beehiiv Pricing 2026: Free to 2,500, Then Lite or Pro (and When It Beats Substack)

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beehiiv pricing starts at $0 for up to 2,500 subscribers. When you outgrow that, the paid plans are Lite at $49 a month and Pro at $95 a month, both billed yearly at 1,000 subscribers. If you have seen the names Launch, Scale and Max, those are gone.

The most important number on beehiiv is not a plan price. It is 0%: beehiiv takes no cut of paid newsletter subscriptions. That single fact decides whether beehiiv or Substack is cheaper for you. I checked beehiiv’s pricing page on 3 November 2026.

beehiiv plans and prices in 2026

Source: beehiiv.com/pricing, checked 3 Nov 2026. Paid prices rise with list size; the page shows them at 1,000 subscribers. On our 6 Nov re-check, monthly billing showed Lite at $59 and Pro at $109.

beehiiv vs Substack: the $490 rule

Substack is free to use but takes 10% of every paid subscription, plus Stripe’s fees. beehiiv Lite costs $49 a month but takes 0%. So beehiiv is cheaper once 10% of your paid revenue is more than $49. That is $490 a month in paid subscriptions.

Stripe’s card fees apply on both and are left out. *beehiiv’s price rises with list size, so a bigger list costs more than $49. Substack’s figures from its help center (updated 29 Sep 2026).

Free plan: who it suits

beehiiv’s free plan covers 2,500 subscribers with the core newsletter tools. It suits a new newsletter that is not charging yet. It does not include paid subscriptions or the ad network, so to earn money on beehiiv you need Lite or higher.

Lite or Pro: what the extra $46 buys

Pro costs $95 a month and Lite $49, both billed yearly at 1,000 subscribers. Over a year that is $1,140 vs $588, a gap of $552. Here is what the gap pays for:

• No beehiiv branding. Your newsletter and site look fully your own.
• Webinars. Useful if you run live sessions for paying readers.
• Advanced analytics. Deeper reports on where readers come from and what they click.

Paid subscriptions, the ad network and automations are on both plans. So for most writers, Lite is the right first paid plan. Move to Pro when the branding or webinars start to matter to your income, not before.

What beehiiv really costs: three real setups

1. A free hobby newsletter with 1,800 readers

$0. The free plan covers up to 2,500 subscribers. You get the core writing and sending tools. You cannot charge readers or join the ad network yet, but you do not need to.

2. A paid newsletter with 300 paying readers at $8 a month

That is $2,400 a month in subscriptions. On Substack, the 10% cut is $240 a month, or $2,880 a year. On beehiiv, the cut is 0% and you pay the plan instead.

A list with 300 paying readers usually has a few thousand free readers too, so your Lite price will be higher than the $49 shown at 1,000. Even if it were twice that, beehiiv would still save you well over $1,500 a year. Check the slider on beehiiv’s page with your real list size.

3. A free newsletter funded by sponsors

Lite unlocks beehiiv’s ad network, so sponsors can pay you to appear in your issues. Your cost starts at $49 a month billed yearly at 1,000 subscribers. Whether it pays off depends on your open rates and niche, so treat ad income as a bonus at first.

When the free plan stops being enough

There are only two real triggers:

• You pass 2,500 subscribers. The free plan stops there.
• You want to earn from the newsletter. Paid subscriptions and the ad network both need Lite or higher.

If neither is true, stay on the free plan. Grow first, then pay.

How to pay less for beehiiv

• Do not upgrade before you earn. The free plan is good for writing and growing.
• Start on Lite, not Pro. The money-making features are on Lite.
• Prune inactive readers. Paid prices rise with list size, so people who never open still cost you.
• Run the $490 test before you move from Substack. Below about $490 a month in paid subscriptions, Substack’s cut is smaller than beehiiv Lite.

How beehiiv compares with other email tools

beehiiv is built for newsletters: growth tools, a referral program, an ad network and paid subscriptions. It is not the cheapest way to send email. If you mainly sell courses or coaching, Kit ($33 at 1,000, yearly) or MailerLite ($17.10) usually costs less for the same list.

Our verdict on beehiiv pricing

beehiiv is the best-priced home for a newsletter that is, or will become, a business. Its free plan is generous at 2,500 subscribers. Its paid plans take 0% of what readers pay you. And Lite already includes the ad network and paid subscriptions, so you do not need the top plan to start earning.

The weak spot is cost when email is not your product. If you mainly sell courses or coaching, you are paying for newsletter growth tools you may never use. Kit at $33 or MailerLite at $17.10 a month will send your emails for much less at 1,000 subscribers.

So here is the simple test. If the newsletter itself makes the money, choose beehiiv and start on the free plan. Move to Lite when you charge readers or sell ads. If the newsletter only supports another product, pick a cheaper email tool and spend the difference on that product.

How we checked these prices

I opened beehiiv.com/pricing on 3 November 2026 as a US visitor and recorded the plan names, the yearly prices at 1,000 subscribers and the feature rows for each plan. On a re-check on 6 November, the monthly toggle showed Lite at $59 and Pro at $109, which we added. Substack’s 10% figure comes from Substack’s own help center, updated 29 September 2026. The $490 break-even is our arithmetic, not a vendor claim.

Found a price that has changed? Tell us and we will re-check it. Read how we verify for our full method.

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