source?
No, beehiiv is not open source. Open-source alternatives include Ghost.
What platforms does beehiiv run on?
beehiiv is available for Web.
What are the best alternatives to beehiiv?
The highest-ranked beehiiv alternatives right now are Substack, Ghost and Buttondown. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.