5 Newsletter platforms for journalists
Last month, newsletter platform Substack announced that they had hit 1m paid subscriptions, up from 250k in December 2020.
The success of the newsletter model in recent years has led many big news organisations to set up their own stable of in-house, journalist-led newsletters. In tandem, an increasing number of journalists are going it alone on Substack and other digital publishing platforms.
Why should journalists consider using a platform like Substack?
Via newsletters, journalists can create a direct relationship with their readers. They also allow for editorial freedom and enable journalists to monetise writing on their own terms.
That said, it may take some time to build a base of paying subscribers – unless you have a ready-made audience, whether via your social media following or a well-loved column.
Here are five of the best platforms for journalists looking to set up a newsletter:
Substack is the best-known of these platforms and is easy to use. The platform takes a 10% cut of any revenue you make from subscription, but there are no fees otherwise.
Ghost is an open-source software that offers similar functionality to Substack, but with additional features including greater design flexibility. The platform charges a monthly fee that starts at $9, but can be as much as $199.
Revue was bought by Twitter in January 2021. The platform is integrated with Twitter, meaning your followers can theoretically subscribe to your Revue newsletter directly through a Tweet. It takes a smaller cut than Substack at 5% of subscription revenue.
Online blogging platform Medium has an integrated newsletter tool that allows publishers on the site to easily set up a newsletter for their subscribers.
Buttondown is a newsletter tool run singlehandedly by software developer Justin Duke. It’s a much smaller set-up than the others in this list, but it’s free for the first 1,000 subscribers, intuitive to use, and may be a good option for a first foray into the world of newsletters.
And look out for…
Bulletin, Meta/Facebook’s answer to Substack, currently running in beta and platforming writers including the New Yorker’s Malcolm Gladwell.
